Stella swung her torch, picking out the easiest path. The statue on the right had suffered more damage. The maiden’s knees had crumbled and the pillar she was carved from had a jagged crack down the middle. She spotted a carved fox beside the figure. The front legs had broken off and the nose had crumbled, but the close-set, piercing eyes still stared intently. The fox’s gaze seemed to follow her as she began scrambling up the pile of stones.
Moving carefully, feet slipping on the wet, mossy rock, Stella stepped over a fallen branch and stood tall, peering through the darkness. There was a house. She could see stationary lights behind the trees that had to be coming from a building. It didn’t look too far and, whatever the structure was, it was occupied. There’d be people who could help h
