“Tark was in Harthenham?” Aram asked.

“Long story,” Jason said. “But that was where we sealed our friendship. He gave me these to help me hire you.” Jason dumped the contents of the bag on a nearby end table. Aram and Moira gasped. Even Jason was impressed. He hadn’t laid them all out in the open before—diamonds, emeralds, rubies, sapphires, and other precious stones, all cut to glittering perfection.

Aram picked up a red jewel, a green jewel, and a purple one, eyeing them closely. “These are real. This is a fortune.” He sounded amazed. “These are meant to hire my services?”

“At least some of them,” Jason said. “You seemed to think I was here to blackmail you. It’s the opposite. I’m on the run, Aram. I’m in over my head. I’ve told you enough that I’m at your mercy. I’m trusting you, because Tark told me I should. I only know you have a connection to the giants in the woods because of how you reacted when I teased you.”

Aram set down the jewels. “What’s to stop me from killing you and then keeping the gemstones?”

“Aram!” his mother exclaimed.

He held out a hand to silence her.

Jason scooted forward in his seat. “Nothing. Except that a lurker followed me here, and people have seen you with me. I know some important secrets, Aram, and Maldor knows I know them.”

Aram grunted. “Then you have already brought ruin upon us. What are the secrets?”

“You’ll be safer if I keep them to myself,” Jason said.

“Mother, step outside the room for a moment?”

“Aram, I deserve to—”

“Mother, just for a moment. If we end up in custody, you may not want these secrets in your mind.”

“Neither will—”

Aram held up a hand. “Enough. Please, just for a moment.”

She got up and walked out of the room. Aram fixed Jason with a brooding gaze. He spoke softly. “If the emperor traces you here, I’ll get treated like you told me whether I know your secrets or not. I want to know how dangerous your knowledge is.”

“Fine,” Jason said. “Have you ever heard of an Edomic key word that can destroy Maldor?”

“Vague rumors,” Aram said. “I never investigated the claim.”

“I learned the Word,” Jason said. “I had help from Galloran and a few others. The syllables were scattered all over Lyrian. I said the Word to Maldor, and it didn’t work. I learned that the Word was actually an elaborate fraud meant to sidetrack his worst enemies. I need to share what I learned with those who helped me, so others don’t waste their time.”

Aram shifted uncomfortably. “You swear this is true?”

Jason crossed his heart with his finger. “I’m probably the most wanted person in Lyrian.”

Aram bowed his head. After a moment he looked up. “You have really met Galloran? The true heir to Trensicourt? You know where to find him?”

“I’m going to Potsug to meet up with him and Tark. And to find my friend, another Beyonder who got left behind when I went home.”

“Mother?” Aram called.

A moment later she returned. “You’re running out of time,” she told him.

“I know. If the secret he shared is authentic, it could not be more deadly. Among other things, our guest may truly have been consorting with Galloran.”

“Do you believe him?” she asked.

“I don’t know. I’m afraid I might. Could you finish the conversation?”

Moira nodded, taking a seat while Aram arose and then hurried from the room.

“Do you intend us any harm?” Moira asked Jason, her eyes intense.

“No. I mean, harm might follow me here, but I’m not your enemy.”

The little woman exhaled and rubbed her thighs. “Harm will inevitably follow,” she agreed. “Aram and I have done our best to lay low for many years. Your visit marks the end of life as we’ve known it.”

“I’m sorry.”

“There have been rumors for years about Galloran surviving in hiding. He truly lives?”

“Yes.”

“You’re acquainted with him?”

“Yes.”

“He is still striving to overthrow the emperor?”

“He’s doing what he can. He has limitations. I’ve been helping him. So have others.”

Moira brushed an errant strand of hair from her eyes with a stubby hand. “It’s almost certainly too late.” She paused, staring down at her lap, then looked at Jason serenely. “I hope I’m still a good judge of character. You could be the answer to my deepest hopes and wishes.”

“What?”

“You see, I am dying. I’m not sure how many days I have left.”

“I … I’m sorry. That’s terrible.”

“Sooner or later, it happens to everyone.” She rubbed her torso. “Pain has been gnawing inside of me, escalating over time. It began mostly in my joints, and would come and go, but it now fills me, and it is becoming constant. I can no longer keep food down. I seldom sleep. Death would be a relief, except I fear for my son.”

“Why?”

“Aram is a special man.” Her eyes glazed over with tears. “A unique man. We have secrets too, Jason. We’ll keep yours if you keep ours.”

“Okay.”

“Swear by your life. Swear by all you hold dear.”

“I promise.”

“You wouldn’t be able to spend much time close to him without discovering his secret. You had better hold to your word. Aram will make you pay otherwise. Make no mistake, he is one of the most dangerous individuals in Lyrian. Yet he still has so much untapped potential. I’ve been waiting for him to wake up and fulfill his destiny. I know Aram could be great. His father was the truest man I’ve ever known. His father also happened to be a giant.”

Jason clasped his hands in his lap and nodded thoughtfully. “So he really does shrink at dawn.”

“Not as much as a full-blooded giant, just as he is not so enormous as a true giant at night.”

“And he keeps it a secret.”

“Only the two of us know,” Moira whispered. “And now you. Allow me to share a story. Years ago, in my youth, I lived in a hamlet on the peninsula, not far from the woods where rumors hinted that giants prowled. My father was the leader of the village. My stunted size was an anomaly. My mother, father, and two brothers were all quite tall.