“You’re well paid for a half a season of work,” Kade said. His tone held a warning note.

Varun snorted, but said nothing.

Zitora broke the awkward silence with orders for everyone to get a few hours’ rest.

“A few?” Varun asked.

“Seventeen days left,” Zitora replied.

“What about setting a watch schedule?” I asked her.

“No need. I’ll know if anyone comes close.”

“Will you let them? I’d like a little notice if I’m going to wake up with a sword pointed at my throat again.” I shivered at the memory.

“Again?” Kade asked.

Zitora filled him in about the ambush.

“Does Raiden know?”

“Yes.”

“Isolated attack or can we expect more trouble?” Kade asked.

“We didn’t have time to find out. I’m hoping Master Jewelrose has interrogated them before we arrive in Thunder Valley. Do you know anyone who wants to keep you from dancing?”

Kade’s gaze grew distant. “The other clans have always complained about our using the storm’s energy to fuel our factories, saying it gives us an unfair advantage in producing cheaper goods. The Krystal and Moon Clans have been most vocal. They’ve even offered to buy full orbs from us, but there are just enough orbs for our factories. And some years are leaner than others. It all depends on how many storms we get and how strong they are.”

“Hopefully once we arrive at Thunder Valley, we’ll find out who wanted to stop us from helping you,” Zitora said.

“Then I’d better come to town with you,” Kade said. “We’ll drop Varun off at the stockpiles and I’ll walk back.”

“I get to babysit piles of sand while you’re in town.” Sarcasm dripped from Varun’s voice. “How exciting.”

Sleeping on the uneven shale ground proved difficult. I struggled to find a comfortable spot and managed only short snatches of sleep. And Kaya haunted my dreams. She beckoned to me, wanting my help, but I couldn’t reach her. She was encased in glass.

A shrill sound pierced my mind and I bolted into a sitting position. Kade sat with his orb cradled in his lap, staring into its depths, lost in another world. Zitora and Varun appeared to be asleep. The fire had burned down into a few glowing embers. “Kade?”

He jerked as if startled, but didn’t look at me. “Go back to sleep.”

“I can’t.”

Now he peered at me through the darkness. “Why not?”

“Your orb.” I gestured. “Your sister. You need to cover it.”

He returned his attention to the orb. “She was so stubborn. We had a couple of the old orbs left, but she insisted on using a new one despite the danger. Claimed Gian’s death was his own fault. Said he had been too ambitious and caused the orb to shatter. Called the old orbs brittle.”

I waited, sensing he had more to say.

“She was the strongest Stormdancer, and therefore in charge of us. She made the final decisions.” He smiled at a memory. “She was a year younger than me, but she bossed me around since we were toddlers.” He laughed. “My parents knew what they were doing when they named her. Kaya means ‘my older little sister.’”

“And I thought that bossy quality was reserved for annoying younger brothers,” I said. “Mine thinks he knows everything and will argue about it even when I prove him wrong.” Funny how I could miss having him around.

“I would have liked to have a brother, but all I had was Kaya. Do you have any other siblings?”

“Two older sisters, but—”

“Do they all work with glass?”

“Yes.”

“Do they have magical abilities?”

“So far, I’m the only one. Ahir has just reached puberty. The Keep magicians will test him when he visits me this year.”

“Kaya and I could both call the wind,” Kade said. “Very fortunate and very unusual, considering neither of my parents has that ability.”

“Who is the strongest Stormdancer now?”

“I am. Although I shouldn’t be. When Kaya died, my powers doubled.”

Our early-morning conversation woke Zitora. She rubbed the sleep from her eyes. “Since you’re awake,” she said drily, “you can feed and saddle the horses.”

I was happy to oblige. Another minute on the hard shale ground and I would have a stiff back. Not pleasant, considering I had run out of Barbasco yams.

Kade helped with the horses while Zitora roused Varun. In no time we were on horseback, eating a cold breakfast of beef jerky. Yesterday’s awkwardness between Kade and me was gone, but my skin still tingled where our bodies touched.

Just past the edge of The Flats, we dropped Varun off at the stockpiles. Mounds of sand littered the clearing. Soda ash and lime had been heaped inside small buildings to protect them from the rain. A log building housed an office and modest living area. The building was used by the glassmakers before the season started to make sure the proper goods were delivered from the other clans.

We left Varun a few provisions and Kade promised to bring back more. I collected samples from each stockpile before we headed east.

We soon reached Thunder Valley. The main core of the city was only a few blocks long, about half the size of my hometown of Booruby. However, Thunder Valley wasn’t the capital for the Stormdance Clan.

Kade explained the town grew around the market. “The market was located here so it would be equidistant from all the towns in our lands. It’s also along the main north-south road.”