—--
Thanks to Kangee's help, Esme and the rest of her companions made it safely to the North, and they had avoided every layne crawling with demon wolves.
It got to the point where Kangee had to return to the Damned, since the orders given by its master was to escort Esme to the outskirts of the North, and then return to the land of the Damned to keep watch over the boys.
As the carriage rolled to a halt at the gates of their stronghold, the rain had stopped. The sky had darkened into night, and the ground still glistened with the remnants of the storm that had passed earlier in the day.
Esme was the first to step down, her boots splashing lightly in the wet earth. Though the storm had passed, the chill lingered, and so did the heaviness in her heart.
