Chapter 5: The Village

We reached the village in the dark with half the Northgate riders behind us.

It sat on the border between Ashmere Valley and Ivar's land, a few dozen stone houses around a well.

It was Rooke land.

Its ward had been written by me four years ago, and it was gone.

Screams came from the lane on the far side of the well.

Ivar swung down from his horse before it had stopped.

"How many?" he asked the nearest rider.

"Twelve that we can see. They're in the houses."

"Linnet." Ivar turned to me. "Can you close the square?"

"Give me two minutes and something to stand on."

"You have one."

I climbed onto the lip of the well with my chalk in one hand and the rune pen in the other.

The old border rune was still there, scratched into the stone.

Something had scored through it with a claw, deep, and the silver in the line had gone to ash.

I pricked my finger, pressed it to the stone and began to redraw the line from the beginning.

Behind me the riders went into the lanes.

I heard Ivar's voice, low and steady, and then I heard him change.

The sound he made was not a word.

I did not turn around.

A vampire came over the roof of the nearest house, pale and thin, with a mouth full of too many teeth.

It dropped into the square just paces away.

I kept drawing.

Left curve.

Downstroke.

It crossed half the square in one bound.

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