Hain woke to cool air on his face. Dim light seeped through his eyelids and they fluttered open, his head feeling as though someone had packed the space between his ears with all the cotton in the world while he slept.

Hain drew himself up from where he lay, his muscles protesting with each flaring fiber, and took in his surroundings. Around him, smooth walls the color of pale lilacs flanked him on four sides, each of them windowless, though one held the faint outline of a door. A thigh-high cabinet sat in one corner, a wide mirror and what looked like a wash basin set upon it. Stacked towels flanking one side of the wash bowl. Overhead, a recessed hole shone with a light that gave off a faint, buzzing sound.

The memory of the tent came to him then. He'd woken to Lilith. They'd spoken, and she'd told him that she'd followed him in the Godless. That she'd saved him.

Saved him, it seemed, only to hand him over to the Vrai woman.

The Vrai, he thought with a sickening feeling that felt like poison in his blood. She'd come at him with her needle, and he'd attacked her. Broken free from her and Lilith. Fled from them through that maze of tents before coming upon something he'd never thought possible. Something that should not have existed.

A haven in the Godless.

He remembered a grassy field binding the haven as far as he could see, and a scar of black road knifing through the green. The three of them–Hain, and Lilith, and the Vrai–had walked that road, its surface broken and pocked with weeds like fever blisters pushing through flesh, until they'd come to the haven itself. The haven that shouldn't be. The enemy haven.

Shadow clung to his memory beyond that time. Hain sat back on the bed and felt the pressure of his situation like a crushing weight on his chest. The enemy had turned his friend against him. Lilith, his best, and really only friend.

Despair washed over him. Lilith had been his guide through the Godless, his only real hope for finding Sam and stopping him. For saving Aedan. For stopping the war that was to come. But all of that was done now. Because even if he did escape from this haven, what chance did he have of stopping Sam on his own?

Hain thought back to the night he'd returned to Echo from the coast. Lilith had stood fast beside him and Sam outside the Keep against the Empees, and then again after the Bishop's treachery. She'd been a shield against Hain's own cowardice. Never wavering. Never thinking about what it might cost her.

Something warm flickered inside him as he thought of those times. Lilith had been what a friend was supposed to be. And not just when he'd deserved it. No, he thought. She'd been there when he'd needed it.

And now she needed him. The Vrai had twisted her mind into believing she was doing the right thing by keeping him in this prison. But if he could get to her–if he could just talk to her–then maybe he could break whatever spell they'd worked over his friend. Nothing else mattered more than that. Not stopping Sam. Not getting to Aedan. Not even freeing Echo from the Vrai. All Hain cared about in that moment was being the friend Lilith deserved.

How precious that you would hope to do something other than run and hide, the oily voice in his mind spoke with its slick, slithering tongue. But you will never free your friend of this place, Hain. Because it's bastard's blood pumping through your heart. Craven's blood. And it will out in the end.

Hain wanted to shout back at the voice, but a heavy clunk at the room's door threw the thought off its tracks. He looked up, and felt a sudden jolt as a Vrai moved into the room. White fingers, thick as tree branches wrapped over the edges of a tray, steam curling from it in wispy tendrils.

Hain felt his heart skip a beat as he looked at this newcomer. The Vrai was big as any he'd seen in Echo–nothing like the female who'd come with Lilith into the tent–and the backs of his hands bore the snarling wolf heads of his race.

The Vrai smiled as he met Hain's gaze.

"You're awake," the Vrai said, sounding genuinely happy. "Excellent! And just in time for lunch."

Hain blinked once, a look somewhere between surprise and disbelief painted over his face. The Vrai seemed either not to notice, or not to care.

"We weren't sure what you'd like, but I hope you'll enjoy it, Hain." Dishes jingled as the Vrai set the tray upon on the mattress. "Though I expect that you're famished, so anything would taste divine right now."

Hain bristled at the sound of his name in the Vrai's mouth. The other seemed to pick up on his tension.

"Here I am, talking like we're old friends, and you don't even know my name!" He stepped toward Hain, one thick hand outstretched. "I'm called Boothe."

Hain looked at the tattooed hand, but didn't take it. After a moment, Boothe drew back. Hain half expected him to show some sign of displeasure, but Boothe only grinned.

"Please, eat," Boothe said in an encouraging tone. "I know you must be starving."

Hain blinked again before looking down at the tray. What looked like mashed potatoes sat pushed against steaming carrots and a hunk of some grilled meat that might have been chicken. His arms and stomach fought a brief battle to decide whether to throw the food at the Vrai, or to shovel every bite into his mouth. In the end, his stomach won.

Boothe watched Hain all but inhale half the plate before he spoke again. He held out a small metal flask.

"Water?"

Hain stopped and looked up from his food. He eyed the flask with skepticism for a moment, his distrust of the Vrai flooding his brain with warning, but then took the flask all the same. If the Vrai were going to kill him, he thought, they would have done it without feeding him first.

"I can't believe they didn't bring you food sooner," Boothe said. "A bit of a shocking way to treat someone when you're trying earn their trust."

Hain unscrewed the lid, and took a drink. The water felt like storm clouds against rain starved desert as it gushed down his throat.

"Earn my trust?" Hain said as he fastened the cap and set the flask aside. "Why would anyone here need to earn my trust?"

"Because of what they're asking," Booth said, looking suddenly unsure of himself. "The others who came to speak to you earlier."

"I have no idea who you're talking about."

"You mean no one's come here?" Boothe gave him a look of disbelief. "Hume? Any of the others?"

Hain wasn't sure what this meant, so he shook his head. "I only just woke up."

"Oh, no. Oh, no, no, no." Boothe's expression took on an anxious edge. "Forget that I said anything. In fact, just forget that I even came here." Boothe cursed. "Damn that Lilith. She told me they'd have been here already."

Hain's heart leapt against his ribs. "You know Lilith?"

"Of course," Boothe said. "It's her damned fault that I'm here at the wrong time."

"Wait. Wait. Back up," Hain said. "Explain what you mean. Who is Hume? Who are these people you're talking about?"

Boothe hesitated, his face drawn. He had the look of someone who's just walked into a house he thought his own, only to find the place full of strangers.

"Hume is the Speaker for the Foew."

"The Foew?"

"The people who live here," Boothe said, giving him a look of disbelief. "In Promise."

"Promise," Hain said slowly, trying to sound as casual as he could. "Which is?"

Boothe showed him a disbelieving look. "Didn't she tell you anything before she stuck you in here? Promise is here. This haven." He pinched the bridge of his nose with one hand. "This is completely wrong. The whole plan."

"What plan?" Hain asked. "What are you going on about?"

"The plan to get you on our side. Hume was supposed to have come in here by now. To offer you sanctuary in exchange for your gear. Lilith sent me to convince you to turn it down." Boothe let out a frustrated sound. "But if Hume hasn't even come yet, then this was all for nothing."

"My gear?" Hain shook his head. "Why would this Hume person want that?"

"I have no idea. The only thing she told me was that it was crucial for me to convince you to turn him down and bring you in on our side." Boothe turned toward the door. "I have to go. If Hume finds me here, he'll have me killed and he'll know we're working against him."

"If you're leaving then you have to bring me with you," Hain stood up quickly, gathering his white shift about him. "Take me to Lilith."

"Absolutely not." He shook his head. "Hume can't find the cell empty. He'll know something's amiss. He'll alert the entire haven. Unless–" He broke off, eyes unfocused as though in thought. "Yes. Yes, that might work."

Hain's pulse quickened. "What might work?"

"We find your things before he even has a chance to make his offer. Once we get your gear stowed and safe, we'll meet back up with Lilith." Boothe leveled Hain with a serious look. "Are you willing to risk it?"

"If it means I get out of here and back to Lilith, I'm willing to risk anything."

"Excellent," Boothe said. "The first thing we need to do is to get your things before Hume has a chance to."

"That's going to be tough," Hain said. "I haven't seen my gear since before I woke up here."

Hain saw something like anger flash over Boothe's placid expression, but it was gone in an instant.

"Do you know where it is?"

"I don't." Hain kept his voice steady, though he took a short step back from the Vrai. "I assume they took it."

Boothe cursed and turned away from Hain, swiping a hand in the air near wall. Hain watched as the door opened.

"Let's go," he said. "We have to find your gear."

Hain swallowed. Heading off with the Vrai seemed like a bad idea, but as he had no chance of finding Lilith while locked away, he didn't see much of choice

Hain padded barefoot behind Booth from the cell, his thin white shift fluttering just above his knees. He looked left and right down the long white hallway that rolled out to either side, and felt a shock go through him. A second Vrai stood just outside the cell, big as Boothe, and just as tattooed.

"Well?" the second Vrai said, white eyes searching over Boothe. "Where is it?"

"He doesn't have it," Boothe said. "Stay here, and keep anyone from coming into the cell until you hear from me. If anyone finds this one gone, they'll raise an alarm."

"I should come with you."

"You should do what you're told," Boothe snapped. "Tell the others to be ready to meet me at the rally point."

Hain barely had a chance to process the conversation before Boothe was on the move again. Hain threw a glance at the other Vrai before hurrying after Boothe.

Hain followed Boothe to the top a downward stairwell. Boothe bounded down the stairs, two at a time. Hain struggled to keep up, his breath coming hard as he reached the bottom landing. Ahead of him, Boothe waited at a door. Hain could see sunlight streaming through a glass pane set into it.

"Hurry up," Boothe said "You're lagging behind."

"If you wanted me to go faster, then maybe your people should kept all those charming creatures from nearly murdering me in the Godless," Hain said with a wheezy breath. "Because it turns out that poisoning someone is less than ideal for building their endurance."

"I don't care about your excuses," Boothe hissed. "The longer we take to escape, the higher the chances that Hume will catch us, and the less chance we'll have of finding the ring."

Alarm prickled over Hain's neck at Boothe's word. "How do you know about my ring?"

Boothe hesitated, and his voice was stiff when he answered. "It's no secret you have it. Everyone here knows. It's why Hume wants your gear."

Hain thought this through. It was possible that the Vrai had taken his things, and that they'd known about the ring, but that didn't answer why Boothe wanted it.

"I'm surprised that Lilith doesn't know where the ring is," Hain said. "After all, she's the one who found me in the Godless. She would have been the one to take my gear in the first place."

Boothe's milky eyes narrowed over flared nostrils, but he said nothing. Hain felt goosebumps race over his arms at the sight, but he kept his voice even as he pressed on.

"Odd that she didn't mention that," Hain said. "I mean, when she sent you to get me out of the cell."

Rather than answer, Boothe crossed the space between them and snatched Hain by the arm, the open mouthed wolf on his hand seeming to snarl with the motion. His white eyes bored into Hain's.

"Where is the ring?" Boothe growled the words through clenched teeth, his grip cinching tighter onto Hain's arm. "What have the Foew done with it?"

Pain spiked into Hain's shoulder. He winced, but fought back a cry.

"Why don't you ask Lilith?" Hain managed to say through the pain.

Boothe snarled, his other hand cocking back as though to strike Hain across the cheek, but the blow didn't fall. Instead, he jerked Hain forward, leading him toward the door. Hain nearly had to run to keep from being dragged behind. He squinted against the sunlight, his eyes hurting from the sudden change, while his brain shouted for him to keep moving. To keep his feet beneath him.

But then Boothe did something unexpected. He stopped, his grip going slack on Hain's arm. Hain raised his other hand to shield his face from the sun, trying to see Boothe. Trying to figure out why the other had stopped so suddenly.

Then he saw it, and his chest went tight. Just outside the door stood a dozen decidedly angry looking Vrai, each of them toting very heavy, very angry looking clubs.

"Or," Hain said, taking step back from the pack of Vrai. "We could always ask them."