The scimitar flashed away from her neck, returning to the druid's side. "Then come," the elf said. "Keep up, because I'm not going to wait on you." "I need my gear," Druz protested. Without another word, the druid turned and vanished into the forest. Druz cursed, calling on Tyr to guide her and Mystra to watch over her as she foolishly followed her own sense of duty. She sprinted back to the group, snatched up her sword belt, then fisted her personal pack from the ground. "You're a fool for going with him," Kord said as he helped his brother to his feet. "That man will cut your throat and feed you to the wolves we're hunting." "He didn't kill your brother," Druz pointed out. "He knew he would have the rest of us against him if he did." Kord's youthful pride wouldn't let him entirely accept the defeat he'd just been handed. "From what I've heard about the Emerald Enclave," Druz said, settling the pack across her shoulders, "the druid would probably have made good on his threat to kill us all, even without the bear." The bear, too, had disappeared back into the forest. "Don't overlook the druid's generosity." Druz started for the clearing's edge. "Then why are you going with him?" Kord asked. "Because I have to." "That's not it," Tethys put in. "Druz has heard the jingle of the shepherd's money bags. If she goes with the druid and brings back proof of the kill, she'll claim the bounty for herself." "No," Druz said. "That's not what this is about for me." Tethys laughed mirthlessly. "We'll see, girl, but if you try to cut us out of what's lawfully ours, I'll slit your throat myself." Druz shrugged off the threat. She'd been around men like Tethys nearly all her life. In the next instant, she plunged into the forest, following the small, wiggling bushes that marked the druid's passage. She lengthened her stride, hoping to catch up.

CHAPTER THREE

"Do you think he has something worth taking, Cerril?"