
You had spread yourself against a steep rock to reach wild rhododendrons when Richard Dale ordered you to stop. The flowers are only a little above me, but I hear the part of your warning that concerns getting home whole. You step into this one-chapter preview with Richard Dale at the center, where choices turn on the people, promises, and pressure already in the room. You started forward with the search agreed, its destination secret, and its discoveries wholly unknown. The chapter closes on a continuation question rather than resolving the novel's larger arc.
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