Her heartbeat quickened. Through the trees ahead, something broke the monotony of green, a flash of canvas, the muted glint of metal. She crouched low, moving between the trunks until the clearing came into view.
A small camp. Crude, but recent. A tent half-collapsed beside a dead fire. A length of rope. A lantern hung from a branch, still swaying. She inched closer, breath shallow, until the details came into focus. A cage.