Larksong Grotto Mossimo

In Hiram's mind, one thing was certain. If things continued the way they were, Larksong would not survive the winter. His boys, his wife -- he would lose them all to his pride. With Nova likely dead, her nephew gone, and the preist, Phares, MIA, the pack could no longer support itself. All that remained was a zealot that Hiram hardly knew, and Daniel, the inquisitor whom Hiram trusted as much as he would a snake. He was terrified for the fate of his family. Something had to be done, he knew exactly what his family needed, but he was too scared to say it. The church was a failure. The blessings of Raas were all but nonexistent, and the Cardinal's once resolute faith was irreparably shaken.

Next to his wife and his two beloved boys, Hiram laid sleepless. When Jhala stirred and pulled him toward the grotto's mouth by the ear, Hiram rose and followed her to the grotto's mouth. What she said next was exactly what he needed to hear -- it was exactly what he had been thinking for the past month, but hadn't had the balls to say. "I know," he said. He bit his lip and nodded painfully. "None of us can." It was painful to admit, but he then looked to his wife with earnest and said, "The faith is poison Jhala."