Okay, here’s the first teaser…

Granda Luis halted and turned Dobbin to face his troop. The chilled air tugged at his cloak and swept through his winter white hair. His eyes glimmered from his face and the young trio drew their horses back a few steps.

“We’ve a straight and narrow trail ahead. We’ll go in single file—”

“A narrow trail?” Lia cut in. “But, I thought it’d be some kind of…well, secret passage or something. How is it that only you and Grandma made it in safe? Why didn’t others just follow behind, track your steps?”

“Ah, there were many that tried.” His voice turned morose. “Even after all m’warnings. Men hovering in the wooded outskirts, creeping in the grasses, waiting till I was snug enough within the fog before charging in behind me, their lives over before I could utter a word. Because you see, like with most gates, there are guards.”

Lia’s eyes widened and Wynn coughed.

Granda Luis added, “But not to worry, our passage was assured long ago.”

Lia opened her mouth, but held her tongue as Granda turned Dobbin around and headed him toward the perilous boundary. Guards, she thought. How was that possible? The notion of it chilled her like an icy deluge. Then the words from the Grimoire echoed inside her head, “Fogged, bogged gates of Brume, barrier to my home; timeless, faceless watchers loom, but I am allowed to roam.”