Page 68

“Aye. I heard he’s headed to some ball at the House of High tonight. Somethin’ about a last celebration before war,” another man at the table slurred. “All the cunts of the realm will be there, dressed in their finest, to celebrate a fight they don’t have the balls to participate in.”

A barmaid approached as I listened, her face tired and drawn. “What’ll it be darlin’?” she asked, her voice rough.

“Just an ale,” I replied, keeping my voice low. She nodded, disappearing back into the crowd as a woman approached the table directly in front of me.

I watched as she lowered her hood, anxiously looking around the tavern. Her mossy eyes locked on mine and I froze. There was something familiar about her, but I couldn’t place her—didn’t recognize her face. She smiled softly as she approached me and my spine straightened.

“Hi.” Her voice was soft, shaking slightly at the edges, and I could see beads of sweat building around her chestnut hairline. “Could I borrow this?” she asked, wrapping her slim fingers around the back of the empty chair across from me. I nodded, gesturing my head toward it without speaking.

“Thank you,” she said with a small smile as she pulled it from the table and dragged it over to her own.

I didn’t know how, or from where, but I knew her.

I angled my head so that my hood covered my eyes from her view, while still being able to watch her from under it. She wasn’t supposed to be here, I could tell by the way her eyes nervously flickered around the room while her tan fingers tapped rhythmically against the table.

Abandoning the conversation on the three men, I focused solely on her.

My eyes discreetly tracked her every movement, waiting for some sign of why she was here—who she was meeting with.

The barmaid returned with my ale, setting it down in front of me without a word before moving on to the next table.

I wrapped my fingers around the cool metal tankard, bringing it to my lips but not drinking.

I would never make that mistake again.

It had been at least a half hour since she sat and I could sense the agitation rising in her with every minute that passed.

Seems like she had other places she needed to be.

The worry etched into her face slowly smoothed as she looked across the tavern. I followed her line of sight to see a man weaving through the crowd toward us.

I could feel the color drain from my skin.

The man looked exactly like Landers.

He sat down across from her, leaning in close as her hand shot across the table into his. I strained my ears, trying to pick up on their hushed conversation.

“You scared me. What took you so long?” she hissed.

“There was an issue with the High Priest. It is resolved now,” he said, his voice sharp.

The woman nodded, dragging her hand from his as she leaned in closer. “When?”

“Tonight,” the man said urgently. “She said it has to be tonight.”

A sharp gasp escaped the woman’s mouth. “You have to tell her no, Cain—”

The oxygen eddied from my lungs as she spoke his name.

I should have known the moment I saw him, should have put it together.

They had no idea who was sitting mere feet from them.

I shook my head, forcing myself to focus back on the conversation.

“. . . it’s too risky. Every lord from Ammord and The Silliands will be there, as well as every High Priestess and Priest, and they will have double the security with the current state of the realms,” the woman said, her fingers now anxiously brushing through her hair and twisting it to the top of her head.

“That is exactly why it needs to happen now,” Cain insisted. “They will never expect it. It is our only chance to do it.”

Even as my mind raced, a relieved sigh escaped my lips. This had nothing to do with us or Camp Bane. But whatever it was, from the sounds of the woman’s frantic voice, it was big.

This gathering happening tonight might actually play in our favor, especially with us causing a scene in Sethros. All eyes were on the House of High, and chaos in the city would likely be treated as a threat toward the leaders that were gathered here.

“Okay.” She nodded, her voice shaking. “I will make sure everything is in place before I leave. But if this goes wrong—”

“It will not,” Cain interjected, reassuring her as he reached over the table and pulled her hand into his. “Trust me, Kedria.”

I didn’t know that name, but if she was a spy—and she likely was—Wren or Pri would be able to give me more information on her. But for now, we would use this knowledge to our advantage.

Cain stood, giving her a small nod as he slipped his fingers from hers and melted back into the crowd that had now doubled in size.

I watched as Kedria waited for a few minutes before taking a deep breath, almost as if to steel herself, before rising and heading for the door.

As her back disappeared through the tavern’s entrance, the air left my lungs and I leaned back into my chair.

If it had been any other day, if we had been here for any other reason, there would not be a single thing that could keep me away from that ball. Maybe, if we had a bit of extra time before midnight, I might just see if I could let myself in. Nothing wrong with a bit of fun before the massacre.

Or maybe, that is where we would create the chaos. Landers did say to keep eyes off of Camp Bane and that would definitely do the trick.

My heart fluttered in my chest with excitement at the possibility as a tapping sounded on the window behind me. I glanced at it casually from over my shoulder then turned my gaze back to the room, searching for anyone else that may hold any useful information.

The window shattered, glass flying toward me as drunken screams echoed throughout the room. I jolted from my chair, my heart racing as my head whipped toward it to see a crow squawking loudly at me.

Fuck. This was not good.

I bolted from the tavern, my hood falling to my shoulders as the wind rushed against my face. Cyloe flew just ahead of me and my eyes stayed locked on her as I pushed through the crowd, the music flowing from Millstrong’s now broken window drowned out by the bartering of villagers and tradesmen.

Dukovich would not have sent her if it wasn’t bad.

My boots pounded against the limestone road, sand kicking up behind me with each step as I raced underneath her. We hit a fork in the road and my stomach tightened as Cyloe flew left, off Folkvein Street and onto Briar Road.

This was the richest strip in Sethros and it only housed high end brothels. The only people allowed inside these establishments were members of the House of High’s court.

Dukovich slammed into me from an alleyway.

“Fuck!” I screamed, my body groaning against the sheer force his solid body hit me with.

He didn’t stop running as his fingers caught in my hand and snapped my body in the opposite direction. I could already feel the whiplash blooming at the base of my neck.

Screams and shouting sounded from behind us as patrons began pouring out of the brothels.

“What the fuck did you do?” I hissed, looking over my shoulder to see a small army of armed guards chasing after us.

“Might have went too big,” Dukovich said between pants, his boots sliding to a stop as four guards stepped into our path out of an alleyway in front of us.

He pivoted to the left, bolting into the alley across from us and dragging me behind him as the guards lunged.

Muffled curses rang out as they missed us by only inches.

“What did you do?” I snapped again as we raced down the narrow alleyway, my heart pounding in my ears as the shouts of the guards echoed off the stone walls behind us.

“If you haven’t noticed, love, I’m a little busy at the moment. No time for an explanation,” he said, his grip tightening on my hand as we rounded another corner, weaving around discarded crates and piles of refuse.

I kicked the wooden barrows lining the alleyway over, their contents spilling onto the ground behind us.

We burst out of the alley onto the main thoroughfare, startling a group of well-dressed nobles. They shrieked and scattered as we barreled through their midst, the guards hot on our heels.

I spotted Cyloe circling above the rooftops, the black sheen of her wings glinting against the sky. She let out a harsh caw and wheeled to the right.

My hand shot into the air, pointing to her.

“Follow her!” I shouted, as he veered to the side and sprinted after her.

We plunged down another side street, the shouts of the guards coming from every direction now.

They were closing in on us.

This was the exact reason why we should never be paired together for anything remotely discreet.

But no, nobody listens to me .

Dukovich skidded to a halt, nearly yanking my arm out of its socket as I slammed into his back. “Why are we stopping?” I gasped, glancing over my shoulder.

The guards were getting closer, their armor clanking loudly as they charged after us.

“Because there is nowhere else to run,” he snapped, gesturing to the high wall that loomed in front of us.

“Then climb, you fucking idiot!” I barked, releasing his hand and launching myself at the barrier.

My fingers scrambled for purchase on the rough stone as I hauled myself up, my muscles burning with the effort. Dukovich scrambled up the wall behind me as the grating and scraping of armor grew louder, the lights from the torches only a few moments from shining on us.

With a final heave, I pulled myself up onto the ledge of the wall and extended my hand to him, yanking him as hard as I could. My heels slipped on loose stone and a scream shot from my mouth as we both tumbled off the other side of the wall.

Our bodies collided with the sand as grunts flew from our lungs at the impact. I groaned as we lay there, sprawled out on the sand, trying to catch our breath.

“I am fine—” Dukovich started, panting between the words. “With you calling me a lot of things, love. But ‘fucking idiot’ might be where I draw the line.”