Page 14 of Thorns & Fire (The Ashes of Thezmarr #2)

A roar of approval shook the air. Torj tensed, his hand instinctively moving to Wren’s arm. It was a testament to her own horror that she didn’t pull away. Instead, they watched the surging crowd grow more and more agitated.

‘Who here fought in the shadow war?’ the speaker called.

A wave of raised hands rippled across the townsfolk.

‘Who here lost people they loved?’

Another rush of hands, and several jeers.

‘And yet who reaped the rewards for your sacrifice? Are they with us today? Are they working alongside you now?’

‘No!’ the crowd shouted back.

‘Of course not! They’re in their castles, fortresses, palaces. Hosting balls and feasts while you struggle to feed your children!’

A unified roar of anger echoed across the square.

‘Shit...’ Torj positioned himself in front of Wren, shielding her completely from prying eyes. This was so much worse than he’d realized. How long could they remain unnoticed in this tinderbox of an encampment?

There was a flurry of movement beyond their hiding spot. The sounds of doors being pounded, shutters thrown open, angry voices growing closer.

‘We need to go,’ Torj murmured, pulling Wren back towards the alley.

‘But Kipp and Dessa—’

‘Will meet us by the Mourner’s Trail turn-off as agreed. We can’t stay here.’ He’d damn well carry her if he had to. It wasn’t safe here.

‘Lord Silas implores you to do your part for the cause! We received word that some folk among us have taken bribes to hide noble families of the kingdoms... Should you notice anyone acting suspicious, report it. Should your neighbours host guests you don’t recognize, report it.

The crowns of the midrealms will be sending people here to break our spirit and our unity, and we have rooted out many an outsider threatening our liberation since—’

Suddenly, a commotion erupted near the edge of the square. A man was dragged forwards, struggling and protesting. ‘I’m one of you!’ he cried. ‘I was born here—’

‘And yet you served in King Artos’ court, and the regent who followed—’

‘As a servant —’

The crowd’s mood turned uglier still. Shouts of ‘Liar!’ and ‘Spy!’ rang out.

The speaker on the platform pointed dramatically at the subject of their vitriol.

‘Another loyalist! No doubt there’s more of them in our midst!

Find anyone associated with this bastard!

Friends, family, I want them all in custody!

Let’s see what lies they have spread!’ The words rang out across the square, fuelling the already venomous atmosphere.

‘Embervale, move ,’ Torj hissed, dragging Wren towards the gates—

But like a dam breaking, the crowd surged into the surrounding space at the speaker’s bidding.

Torj shoved Wren behind him as they backtracked.

They should never have stopped. Reports and supplies be damned, they should have taken their chances living off the ruined fields of Delmira.

Torj’s muscles coiled, ready to spring into combat, but his hammer.

.. His fucking hammer was strapped to the saddlebags back at the edge of the forest.

Beside him, forks of lightning were already dancing across Wren’s fingertips. Without thinking, he covered her hands with his. The power winked out at his touch, leaving a pulse of heat echoing across his palms.

‘Without storm magic is best,’ he cautioned. ‘They already hate royals. If they find you here, using it against them... You’ll only further their cause. Even as a Warsword and storm wielder, we cannot take on an entire town. We don’t know what they have at their disposal.’

Wren’s gaze was brimming with challenge.

‘Please,’ he added, not bothering to hide the desperation in his voice.

Wren pulled out of his grasp as though burned, but her expression was one of steel. ‘I have other weapons in my arsenal.’ She reached for her belt, where her potions and poisons were ready. ‘Here.’ She handed him several vials. ‘If anyone gets close, hurl these as hard as you can at them.’

Torj nodded, gripping the glass vessels, noting how small they looked in his giant hands. As footsteps approached the alley, he tensed, slowly leaning in close to Wren. ‘You can slip through the gap, into the square...’

Wren balked, looking from the small space to his towering frame. ‘And leave you?’

‘I’m touched that you care,’ Torj said lightly. ‘But I can buy you some time.’

‘Not a chance, Bear Slayer. I don’t give a shit who you are or what you did to me, I’d never leave someone behind. If you think I would, that’s a bigger insult than everything that came before.’

‘Wren...’ he protested, her name bittersweet on his lips. ‘We’re cornered.’

‘Are you a Warsword or not?’ she hissed. ‘Break the fucking wall!’

Somewhere along the main alley, angry voices grew louder. ‘I saw something move! Down here—’

Torj pocketed the vials he’d been given and braced his hands on either side of the gap.

‘Found them!’ someone snarled.

Torj barely had time to turn and spot the torch hurtling towards them. He shoved Wren through the gap.

‘You’re mine to protect,’ he murmured, before shielding her with his torso as all the debris in the alley caught fire.

Wren screamed, her hands reaching for him.

‘Fuck.’ He rammed his full strength against the sides of the gap, feeling stone crumble beneath his grasp. Behind him, flames licked up the walls. Smoke billowed, thick and choking. The heat intensified rapidly.

From the other side, Wren’s eyes were wide with horror. ‘Torj—’

Sweat poured down his face, stinging his eyes and mingling with the acrid smoke that threatened to choke him. But none of that mattered now. All that mattered was the wall before him, the last barrier between him and safety – between him and Wren.

He felt the first sear of flame across his back, the pain excruciating.

Torj’s muscles bunched as he slammed his fist into the weathered stone. Pain shot through his hand, but he ignored it, striking again and again. The wall trembled, crumbling under his relentless assault. His knuckles split, leaving smears of blood on the rough surface.

‘Torj!’ Wren clawed at the stone too, though she had no Furies-given strength.

The heat bore down harder, scorching his flesh. Time was running out.

With a roar that came from the depths of his soul, Torj threw his entire body against the weakened section of wall. There was a moment of resistance, then a thunderous crack as the stones gave way. He tumbled through the opening in a shower of debris and dust, landing hard on the other side.

Flames engulfed the space where he had been just seconds before.

Wren’s hands were on him, her voice cutting through the haze of pain as she hauled him to his feet.

‘ Move ,’ she commanded, her fingers lacing through his and pulling him into the fray. Beyond their hiding spot, Elmridge was in pandemonium, and they weren’t the only ones fleeing the square. ‘This way,’ Wren ordered, still leading him by the hand through the chaos.

She twisted, throwing vials over her shoulder, the glass shattering behind them. Torj didn’t look back to see what horror the poisoner had unleashed, but there was no blocking out the screams that followed.

Wren had their horses untied in seconds, her hands somehow steady. ‘Here.’ She shoved Torj’s reins at him. ‘Do you need a leg-up?’

The ludicrous image of Wren helping his hulking body up onto his stallion spurred Torj into action.

His hands encircled her waist and he lifted her up into her saddle.

He heard her breath catch, but she didn’t protest. As soon as her boots were in the stirrups, Torj swung himself up onto his stallion and urged him into a gallop.

The entrance gates were now ablaze, and, together, Torj and Wren rode away through the forest, leaving the encampment to burn.