person. But their names kept cycling through my mind—Torrin and Mattis and Astor and Nox—and every time I thought of them, they made me stronger. These men were indomitable. They were heroes. And for whatever reason, they all believed in me.
I turned to the other people who huddled in this dugout.
They were all women and children. No Dreama, but I spied Nina in the back, clutching two bundled shapes. Her children. All holies, children.
“We have a cavern that is fortified and safe,” I heard myself say. “You all will follow me. I will protect you. Okay?”
I clutched the metal shard in my hand. A sword, short and sharp. Ha. As if such a weapon would do anything against one of those hulking, drooling monsters I’d spied outside.
Who were even now engaging my Nox. Mine.
Fury rose in my stomach like I had never known. Fuck them all. They were not harming my people. My husbands.
I was going to fight back.
I turned and met Nina’s eyes over the cowering heads of her children. “I will not let anything happen to you. We are going to that fortified cavern. Follow me.”
She nodded, and I pushed open the door.
The corridor was a sort of hell. By which I mean, it was everything evil I had ever imagined. The drooling, grotesque Reamers had invaded a place that I considered sacrosanct, my own home base. With them came the stench of war—firing powder, early necrosis, sweat, blood. Two enemies still engaged Nox, and it took every cell in my body not to throw myself between them and him. He’d dropped the blanket-wrapped bundle of books at his feet when the fighting started, and I considered darting in now to retrieve it. The knowledge those books represented had once been more precious to me than my own life, but now I had more important things to consider. More important people. Something landed on my shoulder when I paused, but I ignored the blow.
“I’m okay,” I shouted, and I knew he heard. He fought harder. “Be safe, my husband. Come home to me.”
I hoped my words, my care, would reinforce his courage, remind him that he was amazing. Because he was. Already, one Reamer lay unmoving at his feet, and he had engaged two more. He was holding his own. He was… I could stand here and admire him all day, honestly. My beautiful, honorable, Nox. But I didn’t. I could feel the rush of bodies behind me—could smell the sweet innocence of children, probably Nina’s two little ones—and I couldn’t let them down. I slanted my sword across the chasm, waited for the frightened innocents to duck into the deep tunnel, and then I turned and followed them, perfectly prepared to commit murder for their safety.
My men had taught me war. I would honor them. However I was going to do that. I had the sword-thing but no idea how to use it. I’d get the people to safety and then… Then what?
“Follow me.” I both could and couldn’t believe I was doing this.
I only had a general sense of where I was going, but eventually, I found the opening I was looking for. This run had told me two things. The first was that if I was going to run like this in the future, I had to train and build up my strength. I was already out of breath. My heart wasn’t ready for this exertion. Still, I was getting these people where they needed to go. Second? Dreama was hugely important. This was the stuff she handled. Where was she? Was she okay?
I skidded to a stop, pulling open the small door, and the women rushed in past me. They all had to know where this was. Why hadn’t they done this themselves? I swallowed. We had to figure this out. Maybe they were just used to being told what to do. We had to get the people to where they knew to do it on their own.
I looked over my shoulder. What did the others do? The prostitutes? The people not as socially acceptable as the ones with me? Where did they hide?
Questions I needed answers for.
The last person ran by as Nox appeared, hauling the books with him. My stomach clenched. In the midst of all of this, he’d remembered them.
I threw my arms around him. “You’re okay?”
“Not any more injured than I already was. And you?” He felt all over my arms and back like he’d checked me when I first