Night Spinner (Night Spinner #1) - Addie Thorley Page 0,19

make a habit of looking at his lips. They’re just pinker than usual from the cold. “And look!” He grips my arm excitedly. “The Sky King has chosen Orbai. Don’t you want to watch her compete?”

My heart flutters at the sound of my eagle’s name. “Of course he chose her.” I lean up on my toes to see around the women chatting in front of us. Orbai sits proudly on a perch beside the king, her sleek brown feathers flashing in the sun. “Isn’t she stunning? Look how she holds her head. See how she beats her wings to intimidate the others. She knows she is the finest bird in the competition.”

Serik snorts, but I prattle on like a mother preening over her child. I can’t help it. Orbai is the smartest and quickest, the largest and fiercest of the birds in my mews. She is an eagle fit for a king.

I take a deep breath and look from Orbai to the road out of Sagaan. My heart at war with my mind. Go now, the lingering dread warns. You’ve seen her hunt a thousand times before. This will be no different.

But it is different. I want to watch the king admire her. I want to hear the multitude exclaim at her speed and grace. I want to watch her win the competition and share in her victory. Because it will be my victory too. The only small victory I am afforded these days.

“Fine. We’ll stay a little while longer—one event, maybe two.”

Serik lets out a cheer and claps me on the back. I peer over my shoulder again, but for once I’m like everyone else. A single blade of grass amid the vastness of the prairie.

“The test of speed will commence!” shouts the royal jester. The round-bellied man has always overseen the Qusbegi entertainment, and each year his act grows more ridiculous. With a sly grin, he extends his arms and flaps them up and down, releasing purple-and-green panels that are sewn to his tunic. He looks like a very ugly bird, and the audience roars with laughter as he “flies” across the stage to usher the competitors into position beside their eagles.

Once they’re settled, he signals them to untether their birds. Out in the field, a rabbit springs from a cage. Its small brown body bounds through the frost-covered grass and the eagles screech with anticipation. The jester drops his arms, and the hunters whistle commands.

I hold my breath and lean forward as the birds take to the air. I’m tempted to flap my arms like the ridiculous jester to make Orbai fly faster, but she doesn’t need my help. She tears through the sky like the rockets they launch from the rooftops each year in honor of the king’s birthday, but instead of blue and red, she is a streak of solid gold. Using her brute size, she veers in front of the other eagles and seizes the rabbit in her talons, shrieking at her victory.

I scream back, cheering louder than everyone around me. The ladies in front of us turn and stare and the man beside me mutters under his breath, but I pump my fist and bounce up and down as Orbai settles back on her perch, because she won! My bird won.

“She was amazing!” Serik lifts me off my feet and spins me around.

I laugh. “She’s an amazing bird.”

“That’s because she has an amazing trainer.”

I blush and pull the blue scarf tighter around my cheeks. Serik sets me down, and his hazel eyes rove over my face. Lingering. Did I smear berry juice on my cheek? Is my traitor’s mark showing? I cock an eyebrow, but he continues smiling like he has a secret. It makes my skin feel itchy, so I become engrossed with my boots until the jester raises his voice again.

“His Majesty, Tyberion the Third, the Sky King of Ashkar, has won the first event!”

The square erupts with applause, even louder than before. The king waves his large hand and smiles. His cheeks are pinched pink from the cold, and his blue eyes sparkle like lapis lazuli. I may not agree with his religious leanings, but there’s no denying he is striking and powerful. A good match for my Orbai.

“Next we will have a test of agility,” the jester proclaims when the applause dies down. Again, I glance at the dirt path that will take us back to Ikh Zuree. The longer we stay, the more likely we’ll be spotted. But