dressing his mother applied would help, but she worried aloud about the risk of infection and begged him to wait another day. Only after Glisette promised to continue cleansing and rewrapping it every several hours did she finally concede.
Melda would not accept the coins I’d stolen from Orturio’s cellar, so I pulled the oldest girl, Stasi, aside as we prepared to go.
“Are you sure you will be safe here?” I asked, pressing several outdated gold pieces into her palm. “And have enough to eat?”
“This will help,” she replied. “And I can hunt too. My father stashed an old bow and quiver here somewhere. Thank you.”
I offered her a sad, knowing smile. Perhaps her early childhood had been different, but in the absence of a father, her mother needed her. Her eldest brother provided and the second eldest protected, leaving her to parent. Were the family more secure, she might have been permitted to learn a trade. I’d been fortunate enough to practice archery as much as I wanted, and to read and study and explore the city at will. But it wasn’t as though Father and Rayed had never underestimated me, had never closed a door on a conversation when they saw me peeking in. I hoped a promising future awaited Stasi.
Navara uttered a sheepish goodbye to Jeno while Glisette, Sev, and I watched, reining in smiles. We left the gray rouncey in the family’s care and departed the hidden cabin on foot.
For a quiet moment before dawn, the clouds cleared and the stars sparkled. They stayed put even as a rosy sunrise fanned out over the towering oaks, beeches, and evergreen firs.
We didn’t talk much, instead keeping our ears alert for any signs of foresters. Sev took us on a meandering path to help us avoid them, but we did spot a pair at the top of a wooded hill once. We hid behind a rock until long after they were gone.
By afternoon we glimpsed the ruins of the abandoned edifice through the trees. It was a relief; Sev’s face had turned gray and his bandages were soaked. As soon as we were safe, we could both partake of the remaining tincture in my bag.
Nature had reclaimed the sacred building for its own. Moss and ivy slithered along the walls. A young tree reached its branches through the shattered stained-glass windows as if seeking shelter. Ivy coiled around the ornate stone columns of the entryway, and the steps had cracked with the pressure of strong shoots pushing their way to sunlight.
We approached twin wooden doors hanging crookedly on rusty hinges.
“This is it?” Navara asked, peering inside. “It doesn’t seem like an ideal place to hide out and plan a coup.” She turned to Sev and whispered, “Was Commander Larsio drinking when you found him in the gambling den?”
“Only enough to fool the other players into thinking they could best me,” a stranger’s deep voice said.
I whirled. A middle-aged man with black hair, a clean-cut beard, and clever hazel eyes clapped Sev on the shoulder, earning a wince of pain. A quality sword hung from the man’s belt, but he gave no inclination that he planned to draw it on us.
“Commander!” Navara said. “I’m sorry, I—”
“No need to be sorry, Your Highness.” He smiled and bowed to her. “Your Majesty.” He bowed to Glisette, and then turned to me. “Sev didn’t mention a third companion.”
“I’m Kadri Lillis,” I replied.
“Ah, Your Majesty,” he said, offering another bow. “A pleasure. I am Gian Larsio, former commander of the King’s Army. Please, come with me.”
With a dignified stride that suited his status, the commander led us around the back side of the crumbling edifice.
Two guards in purple livery stood at attention outside an ivy-covered iron gate leading to the underground edifice. Navara and Glisette stopped in their tracks, and Sev flinched toward his knife. The warmth of live magic filled my chest.
“It’s all right. They’re retired soldiers,” the commander explained. “And they’re on our side.”
Sev’s eyes remained sharp and attentive, but I relaxed. The soldiers did look older, and their faded tunics bore a slightly different design from those worn by the soldiers in Enturra.
Commander Larsio swung open the iron gate and gestured for us to descend. The hairs on my arms prickled at the thought of being trapped underground, maybe even ambushed. Our best knife fighter was injured, and I didn’t know if I could take on more than one person with my elicrin stone and live to tell the tale. But