a passerby lighting a cigar, and then he headed for the archive. At the edge of Watercress Avenue, he slipped into the shadows between two buildings and continued along the back of Lilypetal Street. Crossing hedges and squeezing between fence posts, he scooped up a decorative rock from someone’s backyard. When he reached the modest backyard of the archive, he glanced over the top for watchful eyes, then cleared it, biting back a groan when his feet hit the ground. Using the matches to light the hay on fire, he placed it in a pile at the bottom of the wooden fence, waiting and watching until the flames had a solid grip on the fence post. He flipped the decorative rock in the air, then tossed it square through the kitchen window.
The glass shattered, followed by shouts of alarm from the two guards inside. Quickly, Tauran slipped around the corner to the side window. Like he hoped, it was ajar in the morning heat. No need to risk the front door.
He crawled silently through, passed the kitchen doorway and headed for the stairs. Kalai came down the steps at the same moment. He looked nervous, but when he saw Tauran, he smiled.
“We need to talk. Quickly,” Tauran whispered.
“That was you, outside! Skies, you’re a rascal.” Kalai grabbed Tauran’s hand and pulled him into the small utility room beside the stairs. He shut the door, leaving them in darkness, except for a narrow beam of light through a crack in the wood.
“Learned a few tricks in my youth,” Tauran explained.
The utility closet was anything but spacious. Their knees knocked together and Tauran swore when he accidentally elbowed a broom and knocked it into the opposite shelves.
Kalai hushed him, but his smile was still visible in the faint light.
Knowing he was about to wipe that smile from his face filled Tauran with guilt. Feeling guilty seemed all he had done these past few days. “The Sky Guard is searching the ruins for signs of a wild dragon,” he whispered. He could hear the voices of the guards outside, trying to quench the flames, or perhaps search for the attacker.
Kalai’s smile vanished. “What?”
“We have to get out of the city.” Tauran realized the truth in his own words as he said them. They couldn’t stay in Valreus. Not any longer. He relayed to Kalai what had happened. The note he had received from Catria and the coordinates to the Terror Marshes.
“The Terror Marshes?” Kalai whispered. “Are you sure?”
Tauran nodded.
“And what answers are we meant to find there?”
“I don’t know. I haven’t been able to get either of them alone. I think Falka is keeping us apart on purpose.”
Kalai shook his head. “If things are getting as bad as you suspect, it’ll only get worse. Skies, Tauran. I can’t even take a piss without those two idiots looking over my shoulder.”
Tauran groaned. “I’m sorry. I wanted to get you to Erica.”
“Don’t worry about that, now.” Kalai’s hands found Tauran’s in the darkness and squeezed. “We need to get out of here before they find Arrow.” He frowned. “How far are the Terror Marshes?”
Tauran knew what he was thinking. Kalai couldn’t go a day without the pills before feeling sick. “Three weeks. Maybe four. It depends on the terrain and how far horses can take us.”
Kalai’s eyes lit up. “I counted the pills in the box Catria brought. There should be enough for eight weeks.”
Tauran narrowed his eyes in thought. Coordinates, and enough pills for the journey out and back? Catria had wanted them to go. If that hadn’t already been clear, Kalai’s words confirmed it.
“But…” Kalai bit his lip.
Tauran understood his hesitation.
Falka wasn’t letting Kalai out of his sight, so they would have to first evade the guards, then fetch Arrow in the tower ruin, then buy some horses or hitch a ride in a wagon out of the city.
Discomfort churned in Tauran’s gut at another thought.
Leyra.
Falka knew how close Tauran was with her. If he was as out of it as Tauran feared, he had no doubt that Falka would use Leyra against him if Tauran tried to leave Valreus, or punish her for his disobedience upon his return.
Tauran blew out a breath. So they would have to smuggle out an incredibly valuable dragon from the safest place in Valreus, escape under the noses of vigilant guards and flee the city with a wild swiftwing.
It was near impossible.
If they left Valreus, they shouldn’t expect to be welcomed back with open arms. It would