Page 106 of Shadows of Winter

“I left your brother in Doc Penderbrock’s infirmary,” Vlerion told Kaylina. “His ribs have been wrapped, and he’s received painkillers. I thought about bringing him back to the castle but figured he might rest easier elsewhere.”

“If I’d known free lodgings were involved, I would have gone with you.” Kaylina closed her mouth. She shouldn’t complain or even joke about the castle. It hadn’t tried to kill her.

“Offer the girl a bed, Vlerion,” Targon said. “She helped me. She might have stood back and cheered that thing on.”

Kaylina grimaced. She hadn’t cheered, but she hadn’t been effective. If Vlerion hadn’t shown up, she would have been forced to watch Targon die, exactly as the rangers in her visions had.

Vlerion smiled, meeting Kaylina’s eyes. “She’s a better person than that.”

She didn’t know what she’d done to deserve the look, but it warmed her.

“You think so?” Targon didn’t sound as appreciative. “She’s incapable of saying my lord without being sarcastic. I insist you instruct her on proper respect.”

“There’s not a lot she says without sarcasm.”

“That’s a fault, not something to admire.”

“Sorry, Captain.” Vlerion’s smile shifted to a smirk.

“Let’s check the catacombs.” Targon used the wall for support as he grabbed his sword and pushed himself to his feet. “Never thought I’d say they sound cozy and appealing after being in here, but I’ll joyously leap into them tonight.”

“Yes.” Letting Targon lead, Vlerion reached for Kaylina before following. “What do you want to do? Not go back down there, I suspect.”

“No, but if you find out who started the fire, I’d like to know.” She stepped closer, and he rested a hand on her shoulder. She had to resist the urge to lean against him.

“Of course.” He squeezed her shoulder. “The barracks are an option if you want to sleep elsewhere.”

“Let me think about it.”

Kaylina looked at the hole above, but the plant continued to glow red. Nothing had changed.

26

As surely as drink, fatigue brings honesty and a lowering of defenses.

~ Spymaster Yeroknor the Senior

Kaylina sat on the ground with her back to the courtyard wall, the castle dark and quiet behind it, the river rippling softly as water flowed past in front of her. Snow dusted her shoulders, and cold seeped into her from the ground and the wall, but she felt numb to it. Maybe it was fatigue, but she felt numb to everything.

The carboys and bottles of mead she’d salvaged from the root cellar lined the wall beside her. The fire hadn’t damaged them, but someone had indeed stolen several bottles. Another bottle had been cracked and was leaking, so she’d grabbed a mug and was drinking the mead. More than she should, most likely, as she’d given herself a buzz, but the thought of letting her grandpa’s prize honey go to waste disturbed her almost as much as everything else going on around her.

The part of her mind that nagged her to be a normal, functioning human being kept telling her to put the mead away and go check on her brother. But such weariness cloaked her that even getting up felt like an impossible task. Besides, Targon and Vlerion hadn’t returned from the catacombs.

But would they? They might not return through her root cellar, instead coming up in another part of the city, off to handle whatever new mess they’d unearthed down there. Maybe they would forget about her. She didn’t know why they wouldn’t. What was she to them?

She took a long drink from her mug, the sweet mead chilled by the same air that seeped into her bones.

“There you are.” Vlerion stepped through the gate, his cloak and hood hiding his features as he looked down at her.

“I’ve heroically salvaged the mead.” Kaylina raised her mug.

“A noble deed, I’m certain.”

“Yup.” She drank again, welcoming the fuzzy numbness creeping into her mind.

“We didn’t encounter anyone in the catacombs, but the barricade was broken again. We’ll have to bring masons down to build a more substantial barrier. We should have done that to begin with, but we’ve been inconsistent about defending the castle access point. Some felt it was better to know where the criminals were coming and going rather than forcing them to use another exit we didn’t know about. Catacombs access points are all over the city. A nursery on Fountain and Second has one in the basement.”

“Any evidence that the arsonists came in from the catacombs?” Kaylina suspected so, but the broken kerosene bottle in the pantry didn’t prove it.

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