Page 12 of Hallowed Games

I grabbed his shoulder, shaking him. “Leo, get up.” He tried to pull the covers back over his head, burying himself under the blankets again.

As he did, the soldiers below shouted a word that sent fear racing up my spine—“Luminari!”

No.

They were here. The order’s military wing was descending on the estate like a living nightmare. Dread coursed through me, making my muscles shake. Had they come for Leo and me? Was it that bloody Raven Lord turning me in?

I had to get him out of here. “Leo,” I shouted. “Get up, now.”

He was alert suddenly, his eyes wide. His face went pale.

“Grab your cloak.”

Just as I snatched my own, the door to the barracks swung open, slamming against the stone wall. Five Luminari marched in, metallic armor creaking. In the moonlight, their breastplates gleamed with the symbol of a golden sun. The sight of them sent jagged fear coursing through my veins.

“Out!” they shouted, the sound echoing. “One by one. Line up in the courtyard, all of you. Everyone out. Everyone must be accounted for. No one is to be left behind. We’ll be searching every building. Anyone found hiding from the Archon will be killed immediately.”

My hands were trembling. It was a witch-finding. They’d be gathering us all in the town square today, demanding names from the crowd. And if the people of Briarvale offered nothing up, the Luminari would start pulling people out randomly, killing them one by one. They’d get their names one way or another.

Those accused would be carted away for trial or burned at the stake. My hands were shaking wildly, but I had to make sure not to scare Leo too much. If he saw my fear, he’d feel completely out of control. His terror would only draw attention to us.

“What do we do?” Leo whispered. His eyes shone with tears.

“Act normal,” I whispered back. “It will be okay. Just do what they say, and everything will be fine.”

I pulled on my cloak, praying to the Archon that no one would look for Leo’s mark.

These days, the most important skill in Merthyn was the ability to go unnoticed, to hide in the shadows. There was no greater gift than looking unremarkable. If the Luminari sensed fear, they’d close in on us. Whatever happened today, I had to keep Leo relaxed.

“Put your head down,” I whispered to Leo, then grabbed his hand to lead him down the stairs. “Stand behind me, slightly outside.”

I led him outside the barracks to the courtyard, where I tried to calm myself by breathing in the scent of pear blossoms mingled with the briny sea air. I clutched hard to Leo’s hand as if this firm gesture alone could keep us from ever being parted.

A knight of the Luminari stalked up and down the courtyard. Crowned with a golden wreath, he bellowed, “The Pater has ordered that we round up every living person from Mistwood Shire today. Today marks the beginning of our Purification. We must purge Merthyn once more of the Serpent’s touch.”

As his voice echoed off the stones, everyone filed out of the manor—the cooks, the servants, the stewards and stable hands, the butler and new gardeners. We all stood dazed, shadowed by fear among primroses and brambles.

Who in this crowd would turn on their neighbors today? Because when the Order wanted names, people always cracked. There was no way around it.

Ten years ago, the civil war ended—a war we called the Harrowing. And for a moment, everyone thought peace would reign. It lasted only until the Pater publicly burned the defeated king. That’s when we knew no one was safe, and we understood how the Pater would rule. From that point on, the Order maintained complete control over Merthyn, wielding terror as a tool. Public displays of cruelty kept everyone in line.

Four years ago, he’d called the first Purification. The horror of it all had been seared into my memory, and I’d learned then that they spared no one. It didn’t matter if you were a baron or an earl’s son or a little orphan boy who worked in the kitchens—everyone was suspect now.

Back then, Leo was only four. I don’t think he’d understood that the Order had killed his parents a few years before. And when the Luminari had started running their swords through random victims, I’d told him we were playing a staring game, and that he needed to look into my eyes the whole time. He hadn’t seen a thing.

This time, how would I keep the truth from him?

I watched as Anselm and Lydia crossed outside in their dressing gowns, followed by the Baron. Unlike his daughter, the Baron looked dressed for battle, leather-clad. He kept his expression neutral, as he’d always taught me to do. But if I looked closely enough, I could see the tension in his fists. This intrusion enraged him. Fifteen years ago, he had been a truly powerful man.

I pulled my gaze away, glancing at the wood anemones that grew in a carpet of white around the pear trees. For a moment, a shiver rippled up my spine. Why did white wood anemones always remind me of death? Maybe it was just the nightmares sifting through the air around us like ghosts.

I smoothed Leo’s hair with my gloved hand.

One of the Luminari strode across the cobbled courtyard, shouting, “Everyone will be present for the Purification today! The Pater, in his wisdom, has declared we shall begin here, but we continue on through the Shire. Today, we leave no one behind except the dead.”

How lucky for us to be first.

Anselm stood by Lydia’s side, their blond hair caught in the wind. She leaned into him, hugging herself in her deep purple robe.

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