Page 142 of The Serpent’s Shadow

Frida lifted her chin defiantly, glancing away. “It’s too late, Arne. What’s done is done. I’m sorry you don’t understand.”

“Does Dieter know about this? Tell me, Frida. Does yourleaderknow you’re slinking out here in the underground, like rats in a cellar?”

She bared her teeth, bending her knees in a fighting stance while curling her spindly fingers into fists. “Don’t talk about Dieter to me, Arne. You don’t know him like I do. You don’t know any of the Lepers like I do, because youaren’tone and you never will be! Stop trying to protect us! You did what you could for us. Now I have to keep us ahead of the game. With the elf, we are in danger. I’ve bought us more peace.”

Arne looked struck. My heart hurt for him. The answer wasno, in my mind—Dieter did not know of her subterfuge, or he’d be here. Frida would be proud to admit it. Instead, she deflected, somehow bringing the blame onto her brother.

In a way, it worked. I understood it. The Lepers were perpetually in danger of being eradicated by the academy.

Now, with this “prize,” my resilient mate Corym E’tar, she could buy her people their freedom.

I hated that it made sense. I hated that it had come to this, because I’d always compared myself favorably to the Lepers—even likening myself to them when my magic had been dormant.

Even with the shouting match going on, I couldn’t focus on Frida’s vitriol. I noticed Corym’s eyes were darting, calculating a way out of this.

We couldn’t go backward—we’d trap ourselves. I presumed Huscarls had gone through the passages and wheeled around to our back, to cut off any chance of escape.

No, the only option was to gothroughthe mass of bodies in front of us . . . including Arne’s sister.

My stomach soured at the thought, fear and sorrow squeezing my heart as I saw Arne’s narrow-eyed expression, knowing he had recognized the same thing as me.

Mist drifted from the thin ice daggers in his hands, which he held without being affected by the cold. Corym’s hands loosened on his blade, which didn’t mean he was giving up, but simply meant he was ready to roll into his deadly rhythm of swordplay. When others tensed, he became calmer.

I didn’t have foresight, but I could see this going very badly very fast. Lots of blood spilled across the stones and walls. Dead Huscarls, dead brother and sister, and probably dead elf and bog-blood.

Fuck.

The Huscarls raised their spears, leveling them at us, forming a shield wall around the perimeter of the room.

They marched toward us, boots rumbling the ground.

My heart thundered against my ribs. I hadn’t drawn my spear yet. My eyes scanned left and right, finding nothing—no way out of this predicament we’d stumbled upon.

Corym and Arne advanced in front of me.

The soldiers closed the gap to ten feet in a hurry—

And I lunged in front of Corym and Arne, between the two golden beauties. “Wait!” I shouted, slashing a hand through the air.

The Huscarls paused.

“Death solves nothing,” I said.

It was comical coming from me, I knew. Hypocritical. Buttheseguards didn’t know what we’d done. They would only find out if Frida opened her big mouth to tell them . . . which would also put her up shit’s creek.

The Huscarls eyed each other.

I glanced over at Corym, the expression on my face sinking into dismal despair. “Can you wait a little longer, love?” I whispered.

His perfect brow furrowed. “Lunis’ai?”

“For us.”

His jaw clenched, lips pursing. I knew how much he wanted to fight for his freedom.

“I’ll find a way,” I croaked, fighting back tears. “I promise.”

Slowly, Corym lowered his sword.

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