Page 74 of Kingdom of Shadows and Wings

Based on Abel’s narrowed eyes, I’m not sure my innocent expression has fooled anyone. Luckily, Nick jumps in before I squirm too much. “Olive, truth or dare?”

I wait another round before whispering in Olive’s ear. Then wait an additional two rounds for Olive to point at me. “This time, I’ll take dare.”

Nick whoops. Olive claps. Abel sips his whiskey, far too sober for comfort.

Oh, well. Too late to worry about that now. Facing Olive, I pray she remembers what I told her a few rounds ago.

At first, she hems and haws, and my shoulders sink. In the next breath, she brightens and cackles. “Oh, I’ve got a good one! Lark, your dare is to sneak into Sterling Hottie-Pants Thorne’s room and steal one of those off-campus tokens.”

With an animated gasp, I do my best to feign shock. “What? Are you nuts?”

A swaying Nick grins. “What’s the matter, Axton? Are you chicken?” He tucks his hands into his armpits and flaps his elbows, clucking and scratching at the ground with his boot.

After dissolving into a fit of giggles, Olive throws back her head and yodels. “Cock-a-doodle-do!”

Aclaris’s finest right here, ladies and gentlemen. If this is all that’s standing between our kingdom and the Tirenese, we might be screwed.

Abel shakes his head. “This is just plain sad.”

“Agreed.” I huff out a laugh. “But fine, I’ll do it.”

While far from foolproof, using our little game of truth and dare as a cover story if Thorne catches me in the act is better than nothing.

“Go on then.” Nick shoos me away. “You don’t have all night.”

“Okay. Here I go.”

Olive gives me a drunken wave. “Don’t get caught.”

When I glance at Abel, he winks. “And if you do, just tell him you came for a good dicking down.”

I splutter while Olive busts out laughing. Abel and Nick both shush her. “You guys are the worst,” I hiss.

With Abel’s comment ringing in my head and a mild but pleasant whiskey buzz injecting me with liquid courage, I leave the building and head toward the alicorn stable. My trek across the grounds proves uneventful, the few recruits I pass paying me no attention.

Once there, I peek inside the door, my eyes taking a moment to adjust to the dim lights. A shiny black alicorn in a stall near the entrance lifts its head, ears swiveling toward me and nostrils flaring.

Swallowing hard, I creep into the building. With no sign of Thorne, I head to the far end of the stable, searching for the room Nick and Abel described.

Just like they said, I find the place past a row of stalls. Despite my daily training sessions and flight lessons, I’ve never paid much attention to the plain, unassuming door that I figured led to some sort of storage space or supply area.

With a deep breath, I perform another quick scan. What if Thorne’s inside?

Only one way to find out.

Steeling my courage, I give a soft knock and wait. No answer. I tap on the door again and press my ear to the wood.

No response.

Fingers trembling, I reach for the handle. It turns with no resistance, and the door opens with only the tiniest creak. A weak light illuminates the small space. Head buzzing, I tiptoe inside, hardly daring to breathe.

Thorne’s lingering scent draws me into the sparse, functional room. Pushed against the right wall is a small, neatly made cot. A bedside table with a lantern on top occupies a spot near the pillow. On the opposite side of the room stands a small desk and chair, with a single shelf laden with books above the desk. A worn wooden armoire is tucked away in the rear left corner.

Thanks to Thorne’s orderliness, the search progresses with ease. I make quick work of the desk, bedside table, and cot but find nothing. I move to the armoire next.

Through the cracked right door, a silver glimmer catches my eye.

Heart pounding, I push the door open wider. A small metal box sits on an interior shelf, the contents spilling out from the open lid. Silver, gold, and bronze coins…thin silver chains. Cream-colored papers sealed with wax bearing some kind of crest.

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