Page 55 of The Flame and the Forsaken

“For the princeling, I’m sure,” Destin said with a snort. “No one would go to such lengths just for Mariel.”

“The wife of a future steward? You’d be wrong, Destin. But they’re both missing, and my instincts tell me whatever Steward Rutland has going, it won’t be what finds them, because there’s something else going on here, something rotten. Do you agree?”

Destin didn’t know whether to agree. If Mariel was missing, and she wasn’t at Remy’s, and evenRemywas concerned, then it was already a bigger problem than he knew how to solve. He pushed his ale away. “One of you can have this. I’m off the drink for a while.”

“A wise decision,” Hamish muttered, both of his furry brows raising.

“I don’t partake myself. Hamish will have no problem managing three mugs, I’m sure.” Samuel folded his hands neatly over the table. “Tell us about Banner.”

Destin screwed his face in confusion. “About what?”

“Not what. Who. Edwin Banner, the broker in Sandycove.”

“I genuinely don’t know who you’re talking about.” Destin sat back. “Never heard the name before.”

Hamish muttered something about lies, but Samuel’s patient gaze was still trained on Destin. “I believe you. I know when a man is a liar, and you’re not a particularly good one, so I’ve heard. Edwin Banner was in charge of an important auction for Steward Rutland, an auction that was supposed to take place the day Erran and Mariel went missing, but was put on hold after Mariel rode to the man’s place of business. He sent his guards after her. Erran followed, and it was the last I saw either of them.”

Destin’s mouth widened into a stunned O. He’d only been locked away for a few hours when she’d ridden to Sandycove. In that time, she’d somehow managed to not only get the name of the man managing the affair but had gone to see him.

And then gone missing.

Samuel glanced at Hamish in a shared look. “So you do know what we’re talking about, just not all of it.”

Destin looked down and nodded. “I may have heard something about the auction.”

“Would it surprise you to hear your sister, as she was giving chase to two of Banner’s guards, declared to everyone presentshewas the Flame of the Obsidian Sky gang?”

He tried, oh how he tried, to hide his shock. He knew he’d failed because of the looks the men were giving him. “Why... would she do that?”

Hamish rolled his eyes. “I ken ye know good and well why. I ken ye know a whole lot.”

“I managed to return and convince Mr. Banner it would not be in his best interest to go claiming a woman was our Reach’s most famous brigand, the ire of all stewards, but the longer this goes on, the more I fear his restraint will wane.” Samuel sighed. “Remy and Augustine were with her. They rode for Whitecliffe. She rode for the coast. I followed the siblings. Erran followed his wife.”

Mariel, Mariel, Mariel. What have you done?“I don’t know what to say.”

Hamish shook his head. “A cornered man cannae find his tongue for the life o’ him. But we ain’t going to th’ law, lad. Whatever yer sis was up to, Erran is in it now too.”

“We just want to find them. That’s all,” Samuel said. “I realize you have no good reason to trust us, but whatever you tell us, we promise not to repeat.”

“Aye. Swear on our mothers,” Hamish said.

“We’ve already deduced Mariel was going to dosomethingto impede the auction. Halt it, confiscate the gold, sabotage the men attending... We can only guess. We’re already halfway to the truth, Destin. We just need you to provide the rest.”

Destin was in a no-win situation. He could say nothing—shouldsay nothing. If the Rutlands, who had no limit to their resources, hadn’t found them yet, then it grew increasingly unlikely they would. But if he told the truth... He could already imagine the lack of surprise in the knowing glances of his mates, who always said he’d be the one who inadvertently outed them.

But Mariel had boldly outedherself.She had to have her reasons, but she wasn’t there to share them.

“I...” Destin cleared the dry thatch in his throat. “I don’t know where she is. But aye, she’s the Flame. And I’m the Whisperer.”

Hamish scoffed. “Never heard of no Whisperer.” He counted on his fingers. “There’s th’ Tactician, the?—”

Samuel shushed him with an icy look. He gently nodded at Destin to continue.

“Remy and Augustine...” There was no point in finishing. They didn’t care about the others.

Hamish whistled through his teeth. “We jus’ tossed a rock into a wasp’s nest.”

“It is quite the revelation,” Samuel replied, not looking nearly as bowled over as his friend. “And one I’m very curious about, but at present, I am only in need of information that will lead to their whereabouts. So tell us, where would Mariel go if she was in trouble?”

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