Page 102 of Of Nine So Bold

Everything I’d seen in Byron’s memories played back. Of course Ignatius hadn’t been there when he took his vows. Why would he be, when Byron joining the Order was an affront to everything he believed?

And now our lives depended on this man.

“But…” Niko sounded surprised. “He’s been helping me. And he knows what I am. He hasn’t treated me that way at all.”

Byron didn’t appear reassured.

“Maybe he’s changed?” I offered.

Niko nodded like that must be the answer.

“Whatever he may think now,” Dex said, “we need a way out of here, and they need our help to do it. Casimir, you think you can tell if he tries anything with the spell?”

The vampire nodded.

“Good. Ozias, if anything goes wrong, you get?—”

“No,” I interrupted firmly. “I’m not leaving you down here.”

Dex turned a frustrated look on me. I glared right back.

“Okay, uh, well,” Lars began. “I don’t think the big folks back there are going to wait much longer, so maybe we should just get on with it?”

Dex nodded. “We break the manacles off Ignatius and any others we need for the gateway spell, and we take that route out of here.” His jaw tightened briefly. “No matter what that duke tries to say.”

27

BYRON

Hell was being trapped in a cavern with my treluria and the man who swore I’d never be able to keep my vows.

Hell was our lives depending upon a spell so complex, it would require all our skill just to manage it, and yet Casimir inexplicably did not want my help.

Hell was here and now.

Following my friends across the room, I scrubbed a hand over my hair and then cursed myself for the obvious sign of distress. Every giant here was looking for a reason to look down upon us. I couldn’t be the reason they found one.

The boy is too weak. Mark my words, if you let him into this illustrious body, he will shame us all.

My stomach twisted on itself. Ignatius had never made a secret of his opinions about me. And because he hadn’t, the lower ranks of scholars felt they had free rein to vent upon me all their scorn.

Idiot. You failed another test? Those spells are easy forrealgiants. Why do you even try?

My hands curled into fists, my nails digging into palms roughened by years of mining and survival after the Orderfell. I’d been different back then. Softer, my body untested by anything but hours of study and meditation.

But I’d never broken. Not when fellow initiates bespelled my clothes to freeze me at night or my work to erase itself. Not when I found dead animals in my bed or mold covering food I’d prepared less than an hour before.

Not when so many of the instructors turned a blind eye to it all or told me arealgiant wouldn’t complain.

Dathan had been one of the few to see through it, and the only one to take me under his wing. But even if his actions made those torments stop, it had done nothing for people like Ignatius, who treated me like dirt under his shoes if he acknowledged me at all.

Let a dwarf take the title of scholar? Next you’ll say a mouse could become king of Erenelle!

Gods, he’d always spoken like I couldn’t hear his words. Like I was furniture rather than a living being.

No matter what Niko believed, I knew Ignatius would never respect a dwarf.

I avoided the scholar’s eyes while we walked up to the group of giants, but that only meant I saw the disgust in the duke’s gaze instead. “Have the Zeniryans made their decision?” Duke Ensid asked.

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