Page 155 of Once the Skies Fade

Or for her to at least speak to me face-to-face.

I should have said more while we were together.

I should have… No.

Calla needed time. She deserved that much. Unfortunately, given how the Assembly had reacted to my providing the poisoned dagger, time wasn’t a luxury I possessed. As if to illustrate that point, the door to my cell flew open, scraping loudly against the stone floor. Two guards stomped in. I eyed them lazily.

“On your feet,” one of them ordered.

Stretching my arms overhead, I yawned and took my time getting up off the floor.

“Time for my trial already?” I asked.

The only answer I received was another command. “Hands behind you.”

I complied, craning my neck to peer behind me as one of them slid around to clasp cuffs on my wrists.

“Where’s General Marlowe?” I asked, but again they ignored me, taking me by the arms to escort me out into the hallway. “You two can hear me, right? I haven’t lost my voice, have I?”

“Matthias!” Sera called down the hallway. “What’s happening?”

Raven tried to hush her from her cell. Before I could respond, the guard on my right yelled at her as he yanked me forward. “Shut your mouth, woman! This doesn’t concern you.”

We had barely passed out of my sister’s sight when Graham came bolting around the corner, his face heated with sweat beading along his hairline. He straightened as soon as he saw me in the arms of the guards. His lips twitched as if trying not to smile at my predicament, which seemed fitting given how he’d nearly beamed at my arrest after I’d handed over the daggers.

I offered a friendly smile—just to irritate him. “Come to gloat, Graham?”

“No,” he said, his expression stiffening as he worked to control his ragged breaths. His eyes glanced from one guard to the other. “Where are you taking him?”

I expected them to reprimand him as they had my sister, but instead the guard on my left lifted his chin and replied, “Assembly’s ordered him be taken upstairs. Hoping to lure out the queen.”

Bristling, I worked to keep my features neutral as I watched for Graham’s reaction.

Graham sighed heavily and dug a piece of paper from his pocket. “I just spoke with them,” he said, handing the paper over.

The guard read it over quickly before thrusting it at his counterpart. They shared a skeptical look around my head, but when they straightened, their hold on my arms tightened.

“How do we know this is from Ms. Ursula, and not a trick of yours?”

Graham stepped forward, reaching his hand out to take the paper back. “Fine. I’ll just return this to the Assembly and explain how you declined the order. They’re a little on edge at the moment, but I’m sure they’ll understand.”

The guards both went rigid, their hands loosening slightly. Another shared glance later and they marched me forward, passing me off to Graham before dashing up the stairs. Graham peered after them, and I released a tense breath.

“Did they really send you down here?” I asked. When he turned back to me, he lifted a shoulder and smirked. I couldn’t help but laugh. “Mind taking these cuffs off?”

Graham shook his head and wrapped his hand around my arm as he turned to stand beside me. “Better keep the pretense up in case we run into any of the other guards, or worse, one of the Assembly.”

“Can I assume you’re not delivering me to them then?”

“You really think I’d do anything for those fools? We do need to get going though, before they realize what I’ve done,” he said, nudging me toward the stairs.

Refusing to move just yet, I tossed my head back toward the hallway behind me. “Mind if I say goodbye to my sister first?”

His eyes darkened over his scowl. “No time. Calla told me to get you out, so that’s what I intend to do.”

“It’ll only take a moment,” I argued.

“And a moment is more than I have to spare with how far we need to travel,” he insisted, but I stiffened in my stance and glared at him. Finally, he sighed and gestured with his hand for me to go ahead.

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