Page 20 of Flame and Sparrow

And nearly collided with the girl from the temple, who was standing calmly in the courtyard on the other side.

She’d brought more friends, too—six heavily-armed men formed a half-circle around her, blocking my escape.

I stumbled back into the ballroom.

The first two men I’d seen had made their way over. One moved to help the man I’d knocked down, while the other pushed closer to my back, drawing a short sword. The rest of the men fanned out until they had me completely surrounded.

I was still staring at the girl, trying to make sense of her as she did the same to me.

Her gaze went to the sparrow hanging from my neck. After a moment her eyes flashed with understanding, as though she’d sensed the divine magic the bird possessed. Her own magic helped her understand the situation too, most likely; I looked different from when she’d last seen me—my ears were rounded again and my scars were hidden as before, but my hair was its natural black shade—but I was the same soul her power had encountered back in Cauldra.

And nothing was ever lost or hidden to the Goddess of the Moon—or to those most blessed with her magic.

When this girl had laid hands on me back at the temple, she must have embedded a spell into my skin, and now she’d simply followed the trail of it, leading these men to me. Likely in exchange for a fat reward.

I should have poisoned her when I had the chance.

The man closest to me stepped forward, lips twisting into a nasty grin. “There are more of us outside. You’re completely surrounded, so I suggest you don’t cause us any trouble.”

I frantically played through the potential battle in my mind.

Ten on our side if the others came in time, and if Kinnara and her group decided to fight along with us. We could handle the humans in here easily. But if the man was telling the truth about having reinforcements outside…

It was impossible to know the truth from where I stood. Too many walls were still standing, blocking my full view of the situation.

My gaze jumped back to the girl. She had led these men to me because she knew I was involved in the temple’s destruction, but she hadn’t seen Andrel or Cillian last night, as far as I knew.

She didn’t know who—or what—any of us truly were.

I still had the high-pitched whistle we used for communicating during our missions; it was tucked into a small ankle pouch alongside the knife sheathed at my boot.

Three quick breaths was all I needed to manage—the signal to escape. Even from a half-mile away, someone in the main house would be able to hear it; Andrel was likely still outside. He’d know what to do when he heard the sound.

I broke into a sprint, racing for an opening in the outside wall.

Surprise and speed worked in my favor, buying me enough of a head-start to make it to the ruined wall and hurdle over what remained of the frame. I rolled into the first bush I saw and reached toward my ankle, jerking the whistle free.

Three quick breaths.

Footsteps pounded behind me.

I tossed the whistle into a pile of dirt and kicked a few dead leaves over it, hiding it.

In the next instant, two strong pairs of hands grabbed each of my arms, twisting them painfully behind my back before ripping me away from the bush. I didn’t put up a fight, eager for them to drag me away from the spot before they looked closely enough to see my fallen whistle.

They spun me around.

I saw and understood the full scope of my predicament, then, as I found myself facing a large group of riders. They dotted the hills surrounding the manor, stretching as far as I could see in both directions. Their dark attire made it difficult to count their exact number, but I was immediately convinced that warning my friends to escape had been the right decision.

A thick cloth slammed over my nose and lips. Its scent was terrible, too overpowering to name. My mouth watered as I fought the urge to vomit, and as the world reeled around me, my warning didn’t seem like enough.

Would Andrel and the others ignore it and charge in to rescue me anyway?

No,I told myself, fiercely.They’re smarter than that.

They would get away. And they would come after me later—but not before they had created a plan and recruited reinforcements. We’d survived as long as we had by being smart, not reckless.

I just had to stay alive until they reached me. I repeated the command over and over in my head, trying to fight against my growing dizziness.

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