Page 16 of Lady of Ashes

“Scarlett believes they are after the same thing they coveted in the Great War. Something in Avonleya. She thinks they are trying to ?nd a way through the Avonleyan wards using Blood Magic,” Sorin answered. “She does not know how many Maraan Lords are here. According to her research, there are seven Lords in total. She and the other Wraiths of Death supposedly killed one a few years ago. She also believes Mikale to be one. Who the rest are, she does not know. If she has inklings, she did not share them.”

“You believe she is at the Tyndell Estate then?” Talwyn asked, her eyes returning to the map before them.

“No,” Sorin countered once again.

Talwyn released a frustrated huff. “For the love of Celeste, Sorin.

Where the fuck is she then?”

“Our best guess is that she is either being held by Mikale here at the Lairwood Estate,” Sorin answered, indicating the sprawling estate even bigger than the Tyndell property. “If that is the case, we already know the general layout of the house; as that is where we had to break her out of before we returned home.”

“And if she is not there?” Azrael intoned.

Talwyn watched a muscle feather in Sorin’s jaw, and a small part of her that used to be attached to him ached deep in the recesses of her soul. She knew his tells, his small ticks. It was taking every ounce of self-control to keep his emotions in check right now. Before her stood her aunt’s Second. The Fae who took control and got results. The Fae who would become as callous and as wicked as necessary to achieve an end he desired.

“If she is not with Mikale, she is likely with the Assassin Lord, her old master. In which case, she is likely being held deep in the Black Syndicate, and we will need to rely on our allies there. They will intimately know the layout,” Sorin answered.

“We are going into the Black Syndicate then?” Azrael asked, violence tangible in the aura around him.

“We will not get within a mile of the Syndicate before we ?nd ourselves either dead or captured, which is why we need to ?nd Cassius and Nuri as soon as possible,” Sorin explained. He pointed to an area of the map near the docks. “I do not know how similar Traveling is to portaling, Luan, but this is where I need you to Travel us to. Or as close to this location as possible. It is far from the Black Syndicate, but it is where we have close to a hundred orphans hidden. In the last correspondence we had from Cassius, he told us Nuri has not left the area since we left Baylorin. I am hoping that is still the case, and she will ?nd us swiftly.”

“We are going to rely on her ?nding us?” Azrael asked. “Why not track them down?”

A grim smile hooked up the corner of Sorin’s mouth. “You will ?nd, Luan, that you do not track down Death’s Shadow. She ?nds you.”

Azrael didn’t show any reaction to learning that one of their allies would be a Wraith of Death. Talwyn, however, voiced her own concern. “And what of the other Wraiths of Death? Do they know their companion has betrayed them?”

Sorin’s eyes darkened, but it was Prince Callan who answered her question. “One of them is dead, and the other is whom you seek to rescue.”

Talwyn couldn’t keep the surprise from her face. “Scarlett is a Wraith of Death?”

“Your cousin bears many titles and wears many masks,” Callan replied, with a surprising amount of bitterness for the woman he claimed to love.

She turned her eyes to Sorin, seeking con?rmation.

“Yes, Talwyn. Scarlett is Death’s Maiden. The other, Death Incarnate, was killed a year and a half ago.” Silence fell for a few moments while Talwyn tried to process all this new information before Sorin cleared his throat. “We have no more time for questions or explanations. We need to arrive in Baylorin undetected, which means the cover of night will be the best. We need as much time in the dark as possible to track down Cassius or Nuri. Luan, how close do you think you can get us?”

Azrael studied the map a moment longer. “I have never Traveled to Windonelle, but from the map, I should be able to get us close. It would be wiser to aim for the outskirts of the capital to avoid arriving at an inconvenient location. Will it be dif?cult toenter the city on foot?”

Sorin rubbed the back of his neck in thought. He pointed to an area in the north of the city near the coast. “I think if you can get us to this area, near the docks and cliffs, we’d stand the best chance.” He turned his attention to Callan’s guards. “Would youagree?”

The two sentries exchanged a look and a glance at Callan, who gave a nod. “If he can get us in that general vicinity, there are secret tunnels that lead into the city. They are in place to get the royalty out in case of an attack,” the shorter of the two revealed. “It branches off in various places throughout the city.”

Sorin’s brows rose in surprise. “Are these the tunnels they used to get in and out of the castle when she would come to Callan?”

“They are a section of them, yes,” the guard con?rmed. “Although the Black Syndicate residents seem to know more about the tunnel system than we do.”

The taller guard snorted behind them, clearly not happy about that fact.

“That is where we go then,” Sorin said, taking the map and rolling it up.

Everyone turned and gathered their things, and Azrael came to Talwyn’s side, checking all the weapons buckled to him one ?nal time. “Orestes will take care of things in the Earth Court. Stay close to Ashtine. Send Maliq if you need me. You are my priority, Talwyn. Not the Fae Queen of the Western Courts,” he said in a low voice. The same ivy and wisteria he’d wrapped around her wrist coiled there once more.

Talwyn slid the Semiria ring from her ?nger and held it out tohim. He took it, subtly brushing his ?ngers along hers. He slid it onto his little ?nger, the magic of the ring stretching to accommodate his larger hand.

“Do not inconvenience me by dying, Prince,” Talwyn replied coolly.

Azrael nodded his head once in acknowledgment, before he moved to stand beside Sorin. Sorin’s Inner Court all gathered around him, touching an arm or shoulder. Cyrus still had Arianna tucked into his side, and Eliza held Callan’s hand in her own. The mortal prince’s two sentries each had a hand on his shoulder. As Sorin reached for Azrael’s shoulder, his eyes met Talwyn’s. She stared at him and let her walls down for a moment. She let him see everything she couldn’t say.

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