Page 37 of Quarter Labyrinth

My answer came a beat later. “Who’s there?”

I tried to come up with the wisest thing to do, but the bitter truth was that Leif could outrun and likely outfight me. Running away or fighting it out wouldn’t end well. Option three it was. Slowly, I let go of my axe, abandoning it by the trunk of the tree so I’d appear less dangerous, and stepped away from my hiding place.

“Just a Seaweed,” I replied. I was wearing my poor status like armor, hoping he would hear it and think nothing of me. It hadn’t worked the last time. Someone had died then. With luck, fate would spin differently this time.

His dark gaze mapped me. He’d appeared like a tortured soul a moment before, but now he looked downright lethal. His hand went to the blade at his waist. “A Seaweed. Not many of you in the labyrinth from what I hear.”

I wore my best demure face. “Lucky I guess. I didn’t mean to disturb you.” I inched backwards. It hurt to flee. I wanted to fight, to run, to do something other than act as if I were a nobody. Someday, I’d get to carve a proper name for myself in the world.For now, all I could do was swallow my pride and slink back to the shadows I came from.

Leif’s gaze snagged on my neck before I could, and he pounced.

I ran.

His weight tackled mine, but I didn’t feel the sear of a blade. He rolled me until his body was on top of mine, his arms holding mine beside my head and his knee pressed against my gut.

Once more, his eyes dropped to my neck.

“What is this?”

I glanced down. “My necklace? It’s a simple token, that’s all.”

“I thought you said you were a Seaweed?” He looked at me as if trying to memorize every detail, and I didn’t care for the way it made my cheeks heat.

“I am a Seaweed.”

“From where?”

I had the sense to lie. “Providence.”

“Have you ever been to the capital islands?”

Was that it? He thought he recognized me from somewhere? “No. I’ve never left home until now.”

His weight pushed further against me, and his words came through gritted teeth. “You’re lying.”

“I’mnotlying. Now get off me right now.”

He gave a dry laugh, but pulled his weight back. I only had time to sit before his hand shot out to grab my necklace and pull it—and me—close to his face.

“You’re a liar, or a thief. Either way, I want to know how you have one of the Lord of the Isle’s prized necklaces.”

EIGHTEEN

Words caught in my throat. Callahan? The richest man in the Hundred Islands? I’d assumed this necklace was a gift from my father for my mother. Why did she have this?

“You must be mistaken.” I aimed my knee toward his gut, but he slammed his hand down to block.

“I’m not mistaken.” Leif released me to tug at a chain on his neck, revealing an identical necklace. My head spun while I looked at it. The same unending knot in what I thought wasfakegold at the top and bottom, connected by a silver swirl in the center like a hurricane. My necklace felt heavier now, likethe importance of it added three pounds. “Callahan doesn’t give these away freely. I have one as his godson. Unless he has a secret goddaughter I’ve never heard of, you don’t have the right to wear that.”

Fear struck me. Leif was going to take it away.

I needed this. It was the last bit of proof I had to validate my identity when I found my father.

My hand itched for my blade.

“Who else did he give them to?” I asked.

He scoffed. “Not you, I promise that.”

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