“A wolf,” Leywani muttered in disbelief before stumbling through the barracks’ entrance and pulling the curtain aside.
Leaving Apollo to keep watch outside, Alena followed. Straw beds lined the cramped shed, threadbare curtains strung between them in a poor illusion of privacy. The air was stuffy, and though the room was empty, the smell of unwashed bodies lingered.
Leywani led them to a small partition at the far end. She drew back the curtain, and the coppery tang of blood hit Alena’s nose along with San’s scent.
Her chest seized.
San lay unconscious on a straw mattress, pale and grey, sweat-slick hair plastered to her temples. Her brow furrowed with each ragged breath. Though her abdomen and leg were wrapped, blood soaked the bandages and spread dark across the mattress.
The sight stole Alena’s breath.
She dropped to her knees, heart hammering. “San,” she whispered, clutching her hand. It hung limp, far too cold. Feverburned beneath Alena’s palm when she touched her brow—hot, fading fast.
A young girl knelt nearby, black hair tangled, hands shaking as she rinsed a bloodstained cloth in a chipped bowl. She froze at Phoebe’s presence until Leywani whispered something that steadied her.
“There was an accident,” Leywani said softly, kneeling beside Alena. “At the quarry. Some men misjudged a cut—a block fell. Two were killed. San was caught beneath the edge.”
Alena could barely hear her over the pounding in her ears.
“We brought her back and tried to fetch the Rasennan healer.” Leywani’s jaw tightened. “But he refused.”
Alena’s gaze snapped to her. “Refused?”
“He said he wouldn’t sully his magic on a Non-Human. We did what we could—cleaned the wounds, wrapped them, tried to keep the fever down. But the medicine’s gone, and none of them will help us. We’re nothing to them.”
Alena’s fury rose so fast it blurred her vision. Her hands shook where they gripped San’s.
“They left her to die,” she whispered.
It was her father all over again—helpless, fading beyond her reach, no matter what magic she wielded.
“Where’s Kaixo?” Her voice hardened. “Where’s her son?”
If they’d thrown him into the quarry, she’d cut down every guard to bring him out.
Leywani exchanged a grim glance with the girl, and Alena’s stomach dropped.
“Tell me.”
“No one knew they were related, not until San’s accident. Her boy screamed for her in their tongue, and the soldiers realised. There was an uproar because his father clearly isn’t a Non-Human, and that… mattered to them.” Leywani’s voice broke. “They dragged him away.”
Alena leaned forward, glancing between them. “Dragged him where?”
“I heard they tied him to a pillar in the soldiers’ quarters,” the young girl with tangled black hair said. “I don’t know what they plan to do.”
Alena’s blood ran cold. “Soldiers?”
Leywani nodded. “An officer arrived with two dozen men—reinforcements. Word is, other camps have rebelled, and the soldiers came to make sure that doesn’t happen here.”
Alena relayed the news to Phoebe, standing half-shadowed in the flickering lamplight. Her expression hardened.
Soldiers hadn’t been part of the plan. This changed everything.
Alena turned back to San.
The mother still lay motionless, her breathing shallow. She looked smaller somehow—shrunken, gaunt. Alena knelt beside her, eyes burning.
“Oh, San…” Her voice cracked. She smoothed a damp braid from San’s face. “I’m so sorry. This is my fault. But I swear—I’m going to fix it.”
