Sonah tried closing her mouth and winced against the pain shooting from the hinges of her jaw and she gagged. Feeling around with her tongue, she felt something soggy and bulky. When she tried to lift her hands to feel for it, they wouldn’t move. They were tied at the wrist and her arms were pinned to her sides. The bite of more hemp around her arms confirmed she was lashed to the tree at her back as well.
“—this girl for seven years, Otto,” a voice was saying, the words muffled as if behind a wall, then clearer as the ringing in her ears dissipated and the words resolved into a low conversation two men were having.
Sonah stopped her fidgeting, every muscle tensed as she concentrated on the voices.
“I hear you, Your Highness,” a man was saying, and Sonah heard the rustling of bramble and twigs as the man shifted his feet. “But we have orders from your father to bring her back to Metilai.”
“And I am telling you I’ve known her most of her life and she is no more a criminal than I am!”
Sonah frowned. She knew that voice.
Lerek?
Sonah dared not move, straining to listen.
The other man sighed loudly. “That may be, but I still have my orders. If it’s as you say, I am certain your father?—”
“You dare deny me?”
Sonah almost smiled at the deadly drop of Lerek’s voice.
“With respect, Your Highness, the emperor’s orders supersede yours,” the man said. Sonah felt a sudden rush of dread as she realized she knew the man’s voice, too. Otto Hetteti, an Imperial Guard who served under Captain Xoran.
The Imperial Guard were always with the emperor and his family, so why was Otto here? Had he known Lerek would be here?
Sonah remained stock still as she waited for Lerek’s response.
“As a favor to me then, remove her bindings. I assure you, you’ve no need of them.”
“Your Highness,” the guard said with feigned patience, “I will not give thiscriminalthe opportunity to escape after we’ve spent many months tracking her down. It’s bad enough we let a god slip through our fingers. At least now we can return with?—”
Lerek’s scoff was sharp and immediate. He jerked back as if the guard had slapped him.
“A god,” he snapped, his voice dropping lower. “There is no such thing. There hasn’t been for a long, long time.”
From Sonah’s vantage, she had a view of the guard’s profile and saw the grim satisfaction in the smile he leveled on Lerek. “Aye. Until her. The Royal Tracker, Terena Luca.”
“You’re mad,” Lerek said with a shake of his head. “You’re—Terena Luca is no more a god than I am. Are you insane?”
“A thousand people witnessed her power in the square, the day she and this girl,” the guard nodded in Sonah’s direction and Sonah quickly shut her eyes. Not daring to open them lest they see her, she concentrated on their words.
“—to be executed, Terena Luca unleashed power from her hands no mortal wields. I tell you now, Terena Luca is a god.”
Lerek lifted a hand as if to physically reject the guard’s words. But the man was relentless. Sonah cracked her eyes to slits as he continued. “Not only is she a god, but she’s now allied with the King of Sparta. Our spies within the kingdom shared how close she and the commander of his Liodari have gotten recently.Veryclose.”
Sonah felt her belly drop as Lerek turned his head, sliding a gaze over in her direction. She prayed it was dark enough he could not see she was awake and watching.
After a moment, he dropped his head.
“What have they seen?”
Sonah stifled a groan.
The guard stepped closer and in a harsh tone said, “They were seen embracing. In view of our men.”
Lerek stood so still, Sonah worried one touch would make him snap.
“We’ll travel north to meet up with Captain Xoran and then head east. I’ve sent one of our men with a message so he’ll know where to intercept us.”
