“It isn’t cut,” Michael said, standing beside Daris. “So either whoever was bound had removed it themselves or someone came along and undid them.”
“My money’s on the former,” Daris muttered, his thumb moving slowly over the hemp. “If it was a rescue, they wouldn’t take the time to untie them. They’d cut the binds.”
“Who was tied up, then?”
Daris frowned, his eye rising from the rope to the tree. He moved forward, crouching down and placing his free hand on the damp ground where the surrounding frost left an outline of the person who’d sat there.
“Sonah,” he said at last.
“Aye,” Michael replied.
“What? How do you know?” Jason demanded as he strode to their sides.
Michael pointed at the ground. “The indentation is small, so either a child sat here, or a woman. And since they’re Heylisian soldiers, we know they wouldn’t bind their prince.”
“And Prince Lerek allowed it to happen?” Jason shouted, arms spread as shock warred with rage across his face.
“I found strands of blonde hair near the fire,” Michael went on, his eyes on Jason. “Enough to make me think it didn’t fall out naturally.”
Daris sighed and dropped his head. A moment later, he strode briskly back to the rest of his men. Theodoros brought Daris’s stallion forward and Daris mounted.
“I’ll assume you want to ride with me toward Messene,” Daris said with a glance at Jason. He didn’t bother to see whether his lieutenant agreed with him. He looked at Michael. “I’m taking four men toward Messene. You and the others follow the Heylisians.”
Michael nodded as the rest of the Liodari mounted their horses and waited. Daris clicked his tongue and pulled the reins to the right.
“What do we do when we catch up to them?” Michael called out.
“Kill them all and detain the prince. I have words for him.”
MESSENE, LAKONIA
Sonah jerked awake.
Panting, she looked around the room she was in, the weak light from the lone window shading the room in grey. Pushing back some of the hair that had fallen onto her face, she turned, setting her feet to the cold, bare floor.
“What the fuck?” she whispered. Bending over, Sonah rested an elbow on her thigh and covered her eyes. As she shifted her fingers over her face, she winced at the large bump on her forehead. Her wrist, however, was healed.
Had it ever been broken? Was that whole thing a nightmare?
Minutes passed before she felt focused enough to rise and face whatever was happening. As she hunted for her clothes, she recalled the escape from the castle, being with Lerek and then seeing Pytho.
Pausing as she tightened her leather corset, Sonah frowned.
Follow the traveler with the green robes.
She spotted her cloak in a heap near the door and snatched it up. Turning back to look over the sparse room, she nodded andunlatched the door. Sonah peeked out into the empty hallway before closing the door behind her.
As she descended the stairs, Sonah realized she was in the same inn she’d stayed in the first time she’d been in Messene with Terena and Rydon. And just like when Terena had reappeared after visiting Pytho, Sonah had a feeling she had the clever oracle to thank for her arrival here, too.
Jerking to a stop before entering the common room, Sonah lifted her hood when she spotted two Spartan soldiers sitting at a table near the front door. Ducking her head, she bolted forward, intent on finding the innkeeper and asking how long she’d?—
Sonah’s mouth fell open when she saw a portly man at the back, sitting at a table with three other men.
“There’s room for you by the window,” a voice said behind her and Sonah barely looked away from the man she’d been watching to acknowledge the innkeeper smiling at her.
Nodding, Sonah grumbled her thanks as he led her to a table far enough away from the soldiers she let herself relax. Her eyes remained on the big man, now laughing with his companions. He raised a hairy hand to dust crumbs off his green robes. His voice was too low for Sonah to hear.
Follow the traveler with the green robes.
