Alice’s men disengaged in an expertly coordinated maneuver, turned, and ran. It happened so quickly that Kai was left staring after them as they disappeared into the distance.
“Ha!” Oskar bellowed, brandishing his sword. “What’s the matter, ye bloody cowards? Had enough already?”
In the aftermath of the fight, Kai looked around. The fair-goers were milling around in confusion, and the fair itself was in disarray. Stalls were broken or overturned, food and goods scattered across the ground.
He sheathed his sword and turned to Caitlin. “Are ye all right, lass?”
She was pale and shaking, but she wasn’t looking at him. Instead, she was staring at MacGuinness’s compound.
“She sent Wolfric in there,” she muttered. “And then she and her men just left without the gunpowder. Why would they do that? It’s almost as if...”
Her eyes suddenly went wide. “Run!” she yelled. “Everyone! Run!”
The fear in her voice made Kai go cold. And with it came understanding. No. Oh no.
“Run!” he yelled at his men. “Now!”
They took off, sprinting for all they were worth in the same direction Alice and her men had taken. They bellowed at the fair-goers to get out as well.
But they had not gone more than fifty paces when there was an almighty boom from behind them and the world turned white. Something picked Kai up and tossed him through the air as though he was a piece of flotsam. He struck the ground hard, felt a sharp stab of pain, and knew no more.
Chapter 11
Caitlin found herselflying face down in the dirt. Her ears were ringing and her skull felt like it had been stuffed with cotton wool. With a groan, she lifted her head. The world was a blur of dull tones and muffled sounds.
She blinked a few times, trying to clear the fog from her mind, but nothing changed. The air smelled of smoke and there was a strange silence.
She stumbled to her feet and looked around for Kai. He was lying on the ground a few feet away, his face streaked with dirt and blood.
A jolt of fear went through her, and she raced over to him as quickly as her shaky limbs would allow.
Kneeling beside him, she urgently shook his shoulder. “Kai? Kai, wake up!”
She watched anxiously as his eyelids flickered open. “What happened?” he muttered groggily as he tried to sit up.
“An explosion,” Caitlin replied. “The gunpowder went up.”
