It took great control not to look back at the vast threads of fire swooping and looping and slashing and twisting through the sky. There would be no way to determine their origins, and I imagined Sváva’s fire threads snatching soldiers from the sky.
On other rooftops, the Virtoris siblings were supposed to be creating spectacles of their own, hoping to catch the castle guards’ attention. And last of all, Livia flew above. Cloaked in the darkness of the night, the third vampire was tasked with looking out for those who were providing us a distraction. She was the goddess of death to any who might get too close to those on our side.
My arms and back ached from carrying Inga, and a tightness filled my chest as a result of my tether to the shadow form, but my legs never stopped, and my senses remained on high alert as Yrsa wove us through the streets and alleys. We burst onto another street, this one busier. Recognizable. I cast a wild glanceabout and spotted a Nava-themed brothel I’d found amusing when we’d left Lord Riis’s establishment.
“Ready?” Yrsa asked.
My wings threaded through the tunic, into position. The Riis sisters leapt into the air first, catching the sea wind. Thyra and I followed, and the vampires took up the rear, always watching our backs, ready to drain an enemy dry. A few fae watched us rise through their windows, but when a new blast of fire rose from somewhere behind us, the combination of the alarm and the flames proved effective on more than one score.
Yrsa landed on a rooftop five away from the brothel, and taking more care, we leapt from roof to roof, back where we needed to be.
The trapdoor was open when we arrived, Lord Riis peeking out. Thank the gods Sváva’s fire was keeping most of the winged fae out of the sky. If other fae soared this way, they would not fail to see his red hair glinting in the moonlight.
“Down, Father!” Yrsa hissed. “We need to get the gateway up!”
“What happened to her? What happened to Inga?” he didn’t move.
“We’re not sure,” Geiravor answered. “Perhaps they haven’t been feeding her. She’s weak and was passed out for much of the time.”
Lord Riis swallowed. I could tell it took great self-control for him to turn away from his love. We dropped into the office, and our glamours broke one by one. It was the oddest sensation, especially when paired with the thread of connection with my shadow form. I shuddered, glad to be rid of the shadow form.
Lord Riis shut the trapdoor, swept over, took Inga in his arms. Tears streaked his face.
“Take her to Ramshold,” Yrsa said. “Geiravor, help him.”
The Riis sister eased her father toward the gateway, moving tenderly and slowly. Before she got there, however, the trapdoor lifted again. Vidar dropped inside, followed by Sayyida and Livia. Sváva would not come. She would divert until she could no longer do so.
“Thantrel, Caelo, Qildor, and Vale had to stay behind. Did you see them on the streets?” I asked no one in particular.
“No, but we need to move out.” Sayyida swallowed. “Most fae have gone into their homes and soldiers are swarming the streets. Hundreds of them.”
Knocking came at the office door, and my stomach dropped to my knees. Upon our arrival, Lord Riis had made an appearance downstairs because Yrsa and her sisters had entered the brothel through the front door. A father coming to speak with his daughters bothered no one, but the high lord had made it clear that he was not to be interrupted. Also that no one in the city was to know he was present in Grindavik. No one loyal to him would defy an order like that unless they had to.
Or unless they wanted to warn us.
“Who is it?” Geiravor asked.
“Minthe.”
“I’ll get it.” Yrsa pivoted towards the door, for Lord Riis was still staring at Inga, his face pale, as if in a trance. “Everyone, stay out of sight.”
I squinted. Did the queen look grayer than before, or was that the dim lighting in the office? I didn’t have time to decide before Thyra pulled me out of sight.
Yrsa answered the caller, and Geiravor moved that way too, the pair of them doing their best to block our side of the room from sight. “Yes?”
“Miss Yrsa, I know your father wishes not to be disturbed, or for anyone to know he’s here, but there are soldiers here. From House Ithamai. They want to search the establishment.” Sheinhaled. “We told them that was inappropriate, and our clients deserve privacy, but they’re insisting. I owe Lord Riis a lot, but I don’t wish to be jailed.”
“Of course not.” Yrsa exhaled long and low. “I will come to speak with them.”
“And the brothel?”
“Give our clients a fair warning, and then let the guards search.”
“They wish to see his office too.”
“Stall as long as you can.”
“Very well.” The brothel worker shifted, as if to leave.
