Ashren was still speaking, but the words slid past me as the air pressure dropped, sudden and deep. My ears rang, and the wind howled between the buildings and screamed down the lanes in gusts that rattled shutters and sent loose embers spiraling upward in angry bursts.
VROOOHM.
The sound punched through my chest and lodged there. I tensed, and something inside me shifted recklessly.
Retreat? The Night Forces were retreating?
That made no sense. Not now. Not when they’d breached the eastern wall and their forces were already inside the city. They should have pressed harder. They should have committed. This kind of withdrawal meant strategy, not defeat.
I turned toward Ashren, jarring my aching spine. “Don’t trust it.”
His gaze was already on the rooftops, scanning the smoke and falling snow. His jaw set as the same conclusion landed. “They’re pulling back too early. Why would they not at least tryto reach the keep or hinder our defenses in some meaningful way? What did they accomplish? Their berserker didn’t succeed.”
Another horn echoed, farther off, answering the first from the outer eastern towers to confirm. The wind carried the call strangely, warping the sound. Snow thickened, flakes turning into blinding white streaks that slashed across my vision. Was it possible they were retreating because of the storm itself?
It was a full night’s ride back to the Night Court, and through driving snow, that ride swiftly became dangerous. There were few safe havens in the wildernesses between the cities of any court. But their abrupt departure didn’t settle within me. Something was off.
The tug in my chest flared again, urgent enough that my breath caught. My feet shifted without permission, angling toward the street that led to Market Square. Heat drained out of my hands, replaced by a crawling unease.
Hannah.
Her name struck like pressure tightening beneath my ribs, making it hard to draw a full breath.
I took off.
Ashren matched my pace instantly, our boots crunching over ice-dusted stone as we ran past the slumped bulk of the wyvern and down the street. The firelight dimmed behind us, replaced by an orange glow diffused by smoke and snow. Wind tore at my coat, snapping the edges hard enough to sting my wrists.
The city sounded different now. Less chaos and more quiet. Shouts were spread thin, and metal rang less often. The absence set my teeth on edge. Where was Hannah?
Something was wrong, and that knowledge ached through my bones and soul.
A shape broke from the haze ahead, running toward us instead of away. My focus locked on the movement before mymind caught up, and we slowed to a stop in front of one of the courier stables.
Gavriel stumbled into clearer view, snow clinging to his hair and shoulders and face drained of color. He skidded to a halt before me.
The tug in my chest snapped tight enough to hurt. “Where is she?” The words came out low and rough, my throat dry.
His ash-gray expression told me before his mouth moved. A thin line of blood seeped at his temple where snow melted pink. “She’s gone.”
The world tilted. My mind exploded as I braced my hands against my belt, trying to hide my anger and fear. “Explain.”
Ashren stepped closer, his body angled between us. “She escaped?”
Gavriel swallowed and curled his hands into fists. “The Night General took her, and they left.”
The air punched from my lungs. My vision narrowed, the edges darkening as heat surged hard and fast through my chest. The tug there flared into something painful, like a hook driven deep, and yanked.
“I almost caught up to her near the square.” Gavriel’s words tumbled faster now. “The soldiers grabbed and struck her. They wouldn’t listen. I was almost there—” His jaw clenched, and his shoulders slumped as if replaying the memory cost him physically.
My temper flared. I wanted to demand why he hadn’t been able to stop them, but my recriminations against him were equally against myself. I should have been there, andIshould have stopped them. “Did they hurt her?”
Gavriel nodded stiffly. “She spat on one, and he struck her. She didn’t fall, but she was hurt. The Night General intervened before they could do more, and he gave the order to take her.He had her restrained before I could reach her.” His gaze didn’t leave mine. “Then they left.”
A low, tearing sensation ran through my chest like a rib had cracked inward. Heat flared behind my eyes, sudden and blinding. My wings wanted to burst free again, the phantom pressure building along my spine even though they were folded away. I tasted iron, smoke, and cold all at once. “Which one struck her? Could you identify him?”
“No. They were all fully covered in armor, including helmets, and I wasn’t able to hear their voices well. They weren’t officers or leaders, but they didn’t act like they were enlisted.” Gavriel lifted his hands.
Fine. I’d kill them all then. It would reduce their count, which was a win for my people. “I’m going after her.” My boots hit the packed snow hard enough to jar my knees, and I cut toward the stables. “Gavriel, with me. Ashren, make sure the city is prepared for the storm and that repairs begin. Block the broken points in the wall and gate with a binding ward if the storm looks like it will be too severe for work to begin.”
