"But we're going to need her!" I hissed.
He nodded. "And I told Farin to send her back to you. She'll find us, I promise. But if Farin can bring an army?"
"Shit," Rymar breathed. "We might have enough people to stop the Moles."
"And just enough time to make it happen," I said, hoping it was true.
Eighty-Six
Drozel
My leg was between Omden's. Lessa's arm was pinned between us, and her chest was pressed against my back. I had my tail around her, and my partner's head was tucked under mine. Everything about this was completely comfortable, yet something was pulling me from sleep.
It was quiet and far away, but the sound of a scream jerked my eyes wide open - yet my body remained locked in place. Had that been a nightmare? Was the river flooding? I hadn't seen storms on the horizon, but I also hadn't really been looking.
Then it came again, and longer this time. Fear. Pain. Rage. They were all in that sound, and I knew it far too well. I jerked upright, and I wasn't the only one moving. Lessa flinched back, extracting her body from the tangle of ours. Omden flipped onto his back, looking at the window as if it could explain things.
"Something's wrong," Lessa said.
"Already figured that out," Omden assured her. "Lessa, go wake Meri. Droz - "
"Weapons," I said. "Do you think it's the river?"
"I'm going to go listen," he decided, rolling out of bed and heading for the door.
I went for clothes, pulling out both mine and his. But Lessa? She wasn't moving. Instead, she'd curled up, huddling closer to herself.
"Less," I said, "I need you to wake Meri."
She shook her head. "That sounds like Moles."
Fuck! Throwing our weapons belts on the bed at Lessa's feet, I crossed the hall and headed down. At Meri's room, I didn't bother knocking. I stepped in quietly, not sure if she was a light sleeper, then headed for her bed.
"Meri?" I whispered.
She sucked in a breath and turned her head to face me. "I'm awake."
"I need you to take care of Lessa," I said, making the decision on the spot just as another scream could be heard. This time, it was from a woman. "Something's wrong, Omden and I are going to check it out, but Lessa's panicking." I reached over for Meri's arm. "She thinks it's Moles."
And the girl sat up. "What do I do?"
"Wake Sylis," I told her. "Lessa's in my room. Get her out and make her think. Once she's doing, she won't be paralyzed."
"And if it is the Moles?" she asked. "If they come here?"
I caught her chin, lifting her face so her eyes met mine in the darkness. "Then you do not let them take the ones we love, okay, Sparrow?"
"I'm not a fighter," she whimpered.
"I don't care, and neither will they. Hide. Run. Pick your poison, Meri, but you're the one who needs to keep her head on straight. Keep them safe. And when we know it's safe, I'll come take you to the hospital, okay?"
"I will," she said, slinging off her blankets.
Surprisingly, the girl left the room ahead of me, not waiting to get dressed before heading to Sylis's room. Then again, thosetwo had become friends lately - or something close to it. I wasn't quite sure, but they giggled now. Often while looking at me.
I headed back to my room, needing to make sure Lessa was okay. When I walked in, she flinched, but she was already separating out things, getting it all ready for us to put on.
"Meri's in charge," I told her as I reached for my pants. "Sylis is going to be a problem, but you know where the guns are, right?"
