“I loathe this dress,” she muttered.
“I’ll happily rip off any clothing you ask me to,” I said with a wink, grabbing her hand.
She rolled her eyes, but the smile she gave me was worth it.
“Gag!” Vesper said loudly. “Some of us with better ears can hear you.”
“Let’s go, lovebirds,” Branrir said.
“Wait,” Vesper said, holding up a paw. “One more thing.”
He leaped back onto the desk, flicked his claws out, and carved a U onto Edric’s cheek.
“Was that necessary?” Thistle asked.
“Entirely,” Vesper replied with a grin.
We burst into the corridor. Behind us, the receiving room door slammed shut, sealing in the body, the blood, and the fallen crown. We ran from a multitude of sins toward a future I wasn’t sure we’d be allowed to have.
49
QUINN
Breath knifed my throat. My lungs scraped raw. Stone and shadow blurred as we ran. My spell thinned with each heartbeat. The court would soon discover their monarch slain.
“Faster,” Branrir barked.
We turned a corner too sharply, boots sliding, and nearly collided with a cluster of figures waiting in the shadow of an archway. Mav drew his blade.
“Stop!” I threw out an arm as my eyes adjusted to the dark. “Devronica?”
The head seamstress stood with two of her attendants, their arms laden with bundles and satchels. The silver coil of her hair had come half undone.
“We can’t afford to slow,” Branrir hissed. “Are these ladies on our side or not?”
Thistle’s Hedge magic sprang to life as her palms glowed green.
“Your side—hers!” Devronica yelped. “At the ceremony, I saw how you looked at…” Her eyes flicked to Mav, then back again. “I thought that if you managed to get out, you’d need provisions to make your escape.”
She stepped forward, pressing a satchel into my hands. “We have food, some water, and spare clothing. There are tents and bandages. It’s not much, but it should be enough to keep you until you can get somewhere safe.”
I stared at her, throat tightening. “Why are you helping us? I will not be able to keep my promises to you, to stop the branding and taxes.”
Devronica’s lined face softened. “You told me earlier that we deserved to be free.” Her hand clasped my arm. “So do you.”
Emotion surged so fiercely I could hardly speak. “I-I do not know how to thank you?—”
“Thank me later when you’re all still alive,” Devronica said. “Now follow me, quickly!”
The seamstress and her attendants handed their bundles and satchels off to Thistle, Mav, and Branrir. We followed them into a shadowed gallery.
“Down here,” Devronica urged, gesturing toward a narrow servants’ staircase.
We descended fast. Somewhere above, a door slammed open and shouts cracked like whips.
The court was waking.
We spilled into a lower corridor. Devronica drove us onward until we burst through a set of doors. A draft of hay, leather, and animal musk rose to meet us.
