Blake knew Harlan would be there. She also knew there would be trouble. Thea had told her there were many attending who had a clear message for the king regarding his new wall. Blake did not know who she was more worried about, the merchants or Harlan. ‘Eda and I will go, then.’
‘If you must,’ Candace said, ‘but stay at the back, away from any potential trouble. And make sure you come straight home afterwards.’
Blake and Eda went to the bedroom to fetch their cloaks. The sight of Eda holding her shirt up with her teeth while she strapped on her dagger made Blake smile. Her sister’s sixteenth birthday had come and gone. Harlan had somehow found out and sent a food package with black bread for the occasion. Blake had wanted to thank him for making it special, but she never saw him. All she got were glimpses of him atop the wall. He was rarely inside the borough anymore.
Probably for the best.
Every time she saw him, it took her a few days to rebuild her immunity.
‘Ready?’ Blake asked, lowering her skirt.
Eda finished tucking in her shirt.Ready.
* * *
Around half the merchants were present for the unveiling. Men stood in groups, their expressions far from celebratory. Blake and Eda stood with the other women at the back, where young children dashed between skirts, lost in their games.
Blake noticed the defenders were scattered amid the crowd, their sharp gazes shifting from person to person. Her eyes travelled up to the archers along the walls. Not as many as she would have predicted given the situation, but she suspected there were more hidden in the turrets. Harlan was not a man who took risks.
It was a long wait before King Oswin finally appeared on the wall, Prince Borin marching at his side. Eight defenders surrounded them, Astin among them. Prince Becket was nowhere to be seen. It was common knowledge that he had no interest in such things and preferred the quiet of the castle.
When the king and prince came to a stop above the new portcullis, the defenders formed a circle around them. They were not taking any chances.
‘What a proud day for Chadora,’ King Oswin began, his booming voice reaching all corners of the borough. ‘To see our most vulnerable now completely protected from the harsh realities that face those outside of Chadora’s walls. Let your minds be at ease.’
Not a single noise came from the so-called vulnerable crowd standing before the king. Hard faces stared back at him.
‘No sea warrior will be foolish enough to come ashore now,’ he continued. ‘They will not make it past the port.’
The only noise was the shuffle of merchant feet.
‘I know some of you have concerns,’ King Oswin went on. ‘However, let me assure you that any man standing before me who needs to conduct business in the port will be able to do so.’
Blake leaned closer to Eda. ‘I really hope he means “man” in a figurative sense, or he’s going to have a lot of angry women on his hands.’ She spotted Harlan atop the wall and straightened. She had come to recognise him like her own shadow. Those broad shoulders. The curve of his neck. Those perfectly formed lips that she imagined on her skin at night. He was concentrating hard on the scene below. If he knew she was there, he did not acknowledge it.
The cover was pulled back, revealing the same portcullis merchants faced at every wall. It was the most depressing sight Blake had ever seen. They could just make out the water through the latticed wood.
When no one applauded, the king stepped forwards to speak. ‘May this day mark—’
His words were cut short when an arrow pierced his neck. There was a collective gasp from the crowd as the king’s defenders burst into action. Astin stepped in front of Prince Borin, ushering him back to the other side of the wall.
Blake’s eyes shot to Harlan, but he was no longer there.
‘We have to go,’ she said, grabbing Eda by the arm and dragging her off.
But the defenders at the back had drawn their swords and were not letting anyone through.
‘Arms up!’ they shouted. ‘Hands where we can see them—all of you!’
Blake and Eda raised their hands, planting their feet as the defenders shoved past them in search of the shooter. There was panic as the merchants were driven into a tighter circle.
‘Hands up! Now!’ the defenders continued to shout, shoving people in all directions. They began tearing cloaks off the backs of merchants and patting them down. They confiscated every weapon they came across, even though the daggers they were taking had nothing to do with the arrow wedged in the king’s neck.
‘Keep your hands up,’ Blake whispered to Eda when a defender approached them. ‘Don’t resist.’
Eda stared ahead as her cloak was torn off. Large hands slid down her body. Blake knew the moment he found the dagger, because he stilled. Eda flinched as her shirt was torn open, her weapon taken. It took all of Blake’s strength to remain still and silent.
‘Face down on the ground,’ the defender shouted.
