Because Oren’s people are winning.
My heart keeps pounding. I don’t know how to help here. I tried to do the right thing, and it didn’t work. I tried to be the King’s Justice, and it didn’t work.
I look at Tessa and Lochlan. This isn’t even my battle, but they’re both staring at me expectantly. They’re looking at me tolead. Somehow it reminds me of that day in the clothier’s shop, when I needed to be the one to provide hope. Just like when I had to handle things for my brother, success—or failure—has become my responsibility.
I steel my spine and look through the spyglass again. Oren is on the ship. Untouchable from the shore. He’s sending people down to fight on the ground, but he’s safe on the water, as usual. He usedmyplan to get Rian and his people away so they’d have an advantage.
He used Rian’s desire for revenge, or forme—or both—to get them away.
The numbers down below are dwindling. I don’t have an army. I don’t know the people here to rally townspeople. It’s not like Lochlan’s rebels in Kandala. We don’t know anyone at all. My chest tightens dangerously.
Tessa puts a hand on mine. “You don’t have to win this war alone.”
The weight of her hand presses into mine, and again, I can’t believe she’s here, that I’ve found her, that we’re together. I can’t help it. I pull her to me.
“Forgive me,” I say. “I don’t know if I can win this war at all.”
Lochlan picks up the spyglass and looks himself. “Do you remember what you said about the treble hook when we were on Silvesse? Do you think you could still do that?”
I frown. “That I could scale the wall to break in?”
“Yes.” He glances back at the wagon. “We have some treble hooks in the guard gear.”
I look at him sideways, because I can’t figure out his angle. “Ah . . . ?if only we had a building to break into?”
He hands me the spyglass. “There’s half a dozen rowboats sitting in the harbor. No one’s touching them because they’re useless against a brigantine. Half of them might be on fire. But we could try.”
“Try what?” says Tessa.
“You don’t need to scale awall,” says Lochlan. “How about a ship?”
Tessa is going with me first, because I wouldn’t have it any other way. Our treble hooks whistle up through the night and latch against the hull with aclink, and we wait to see if anyone hears. The sounds of the battle and the slap of the water against the hull must be too loud, because no one comes to investigate. I wait anyway. I’ve been double-crossed too many times now.
But then we’re climbing.
“If only we had masks, it would be like old times,” she says, a little breathless from the effort.
I look at the faint tracing of her profile in the moonlight. “I like it better this way.”
“I hope you know I plan to sob all over you properly later.”
“I hope that’s notallyou plan to do all over me later.”
She gasps, then grins, her smile bright in the darkness.
“Not for nothing, but I amright here,” Lochlan says from below us.
But then the ship fires again, and we clutch tight to the ropes as they shudder with the force of the cannon fire.
“I’m rather shocked to see the two of you getting along so well,” she says once we’re climbing again.
“We’ve come to an understanding, I think,” I say.
“Karri will be so relieved.”
If we can get back, I think, but I don’t say that.
I tap my finger over my lips, and she nods, because we’re nearing the rail. The three of us climb over silently. This part of the deck is pitch-black, which is why we boarded here. But there aren’t dozens of people on board anymore—most of Oren’s sailors are on land, or down below, firing the cannons. We’re going to have to be strategic to take out Oren, but we don’t need to sneak past a ship full of sailors. Even still, I tell Lochlan to stay at the back, to make sure no one can come up from behind us. Then Tessa and I slip along the railing, staying in the shadows.
