A moment later, the unmistakable sound of small, scampering creatures echoes behind us.Rats.I’ve been to enough medieval cities to recognize the sound of rats in the sewers: the pattering of their dirty claws, the squeaking in their throats as they clamor over one another. My palms begin to sweat.
No, thank you.
“I’m not getting eaten alive by rats,” I announce to anyone who’ll listen, pressing the Turkish flag again first. “Not today, not ever.”
Mara speaks quickly. “I just remembered: didn’t scientists in Bari recently find that the healing liquid oozing from his bones was simply water formed from condensation, since Bari is a port city?”
“Now you mention it, I do remember something about that,” Bes agrees as the rats draw closer.
Cec snorts. “As always, religion is bullshit.”
“Says the guy powered by magic leaves,” I mutter.
“Turkey again?” Bes asks.
I nod. “Turkey.”
I hurriedly choose Turkey. One click in the wall sounds, and then a second, louder one. Another stone I didn’t notice before directly beside the lock slowly pushes out from the wall until it falls to the ground, breaking apart at my feet. Among the rubble: a large metal key reflects dully in the light. Bes snaps it up before I can and shoves it into the lock, twisting it.
It doesn’t budge.
I glance back as he struggles with it—seeing the rats have started up the stairs.
We’re not going to make it.
“Bes…” I start, absolutely dreading the thought of being eaten alive by hungry rats. Their sharp claws in my eyes, my ears, my mouth, ripping at my hair.
He slams his shoulder into the door in response to my concern. Finally, the lock frees itself and the wood shudders open.
Mara flings it wide, leaping through first. I follow after her, Bes and Cec right behind me. The two of them slam it closed, and throw the wooden beam lock across it for good measure. The sound of the rats hitting the other side is more reassuring than I can say, even as I irrationally fear they’ll scratch their way through.
We’d be long gone by then.
“Damned rats.” I flinch from the chill fissuring along my back. “Were they lying in wait for someone to come along and guess the riddle wrong?”
Mara unsheathes one of her blades. “I’m sure one of the priests feeds them in their cage with the body of Christ.”
I scoff. “As appetizing as that sounds, they’ll have a hard time getting them back in. I hope they take over the church, then drown in the holy water.”
Mara smiles. “I’d love to see that.”
Cec clucks his tongue. “No one here gives a damn about godly wrath, do they?”
The room we’re in appears to be in a corner of the castle from the shape of it. Away from prying eyes and cloaked in darkness. Wooden crates tower around us, though their placement purposefully leaves a clear path. I stay close to Mara as we cut through the maze of slatted wood, until we hit a wall of messy threads—the backside of a woven tapestry.
“Wait.” Bes stops us. “We should let the order know what’s going on.”
“Now?” Mara asks, her voice taking on an anxious edge.Maybe she wants to get as far away from the rats as I do.
“And when we’re not supposed to be here?” Cec adds.
“They need to know about the men from the Vaterländische Union who were chasing us, at the very least,” Bes explains. “If those two men were reconnaissance, then the team they planned to send in a day or so would’ve likely been ambushed by the trap they came to help set. Or…”
“Or what?” I wonder.
“Anders or Kali have betrayed us.”
I glance at Cec as fear widens his eyes.God, I hope it’s Kali, for his sake. And mine.If it weren’t for me, neither Anders nor Kali would be here. But I specifically stuck my neck out for Anders, and I’m not sure how I’ll live with myself if it turns out hewasa spy all along.
