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“She came all this way to warn me that your uncle is not going to wait until tomorrow. He is planning to send soldiers to fetch me today, perhaps this morning. She has risked everything to tell me this. I won’t leave her behind.”

“This morning?” He exhaled sharply. “Don, get in here,” he hollered.

I studied his handsome, rugged face, now set in a deep scowl. Despite my love for him, his angry words still echoed in my thoughts.

An idea was taking shape in my mind. I wasn’t sure I had the courage to take the step I was imagining, but I gave the thought room to take hold and expand as I led Ismene across the courtyard in the wake of Sebastianus’s angry stride.

In the study, Sebastianus and Don ignored the mess on the floor and bent over a map spread out on the otherwise bare table.

“I don’t see how we’ll get out of the city unnoticed,” Sebastianus said to Don. “By the gods, he’ll already have the gates to the Imperial District under watch.”

“But there are angry crowds at every gate,” Don said. “The city seems about to explode. That’s where the diversion I mentioned comes in. It won’t take much.”

Ismene stood trembling beside me, looking down at the papers and debris strewn across the floor.

“As you’ve pointed out, he’ll expect us to comply,” Don said. “But we’ll make it appear that we’ve sent Anna into hiding at Klaudia’s, while you and I set out for the border like we’re following Jovinian’s instructions. The charade won’t hold for long, but it might give them a head start.”

“Give who a head start?” Sebastianus said.

“Anna and—and this other woman.”

Sebastianus glanced back at us over his shoulder. “Extra baggage in an already difficult situation.”

He and Don stepped away from the table and began to confer in a low tone.

Ismene watched them anxiously.

I nudged her over to the map. “Let’s look at our route together.”

We stood side by side, studying the worn parchment. “I have never seen a map like this,” she whispered. “It’s the whole world.”

“As amazing as it may seem, it’s not even the whole world. See, this is where we are now, in Panpirion, and here’s Corlivo.” I named each place out loud as I touched the symbols on the map, the large circle for the capital city and then the smaller dot amid the jagged lines of the mountain range. “And here’s the route we’ll take. Watch carefully.” I positioned my finger on Panpirion and moved it silently, first along the coastal road and then, not north to Corlivo, but northeast, to Mareus, on the edge of the inland sea. I gave the little mark that indicated Mareus an extra tap for emphasis. “That is our road.”

Our eyes met.

“Anna,” Don said, “do you think you can navigate with the astrolabe from here to Corlivo?”

I thought for a moment. “Yes, I am sure I could.”

Don nodded. “And you’re certain you want to, ah, travel with this woman?”

“Ismene. And yes, I do. We will go together.”

“The two of you together will draw even more attention,” Sebastianus said. “And someone will have to go with you. Two women can’t travel alone for days on the open road.”

“Klaudia does it,” I said.

“That’s different.” He turned away and looked out the window.

“Why is it different?” I said, exasperated.

At that moment, the study door opened, and a compact, sinewy man stepped through: Pollux.

Don raised a hand in greeting.

“That is the champion charioteer,” Ismene whispered excitedly. “I’ve seen him at the races many times.”

“Pollux is willing to ride with the women,” Don said. “He said the charioteers are already stirring up the factions, and today’s the day the dam is going to break.”