Chapter 15
Chapter fifteen
Rotten Apples
Ihad slept some. Maybe not enough. But knowing Darion was alive and safe had lifted such a weight off of me that even with yesterday’s whiplash of emotions, I still felt like I was floating on air.
“You look much better today,” was the first thing Elena said when she saw me coming down from the loft. Then her eyes went wide. “You found Darion, didn’t you?”
“I did.” I could almost cry, seeing the relief in her eyes.
She hugged me. “I’m so glad.”
“So am I. You have no idea.”
“What happened to him?”
“He had a run-in with the Royal Guards. He didn’t really tell me much more than that.”
“Why do men think they need to keep all these secrets?” she asked nobody in particular. “When will you see him again?”
“He’s stopping by the cart around midday.”
Elena rolled her eyes. “Yes, I’ll watch the cart again.”
I kissed her cheek.
As I helped patrons throughout the morning, my mind drifted to Darion again and again.
Why had this man, of all the men in Analon, captured my interest?
What was so special about him? The answer to my question presented itself quickly when Darion walked up to me with a blazing smile that made the last three days of dread melt away like snow in the hot sun.
He didn’t say a word. He simply came up, wrapped his arms around me, and kissed me without a care for what anybody else thought. Even with my jubilant mood, I was still taken aback by his public affection.
Still holding me in his arms, he said, “Hello.”
“I like how you say hello,” I said with a smile.
Elena watched all of this with an incredulous expression, her eyebrows high and her mouth a crooked smile.
When we separated, Darion held up a sack. “I brought food, as promised.”
“I also like how you keep feeding me,” I said, taking the sack and inspecting the contents. “Thank you.”
“My pleasure,” Darion said. “And I brought some food for you, too, Elena. It’s nice of you to keep watching the cart.”
Elena beamed. “He’s a keeper.”
“So, are you ready to—” Darion broke off as his gaze fell on something past my shoulder, and his eyes widened. Something he saw behind me made the blood drain from his face. I’d never seen him look so shocked.
“Sorry,” he said, then spun around and raced away, disappearing into the crowd.
Stunned, I gawked in his direction with his sack of food still in my hands.
I turned to see what had scared him off.
Right where Darion had been staring were two figures walking briskly in our direction.
The crowd parted around them like lambs who’d spotted a wolf.
The woman in front scanned the surrounding crowd with all the prowess of a well-trained bodyguard.
Her hand never ventured far from the hilt of her sword.
Her clothes were all black with a gold lion embroidered on her vest.
Oh no.
The woman who’d slashed the throat of the man in the square the other day was walking toward us.
Close behind was none other than Orlik Leonom, his burgundy robes spilling over his chain mail armor. His nose was turned up and scrunched as if the act of walking among the market-goers was a disgusting ordeal.
I had to choke back my rage at the sight of him. My hands shook. I steadied them on the hilt of my dagger.
They barely acknowledged our existence as they approached. Elena’s focus was on me, so she didn’t see them marching right toward us.
“Watch out!” I called.
Elena spun around at the last moment, brushing against Orlik’s robes. She barely touched the fabric, but he reeled back as if she had struck him.
“Out of my way!” he shouted, shoving Elena aside, sending her crashing into our cart, knocking over half our display. She cried out as she smashed her knee.
“Elena!” I called out as I rushed between her and Orlik, rage coursing through me like molten iron. “Keep your hands off her!”
My mind flashed to the dagger hidden in my tunic. I could rid the world of this foul man in less than a second.
The bodyguard ran forward, sword drawn. Her face was steady, her eyes neutral, almost vacant. The flat of her sword smacked against my vest. “Do you want to die today?”
I coiled up like a spring. My focus sharpened. The hilt of my dagger was cold against my fingers. The din of the crowd faded into the background. The bodyguard was fast, but I could be faster. If she moved her sword even the slightest bit, she’d hit the ground before she even saw me move.
“Stop!” Elena pleaded, racing to my side.
Her voice snapped me out of my tunnel vision. My one task in life was keeping Elena safe, and I was seconds away from putting her in the greatest danger of her life.
The ruckus had drawn a crowd, everyone eager for some bloody entertainment to break up the monotony of the day. The bodyguard and I stood still as oak trees, eyes piercing each other, in a deadly standoff.
Then an apple flew from the back of the throng of revelers. It struck Orlik squarely on the side of his head, sending chunks of rotten brown fruit flying in all directions. He jumped back, howling in pain.
The crowd that had formed around us gasped.
A second apple followed the first and glanced off the bodyguard’s shoulder. I caught a glimpse of curly brown hair and green eyes near the back of the crowd.
“After him, Syra!” Orlik commanded the bodyguard, who immediately chased after the perpetrator.
The Butcher glared at us. “Elena, is it?” he spat, pointing a crooked finger at my sister and me. “I’ll be back to deal with you two. I never forget a face.”
“Neither do I,” I said, my voice as cold as death itself. I had a brief window of opportunity, a singular moment. It could be over so quickly. With a simple slash of his throat, I could avenge my parents’ deaths.
I felt Elena’s warm hand on my arm. It anchored me, reminding me of the cost of vengeance, bringing me back from the edge.
Orlik sneered, then raced off, following his bodyguard into the crowd, and the moment was gone.
I spun around to face Elena. “Are you okay?”
“I may have a bruise on my knee, but it’s not too bad.” She rubbed the spot. “Thanks for coming to my rescue.”
“Listen.” I held Elena by her shoulders. “Pack up the cart as fast as you can and go home. Don’t stop for anything, and don’t open the door if anybody knocks.”
Her eyes narrowed. “What’s going on?”
“Those were wicked people. They were the ones who killed that man in the square. We shouldn’t be here if they come back.”
“But where are you going?” she asked. “Are you chasing after Darion?”
“I have to see if I can help. But please, go home now!”
She nodded with steely resolve. “Okay. Be careful.”
Oh, dust, did I love her. I took one more look at her, then chased after Orlik.
Darion and his two pursuers were shoving through the crowd in the distance.
I’d never catch them by pushing through the throngs of people, so instead I ducked into the nearest alleyway and scaled a three-story building like a cat climbing a tree.
From that perspective, I spotted three moving dots in the vast central courtyard where the marketplace sprawled, filled with dozens of stalls and hundreds of market-goers.
Darion was in the lead, heading for the market’s perimeter, with Orlik and Syra in pursuit.
Dancing along the rooftops under the cover of night was easy.
In the middle of the day with a large crowd below me, however, I had to take great care to avoid wandering eyes.
A bystander could easily dismiss a flash of movement on the rooftops as a bird or another city-dwelling animal, but only if I was fast enough.
Darion was nearing an alleyway at the edge of the courtyard, so I picked up my pace, breathing rapidly. The rooftops were slick; a single misstep would send me tumbling thirty feet to the cobblestones below.
Just as I caught up, Darion ducked into the alleyway below me with Orlik and Syra only a few dozen steps behind. Orlik pulled up, panting hard and clutching his side.
“Go after him!” he commanded, pointing down the alleyway.
Syra gave a quick nod and raced off in pursuit.
From my vantage point, I had a perfect view.
Darion darted left at the first intersection, and Syra followed, even faster now that she didn’t have Orlik to worry about.
This game of cat and mouse continued through the twisting, narrow streets with me following from above, jumping from rooftop to rooftop.
I leapt to the top of an ancient temple, barely making the jump. The weathered stone crumbled under my feet, sending debris down. I steadied myself and continued.
Perched on the edge of the temple roof was a series of stone gargoyles, weathered and cracked with age.
One looked like it might fall in a strong breeze.
Darion had just raced past in the alley below, Syra close behind.
I shoved the gargoyle with all my might.
It gave way easily and tumbled to the ground far below, crashing into a cloud of dust and rubble just in front of Syra, who dove to avoid it.
Syra looked up, and our eyes locked for only a moment before I ducked behind the roof’s edge. Darion glanced back only long enough to see the damage, which he quickly used to his advantage, racing off faster than before. I continued my pursuit from above.
After several minutes of twisting and turning through the mazelike alleyways, Darion stopped when he hit a dead end. He was breathing hard, hands on his hips. He paused and glanced back at the alleyway behind him as if contemplating what to do.
I leapt down the side of the building, bouncing off ledges and awnings until I stood just feet away from him.
Darion’s eyes lit up. “You really are an impressive climber. The gargoyle was your doing, I take it?”
“Figured I owed you for the apples.”
“Thanks,” he said with a smile. “We should go in case they come this way. Don’t want to get stuck in this dead end.”
But something was bothering me. “How do you know Orlik Leonom?”
Darion let out a humorless laugh. “Who doesn’t know The Butcher? Carrying out thousands of death sentences can make you pretty infamous.”
My throat felt thick as my parents’ fate at the hands of that wicked man flashed in my mind. But I swallowed my grief and refocused. “But why is he after you?”
“It may have something to do with some errant fruit thrown in his direction,” he said with a wry smile.
I shook my head. “I saw the look in your eyes before you ran away. You were afraid. I’ve never seen you look that way before.”
He drew in a long breath. “He’s always hated and hunted my kind.”
My head spun. His kind?
“He went this way!” a voice yelled down the alleyway, followed by the sound of stomping boots getting louder.
“Dust!” I said, looking around the dead end, seeing no chance of escape. The walls were tall and smooth with few handholds. I could make it out with some fancy climbing, but a typical person couldn’t. Darion would be stuck alone. I pulled out my dagger, ready to face our enemy.
“Can you climb out?” Darion asked.
“Yes, but I’m not leaving you,” I said. My tone left no room for debate.
Down the alleyway, Syra and two guards were running in our direction. She looked our way, then stopped, signaling the guards to do the same. She took a deep breath. A shimmering light surrounded her, almost as if the air had caught fire. I blinked and shook my head. “What in all the hells?”
A coldness gripped me. Her hands and feet transformed into hooves. The sound of bones snapping echoed through the alleyway. Twisting, razor-sharp horns emerged from her head, and her nose turned into a snout. She was half woman, half beast.
“Darion, are you seeing this? I can’t believe—”
“You need to go,” Darion insisted. “Climb out. I can take care of myself.”
“I already told you, I’m not leaving,” I said, squaring my shoulders.
“I’m sorry, Cas. I didn’t want you to find out this way.”
“Find out what?” I asked, looking toward him.
A glimmer radiated from his body. He looked directly at me with sad eyes, their deep emerald color transforming into a golden hue.
One moment, Darion was standing next to me, and the next moment, he had vanished. And in his wake was the smell of ozone and citrus.