The minute Virelai disappeared out the door, Wisteria pounced. "What do you mean we will discuss it?" she said, imitating his voice. "It sounded settled to me, even Pretty Princess agreed."

Eryx gave her one of his stern looks. "I would be careful calling her that within her hearing. Don't forget, Virelai is the reason you are safe."

Wisteria scowled. "I will call her whatever I please. Don't you," she stabbed a finger at his chest, "forget she threatened me. She wanted to turn me in to her father if I didn't help her."

If anyone had told Wisteria a few months ago that she would be locked in a house with Commander Eryx and be ready to claw at the walls to get out, she would have laughed in their face. She used to have such a big crush on the Commander, but now that she’d gotten to know him, it had evaporated. He was so austere. She didn’t understand what Kestrel could possibly see in him.

"Are you saying you would rather be out there?" he asked.

"Wouldn't you?" she countered. “Or do you like sitting here doing nothing?”

This is how most of their conversations had gone as of late. They’d start off friendly enough and then devolve into an argument that left both of them angry and ready to throttle the other.

His face darkened. "Sometimes doing nothing is the best course of action. We must wait and prepare ourselves for the right moment. If we are caught, we will end up on the walls, and then we will truly be doing nothing."

"Might be better than being stuck in this house with you," she snapped.

"There's the door," Eryx gestured. "You’re welcome to leave any time you want. Go ahead and see how long you will last out there."

Wisteria narrowed her eyes at him, folding her arms across her chest. "First, tell me where to find the hole in the wall."

He returned her glare, staying silent.

"You know," she said slowly when it didn’t appear he was going to budge, "I could just go searching for it myself. When I’m caught, I’m sure they will torture me and then you and Virelai can join me on the wall. How delightful would that be?"

"It seems you have learned something from Virelai, after all.”

Wisteria sniffed. “I don’t know what you mean.”

“You’re trying to manipulate me into helping you do something dangerous on the threat of harm to myself. It will not work."

Time to change tactics. "You were perfectly fine with the idea of using the hole in the wall when you thought Virelai would be the one to go. What's the difference if I go instead?"

"She knows what she is doing. You do not." Eryx brushed past her to return to the back of the house.

Wisteria dogged his steps, refusing to let him get away that easily. "Perhaps you didn't hear me before when I said I was a servant. It was my job to go unseen—to be unheard. I'm practically an expert at the art of hiding in plain sight. I. Can. Do this."

He whirled around so fast she nearly collided with him. "All right. I'll tell you if it will get you to stop arguing."

Wisteria grinned in triumph. "Thank you."

"But you understand what could happen if you are caught, or if you draw attention to this house?"

"Yes. Our heads will end up decorating the wall. I know, and I promise I will be careful."

Eryx gave her an unreadable look, and then asked, "Do we have any paper? I will draw you a map."

----------------------------------------

After leaving Wisteria and Eryx, Virelai returned to the castle the same way she’d come. She half expected the guards to step out of the shadows and seize her the moment she set foot in the outer courtyard. To her surprise, all was as she’d left it.

Quiet.

Too quiet.

She didn't stop to question it now. First, she needed to get safely back to her rooms. Then she could worry about what this meant.

Virelai slipped through the halls and up the stairs, retracing her steps without seeing so much as a servant. All that remained was avoiding any guards posted outside her rooms. She paused at the top of the last step and steeled herself before peeking around the corner.

Nothing. No guard—not the young one who she’d sent for tea, nor a replacement—waited for her return. Very strange indeed.

Virelai darted down the hall to her door. She let her hand rest on the ornately carved knob for a moment before cracking it open, unsure of what she would find inside. Perhaps this was all a trap to lure her into a false sense of security, and they would grab her the moment she stepped over the threshold.

Virelai scanned the room, checking corners and shadows. Everything was as she’d left it.

With one last look at the empty hall, she hurried inside and shut the door.

Could it be? Had she truly gotten away with visiting Eryx and Wisteria with no one noticing?

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Doubt nagged at Virelai while she prepared for bed. It didn't take that long to get tea. The guard should have come back, discovered her missing, and raised an alarm. Why hadn't he, and where was he now? Could this be another ploy by her father to slowly drive her mad as she questioned everything?

Time would tell, she decided. Morning would reveal all.

----------------------------------------

Sterling gathered her scattered belongings and shoved them back into her bag. It was no longer a question if they could stay in Daralis. Her magic had ruined everything.

Not that there had been much to ruin. The king had made it clear he knew about the missing people and did not care where they were. She doubted they would find anyone in Daralis who knew anything—or if they did, they would keep their mouth shut.

If only she’d had enough time to look for Ren. He could have been helpful.

Kai burst into the room, his bag slung over one shoulder. “You’re not done yet?”

“You didn’t have to unlace that infernal thing by yourself.” Sterling pointed to the puddle of fabric on the floor that was the dress she’d worn to see the king. Her feet still smarted from the blisters the slippers had given her.

“The longer we linger, the harder it will be to get out,” Kai warned, crossing the room to the window overlooking the street.

“I know, I know.” Sterling mumbled, jamming another tunic into her bag. It might have been easier to fit everything if she’d taken the time to fold it, but she didn’t have the patience. “Do you have an idea of where we’re going?” she asked Kai.

“Not yet. All I know is we need to get outside those walls.”

“You know, nowhere in Himera is going to be safe,” Sterling said, yanking on the ties of her bag. “The king may not care about several hundred missing people, but he will hunt for us. He despises magic, and I used it right in front of him, destroying his palace. There’s no way he will let that go.”

Kai looked at her over his shoulder. “If you are suggesting we return to Nyrene, that is out of the question until we hear from Seraiah and Kestrel.”

“I’m saying,” Sterling gave the tie another yank, “we may not have a choice. We don’t have to go back to Nyrene, but we should certainly cross the portal. No human would be willing to follow us there.”

“Except the mages,” Kai said.

Sterling paused in her effort to get her bag to close. “Good thing for us the king hates them too. If we could find Ren. Maybe he could help us.”

Kai frowned. “We are not going to work with a mage, and we are not going through the portal. I promised Seraiah I would take care of you—”

“I’m perfectly capable of taking care of myself.”

Kai kept going as though she hadn’t spoken. “We are going to find somewhere to wait this out. Either the king will lose interest in us, or we will hear from Seraiah and Kestrel.”

“I don’t want to wait around for someone else to fix my problems. Queens do not wait.”

“What do you know of queens and ruling?” Kai asked sharply.

"Enough," Sterling said, hands on her hips. "I know enough to know that I am not expected to sit around and do nothing while my people are hurting. I will not be like the human king."

Kai didn’t argue. He’d turned back to the window, staring at something on the street below.

“At least I can use my magic now.” She expected him to say something to that, but he remained silent and tense. “Kai?”

“They’re here.”

Downstairs, a door slammed open.

“With me,” he ordered.

Sterling grabbed her bag without argument and followed him across the hall to his room. His window faced a back alley near the stables.

Heavy steps ascended the stairs. The king’s men would be on their floor any second.

Kai shoved the window open. “You go first. I’ll be right behind you.”

Sterling nodded, swallowing her fear. Kai helped her up onto the window ledge. The ground appeared far away.

“Go,” Kai urged. “You’ll be fine.”

Chain mail jingled in the hall. There was no more time.

Sterling took a breath and jumped.

She landed on her feet, her bag smacking into her back and pain shooting up her legs at the impact. There wasn’t time to recover. She scrambled out of the way for Kai.

The second he landed beside her, he took off at a sprint away from the stables. Sterling followed him around the side of the inn and onto the busy street.

“We couldn’t have taken the horse?” Sterling huffed as she ran.

“It would take too long. Besides, we can get lost in the crowd this way,” Kai told her.

They darted in and out of the people, weaving their way toward the city gates. Sterling’s breathing became labored, but they didn’t slow. They couldn’t. Not until they were on the other side of those walls.

When the gates came into view, Sterling saw the guards were no longer sleeping on the job but studying the faces of everyone who passed out of the walls.

Kai slowed to a walk, scanning the crowd of people waiting to exit the city.

“There,” he pointed out a cart filled with crates. “We can hide in there.”

“What if they search it?” There were guards posted on the ground now too and while they weren’t stopping every person, they seemed to be stopping most of the wagons.

“There’s no other choice. They’ll recognize our faces if we walk, and there isn’t any other way out.”

"There is if I make one," Sterling said, flexing her fingers and thinking of the way her magic had brought down chunks of the palace ceiling.

“Absolutely not. You have no control. You could kill someone. We’ll take our chance this way. Come on.”

Kai slipped through the crowd, making his way over to the cart, and Sterling reluctantly followed. Waiting until no one was paying them any mind, Kai helped her up into the cart before leaping up himself. There was just enough space between the stacks of crates for them to huddle. It would have been better if they could get inside the boxes, but the attempt would draw too much attention.

The wagon lurched forward bit by bit, and Sterling grew more anxious by the second. Sweat beaded on her forehead. If the voices decided to make an appearance, they would be done for.

Finally, the shadow of the wall fell over the cart, and Sterling held her breath. They were so close to being free of Daralis.

"Halt," someone commanded.

Please, don't be talking to us, Sterling thought. She glanced at Kai, and he shook his head, holding a finger to his lips.

A second later, their transportation stopped moving.

"What are you carrying?" asked the same guard who’d ordered their driver to halt.

"Grains," came the response.

"Is that all?"

"Yes, sir. Feel free to check if you like."

Sterling pressed her head into her knees. Please say no. Please say no.

"Don't mind if I do," the guard said.

Sterling looked to Kai again, but all he did was point to his ear.

He wanted her to listen, but she had no idea for what. Before Sterling could figure it out, a hand appeared in her line of vision. She scrambled back out of its reach.

The hand immediately disappeared.

"Your grain is making noises."

"Rats, most likely," the driver responded. "Can't keep 'em away."

"Are you sure?" The guard sounded suspicious.

"Yes, sir. Can't be helped. Them rats are as hungry as 'erybody else, I 'spect."

The guard grunted. "Fine. Be gone with you and your rats."

"Thank you, sir."

Sterling sighed as the wagon rolled forward again.

They passed under the gates, but Kai made no move to disembark, only gestured for her to wait. He must want them to be out of eyesight before leaving their hiding spots.

Sterling waited in silence, a cramp growing in her back from her hunched position. Finally, Kai motioned it was time, but before either of them could move, their transportation came to a halt for the second time.

"You can come out now," their driver said. "I know you are there."