Total pages in book: 129
Estimated words: 119158 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 596(@200wpm)___ 477(@250wpm)___ 397(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 119158 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 596(@200wpm)___ 477(@250wpm)___ 397(@300wpm)
I wrapped my fingers around that extended digit and scowled. “Are you familiar with the layout of the city?”
“Not in the slightest, but every city has its shady parts. We’ll keep moving until we find it.”
That was not reassuring, but I kept my mouth shut. It wasn’t as though I had a better plan.
The sun had fully set when Nylian finally stumbled across a warehouse that appeared as if it hadn’t been used in years. The elf assured me there were no security spells protecting the building, allowing us to sneak inside without alerting the rest of the city. We’d been on the run for hours, never stopping for more than twenty minutes. The City Watch was out in force, their cold gray uniforms shining even through the darkness.
Not that Ulmenor had a lot of that.
Magical streetlamps were everywhere, and each of the buildings seemed to twinkle with tiny white fairy lights as if they’d strung up thousands of fireflies. The capital of Galinaes was a beautiful city, but I was sure I wasn’t appreciating it properly because I was constantly worried about being caught and killed.
“You know,” I panted as I dropped onto an old, dust-covered crate in the center of the warehouse, “I think we should have come up with a plan before we boarded the ferry.”
Nylian stood close by, his entire body tense as his gaze searched the deepest shadows. His fingers tightened on the blade hilt in his hand, the silver edge catching and reflecting the light leaking in through the broken dirty windows. “Possibly.”
“Really? That’s it?”
He shoved the dagger into its sheath and turned to face me. “We had little time to linger in Riverhold. I believe the governor told you to get out of town soon. And you were worried about what rumors were floating up to Gushan from Riverhold.”
Okay. He had a point. Living in the body of one of the Edros princes was not helping us to keep a low profile while we were in Edros.
“Sorry. We rushed things because of me. But aside from that, did you have a contact in mind? A haven you could use? An idea of how you were going to sneak into the castle?”
The elf turned toward me, sucked in a breath, opened his mouth, and then said, “No.”
“What?” I screeched, only to slap my hand over my mouth for being way too loud. “What do you mean, no?”
His shoulders slumped and head hanging, Nylian shuffled over and dropped onto the crate next to me, his knee knocking into mine. “I hate to admit it, but none of this was technically planned out. Not a second of it. My brain has just recently gotten over the denial that Orian is gone.” His voice caught on those last three words, and he swallowed hard. “It’s like I blinked, and I’m suddenly exiled and branded a murderer. How…how could my father believe I would…”
I wrapped a hand around the nape of his neck and squeezed. “The people who know you don’t believe it. Maybe your father was angry and hurting over the loss of his child. Give him time to come to his senses. Right now, our job is to find out who would plot such a thing.”
“That’s the one thing that’s kept me moving since this happened. I’ve had a list running in my head of people who could benefit from this chaos.” He paused and turned his head to stare at me, his expression growing complicated.
My hand fell away from his neck and returned to my lap. “And you probably thought the gods had dropped a huge clue into your lap when you stumbled across me, only to have all your hopes crushed in Riverhold.”
“Well…not all of them.”
“Thanks,” I muttered.
Nylian bumped his shoulder into mine. “Victor Montcroix was on my original list, and it seemed lucky to suddenly run into him, but I knew something was off the moment you opened your mouth. After Victor, it was always King Beldroth and Queen Sumina of Galinaes and then…my siblings.”
“Not the rulers of Lockeheim or Kodra?”
He shook his head. “Kodra has a good trade deal with Wolfrest, one that was negotiated with my father. If someone else were to take his place, it’s doubtful that the deal would remain as lucrative for them. There’s no benefit to Kodra in creating this chaos.”
“And Lockeheim?”
He spread his hands out in front of him, open and empty, appearing helpless. “We haven’t had problems with Lockeheim in generations. There has been no tension between our peoples as far as I know. It’s possible, but I can’t imagine why.”
“Doesn’t matter. We’ll check each and every lead we can until we find the true mastermind behind this plot against you and Orian.”
A slow smile grew on Nylian’s face, wiping away some of the sadness that had settled in his eyes. “Thank you. Part of me wishes to know why, but I honestly don’t care. I’m just glad that you’re here. Normally, something like this, it would be my brother at my side. I don’t think I could have done this alone. We—”