Cold Steel

As the men began to run, dissolving into a din of fright and panic, the trolls blocked the lanes down which the soldiers rode. Their heads swayed as they scanned the formation. There was something uncanny in the way the trolls bent forward from their usual upright stance, bodies lowering. The riders slowed. I sucked in a breath, gripping the edge of the window.

A gun went off. Spears lowered and swords flashed as the soldiers rode down the unarmed trolls. If trolls could ever be said to be unarmed.

They scattered. Whistles shrilled. A cascading melody lilted like a pretty aria, yet its spill of notes made me shudder down to the bone. Some charged, while others easily overleaped the fences and bounded to circle in from the side. I had never seen anything like it. They were so quick that the frontmost simply dodged the thrust of spears. The movement and scent of the trolls panicked the horses, and the lead mounts bolted, throwing their riders or slamming into the pens on either side in an effort to get away. A sword flashed, cutting into a feathered hide.

Was that blood I smelled, hot and dark?

A shriek tore the air. The clamor of men was drowned under a cacophony of whistles so loud I clapped my hands over my ears. A troll ducked under the belly of a horse and slashed upward. As the horse screamed, its guts spilled.

Brennan shut the window as the carriage lurched around a corner. “That’s torn it!”

“I can’t leave Bee out in that—!”

“Trust that I know what I’m doing. We have a meeting place already planned.”

Knuckles white, I held my cane, wanting to batter him over the head with it, but instead I took in one slow breath after another, trying to calm myself.

He shook his head. “It’s a good thing Bee warned me that you leap before you look or you’d have gotten out there and caused ten kinds of trouble. For one thing, what if the ghana’s spies recognized you as the magister’s wife living on the hospitality of White Bow House? What kind of questions do you think they would start asking? You can’t just jump. You have to consider the consequences of each action.”

“I thought the more you skate onto thin ice, the better you like it. That’s what Kehinde says.”

A flash of real irritation tightened his lips and eyes. The force of his anger silenced me. I had no idea what Brennan Touré Du thought of me, and I feared he wasn’t thinking very highly of me at all.

We trundled along as an appalling noise chased us with the pitch of an ugly fight. The carriage jolted to a halt. The door opened, and Bee flung herself into my arms. My eyes grew damp, but after a struggling pause she sat back with one arm gripping my waist and the other holding my hand. The carriage dipped as several people swung up onto the foot-rail in the back.

“I couldn’t see anything, but I heard the screams,” she said to Brennan.

“Does that happen every time you speak?” I demanded, still trembling.

“The ghana’s troops should know better than to draw blood,” said Brennan. “It’s why we like to have a crowd of trolls at our gatherings. They’re curious about the way the rats behave, and by being there they are the best protection radicals can have.”

“Bloody Melqart!” I whispered. “It disemboweled a horse!”

I pressed a hand to my mouth, then lowered it. While the thought shocked me, my body did not respond with revulsion. Instead I thought of how much moist, raw flesh was thereby exposed.

Bee crushed me against her. “Oh, Cat, I’m so sorry you saw such an awful sight. I didn’t know we would be separated for so long. It’s been almost a year since you and I were in Adurnam! I became so afraid I had lost you. Let’s never be parted again.” To my surprise, she burst into tears.

I fussed over her. Despite my tears and the fading chaos of the battle, I was swept with an intoxicating happiness. I had rescued Vai and now I was reunited with Bee and Rory. For this hour, at least, I could luxuriate in knowing I had reclaimed the ones I loved.

“As long as you’re safe that’s all that matters. Have you been well, Bee? Have you had quite a bit of trouble?”

“Yes. It’s not the first time a public meeting has been attacked in that aggressive way. I can’t get used to it.”

“You’re not meant to get used to it! What happened after you and Rory left me in the spirit world?”

She wiped her eyes with the back of a hand. “Rory and I swam ashore in the city of Camlun at the festival of Beltane. We traveled to Havery, where we were courteously received at the law offices. We’ve been with the radicals ever since. It’s been more dangerous than I imagined. Professora Nayo Kuti was arrested in Lutetia for the crime of spreading sedition!”