Page 82 of The Stars are Dying

She blinked at the sodden ground she crawled through. Black dirt was wedged under her broken fingernails, and she examined them, wonderingwhy. She was so cold, pitifully dressed for the winter, and the forest was punishing her for it. But her neck throbbed as warmth spilled from it.

Snap. Shuffle. Thump.

The sounds rattled through her one by one. She didn’t know where she was. More frightening than not knowing what threat loomed behind her…

She didn’t knowwhoshe was.

26

The gasp of air I took filled my lungs with certainty. I shot upright, examining myself, and the dark leathers I wore were a relief. A wicked dream had chilled me. The threads of it singed as I tried to recall what I could, but there was one thing I would never forget: the woodland where I had run straight into Hektor’s arms.

I jerked at the sound of a wet huff beside me.

“You’re awake!”

A chipper child’s voice caught my attention. I found the huff had come from a large golden dog.

The cot I was lying in was barely big enough for me, and the hues of brown around the wooden structure sparked no recognition.

“Where am I?” I asked.

The emblem of Alisus pinned my cloak to my shoulder. That was new.

“East quarter of Ground City Circle, miss,” the young boy said, hopping off his chair and skipping over. “I was to wait here to give you this.”

He held out a small parchment. I took it tentatively and began to unfold it as I swung my legs off the bed.

“Do you know how many days have passed?”

“It’s day one of the Libertatem,” he said.

My shoulders relaxed.

“The others should be awakening now too. Only fair, right?”

I refrained from saying I didn’t think the king cared for fairness in any of this, but I supposed equal measures was his twisted version of the concept.

“Tobias! Those horses aren’t going to muck out themselves!”

The boy jumped at the screech of an older woman from outside the small window. I wondered why they would leave me here to impose on someone’s home, but I was at least glad it wasn’t outdoors in the winter climate.

“Good luck, miss!” Tobias said before scurrying out of the room, and the wagging tail of the golden dog followed him.

My heart raced at the realization I was alone and undeniably a part of the game now. My world hadn’t just expanded when I left Hektor’s manor; it had damn well exploded.

Rallying some composure, I glanced out the window. Dawn was just shy of breaking. I finally looked down at what had to be my first clue on where to go and read the lines.

A riddle.

I groaned.

Of course the trial to obtain the key pieces wasn’t enough. The chase for the locations might very well drive me mad.

I read it again as I exited the humble home. The first thing to greet me was a black cat. I didn’t have much experience with animals, but I approached it tentatively since its meow felt like an invitation of trust. As I crouched it sat politely, and I reached out a hand, which it tilted its head into.

“My first ally out here,” I mused.

It meowed again, and while I was oddly amused by it, I forced myself to straighten with the awareness of what I had to do.

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