Page 73 of A Queen This Fierce and Deadly

And then Galon was there. He took one look at the children and sighed, shaking his head. But when he pointed at the spot next to him, they crawled from beneath the cart.

I frowned. And then it hit me. I was the one they’d watched behead a soldier and then drag the body away. I was still covered in his blood. Of course they were frightened of me.

“Marth?”

“Alive.” Galon’s voice was grim, and my mouth went dry.

He leaned down. “Parents?” he asked the children.

The oldest one, a boy, shook his head. “We don’t know where they are.”

“Then you’re coming with us.”

The boy opened his mouth as if to argue, but Galon was already turning away, lifting Marth back into his arms.

“We’re going to take you somewhere safe,” I said.

The youngest girl slipped her hand into mine. I glanced down at her tiny, pale face and glazed eyes. Clearly, she was no longer concerned about all the blood covering me. She just needed whatever comfort an adult could provide.

“Other hand,” I murmured, switching sides with her. I needed my sword in that hand, but as long as she was close, I could push her free if we were attacked. She stuck her free thumb in her mouth, and I rolled my shoulders.

The entrance to the tunnel was on the next street. It was a bookshop, and someone had been smart enough to overturn several shelves, pushing them up against the door. The chain around my lungs slipped free as Galon led us down the side of the store, and we slipped through the back entrance, taking the stairs down to the cellar.

“I don’t want to,” the little girl said, attempting topull her hand free from mine.

I couldn’t exactly blame her. I wasn’t particularly happy about taking the ladder down into the tunnel either.

“We have to go, Celere,” one of the boys told her. There were three boys, all of them older than her. “Don’t be a baby.”

“I’ll carry you down,” I said.

She nodded, lifting her arms, and I picked her up. She was surprisingly heavy for such a small child, but she immediately melted into me, her body going limp.

“Let me go first,” Galon said.

He took the ladder down, Marth still in his arms. My pulse pounded in my ears, some part of me convinced there were soldiers waiting. But if that was the case, there would be clear signs in the cellar.

Still, I watched, openmouthed, as he somehow managed to keep his balance on the rickety ladder, leaning Marth against it.

When he was halfway down, he dropped, landing so softly, Marth likely hadn’t felt a thing.

The boys went next, scampering down the ladder. They were watching Galon with big eyes.

I shifted Celere around until she was on my back, and she linked her hands around my throat.

“A little lower,” I murmured.

She tried, but she was frightened as I moved down the ladder, and her hands squeezed, cutting off my air.

Finally, we made it to the bottom, following Galon through the tunnel.

It was clear that this was one of the few tunnels that had remained hidden. It was quiet, dimly lit by light orbs,and I could see obvious signs people had used it to flee—a child’s blanket dropped next to one wall, a few pieces of fruit scattered several footspans later.

My body was still trembling, recovering from the fear and rage that had roared through me like wildfire. Now, I just felt drained, so exhausted I could barely put one foot in front of the other. The children spoke little— the boys introducing themselves as Jory, Roen, and Nyle and then falling silent, while Celere sniffled occasionally as she clung to me.

Thankfully, Galon knew exactly where we were going. The tunnel ended, and we climbed the ladder up into the forest, moving quietly, keeping our footsteps light. There were no signs of Gromalian soldiers this far from the city. But we were quiet and careful just the same.

Fresh air slid up my nostrils, dried the sweat from my face, and ruffled my hair.

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