Page 53 of The King's Man 3

This close to the caves, it doesn’t take long to find a patch of rock, thinly covered with fallen leaves and soil. We drag the dead wyverns out of the shallow pool one by one. “Careful. Don’t splash or touch them with damaged skin. You mustn’t take in the water.”

When the last layer of scavenged stone is complete, we step away. These poor creatures. I wonder if Quin is thinking of his uncle, of how many lives—human and not—that man has put at risk to dethrone a king. It’s not enough to manipulate earthshakes, to let wyverns kill innocent aklos and aklas in the royal city—now his mutated wyverns are infecting,killing,others. Suffering and dying.

I ball my hands tightly. Through the shimmer of the miasma, in the opening mouth of a cave, I think I see narrow leaves, etched with silver lines. Gildroot. What else lies in its depths? “There are lifesaving herbs in that cave.”

Bastion and Quin look sharply at me, and then at one another. As I take a step on the murky path, they each grab an arm to pull me back.

I try to shake them off, freeing myself only from Bastion’s grasp, and point. “Only dozens of feet away—”

“The miasma could kill you.”

“I’m just one person. What if—”

Quin yanks me around, hard. His jaw is set, his eyes flashing. “If you go in there, if youdie, what then?” He shakes me. “They’ll have no chance.”

I grit my teeth and drop my head. He’s right. It’s too risky.

Bastion snorts. “My men will have arrived at the neighbouring towns by now. We should have supplies soon.”

I step back. “Let’s go.”

Bastion goes ahead on foot, to employ more of his men tracing the forks of the brook, to spread the word—water taken from it must be boiled before it can be used for anything, evenwashing or cleaning house, and crops grown with the water might be infected.

I support Quin back to his horse, where with the aid of a tree he mounts painfully, then holds his hand out to me. I hesitate, not wanting to cause him more strain, but he insists; I slide my cool hand into his large, warm one, and he hauls me up. I swing in behind him, holding onto his hips for purchase.

“Rest,” he commands, and I drop my forehead against his shoulder blades.

“Need to check in with Olyn,” I murmur.

“That’s not resting.”

“There are too many things. There’s something else. You won’t like it.”

“Speak.”

“The regent needs to know.”

Quin stiffens and I sigh against his nape. “It should be you, but... He needs to order a search. If other wyverns are sick like this, they must be found.”

“I can make sure he’s aware. But I can’t guarantee he’ll take action. He may know already.”

We’re contemplative as we ride; the fears of what might happen if the regent doesn’t act to stop further spread make me cold. I grip Quin tighter, focus on the motion of the horse under me and Quin’s warm back. The way it rises and falls evenly, like he’s in control.

At last, I turn my head and blink in the luminarium. Olyn has already spotted us and is racing over the field. Hope floods her face at first sight of me, and I bow my head deeper against Quin’s back. She stills, and the horse shifts, like it senses the flaring tension.

“I hoped you’d gotten out before they sealed the gates.”

“I didn’t, but we found another way.” My voice wavers. “We’re working on getting the herbs.”

She lowers her gaze. “The mother and daughter have scales now. I don’t think they’ll manage the night.”

My hands tighten on Quin’s waist as I tell her to separate them from less critical patients. Place them in a nearby house. “I’ll treat them first. As soon as I have enough to make the spell.” Squeezing my thighs around Quin, I say, “Patients can’t see me empty handed.”

Outside the magistrate’s office, evidence of anger and panic remains. Excrement has been flung onto the building, and many still linger in the courtyard, waiting helplessly for the magistrates to come back and do their duty. Help them.

I slide off the horse and grab Quin’s arm to steady him when he bites back a cry as his leg hits the ground. “Let’s get inside.”

At the top of the stairs before the door, Quin turns to the crowd and points to the speaker’s ledge. “Bring everyone together. There will be news at sundown.”

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