Page 105 of A Tribute of Fire

For a moment I felt like I was being watched. I whirled around and could have sworn that I saw Suri’s eyes open. I held still, waiting, as my heart thundered in my chest. But her breathing was steady and even, and I figured I was imagining things.

With my xiphos strapped to my thigh, I crept over to the door. I opened it slowly, cringing each time it softly squeaked. Was it this loud during the daytime?

At long last I got it open and hurried down the hallway and the stairs, then through the front door.

I got six feet from the dormitory before I heard a voice holler, “Halt!”

CHAPTER THIRTY-FIVE

A woman in her thirties was striding toward me, her sword drawn as she approached. A guard? Had she been posted solely because of me? Had someone guessed at my intentions and shared them with someone in charge? Was I about to be expelled?

Given that I didn’t know exactly what was happening, I considered my options—I could run and hope that I didn’t get caught or say a fervent prayer to the goddess that I would only be punished and not tossed into the street for trying to sneak out.

“Where are you going?” she asked, and I ran through possible excuses in my head.

I couldn’t use the obvious one, that I needed to relieve myself, because the toilets were inside. I finally settled on, “What time is it? I’m supposed to go clean the temple.”

At that the guard sheathed her sword and I let out a tiny sigh of relief. “Not for a few more hours. You need to go back to bed. There is a curfew and you can’t be out here at night.”

“Oh. I didn’t know.” And that was the truth. No one had told me about a curfew. Most likely because they didn’t expect me to try and sneak out in the middle of the night.

“There is.” I saw three other women gathering behind her, ready to offer support if she needed it.

How many guards were there keeping watch?

I felt foolish for not even considering this as a possibility. Of course someone like Antiope would make certain that the temple grounds were being watched over at all hours.

“I’m sorry. I suppose I was just excited to serve.”

The guard smiled slightly. “I understand. Go on. Back to bed.”

I nodded. “Yes. I’m sorry.” I wasn’t sure why I felt compelled to tack on another apology. I hurried back into the dormitory. That could have gone so much worse.

With a sigh I realized that sneaking out was going to take a lot more planning than I’d initially thought.

The next morning I arose before dawn, still sleepy, and still able to feel the phantom imprint of Jason’s lips on mine, his hands on my body. I had dreamed of him again.

After I got ready and gathered my tools, I went down to the temple. The guard on duty outside the dormitory nodded to me and I noticed that it was someone different from the night before. I wondered what time they changed shifts. That would be helpful information to know.

The courtyard in front of the temple had been diligently scrubbed, but the stones were still stained with blood. It would take a long time for the sun to bleach the stains away.

I heard a buzzing sound and turned my gaze to the archway. The bodies of the men who had dared to broach the temple grounds and had been killed by Antiope were mounted on pikes. Some kind of loud insect hovered near their bodies. My stomach turned at the sight but I supposed that was the point. It was a gruesome warning to anyone who would dare to break the goddess’s laws or question the resolve of her servants.

After I cleaned the steps and patio, I went into the temple and held my breath, hoping that I would be alone.

But there was a guard stationed at the top of the stairs. I let out a sigh of frustration. How was I ever going to be able to investigate the statue?

Creating detailed battle strategies had never been a particular skill of mine. In the past I made a general plan and then just hoped that I’d be fast enough and strong enough to find a way to reach my goal.

It had served me fairly well so far.

At some point the statue guard would make a mistake. They would fall ill or need to use the toilet or there would be a miscommunication about who was supposed to be on duty.

And I would have to wait until an opening presented itself. What else could I do? I had just discovered that there were guards everywhere, both day and night.

The only thing I could do was to learn their patrols, what times they changed shifts, and use that to my advantage.

Which meant more waiting.

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