Page 50 of I Ran Away to Evil 3
“To look around the city.”
“Have you been in the palace all day?”
“No,” I deliberately told the truth so that I wouldn’t set off any abilities. “I was helping search for our missing countess, since I was with Queen Henrietta when she got the news.”
“If you find anything, please report immediately.”
“I will.”
It took two more interrogations before I was out of the palace grounds.
I was not a travel-based character type, and I hated running, so I walked to the main thoroughfare a block away and found a rickshaw willing to take me to the northeast gate for extra coin.
The wolfman shot me a toothy grin as he bit the silver coin I gave him before pocketing it and grabbing the handles of his person-pulled carriage. I fit myself comfortably on a wooden seat, and he was off.
We were two streets from the gate when I called out, “Driver! You can let me out here!”
CHAPTER 28
The Western Star Needs to Crest the Tree Line
Julian
Julian followed Barry and Lomen into the alley. There were five doors: four on the left and one on the building they’d just jumped down from.
“I’ll check if any are guarded.” Lomen raised his staff and covered the tip with a black cloth before casting his spell. “By Shade and Light Revealed that Which is Concealed [Inspect].”
The fabric hid the burst of red light from the spell.
“This door is unlocked, and I don’t detect any protection spells,” the mage whispered, pointing at the door on the right. “Let me check the other doors.”
The shadows on the wall beside Julian rippled. John had returned.
The human rogue wouldn’t reveal himself until ordered to; they’d been on enough missions together where stealth was life and death. Once he had merged with Julian’s shadow, he sent a [Shadow Chat].
[The bridge troll escaped my shadow.]
“What?” The word slipped out before he could hold it back.
[The bridge troll escaped my shadow.]
Julian furrowed his brow, replying in the chat.
[When?]
[A few minutes after you left the palace.]
[Why are you only telling me this now?]
[She used some sort of portal skill, so I’d assumed she didn’t go far …]
John’s shadow sounded sheepish. The city restricted portal use within small areas, and the rogues tracking skills were powerful enough he should’ve found Gerda easily.
[I was wrong. And your mother had a task for my palace shadow, so I was unable to leave from there to chase you. This is the shadow that was originally with the bridge troll.]
[What did my mother want?]
[She had me retrieve the Arc Warden from the treasury and bring it to her in the palace observatory.]
