Page 19 of Legacy of Thorns
“Yes, but we escaped.” Archer grinned. “So those don’t count. And they tried to take Nisha once, but?—”
“I don’t like strange men who try to abduct me,” Nisha said calmly, one hand straying to the hilt of the sword at her waist and the other to one of the daggers she kept thrust into the right side of her sword belt.
“She wasn’t the soft target they thought she was,” Archer chuckled.
“They’ll find I’m no soft target either.” Daphne tried to sound braver than she felt.
“Even with all her expertise,” Finley said, “Nisha might have been taken if Morrow hadn’t showed up to help. It’s not safe to be alone if you’re on their list, Daphne. And it’s not safe for any of us to be here right now.”
“Are you sure it isn’t the law chasing you?” Daphne asked tartly. “Since you seem to make a habit of stealing.”
“I wish it was.” Finley’s voice was too serious. His gaze turned to Archer. “How long did it take them to show up last time? How long did you have from when you first arrived to when they appeared?”
Archer responded with certainty. “It was twenty-two minutes.” He glanced at Daphne. “I always keep count from the moment I break in anywhere. Just like Finley taught me.”
Why was Daphne not surprised to hear that Archer learned thievery from Finley?
“It’s not like that,” Finley murmured to her, but she turned her back to him. He sighed and spoke in a louder voice.
“We’ve already been here too long in that case,” he said. “We need to leave quickly.” His voice lowered again. “Please, Daphne. You have to come with us.”
“Come on, lass,” Morrow said more gently. “We can sort it all out when we’re somewhere safe.”
Someone rattled the door, cursing when they found it locked from the inside. Daphne’s heart jumped, speeding fast enough to make her decision for her. Whether or not she trusted Finley and his crew, she wasn’t staying behind to face whoever was on the other side of those doors alone.
Chapter 7
Finley
“The other door,” Morrow said urgently, turning toward the depths of the barn.
But Nisha shook her head. “If they’re trying this door so openly, they’ll already have the back covered.”
“Then we go out the side.” Finley pointed at a ladder that led up to a hayloft above.
Archie grinned and immediately began climbing. “Don’t worry, Daphne,” he called quietly over his shoulder. “I’ll test that it’s safe for you.”
“I’d better go last.” Morrow eyed the simple wooden ladder with misgiving.
But Finley was only half aware of his familiar companions and their expected reactions. His main focus was on Daphne. If she insisted she wasn’t coming with them, he would use the dagger. He wasn’t going to leave her behind to be captured because of him—even if that meant carrying her out over his shoulder.
But Daphne’s expression was serious, even grim, and she put her hands on the ladder to steady it as Archie scrambled over the top. As soon as he had disappeared into the loft, she wrapped herskirts firmly around herself and began climbing after him. She didn’t once look at Finley, and he had the impression that wasn’t by chance. But she was escaping with them, and that was all that mattered.
Nisha stepped up to the base of the ladder in Daphne’s place, holding it steady for her as Daphne had done for Archie. When Finley took his place at her side, she threw him a single look.
“Now that,” she said, “is a lady worth admiring.”
Finley’s neck went red, but Nisha didn’t wait for an answer, ascending upward so quickly that he barely had time to steady it before she disappeared over the top. He climbed after her, emerging into a dusty old hayloft that looked less sturdy than he would have liked. He peered back down at Morrow.
“Careful, friend. There’s no one to steady the ladder for you.”
“That’s for the best,” Morrow huffed, already several steps up. “If it can’t hold my weight, I’d squash them like a pancake.”
Finley grinned reluctantly, his concerns alleviated by the sight of the ladder holding firm, despite Morrow’s sturdy bulk and dire predictions.
On the far side of the hayloft, a dirty window let in streaks of light. As Finley glanced at it, Archie punched out the glass, his fist wrapped in an old piece of leather.
Finley rushed to his side. “That isn’t the best way to do that.”
