Page 85 of Storm to Victory
Fieran shared a look with Aaruk before he pressed a hand to Dacha’s back and gave him a push forward. “I think we should follow her. At the very least, it will get us off the street. If she plans to betray us, we can overpower her.”
Not that Fieran really wanted to tie up an old woman, but taking her out and using her house as a hiding spot would be safer than remaining here.
Dacha sighed, nodded, and crept down the alley toward the woman’s door. She moved out of the way, holding the door open and ushering the three of them inside.
Once Aaruk, the last in line, crossed her threshold, she shut the door, bolting it behind them. She hurried to tug heavy curtains closed, leaving the small kitchen where they stood in a dimly lit gloom.
“Now.” The woman planted her hands on her hips and glanced between them. “Who wants to explain what an elf and an ogre are doing in Mongavaria?”
Chapter
Twenty-Five
Her heart hammering from her chest into her throat, Pip followed Jayna down a corridor of the palace in broad daylight. Both of them wore the black maid dresses with pristine white aprons and white cap. Between the cap and the way she’d pinned her curly hair into a bun, the tips of her ears were hidden.
Jayna explained the various duties that needed to be done in each of the rooms they passed, as if she really was showing a new maid around. A few of the maids even stopped to talk with them, and Jayna easily stepped in. Pip, of course, couldn’t reply to any questions, otherwise her elvish accent would give her away.
Down in the dungeon, she’d left a stack of pillows under the blankets to make it look like she was still there. As she’d been sleeping most of the days away anyway, given how long she was up each night, the guards wouldn’t think much of it. Besides, the Mongavarians were focused on Prince Edmund and the secrets he had in his head. As long as he remained in the dungeon, they wouldn’t check Pip’s cell.
Still, it felt incredibly dangerous to just walk around Landri Palace like this. It was far too bold and brave.
Yet this was the life Jayna had been living for the past two years. A humble maid by day. A spy at night. Although, she could speak Mongavarian like she belonged and her ears were only vaguely pointed.
“And this is the royal wing. Always knock and ensure the chambers are empty before cleaning. We are not to disturb the royal family.” Jayna pointed her duster at the rooms as they passed. Each door was made of heavily carved dark wood of the type that Mak and Pip’s dacha would probably appreciate.
One of the doors opened, and a young man stepped out. He wore a deep blue shirt with a black jacket. His black boots reached his knees while his brown hair was lightly tousled.
Jayna came to an abrupt halt before she dipped into a deep curtsy, holding the pose with her head down.
Pip hurried to copy her movements, thankful that her elven grace hid any awkwardness.
The young man glanced over them with barely a pause, as if they were part of the furniture of the hallway, before he set out down the corridor.
Once he turned the corner, Jayna straightened. Pip did as well and stepped closer, keeping her voice at a whisper. “Who was that?”
“Prince Ryland. He’s in line for the throne, after his brother, father, and grandfather.” Jayna’s eyes lingered on the empty end of the hallway for a moment before she shook herself. “We need to keep moving.”
The two of them continued winding their way through the palace until they arrived at its lower reaches. Jayna neatly got herself assigned to fetching new stockings for the youngest Mongavarian princess, Prince Ryland’s younger sibling, from town.
The next thing Pip knew, the two of them were strolling across a courtyard and out a side gate of the palace.
A stiff sea breeze whipped at Pip’s skirt, and she pressed one hand to her skirts, the other to the cap on her head. Behind her, the ocean spread out in layers from sandy-brown at the beach to turquoise to deep blue in the distance. White foam topped the waves as they crashed against the cliffs below the palace in a rhythmic susurration.
Before Pip and Jayna, the path joined the main road that led into the city. To their left, a huge harbor bustled with ships and noise, from cargo ships entering the docks to lines of iron warships lined up in a sheltered spot beneath the large armaments guarding the harbor’s entrance. Several of the iron warships patrolled across the harbor’s mouth.
To their other side, seagrass led to a stretch of sandy beach. At this time of day, the beach was filled with people, likely the rich of the city who had the leisure to spend the sunny late summer day lounging by the seashore instead of working.
The city directly before them must be the wealthy part of Landri, given the clean streets, broad brick streets, and stately stone buildings rising on either side, a sharp contrast to the dark smudge of coal smoke that lingered on the other side of the harbor.
At the very base of the causeway before the road entered the city proper, a huge sprawl of stone buildings was hemmed in by a tall stone wall topped with barbed wire.
As they passed the huge iron gate set in the wall, Jayna tilted her head in that direction. “The War Office is in there, along with all other governmental offices.”
Pip risked a brief glance as they passed. The gate blocked off a broad avenue that led to a complex of stone buildings. Men in Mongavarian uniforms guarded the gate, patrolled between the buildings, and stood before each of the doors.
They were going to break intothere? She swallowed and faced forward. Was Jayna absolutely crazy? There was no way just the two of them could sneak into that heavily guarded area.
Jayna’s stride remained the same brisk but nonchalant pace as she led the way deeper between shops, taking the time to retrieve the requested stockings, until they ended up on a street of townhouses. She leaned closer to Pip. “The gardens of these homes back up against the wall surrounding the government buildings.”
