Page 49 of Prisoner of Steel and Shadow

It was a careful dance, jumping from roof to roof while keeping an eye trained on the streets below to see who might be watching her. She could probably move faster if she didn’t look down, but there were too many places for people to hide, too many dark alleys and side streets where one of her competitors could be lying in wait for her to disregard them. Thankfully, so far as she could tell, no one was paying any attention to her.

That changed the second she jumped down to the street.

She’d barely made it four steps when a meaty palm slammed into her chest, halting her forward momentum.

Bannock.

The meat shield’s brown eyes gleamed with wicked intent as he peered down at her. “Now now, little Shadow. Where do you think you're going in such a hurry?”

“You don't want to fuck with me, Bannock.”

“I wouldn’t be so sure about that. A pretty girl like you...” His trailed-off words left little doubt as to his intention.

She and the brawler had never been friends, but they’d always been friendly. There was mutual respect among the people in their circle. He’d broken it the second he laid a finger on her.

“Bannock, you don’t want to do this,” she cautioned, panting a little as she lifted an arm to wipe the sweat off her brow.

“Sure I do. Just give me what I want, and you can be on your way. Plenty more folks will be coming this way. You can take one of theirs or go back and grab another if you’re that afraid of a little confrontation.”

“I got mine fair and square. I suggest you do the same.”

He threw his head back and laughed. “Didn't you hear, sweetheart? Nothing’s off limits. I’m in the clear so long as I walk up there with a coin in my hand. Aw, what’s this face?” He reached out as if to touch her, and she jerked her head back out of his reach. “Don’t be mad I outsmarted you, love. So what if I let you do the dirty work for me? Thems the breaks. Now be a good girl and hand it over.”

She glared at him knowing that he had the right of it, but not caring. “If you think you're getting this coin off me, you clearly don't know who you're messing with.”

“But that's just it. Everyone knows who you are.” His voice turned taunting, his leer making her skin crawl. “You’re the High Lord’s whore.”

She flinched. Given Erebos’s plans for her, the words cut deeper than usual. She’d been called worse, but the truth of how others saw her, how little they valued her, it stung.

Bannock wasn’t the smartest man, but he was a predator through and through. She knew he caught her involuntary reaction, that it was like blood in the water to him. He crowded her, forcing her back into one of the alleys as he pressed his advantage and gripped her chin with his hand.

“You tired of spreading your legs for that prissy fuck, sweetheart? You wanna give me a ride instead?” His voice took on a musing and conversational cast, though nothing could disguise the threat in his words. “You know, that sounds like a fair trade to me. You want to keep that token so badly? Give me a taste. You make it good for me, you take my dick like the good little slut we all know you are, I might just allow you to finish this race. So what about it, Shadow? You ready to let a real man fuck that pretty little cunt?”

CHAPTER15

RONAN

He lost her the second she slipped past the city gates. Even with her head start, she was barely two minutes ahead of him. It may as well be two hundred. He’d been able to easily track her progress as she darted off to the east, but knowing her route was useless to him now that she was concealed within Glimmermere’s walls.

Her in-depth knowledge of the city meant it had just become a whole new game. Finding her again before she reached the finish line would be next to impossible. If he’d been the one with the hometown advantage, it would have been no contest, but as was becoming increasingly clear, he was a long way from home.

As he approached the eastern gates Shadow had disappeared through, there was a notable lack of people. He supposed most folks were crowding around the palace so they’d be the first to know which competitors would be moving on. Still, it was unnerving to find the bustling marketplace all but deserted. It was as if the whole city had shut down for the day. He might have been worried something had happened if not for the fact that he could hear the distant roar of the crowd rumbling like incoming thunder, the steady buzz growing with every step.

He was almost there.

The knowledge provided a fresh wave of energy, which he greatly appreciated as he rounded the final bend in the road and zoomed through the gate. The guards posted there did little more than scowl at him, but Ronan barely had eyes for them as he searched for a glimpse of Shadow.

As suspected, she was long gone, but he did spot a familiar face.

Camille, the courtesan he’d met on his first day in town, gave a jerk of her head, beckoning him over as she darted between two stalls into what looked like some kind of alley. He had no idea whether the townsfolk were allowed to assist the contestants in any way, but given the effort she’d taken to remain discreet, he could only assume it was frowned upon.

Though who could really say? The High Lord and his cock—Ronan snickered at his preferred nickname for Dmitri—seemed to encourage underhanded methods. The irreverent part of him couldn’t help but wonder how many people secretly referred to the flock as the Circle of Dicks. With its three members all sharing names beginning with the letter D, surely he couldn’t be the only one? Then again, given his loathing for Kieran—or whatever the fuck he was calling himself now—perhaps that was simply his way of expressing his innate distrust for anyone who’d willingly bind themselves to that fraud of a monarch.

Ducking into the alley, he spotted Camille near the other end. Catching his gaze, she pointed a finger to the sky. “If it's the High Lord’s Shadow you’re after, look up.”

Ronan narrowed his eyes, wondering how she'd guessed who he was searching for.

She chuckled, a soft, husky sound that spoke to an inherent sensuality. She was likely one of the few sex peddlers who truly enjoyed her line of work. Either that or she’d been doing it for so long she didn’t know how to turn it off anymore. Given the laughter crinkling her eyes and the perpetual smile curling her lips, he was sticking with his initial assessment.

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