Where the Order of Albion was sure to have far more influence than a bunch of disreputable scholars.
They were outgunned and trapped in a hole in the ground.Ellie was consumed by the awareness that they were completely and utterly at Singh Rao’s mercy.
He was still waiting for her to speak.So was Jacobs, balanced on the threshold of the stairs.
Ellie had no idea what she could possibly say to either of them.
She opened her mouth to try anyway—and was interrupted by the clatter of arms from above.
Singh Rao jerked his head up… where the circular mouth of the sinkhole was framed by the crouched, ready figures of the Adrija.
Bows and muskets fixed on the soldiers below.
Instinct snapped Ellie’s eyes back to the ground—just in time to meet Jacobs’ gaze across the meadow.
Dark amusement flickered through his expression… along with a hint of unpleasant promise.
He darted into the passage.
Singh Rao whirled at the movement, barking out an order—and then froze at the crack of a shot from above, dirt exploding from the ground beside his boots.
Subhas Konja stood at the edge of the drop, smoke curling from the antique Enfield in his hands.
The army detachment had greater numbers and better weaponry.They would solidly outgun the Adrija in a fair fight—but Subhas’s men had the clear advantage in position.Singh Rao had no cover save the temple, where his soldiers would be trapped.They could only escape the sinkhole one at a time through the narrow stairwell.
No matter how the conflict played out, people were going to die.
Singh Rao was quietly calculating.Subhas’s white shirt glowed like a banner as golden sunlight burst from beneath the clouds, his men arrayed around him with dangerous anticipation.
Helplessness twisted through Ellie as she realized how little she could do to stop what was about to happen.
Bare-chested, filthy, and weaponless, Adam stepped into the middle of the field.
Several of the sepoys shifted their rifles to aim at the new threat.Overhead, the Adrija shot questioning looks at their leader.
Adam ignored them, focused on the elegant Sikh officer who stood before him.“You don’t want to do this.”
Singh Rao’s jaw tensed.“My last orders were to take you prisoner.”
“Can’t do that if I’m dead,” Adam pointed out helpfully.
Ellie’s gut lurched into her throat.
He was insane—her Adam Bates.
And he was glorious.
Adam looked up at Subhas, squinting against the light.“Did you come all the way back here just to rescue us?”
Subhas’s relaxed posture still carried a whiff of danger.“Maybe.Or maybe I wanted to make sure that the Indian Army isn’t going after my village.”
“He’s not interested in doing that.”Adam glanced over at the subedar.“Are you?”
The sepoys watched the exchange, sensing the tension in it even though they didn’t speak the language.
Singh Rao’s hands tightened on his pistol.Frustration seethed off of him.Ellie could almost sympathize.The man was trying to do his job—one that he took very seriously—and nothing about this had gone remotely the way he had expected.
The officer met Adam’s gaze as he bit out an answer.“That would not be part of my duties, in the absence of an official order… or clear evidence of revolutionary activity.”
