Sitting tall in their saddles, with their swords strapped to their sides and their gazes focused straight ahead, they all looked as pleasant as a dragon with a toothache. They weren’t here for the sweet treats.
“Look ahead,” Tucker growled at me.
I twisted my head back around and concentrated on holding the chest steady so as not to rattle the money within. The end of the alley loomed closer, but when we were only thirty feet away from it, more guards trotted past the opening.
CHAPTER EIGHTEEN
Ellery
My breath sucked in,and I froze as I stood out in the open with the chest before me. If one of them glanced this way…
We can open a portal out of here.
That was true, but I wouldn’t dare return here with the money again. If the guards saw us this time, they’d have this town packed full of them soon after we left. It wouldn’t ever be safe for us to return to Nottingshire.
And if we left Nottingshire with nothing, we’d only be harming the amsirah who lived here. These guards had probably come to collect the duke’s taxes, which meant word of the robbery had gotten out… or maybe word of our dispersal of the money.
If we didn’t leave, we could end up in a whole lot of trouble. As much as I wanted to help everyone here, we couldn’t risk capture.
With subtle movements, Tucker steered me toward the wall. We slipped deeper into the shadows until we stood with our backs against the building with the locked front door. Tuckertook the chest from me and bent to place it next to one of the trash bins.
“We can’t leave it there,” I whispered.
“Someone will find it.”
“If we open a portal now, it could draw the attention of the guards. They’ll come down here and discover it.”
“That’s why we’re going to wait here, remain quiet, and not move.”
His sea blue eyes burned into mine, and a muscle twitched in his jaw as he sought to make me understand. When I nodded, some of his anxiety eased as his gaze shifted toward the other end of the alley while I watched the exit we’d been heading toward.
He stayed protectively close while I tried to ignore the squeaking rodents and the horrible stench of the rotting food nearby. I was too scared someone would see me covering my nose, but I was beginning to wish I didn’t have one.
When a rat ran over my boot, I jumped a little before settling myself again. I handled the creatures in the Revenant Woods with ease. I wouldn’t let a few dozen rodents bother me.
I just wished they weren’t so damn fast. How could they go from not being there one second and on top of me the next?
I kept my attention on the alley, but when claws bit into my leg, I looked down to see one of the rats scurrying up my pant leg. I froze, afraid to slap it aside in case it screeched too loudly, but it couldn’t get anywhere near my face.
My breath was trapped in my lungs and my attention on the riders as I tried to ignore the tiny claws and small weight climbing higher.Don’t get near my face. Don’t get near my face.
Thankfully, the fat creature jumped off me to land on top of the bin and vanished into the shadows. I exhaled slowly as my frozen lungs started working again.
I eyed the trash bin as I contemplated shoving the chest into it and leaving this place, but no one would know it was there, and it would most likely get incinerated or thrown on the compost pile. Plus, Ireallydidn’t want to stick my hand in that mess.
When the last of the riders went past, Tucker’s shoulders relaxed a little, but tension still hummed through his body. “They’re not leaving Nottingshire,” he whispered.
“Why not?”
“They’re most likely here to collect the money.”
He was right, but… “We can’t leave the chest here.”
“We don’t have a choice. Plus, if we don’t leave soon, Ryker will finish his half, and once Scarlet tells him what happened, he’ll come looking for you.”
My blood ran cold at the possibility of that happening. We had to help these amsirah, but I wouldn’t let Ryker get caught or hurt to do so.
“If he comes here, he’s going to come face-to-face with a contingent of guards. Is that what you want?”
