Chapter 30
Reva
“Ithought we were trying not to draw attention to ourselves,” I mutter as five of us disembark the ship, dark hoods pulled over our faces.
“We are,” Finch replies as he strides to the front of our little group.
“Then why are we all dressed like we’re monks?” I glance past the gaping material of my hood toward Frannie as she shoots me a sideways grin before disappearing inside her own cloak.
“No one ever questions the monks. Their eyes skim right over them for fear they might get drawn into their prayer circle.”
“He’s right,” Frannie adds. “Finch and I stick out more than the rest of you. But whoever heard of a pair of monks having non-monk friends. That would be ridiculous.”
I’ve a feeling she’s taking the piss, but I can no longer see her face so it’s hard to tell.
“Exactly. And if anyone looks at us too hard, just start praying loudly and gesturing at them to get closer. They’ll scarper as quick as you like.”
Aster snorts beside me while Torin lets out a low chuckle. “Know that from experience do you, Cap?”
“It’s a disguise I’ve tried a time or two.”
“Kinky fucker,” Torin mutters, just loud enough for me to hear.
“Now that we’ve all debated our clothing choices, something we really should have done before stepping on land—” Finch says. “Let’s find my brother and Jack.”
That’s step one of his grand plan. What comes after that is still a bit of a mystery.
The pulsing bond in my chest is tugging me forward deeper into the city, toward the East. That’s where Kit is. It’s more difficult for me to make out Jack’s location, considering how dimmed the bond with him feels. He’s here too, but I can’t understand why the two of them aren’t together.
“They’re here.” Kit’s voice fills my head right as I’m struck with a feeling of pure relief and... a confusing mix of emotions I can’t quite put together.
The docks are heaving with people. There’s a chaos of movement and sounds in all directions with people hauling barrels and boxes around and hailing each other, but they give us a wide berth. Torin also keeps me tucked against him, acting as an invisible flesh barrier between me and the crowd.
Maybe the outfits were a good idea. You never know with Finch. It’s just as likely that he thought they’d be useful as he found it funny for us all to look like idiots like this.
“We head east,” I say. “He doesn’t feel far away at all.”
We follow a wide road that’s lined with squat grey buildings with windows that mirror the grey, cloud-filled sky. Around the docks, the buildings are all businesses relating to the shipyard, joiners and accountants, with tatty and faded signage. But beyond the docks, the buildings grow taller and more austere. They have long grey columns and sets of windows that are tall and narrow. The wide road is lit with purple light, leaving an eerie glow despite it still being afternoon.
It’s my first time here in the capital. Mostly because I considered it to be tempting fate or travelling too close to the sun to come here.
“It’s very grey, isn’t it?”
“Soul sucking,” Finch replies. “You think they’d liven the place up a bit, wouldn’t you? A few pops of colour here and there wouldn’t go amiss.”
“Makes you depressed just looking at it,” Torin adds.
“Just breathing the air is making me miserable.” That’s Frannie’s contribution, and I give them both a nudge in the ribs at their teasing.
We’re at the bottom of a steep incline and right at the top is a grand granite building with dozens of narrow windows and yet more columns. The roof is domed and jade green, tipped with gold, and there are a ridiculous number of burgundy flags flying from the top. It’s even more imposing than the rest of the buildings on the same road, which is saying something.
“The bastard king’s palace.”
Even from here, I can see there are guards dotted right the way across the front of the palace, along with a couple peering down from the roof.
“I’m guessing the heavy guard presence means King Wildrake is in residence, then?”
“I’d assume so, love.”
