A faint, knowing smile flickered across his lips.
His eyes darted around my face, and he reached forward, adjusting the flower in my bangs.
My mind went blank. I was nothing. Empty. A mere worm in the dirt before him, small, worthless, and out of my league.
Reese stepped closer. "Listen, Mare . . . "
Darkness plumed behind Reese's shoulder. A crow appeared on the shelf, beady eyes glaring at me. One of its talons was missing.
I gasped, turning in circles as I found my bag and blade. "We need to go!"
"Why?" Reese blinked at me in surprise.
"I don't know," I admitted, running through the door.
The pounding drums of war thudded in my ear. My heart raced out of control. I looked up and down the dirt road, searching for any sign of danger. Of darkness.
Of death.
A trail of smoke rose over the buildings to my south. Wrapping my hand around Cierthine's hilt, I sprinted toward it. The pain in my side dulled to nothing as adrenaline raced through my veins.
Screaming. Screaming carried on the wind, growing louder and louder.
A crowd blocked the road, people of all walks of life bundling around a square. The fire rose before them, crawling up the stacked logs of a pyre.
A heretic's pyre.
I froze, hand tightening around Cierthine. The screaming came from a single woman, bound to the burning logs. Fire crept up her body, reaching toward her head. Charred clothes clung to her legs, and her skin boiled and popped.
The man standing beside her made my blood run cold.
A Forlaith Inquisitor.
The white coat, the black-feathered hat. Everyone knew to fear the sight of them. I stumbled forward, but strong arms wrapped around me, pulling me back.
"Don't," Reese hissed.
The woman's screams grew louder. I looked away, unable to bear the sight.
Inquisitors had swarmed Aenir during my childhood. Searching for people who clung to the worship of the saints, who still prayed at their pagan altars.
There had been so many fires. Father had kept me away from them, back then.
I closed my eyes until the screams finally stopped. Until only the sound of crackling flames and the murmur of the crowd remained.
The Inquisitor recited the same words they always did. "May the sun burn away your sins, so that you might find forgiveness in the Light Beyond."
Peeling my eyes open, I saw the Inquisitor sweeping the crowd. His downturned hat shadowed his eyes, but I could tell his gaze had landed on me.
Pushing through the crowd, he strode toward us. Reese stepped in front of me, fingers curled around his sword's hilt.
"Lord Tiernan,” the Inquisitor said. "I did not expect to see you, this far south."
"Surely news of the attacks has reached Forlaith," Reese replied warily.
"Of course it has. But as I recall, your orders were in the north."
"Killian called me here."
