Page 93 of Memory of Ashes

She caught it and held it against her waist. “I’m still here.”

She turned within his arms and settled against the curve of his body. His breath caught when her hips pressed against him, but he only drew her closer. At some point, they dozed off and awoke to banging on the door.

“What is it?” Casyl called.

“The creatures. They’re outside the city walls,” Ruven said.

Chapter 21

Amelia

They dressed quickly and followed Ruven towards the city walls.

Ruven flashed a grin at Amelia as she fastened her shirt buttons. “Did you get any rest?”

She laughed, and Casyl frowned at them both.

The Leshies were in the distance. Four of them now waited outside the city.

“What are they waiting for?” she asked.

“They’ve followed us here, but why?” Ruven said.

Elthar joined them on the city wall, looking out at the creatures. “What are we going to do about them?”

“I don’t know, but we need to do something before more of them arrive.”

They left the walls and went back into the palace to meet with the generals and devise a plan.

Eleandor joined them as an adviser. As the most knowledgeable of the fae, he had earned the title of Wise One.

“If we can’t kill them, then we need to trap them,” Eleandor said.

The shrieks of the creatures haunted them from a distance.

Amelia pulled Casyl into another room.

“Where are the human prisoners?” she asked him. “We need to release them.”

“I can’t, Amelia. The men would see it as a sign of weakness.”

She looked at him in disbelief. He was infuriating. “I thought you were different from your father.”

He started as if she’d slapped him.

“I am! But I still need to command an army. If we release them, they could try to attack us and get themselves killed. And what about them, the creatures? They are safe where they are for now. No more prisoners will be harmed. I give you my word.”

“I need to see them,” she said. “I need to find out if Emin or any of the guild are alive.”

She could see his resolve weakening. “Please.”

“Take Ruven with you and don’t try to release them, Amelia. It wouldn’t end well for them.”

The remaining human prisoners had been moved into the city’s cells. Out of the entire city, there were only a pitiful few of them left. She hoped that many more had escaped the attack on the city and had taken refuge in the surrounding cities.

“I’ve made sure that they’ve received food and water,” Ruven said. It was the only comfort he could offer.

She walked down the corridor of the cells and peered through each door, looking for anyone she might recognise. The smell of human suffering was overwhelming. Most of them sat there quietly, weeping, covered in dirt and blood. Some had suffered burns from the fire, and their clothes were singed.