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“If it hadn’t been just five days, I’d ask if you were pregnant.”
I snorted. “Not likely. I took the herbs the next day.”
“I’ll bring you fruit.”
“And cheese?”
“And cheese.” Palla rolled her eyes. “Lock the door.”
As if I needed the warning. I dropped the bar across it, the only access into our room. No one would be getting in without some serious chopping with an axe. The bleached bones, set in resin, created an almost impenetrable barrier.
To distract myself, I went to the window and gazed upon the city. I didn’t have the shutters pulled. We only used those for the larger storms that would smash windows.
Speaking of smashing… Would the monsters attack again tonight?
I pulled open the wooden frame holding the glass and propped a pole into the groove. It kept the window ajar. I leaned my elbows on the sill. Couldn’t see much. The lack of lights indicated people had gone to bed. I would, too, as soon as Palla returned. I had to let her in. I leaned my head on my arms and tilted it to look up at the stars. They twinkled, beautiful and plentiful—
A shadow passed over a swathe of glowing pinpricks and kept moving. I blinked. The stars remained. Probably a cloud.
It happened again. A moving shape in the sky, blotting out the light.
Most likely a bird.
And if it wasn’t? The widow might have conspired to kill the King, but that didn’t make her story of dragons a lie. Jrijori also claimed they existed.
I’d had enough air. I whirled and kicked out the pole, only grabbing the window before it could swing too hard and shatter. Glass of this quality— clear enough to see through—didn’t come cheap. It closed, and I latched it. As if that would make a difference in a monster attack. It occurred to me too late that I should have drawn the outer shutters first. Too late. I wasn’t about to reopen the window and possibly draw attention.
As I watched, the shadow drew near enough I caught sight of wings. Massive ones. My mouth rounded.
It swung around and passed again, and this time, I saw well enough to notice it turned its head and cast a baleful yellow gaze on me. I wanted to bolt, only I froze instead. Sand lizards hunted by sound because that was the sense they’d finely tuned tunneling underground. But birds relied on sight. Sharp sight. I didn’t know if what swooped outside my window counted as a bird, but I also didn’t want to find out. It swept past, and I had a choice, run for the door and risk not noticing when it did another circuit or block its view.
I was within reach of the heavy curtain. It would take only a second to swish it into place. I waited for it to do another pass.
And waited.
I remained frozen in place until I heard a distant scream. That strident shriek sent me moving. I grabbed the curtain tie and yanked. The fabric swung into place just as the massive flying beast suddenly dipped into view.
Our gazes locked in the second before the curtain formed a false barrier.
Out of sight, out of mind.
The scratch at my window indicated otherwise. I glanced around for something to defend myself. The discarded window pole was the first thing I grabbed.
Tap. Tap. Tap.
It still hadn’t forgotten about me.
I bolted for the door and bit off a scream as the glass behind me shattered. A glance over my shoulder showed a serpentine face pushing past the curtain, getting annoyed and chomping, tearing down the fabric.
I froze, afraid to even breathe. For a moment, I thought it might work. Its head swung side to side. It even retracted to the outside as something else caught its attention.
Then the pounding came at the door. I couldn’t help but flinch as Palla banged. “Ash, let me in. Monsters!”
The beast didn’t just look at the door. It shoved itself through the window, breaking apart the stone-block construction. I could have been selfish and ripped off the bar. Palla would have valiantly stood against the monster to save me.
But I was the kind of friend who would do the same.
I had no knife on me. Alone in my room, I should have been safe. I had a dagger on my table, though, and some of my tricks.
