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A shove from behind sent me toppling forward into one of the alleys I’d been mindlessly passing by.
Before I could land on my face in the dirt, I was pulled to the side. My hair grabbed at the base of my neck and yanked upward.
A calloused hand came up to my mouth, silencing any scream I thought of making.
Damn it.
being taken by surprise was not something that should be happening to me this far into training with the Unseelie warriors. And yet I’d let myself be completely caught off guard.
I struggled, trying to get a feel for the size of my assailant when a cackle came from the lighted entryway.
“Ah, it is indeed the prodigal child.” The old woman who had threatened me by the bakery came into view and I froze.
I had no idea what she was talking about. I shook my head, terror paralyzing my body, somehow forgetting the fact that I had been trained for moments of attack.
“She’s not as feisty as Prince Landon warned.” A cold voice tickled the hairs near my ear and I scrunched up my shoulders reflexively.
While the voice was eerily calm, even, and unemotional, it was the mention of Prince Landon that truly worked up my nerves.
Turning my head, I caught the face of the man who had been watching me in the tavern.
I’d been followed. Stalked until I was in an easy enough spot to grab.
Was it for the prince? Why was he so interested in Prince Noah’s feeder? It wasn’t like I was irreplaceable.
“Well, better for us to take her and get our reward.” The older woman’s laugh was ugly and punctuated with a slight cough at the end.
The man holding me shifted, and as I closed my eyes, I reminded myself that my earlier struggle was to get information on his stance, his size, everything I’d need to react.
Now wasn’t the time to be scared and taken prisoner. Now was the time to fight. To escape. And get the hell out of Rosefeather and back to the castle, regardless of how long the queen wanted me gone today.
Lifting my leg quickly, I slammed my heel into the stranger’s instep. Not exactly warrior training, but something I’d learned as a scrappy street-hanging foster kid. I smiled as his arms loosened and I added in my castle training, swiping at his legs to get him off of me.
Successful, I bolted toward the alleyway entrance, screaming as loudly as I could. “Help! Someone help me, please! Help!”
A few more feet and I’d be in the open.
But I went flying, slamming my chin onto the ground and biting my tongue. My head throbbed. “Seelie spies!” I yelled the only thing I could think of that might grab more attention than my cries for help.
I kicked at the man from the tavern while the scuffle of feet on the group grew louder. A thin stick that reminded me of our training weapons slammed into the side of my face as I twisted and saw the woman swinging her cane at me.
Grabbing it easily, I stopped her attack, and with a shove of the cane, she stumbled backward.
The light from the alleyway shifted, a shadow spreading over the area we fought in.
A figure came into view and my heart soared that someone had heard my cries.
“I’ve always wanted to taste a royal’s blood. Must be my lucky day that one is available with no witnesses who’ll stop me.”
