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23
ANYA
I pressedmy face against the door and shouted, desperate to be heard through the thick material. From the other side, I heard cries of surprise and relief, and I assured them that I was doing everything I could to free them.
I wanted to sprint for the courtyard, but Silas cautioned me to move slowly. There were still too many unknowns. For instance, what had happened to Imrys and Trydan? And where was Kiango? His ship had taken off before ours, but by the time we reached the air, he was nowhere to be seen.
We took every hallway with caution, moving in short sprints when we were sure the way ahead was clear. When we reached the kitchens, I poked my head inside. We were going to need our strength. But the storm had struck in the middle of the night, before even the cooks had risen to heat the ovens for the morning meal, and there was nothing to be had. With a disappointed groan, I left the room behind and followed Silas out into the courtyard.
It was strange to see the whole thing bathed in the dim gray light that permeated everything now. Memories of the walls turned red with the storm's fiery rage raced through my mind. It had seemed like midday out here. Now, it looked like an explosion had scorched the walls and torn away the lush grass, leaving behind a barren hole. Beyond that, I could see the training ring where I'd first met Silas, strangely unchanged.
"This way," Silas said, tearing my attention away from the grounds and leading me toward one long wing of the palace's enormous structure.
If there was another entrance out here, it was not one I was privy to. I'd been a servant long enough to find my way through nearly every tunnel and side-passage the place had to offer. However, I had never been brave enough to venture down the long hall behind the throne to Trydan's private quarters, especially uninvited. Come to think of it, I wasn't sure I'd heard any of the servants speak of going down there to clean or do anything else. That was a puzzle for another day.
At the back of the building, we walked along slowly, inspecting the brick for anything unusual. We made two passes, and neither of us spotted a doorway or even a crack that might suggest one. I began pacing away from the wall, out toward another big field that had been long abandoned.
"Where are you going?" Silas called after me.
"To find an entrance," I answered.
I kept walking, toeing at every suspicious lump of dirt and unusual tree stump as if it might hold the secret I was after.
“What makes you think it's all the way out here?"
I turned on him too fast and nearly lost my balance on the uneven ground.
"Do you have to question every single thing I do?" I demanded.
"Hey! That's unfair," he argued, stopping me in my tracks. Hot anger flared through me and I almost forgot how cold it was out here.
"Unfair?" I laughed dryly. "You want to talk to me about what's unfair? How about your people kidnapping me from my planet? Making me perform in some kind of freak show to earn a title I never asked for! And then deciding I wasn't such a good fit after all and throwing me outside to live in a glorified dog house while demanding that I work for your benefit. Which part of that sounds fair to you?"
I was standing in his path now, fists planted firmly on my hips, cheeks burning with rage. He stood gawping at me like a fish out of water, his jaw working up and down as he searched for words. I was vaguely aware of time ticking by. The long, painful seconds of our standoff held us suspended in time. I was supposed to be doing something. Something important. Not arguing with some bone-headed Guardian who didn't have a clue just how good he had it.
"That's what I thought."
