The Shadow Of What Was Lost

Chapter 31

Asha reclined in the armchair across from her bed, smiling as she listened to Fessi’s idle chatter.

It was late, but for once Asha didn’t mind. She’d arrived back at her rooms to find the youngest of the Augurs waiting to deliver another vision to her, but it hadn’t taken long for the slightly awkward formalities to turn into a more relaxed, friendly conversation. They had been talking for a while now; the other girl had an open, laid-back personality that had put Asha immediately at ease.

Asha hadn’t yet read the slip of paper she’d been given, but from Fessi’s demeanour it wasn’t urgent. Despite the hour, Asha hadn’t pushed for Fessi to leave so she could look at it, either. She had no desire to interrupt the first pleasant conversation she’d had in what seemed like months.

And more than that, it was helping to keep her mind from what had transpired the previous afternoon.

Between Davian’s appearance yesterday and the ever-looming threat of the Blind - which no-one in the city yet seemed to be taking seriously - she’d been distracted all day, much to the chagrin of an obviously frustrated Michal. All she had been able to think about was Davian. Whether his presence had been a dream, a vision… or real. Whether he was alive, or whether her subconscious was somehow feeding her false hope. Every time she had almost convinced herself of one, she began to vacillate.

"So you said it was through one of your visions that Elocien found Kol?" she asked, before she got caught up in her own thoughts again.

Fessi nodded. "Several of them, actually. It wasn’t until I saw him drawing Essence from a forge that I realised why I was Seeing him so often." She hesitated, a smirk and a slight blush spreading across her face. "Before that, though, a few of the visions were… interesting."

Asha gave her a quizzical look. "How so?"

Fessi coughed. "The visions didn’t always show him when he was… appropriately dressed, I suppose you would say."

Asha stared at her for a moment in surprise, then laughed.

"Don’t tell him I told you that. I was never able to bring myself to admit it to him."

Asha shook her head in amusement, then sobered a little as her thoughts turned to the big man. What he’d Seen. "How is Kol?" she asked tentatively. "I know he wasn’t happy when I showed up…."

Fessi made a dismissive gesture. "He’s fine. He knows we needed a Scribe, and he knows Erran wouldn’t have chosen you unless you were absolutely trustworthy, no matter what happened with the Shadraehin." She shrugged. "He can be a bit of a storm cloud when you don’t know him, to be honest. He doesn’t tend to open up to people until he’s known them for a while, and until then, he just comes across as big and grumbly. But once you get past that… he’s a good friend."

Asha raised a questioning eyebrow at the warmth in Fessi’s tone, and the other girl’s cheeks reddened a little. Asha didn’t say anything, though.

They sat in silence for a few seconds, then Asha gestured to the piece of paper on her desk. "So. Is this anything urgent?"

Fessi sighed. "Not unless you’re worried about me getting a scalding from Trae tomorrow."

Asha grimaced sympathetically; Trae was the head cook and from what Fessi had previously indicated, not exactly an affable sort of fellow. In a small way, Fessi’s description of him reminded her a little of Mistress Alita back at Caladel.

She pushed down a sudden wave of sadness at the thought, but the association with the school had already dragged Davian to the front of her mind again. For a few seconds, all she could think about was how he’d looked yesterday. Old. Tired. Scarred and chained.

"Are… you okay?" Fessi frowned in consternation. "Did I say something wrong?"

"No. It’s…." Asha rubbed her forehead tiredly. "It’s nothing."

Fessi’s eyes narrowed. "You may know how to shield yourself now, and I may not have Erran’s skill, but I can tell it’s not nothing." The black-haired girl hesitated, then leaned forward, her expression serious. "Look - I know what it’s like, not having anyone to talk to. Elocien was always too busy for anything more than debriefing, and I obviously couldn’t discuss my visions with Kol or Erran, either. Honestly, tonight is the first really open conversation I’ve had in a long time - and I appreciate that. So if there’s any way I can return the favour, I’m happy to listen."

Asha hesitated. She almost refused out of instinct, accustomed as she was by now to keeping things to herself… but she didn’t. She liked Fessi, knew the other girl could be trusted. And Asha hadn’t had the opportunity to talk to someone - really talk to someone - in a very long time.

She couldn’t let Fessi know about Davian of course; real or not, admitting to anyone that she’d seen him seemed like a bad idea. But everything leading up to that was another matter.

So Asha slowly, hesitantly told Fessi about Caladel. About her time in the Tol, about what had happened in the Sanctuary with Jin and Aelrith and the Shadraehin. It was hard, at times, but it also felt good to get it off her chest - to be able to share the burdens of the last couple of months with someone who actually seemed to care.

Fessi listened the entire time in attentive silence; when Asha had finished, the other girl quietly began relating her own story. How someone in her own close-knit village had betrayed her to Administration when they’d realised she was an Augur. How Fessi’s family had refused to even say goodbye to their teenage daughter, who was presumably being taken away to be executed.

And how terrified she was, every time she thought of her own death. How she couldn’t sleep some nights, knowing what was coming.

They talked a while longer after that, but eventually there was a natural break in the conversation and both girls stood, knowing it was getting into the early hours of the morning. They exchanged a warm embrace at the door.

"No matter what you went through before this, Asha, I’m glad you’re here now," said Fessi as they parted.

"As am I," said Asha with a smile. She meant it.

Once back in her room, Asha busied herself getting ready for bed. She would only have a few hours until Michal woke her, but for once the thought didn’t make her scowl.

An abrupt knock on the door made her jump; she shook her head, giving a rueful smile at her own startled reaction. Fessi must have forgotten something.

She opened the door absently, barely having time to register the black-veined face behind the fist blurring towards her.

Everything went black.

Asha groaned.

She was lying on her side on a hard wooden floor; she groaned again as she shifted, her head throbbing. She slowly forced her eyes open, the eyelid on the left struggling to break free of the sticky, semi-dried blood that she suspected ran all the way down her face and neck.

There was light, too bright to look at initially. A lamp. With an awkward motion, she twisted and rolled into a seated position against the timber wall. Her hands were tied behind her back, but she didn’t need to check to know she must have a serious gash on her forehead; aside from the pain, there was a brown circle of blood on the floor where she’d been lying. She took a deep breath, trying to focus.

The small room was lit only by the lamp on the table; there was a seat next to that, but otherwise her surroundings were bare. A door at the far end of the room was shut, and looked solidly made. It was doubtless locked, but Asha slid herself over to it anyway, levering herself to her feet and barely managing to get her hands on the doorknob.

She grimaced as it refused to turn. Just as she’d expected.

She assessed the rest of the room, forcing herself to stay calm. There was no point in calling out; if she couldn’t hear anyone outside then there was likely no-one around to help. And she didn’t want to draw the attention of whomever had brought her here. This might be her best, or only, opportunity to find a way out.

She made her way back over to where she’d started, feeling at her bindings as she went. The knots were tight, but she thought she might be able to undo them, in time. Whoever had tied them must have been in a hurry. Or, she hoped, simply careless.

She frowned as she recalled the man who had attacked her. He had definitely been a Shadow… which more than suggested that the Shadraehin had become tired of her lack of answers. But Scyner hadn’t struck her as an impatient man, nor did he have any reason to think she wasn’t doing her best to fulfil her side of the bargain. It might have been taking longer than he had anticipated - but kidnapping her? It didn’t feel right, didn’t feel like something he would gain any advantage from.

She heard the scraping of boots outside the door and quickly lay back down, resting her head back in the tacky pool of reddish-brown blood. The lock clicked and the door creaked as it swung open.

"Still out," growled a deep voice as heavy footsteps clomped into the room. "You shouldn’t have hit her so hard, Teran. Shadraehin won’t be happy if he finds out we hurt her."

"The Shadraehin won’t be happy if he finds out we touched her," came the dry response. "And as for hitting her so hard, I apologise. Next time I’ll try and hit the person I’m trying to knock out with just the right amount of force." This man sounded sharper, more eloquent. There was a pause, and then he continued, "Besides, she’s awake. Get up, girl. I can see the bloodstain from where you moved."

Asha hesitated, then rolled into a sitting position, staring at the two men as calmly as she could.

The man closest to her was Teran, the one who had hit her. A portly Shadow with a round, cheerful face, he was the least likely looking kidnapper Asha could have imagined.

The other she recognised from around the palace, though she had never interacted with him. He was muscular, thickly built, probably someone who served in a heavy labour capacity.

"Why am I here?" she asked quietly. Her head still swam a little from the pain, but she did her best not to show it.

The big man scowled, but Teran just gave her a slight smile. "Direct. I like that." He grabbed the chair from beside the table and swung it around so that it faced Asha, then sat on it. "I think you know why you’re here, Ashalia. We very much would like the information you promised the Shadraehin. The information you owe him."

Asha scowled. "As I already explained to the many messengers you sent - I don’t have it yet. The duke doesn’t trust me enough to tell me everything." She shook her head, doing her best to look irritated rather than scared. "Why would I lie about this?"

"I don’t know," admitted Teran. "But we’ve been keeping an eye on you, and fates take me if you’re not in the Northwarden’s inner circle. Fates, he made you a Representative! You’re holding out on us, Ashalia." He leaned forward. "I’m sure of it."

Asha stared at him steadily. "Perhaps it would be better if you got the Shadraehin to come down here himself, clear all of this up." If Davian had been right and the Shadraehin was actually a woman, these two were evidently unaware.

The big man shifted, looking uncomfortable, but Teran simply smiled at her. He rose, stepped forward and casually backhanded her across the face; the force of the blow sent her reeling, her vision blurring as new pain joined the already pounding ache of her skull.

"So you overheard us talking. Congratulations," Teran continued, as if nothing had happened. "The thing is, Ashalia, the Shadraehin wants us to keep an eye on you until you hold up your end of the bargain. Which wasn’t a problem until the other day, when he informed us that we were to stay up here and keep watching you even if this army, these Blind, reach the city - that no matter how dangerous it gets, we are not to go back to the Sanctuary until he has his information."

His expression twisted. "And when I can see that you’re keeping me here in harm’s way, that upsets me. So you’re going to keep your end of the Shadraehin’s bargain, or I’ll start making things… unpleasant for you." He leaned forward, touching Asha’s cheek gently.

Asha jerked away, giving Teran a furious glare.

"We’ll give you some time to think it over," said Teran.

He nodded to the other man and the two left, locking the door behind them.

Asha swallowed, staring around the room in desperation, but this inspection revealed no more opportunities for escape than before. She took a deep breath, trying to order her thoughts. She was bound, and even if she hadn’t been, her chances of overpowering both men were next to none. She would be missed soon enough at the palace, of course - but no-one would know where to look for her.

By the time the door opened again, maybe a half-hour later, she knew what she needed to do.

"I’ll tell you what you need to know," she announced to the two men as they entered.

The big man’s eyes lit up, but Teran stared at her with suspicion. "You don’t strike me as the type to give up so easily."

Asha glared at him. "I was always going to hold up my end of the bargain. I just don’t have the proof yet," she explained in a grim tone. "The information I have is useless to the Shadraehin without that."

"So what is it?"

"The Northwarden discovered that a faction within Administration is behind the attacks." It was one of the more credible theories she’d formed after the Sanctuary, when she’d been waiting for Elocien to find her at the Tol. Asha stared Teran in the eye, willing him to believe her. "He’s trying to cover it up, but there are documents that prove it. Signed orders."

Teran snorted. "And I suppose you want us to just let you go, so you can retrieve them?"

Asha did her best to look disdainful. "Even if you did, I can’t just go and get them. The duke has been using me as a go-between for an Administrator who was involved, but who doesn’t want anything more to do with it. That’s who has agreed to get the documents for us - and once he’d given them to me, I was going to head straight for the Silver Talon and hand them to the Shadraehin’s people there." She scowled at the two men. "So as you can see, a few more days, and none of this would have been necessary."

Teran eyed her narrowly. "We’re not letting you out to meet him."

"Then go yourself." Asha shook her head in disgust. "The White Sword. I was supposed to be there each night this week, and he’d meet me when he could. His name’s Erran. Big man in a blue cloak. He’s hard to miss."

Teran looked at her, wavering. "And what do we say to him?"

"Tell him Elocien sent you to collect the documents instead of me. Don’t worry, he’s not too bright. He’ll hand them over."

Teran stared at her for a long moment, then gave a sharp nod. "Good enough. But if a week passes and there are no documents, things will go very, very badly for you."

"He’ll be there," said Asha, with more confidence than she felt. Erran had told her that Elocien regularly sent him to the White Sword for information… would he try Reading people there, once he and the others realised she was missing? She could only hope so.

The door closed, and Asha settled back down against the wall, closing her eyes and breathing deeply to slow her pounding heart. She’d look for another way out soon; she couldn’t pin all her hopes on this plan working.

At least now, though, she felt that she had a chance.

Asha’s heart sank as she awoke in the cold, and the dark, and the damp.

Her muscles, stiff from disuse, screamed at her as she shifted. The rope around her wrist - re-tied and viciously tightened by Teran after she’d managed to slip the knot three days ago - burned where it chafed against her skin. She winced as she felt her hands slick, blood trickling down from where the cords had bitten too deeply as she’d struggled against them.

She stared around blearily, though there was never anything to see in the utter darkness she was left in each night. Something had woken her, and it wasn’t the pain, or the stench, or even the gnawing hunger. She’d had one meal since she was captured, and Asha was fairly certain that had just been to keep her alive until her story was confirmed - until Teran had the evidence he so desperately wanted.

She grimaced as she rolled her shoulder, wondering if anything was broken. Teran had kicked her, hard, when he’d returned this evening from another unsuccessful trip to the White Sword. Asha could see his mistrust mounting each time he came back empty-handed, but she pressed her case, putting everything she had into sounding convincing.

She had to. She knew now that her captors were too thorough, too alert for her to escape on her own. She still kept looking for a way out, but all of her hopes were realistically pinned on Erran.

She wasn’t sure how long had passed, but she’d almost fallen into a restless sleep again when she heard the soft voice.

Asha.

She flinched and looked around, peering into the murk. "Who’s there?"

Quiet. It’s Erran. I’m outside. A pause. I’ve linked our minds.Just think your responses, don’t say them out loud. Another pause. Are you okay?

Asha took a couple of deep, shuddering breaths of pure relief. I’ve been better. Glad you’re here though. She hesitated. You’re alone?

Kol and Fessi are here too. Elocien wanted to send men, but I Read the Shadow you sent to the White Sword. Teran. He’ll kill you if he gets even a hint of a problem. He’s got a plan to kill Pyl, too, if it comes to that. Then blame your death on him and say he was trying to save you.

Of course he does, thought Asha grimly. She’d never heard his name, but Pyl must be Teran’s partner. So you’ll sneak me out?

Fessi just went through the house; she’s figured out which door is your room. Pyl’s on guard, and Teran’s asleep. She’s going to come in, take the keys from Pyl, unlock your door, and get you out before anyone knows what’s happening.

Asha hesitated. I’m hurt, haven’t had much to eat or drink. Tied up too. Not sure how fast I can be.

Doesn’t matter. You’ll see. Just get ready.

Asha shook out her muscles as best she could, then as quietly as possible raised herself to a standing position against the wall. Her shoulder felt like it was on fire; when she looked down she could see the black, red and purple of an ugly bruise through the torn and bloodied cloth of her shirt. She staggered a little once she was upright, and her vision swam.

Okay. Here she comes.

"Fates."

Asha blinked. The door was open, the light from a lamp outside spilling in, hurting Asha’s eyes. Fessi was standing a couple of feet in front of her; the word had been whispered, but the horror on other girl’s face told Asha just how much of a mess she must look.

"I need cleaning up," whispered Asha with a weak smile.

Fessi shook her head, then reached out and grabbed Asha’s arm, thankfully not the one attached to her bad shoulder. The Augur closed her eyes for a moment, then quickly released the cords that bound Asha’s wrists.

"Okay. Let’s move," Fessi said. "Don’t let go of me for any reason."

Asha leaned heavily on her friend as they made their way towards the doorway, Asha certain with every step that Pyl or Teran would appear in their path. As they reached the door and gazed out into the room beyond, though, Asha frowned.

Pyl’s back was to them as he shuffled cards at the table, but that wasn’t what Asha noticed. He was moving… sluggishly. More than sluggishly. She watched, eyes wide, as individual cards inched through the air from one hand to another, slowly enough that as one flew out of Pyl’s right hand, she could have walked the ten feet between them and plucked it out of the air before it hit his left.

It wasn’t just Pyl, though. The air itself seemed thicker; the candle on the table flickered, but so gradually that in each moment it almost seemed frozen. Asha clutched at the black-haired girl a little tighter as she understood what was happening. Fessi had said just the other night that her best ability, her Augur talent, was to slow time. It seemed she hadn’t been exaggerating.

Asha made to move towards the back door, but Fessi gave a silent shake of her head. She shut the door behind them. Locked it. Then she guided Asha over to where Pyl sat, the cards still moving between his hands, and calmly placed the keys back on his belt.

Then they were away, out the back door and into the fresh, cool night air. It was late enough that the streets were empty, but Fessi didn’t stop slowing time until they were in the shadows of the alley opposite and standing alongside Kol and Erran, who were watching the house pensively.

Both boys blinked as the girls appeared in front of them; Fessi collapsed against Kol, the strain of what she’d done clearly taking a toll. The street was dim, but there was enough light to see by, and both Kol’s and Erran’s eyes widened as they took in Asha’s appearance.

"Fates," breathed Erran, with almost the same horrified intonation Fessi had used. "Are you okay?"

"It looks worse than it is," said Asha weakly, her voice hoarse. It was probably true; her clothing was torn and bloodied, her hair matted with the dried blood that was also caked across her face. "I could use something to drink though."

Erran scrambled around in a bag he’d obviously brought for the occasion, passing her a flask. Asha drank, sighing as the cool liquid slid down her throat.

She handed the flask back, then noticed Kol’s expression for the first time. He was still silent but his eyes were hard, cold with fury.

"It’s okay, Kol," she said gently. "I’m fine."

"It’s not okay. If the men who took you treated you like that, they’re not going to back off just because you escaped. We need to send a message." Kol spoke through gritted teeth, then turned to the other two. "I’ll be back in a few minutes."

Fessi shook her head in alarm. "You don’t want them to see your face, Kol."

"Then I’ll just have to make sure they don’t want to remember it," he said.

He stalked towards the door they’d exited through, little more than a massive shadow in the darkened street, his stride determined.

"Pyl’s big," said Asha, concerned. "I know Kol is too, but two against one -"

Kol reached the door and drew back his fist.

There was a ripple in the air around his arm; it wasn’t quite Essence, but the energy was palpable. When his fist connected, the door didn’t just break or swing open. It splintered, sending shards of wood flying into the room beyond. There was a cry of surprised pain as Pyl was evidently struck by at least one of the pieces.

"We’d better make sure he doesn’t kill anyone," muttered Fessi.

The three of them made their way to the doorway, Asha peering in nervously.

Kol already had Pyl pinned to the ground, face-down; the big man was struggling, but it made no difference against Kol. The Augur grabbed Pyl’s arm and gave it one strong jerk backward; Asha winced as there was a cracking, popping sound, ligaments and bones snapping. Pyl began to scream, but Kol silenced him by grabbing a handful of hair at the base of his skull and smashing his face into the ground.

The door to the bedroom opened and a dishevelled Teran emerged, a knife in his hand. He took in the scene with a surprisingly calm expression.

"I’ll kill you if you come any closer," he told Kol.

As if he hadn’t heard, Kol walked towards him with ground-eating strides; Teran’s eyes widened as he realised his threat had had no effect. He swiped at Kol with the knife, but Kol came in under the swing, grabbing Teran’s wrist and twisting. There was a sharp snap, and Teran shrieked in pain as the blade fell to the ground.

Kol spun the portly Shadow around as if he were a rag-doll, shoving him against the wall so that the entire building shook. Asha gave a nervous glance around the street, but the racket didn’t seem to have raised any alarms. They were in the Lower District, not a wealthy neighbourhood from the looks of it. There wouldn’t be many of the Watch down here to call upon anyway.

Kol leaned forward against the struggling Teran. "If you touch her again. If I see you again. If anything untoward happens to her again, regardless of who’s responsible. I. Will. Kill. You," said Kol, the fury in his voice unmistakable. "I would kill you right now if I didn’t have to worry about the body."

Teran’s face twisted into a sneer. "The Shadraehin -"

"I’m not afraid of the Shadraehin." Kol grabbed the man’s arm and pulled backward; again, there was a popping sound as ligaments snapped. Teran’s face went white. "Do you understand?"

There was silence; Kol snarled, giving Teran’s arm another tug. "Do you understand?"

"Yes," gasped Teran.

Kol drew back Teran’s head and smashed it against the wall; Asha flinched, wondering how many teeth Teran had lost to the impact.

Her would-be captor slumped to the ground, unconscious.

Kol stared at the man in disgust, motionless for several seconds. Finally Fessi stepped over to him, putting a hand on his arm.

"We need to go, Kol," she said softly.

Kol nodded, and the four of them left the dingy building. Fessi gave Kol and Erran a meaningful glance as they began to walk, and the two boys hurriedly moved so that Asha would be able to lean on them if she needed to.

"Thank-you," she said quietly, her gaze including all three of her rescuers. Kol and Erran gave solemn nods in response, and Fessi just smiled, giving Asha’s good arm a light squeeze of reassurance.

They navigated the sleeping city, all the way back to the palace, in silence.

It was late morning, three days after the Augurs had rescued her, when Kol knocked on her open door.

"Kol!" She smiled at him, rising from her desk. "Come in."

Kol entered hesitantly. "How are you feeling?"

"Michal healed me the morning after we got back, so… much better." Asha rotated her shoulder to prove the point.

Kol smiled. "That’s good." Asha gestured to a chair and the big man sat, looking awkward. "I wanted to come and check on you earlier, but Elocien said it was best to let you rest."

Asha nodded. "I needed it," she admitted. Though her body had been healed, today was the first day she’d felt ready to face other people again. Even after all she had already been through over the past few months, this last week had been hard.

"Representative Alac didn’t mind?"

Asha shook her head. "He says I should take as much time as I need." She gave a slight smile, gesturing to a thick tome sitting on her bedside table. "That isn’t to say he didn’t leave me anything to do if I felt so inclined, though."

Kol snorted. "Sounds about right." He glanced around the room, noting several arrangements of flowers. "Seems you’re suddenly rather popular."

Asha rolled her eyes. "You could call it that, I suppose." The Houses hated to be outdone by each other, even when it came to false sympathy. Bouquets and gifts had been arriving in a steady stream almost since she had returned.

She sighed. It had been impossible to get her back into the palace without her battered state being noticed, and though Elocien had tried to be discreet about ordering the arrest of two other Shadows straight after her arrival, someone had still made the connection. The rumours had been everywhere within a day - the Shadraehin had attacked one of his own, kidnapped the only Shadow in the city who held a position of relative power. Proof positive that he had no intention of ever trying diplomatic means to help the Shadows.

To make matters worse, Elocien’s men had arrived at the house in the Lower District to find it empty. Teran and Pyl were still out there, somewhere.

"Even si’Bandin sent me something," she eventually continued in a wry tone, shaking off the unpleasant train of thought. "And that man looks at me like I’m a diseased dog that’s in need of putting down."

Kol grinned. "Don’t be such a cynic, Ashalia. I’m sure every one of the Houses' gifts came from a place of love and concern." Then his smile faded and he took a deep breath, suddenly awkward again as he stared at the ground. "Look, before we go any further… I wanted to apologise. Apologise for my behaviour towards you since you got here. You’ve been through so much these past few months, and I’ve been acting like…." He trailed off.

Asha studied him. "I understand why, though. I don’t blame you," she said quietly. She gave him a friendly smile. "And anyway, I suspect I can find it in my heart to forgive you. You helped rescue me, probably saved my life - and you certainly made sure Teran and Pyl won’t come after me again. You didn’t have to do any of that."

"Still." Kol clenched his fists. "What I’ve Seen… that’s not your fault. It doesn’t justify the way I’ve been treating you." He took another deep breath, finally looking her in the eye. "I’m just… I’m scared, Ashalia. I’m scared that it’s going to happen soon, and there isn’t anybody I can talk to about it. I find it hard enough to deal with the everyday things I See, but knowing that is coming…." He sighed. "I’ve wanted so many times to tell Fessi and Erran, but even if I could, it would just be a burden on them as well."

Asha nodded slowly; Fessi had said much the same thing last week. "I may not be your first choice, but if you need someone to talk to…."

Kol gave her a small smile. "Thank-you." He rubbed his face, looking relieved. "That’s not the only reason I’m here though. I’ve come to collect you, on Elocien’s instructions. Apparently there’s something you need to see."

Asha hesitated. "We may as well go now, then," she said reluctantly, forcing down a sudden pang of nervousness. She hadn’t been outside of her rooms since the night she got back.

They left, and Asha’s churning stomach eased a little as they made their way along the palace hallways. She still tensed up whenever she saw another Shadow, but she knew that might be her reaction for a while to come, now. Even so, it became easier the longer they walked, and Kol’s hulking presence alongside her lent a certain physical reassurance, too.

Soon they were at the duke’s office, and Kol bade her farewell. Once she was inside and the door was shut, Elocien gestured to a closed wooden box that sat on the floor in the middle of the room.

"This arrived about an hour ago. The guards at the gate were asked to deliver it to me, but I have no doubt that it was meant for you as well." He walked over to the box, then hesitated. "You should probably sit."

Frowning, Asha took Elocien’s advice.

Elocien carefully levered up the lid, and Asha shuddered as she realised what was inside.

Teran and Pyl’s severed heads stared up at her, their bloodied expressions taut with fear. Sitting atop the heads, flecked with dark red, was a note. Asha stared in horror for a moment, then leaned forward, a chill running through her as she read it. It was inked in the same neat, precise handwriting she’d seen in Elocien’s memory, from the night Administration had been attacked.

There were only two words on the slip of paper.

I apologise.

"It seems you were right about the Shadraehin not ordering the kidnapping," Elocien observed softly. "He’s making sure I know, so that Administration doesn’t retaliate - and making sure you know he didn’t betray you at the same time."

Asha shuddered. She’d despised these men for what they’d done, had even taken satisfaction in watching Kol’s treatment of them. But this… she hadn’t wanted this. She turned away, feeling sick.

"At least he doesn’t think I’m holding out on him, then," was all she said.

She spoke with Elocien a little longer, but soon enough she headed back to her rooms, suddenly too tired to be afraid. She’d seen so much violence over the past few months, more than she’d thought was possible. What had happened to Teran and Pyl… it almost didn’t surprise her, now.

Even so, as she lay back on her bed and closed her eyes, she knew she wouldn’t be able to get their final expressions from her mind for a long, long time.