Page 95 of Season Warriors & Wolves

Chapter twenty-two

Black Bishop to H5

Snowlin

Chewing on some mooncakes, I sat on a white terrace overlooking the busy main street of Amaris, watching Grey, a Captain at Highwall, linger by a bunch of children playing ball.

Though I’d promised not to kill him if I wasn’t fully sure he was our spy, there was no ‘don’t hurt him’ on the terms and conditions I agreed with Kilian when he gave me this name.

Atlas handed me another mooncake, apparently the boy was allergic to sugar because he pinched my sweets as if they were to suddenly explode. “Do we have to sit here?”

“If I am too close, I will strangle the words out of him, and I sort of gave my word that I wouldn’t.”

The young priest nodded. “I see, I see.”

“Do you know him well?”

Atlas gathered his large robes tightly to him and scooted closer to the edge. “Y-yes. His family comes to my temple during celebrations. Both mother and father are religious. His little sister is married to a Lyran priest even.”

A religious fanatic was the best guess in my bingo card and Atlas had just stamped the spot for me. “He and Nesrin, were they close?”

“I believe so. His peers often tease him because he’s been chasing her around since they were children while she never showed any interest in him.”

Because she wanted my husband. I looked at him. “You know quite a bit.”

“People gossip around me all the time. It’s…it’s almost as if I am invisible. Maybe they ignored me enough, so I truly became invisible.”

I patted his head. “You’re not. I can see you well, Atlas. There is a big bee on your shoulder by the way,” I said, turning to look at my target, watching him be approached by a child in his early teens and hand him a bag with bread and…a piece of folded paper under it.

That was my mark. Pushing to the corner, I jumped on the street and slowly approached him. “Grey, right?”

The entire street had halted and was attentively looking at me when he spun like he’d been called by Henah herself, staggering back like he was in her presence, too. “You…I mean…my queen.”

I raised a brow. “Since pleasantries are out of the way, I needed some help.”

“Help?”

“I need to get to the main library and these streets are dizzying me.”

Still obviously stunned, he blinked for a moment. “Of course…of course. Follow me,” he said, looking over his shoulder from time to time and I shot him a sweet smile. The man’s eyes grew wide, and he quickly whipped his head forward, clutching the bag of bread and carefully slipping the piece of paper inside it not so discreetly.

“Apologies,” I said sweetly, catching my step to him so we stood side by side. “Did I interrupt something? You’ve bought bread. Were you heading home?”

He tightened his hold on the cloth bag. “Uh, yes. Yes, my queen.”

“Isn’t your family in Lyra?”

His step slowed, but his heartbeat only grew faster. “They’ve come to Amaris.”

“Hm.”

“Do you often come to the city?”

“Yes.” I turned my palm to him. “Mind if I have a slice? The smell is driving me hungry.”

His whole face fell and he barked an uncomfortable laugh, hesitantly reaching inside the bag. “Sure.”

“Actually, let me buy you a new one. That one grew cold because of me,” I said, snatching the bag from him.