Page 86 of A Lie so Pretty and Poisonous

As we slipped to the end of the third-floor hallway, I looked down into the foyer to see a few guards conversing. There, in the center of them, was Darragh.

Shit.

I lightly pushed Cora to the wall, and I stood in front of her, staying in the darkness of the hallway.

“Put more guards on the cells,” he growled. “There has been correspondence suggesting a jailbreak will happen soon by the militia to take their prisoners back.”

“Yes, Captain,” the guards said in unison.

They dispersed, Darragh stalking by the staircase, heading toward the hall of stained glass. He paused as he passed by the bottom stairs for a moment, listening. I held my breath, silently willing him to move along. To have him find us wandering the castle at night would be equally as dangerous as Gabriel, but he moved on through the hallway and out of sight.

We only had to hide and hold our breaths one more time until we made it outside to the stables. I quickly worked on tacking a large chestnut mare at the end of the stable, hiding Cora in the corner of the stall. I hoped the horse was fast and responsive, but there was no time to get choosy. We needed to go. I couldn’t believe our luck so far. Limited guard and no other staff in sight.

“Miss?”

I jumped, and Cora gasped. Ketlus poked his head over the stall door to catch me hitching the mare’s saddle. “Ketlus. Hi. Um, I wanted to show my daughter, Cora, how to properly tack a horse, a lesson all younglings should learn.” I was stuttering and rambling. I knew my voice gave me away.

His hazy eyes searched my face, and he stepped inside the horse stall with me. “Hello, little miss,” Ketlus bowed to Cora, who watched with wide eyes. He took the bridle off the wall and placed the bit into the mare’s mouth. “You be needing to tighten that saddle a bit more, miss. I don’t want either of ya’ fallen off now.” He hitched the girth up one notch to ensure a tight fit on the mare. Ketlus gave me a nod. He knew what I was doing, and he was helping me anyway. This could get him sent to the atoner or worse.

He helped me get Cora onto the saddle and then gave me a leg up, Cora seated in front, her little body wrapped into me. I intended to go as fast as we could until daybreak. I didn’t know where I was going, but I would figure out the next steps once we were safely out of the city and into the countryside. This was reckless, stupid, and my only option.

“Thank you,” I whispered.

“Yer welcome, miss. Be safe. Seems the path to the gate is cleared at this time of night. Just in case you needed that information.” The old daemonite tipped his chin up.

“Hold on tight, Cora. We are leaving now,” I whispered into her curls.

I nudged the horse to walk through the stable, and as we moved out into the moonlight of the courtyard, a dark figure moved into our path. Cora tensed, and I drew in a breath.

The pillar of Themis lingered behind the cloaked seraph. Always the watchful eye.

“And where do you suppose you’re going with your youngling?” a voice said, full of mocking rage that I recognized in an instant.

“Devoruh,” I sneered.

She drew back the hood of her cloak, and a vicious smile spread across her face as she looked from me to Cora. Her sword was drawn from the sheath on her back.

I didn’t give myself time to think and pushed the mare to take off into a run, my heart beating in time to the horse’s hooves hitting the ground. We were about to go through the first set of archways out of the castle when two more figures stepped out, blocking our path. I was prepared to push the horse to plow right through them, but a voice called out, “Rory, stop the horse!”

My hands immediately yanked the reins, halting the mare. Cora let out a cry. I blinked.

Why did you stop, you idiot?

“Tsk, tsk, Rory. What a disappointing turn of events. I thought we were making so much progress,” Gabriel chided. He stood with Alec, both sporting terrifying grins.

Before I could process what was happening, a hand grabbed me by my hair and yanked me backwards off the horse. I screamed in shock and pain.

“What do you want to do with her, Commander?” Devoruh questioned as I struggled in her grasp. I dug and scratched at her arms, but it didn’t even faze her.

Alec approached Cora, sitting on the horse, sobbing. She kicked at him, but he reached out and grabbed her ankle, holding it down so she couldn’t hurt him or herself. “Mom! Please don’t hurt my mom!” The sheer panic and fear in her voice made me struggle harder.

Gabriel looked at Cora and then at me. “Let her go, Devoruh. She will behave. Won’t you, darling?”

Devoruh threw me forward onto my hands and knees in the dirt. Alec picked Cora up off the horse and set her down in front of him, holding onto her shoulders so she couldn’t run. She struggled to free herself.

Alec gave an amused chuckle. “This one is a bit spirited like her mother.”

“Cora. It’s alright, sweet girl,” I tried to reassure her, but my voice wavered.