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I DUCKED INTO THE ALLEY, running as fast as I could. I’d done this before. I needed to remember that.
I’d run from the city guard, from merchants, from angry citizens, from fire, and from dust demons. I could do this.
Step three, change how I look.
There! A washing line hung along the alley, some of the clothing hanging low enough for me to grab them. I snatched anything I could reach and kept running. The alley was dark and grimy, but there were fissures in the stone wall it butted up against. I was looking for one the exact right size – big enough to hold a man.
The first one was occupied. Someone about my size was curled up in the shadow there, sleeping. Good to know that people like me lived here, too – people surviving on luck and brashness.
There was another crevice up ahead. Unoccupied. Good. My luck hadn’t run out yet.
I ducked inside and examined what I had. A light red cloak, threadbare and not nearly as warm as the dark one Hubric had given me. Reluctantly, I exchanged them, hiding the axe and the fancy belt beneath the cloak.
The other garment was black and loose like a long scarf. I tangled it around my head like I’d seen some of the visitors at the gate do. It covered my face except for my eyes. Perfect. No one could tell who I was beneath this.
Now, the cloak. If I left it here it would be a dead giveaway ...
With a flash of inspiration, I backtracked, dropping the cloak over the sleeper in the other crevice. He could use it. Sleeping outside in this cold couldn’t be easy. And if someone was looking for that cloak, he’d make a good distraction.
I hurried further down the alley. That flying rug would be here any minute and before it arrived, I needed to get further away. No ... wait. They would just expand the search farther. What I needed was a place to hide. Then I could hunker down until dark and give them the slip under the cover of night.
But this was a foreign city and I didn’t know the back ways yet. Going down would be easier than going up. I should drop down a level.
Don’t drop down.
Why not?
We are dealing with our own situation here and I can’t allow you to bring trouble back with you.
She had to be kidding me! Was I not in trouble, too?
You’re on your own, kid. Hold them off. Don’t die. I’ll let you know when you can come back.
Rejection and betrayal filled me as I hurried up the alley, looking both ways in the street beyond.
Don’t take it personally. I have a lot of responsibilities to juggle here.
The problem with compassionate people was that sometimes they were so busy being compassionate to strangers that they made bad friends.
Ouch.
I almost didn’t see the green embroidered sleeves of the guard at the end of the alley. I drew in a deep breath when it finally registered. His back was to me, standing guard over the alley. There was no way to slip around him.
I stumbled backward, wincing as I hit my heel on a stone. I didn’t dare make a sound. I wasn’t going to have anyone to save me if I messed this up. Those traitors!
Get over yourself. Zyla and I were betrayed. Since then, we’ve changed locations, changed disguises, and found a friend. We’ve been a bit busy. But we’re still being hunted, and we need to find a safe place before we’re discovered. Do you know how hard it is to hide when you’re a dragon?
Didn’t Zyla say there would be dragons here? Why didn’t she go hide in a dragon cote? She could pretend to be a purple. They were notoriously reclusive. Zyla could be her rider and they could tuck Zin and Bataar into the saddlebags until things settled down.
That’s actually a very good idea.
I was known to have those. I eased myself along the wall of the building behind me. It smelled like rat. Why was my stomach rumbling? I had better not have developed a taste for rat. That would be awful.
Why didn’t you suggest this plan before?
I’m running for my life, remember?
I leaned back and took a second step backward, back brushing the wall. My footing felt spongy – and then suddenly I was falling. I gritted my teeth to keep from screaming as the ground gave out beneath me. I must have stepped on rotten wood. Skies and stars!
Terror shot through me as visions of falling forever filled my mind, but I landed before I could flesh them out.
Ngh!
I clenched my whole body against the impact. My hip throbbed like I’d bruised it, but I pulled myself to my feet.
I was in a cellar, or maybe a storeroom. Crates and barrels were scattered around the room with old sacking and straw strewn untidily about. Someone wasn’t keen on housework. Not that I minded too much. I hadn’t slept in almost two days and even then, I’d been unconscious. Maybe this was a good place to lay low. No one was going to find me here.
I gathered the loose sacking and straw, found a dark corner and wrapped the old red cloak around me. I already missed the black one. I had a bad feeling I wasn’t going to be able to replace it any time soon.
The axe dug into my side as I settled in, but I didn’t adjust it. I liked the reminder that I had a weapon now – even if I had no idea how to use it.
Sleep came quickly.