I craned forward in the saddle, my arms tight around his torso, until my lips grazed his ear. “I’m sorry. For last night. I was wrong to assume anything.”
I wasn’t sure if he’d respond. But then he turned his head so that my lips skimmed his cheek.
“I don’t blame you for making assumptions,” he said. “Besides, I should apologize, too. I didn’t know what to think when you weren’t asleep in my room.”
“You thought I was with someone?” I couldn’t help feeling the slightest bit insulted. But also a little flattered.
“The thought did cross my mind, even though I knew better.”
I eased back so I could rest my cheek against the line of his shoulder. “I should have known better, too. I just figured I shouldn’t . . . get in your way.”
He surprised me by laughing. I felt the rumble against my chest and my hands, but it was so quiet that the wind stole the sound.
“Your consideration is a little misplaced,” he said. “You should get some rest. I’ll make sure you don’t fall.”
I bit my lip. “I’m not tired.”
He glanced at me. Then he covered my hand on his chest, thumb smoothing over my wrist before he laced his fingers with mine.
CHAPTER 25
DAYLIGHT WAS FADING fast by the time Ninurta’s walls came into view. Mason stopped us behind an outcropping to wait until complete darkness before we approached. Seeing the wall twisted my insides into anxious knots. I had thought, maybe, coming back would feel like coming home, if for no other reason than because Reev was there. But instead, all that greeted me was a prison.
A few gargoyles had spotted us along the way, but they had merely glanced in our direction before carrying on. Was Ninu aware of how intelligent the creatures he’d released into the Outlands were? Even without hollows, Irra could build a formidable army out of the gargoyles. Maybe there weren’t enough of them to do that.
We shut off our Grays, and Mason dismounted. He consulted a map that he drew from beneath the knife sheath strapped around his thigh. Hina went about replacing the energy stones on both the Grays.
“Since you won’t need it once you get into the tunnels,” Hina said, peering into our Gray’s chest, “you’ll have to leave this one out here. Mason will ride it to Etu Gahl when he returns.”
“You’re not coming with us?” I asked her.
“I only came this far to make sure the gargoyles didn’t get bold. They leave hollows alone, but you two probably wouldn’t scare them. Mason will guide you the rest of the way.”
After she finished replacing our energy stone, she switched it back on so we’d have the light to see by. The Gray provided the only light source aside from the distant glow of torches along Ninurta’s walls.
Before leaving, she pulled me into a hug. I found myself hugging back. We hadn’t spent much time together outside of meals and sparring, but aside from Avan, she and Mason were the closest thing I’d had to friends in a long time.
“Thanks,” I said, “for your protection. And for making the Void feel . . . not so lonely.”
She playfully punched my shoulder. “Stop trying to tell me good-bye. I’ll see you when this is over.”
I smiled gratefully. “Yeah.”
With a final wave, she jumped onto the other Gray and rode off. Her red light faded into the darkness.
Mason, who hadn’t bothered saying good-bye to Hina, studied the map, turning his head left and right as he oriented himself.
Avan sat nearby, eating a handful of dried fruit, as I watched over Mason’s shoulder. Unlike the prostitute’s map, Mason’s was in good condition, but it didn’t show much beyond the familiar boundaries of Ninurta. Mason pointed to a spot on the map outside the walls, above a series of zigzagging lines. “This is where we’ll enter.”
“The sewers.” So that’s what Hina had meant by “tunnels.” Neither Mason nor Irra had given us details about how they planned to get us into the city. “But they’re patrolled. And there are locked gates,” I added.
“I’ve arranged for someone to meet us inside to unlock the gates,” Mason said. “And our source was able to supply the patrol route. I memorized it.”
“It still sounds risky.”
“I know.” He grinned. “Most excitement I’ve had in two months. Ninu’s reconnaissance teams have pulled back and left us with nothing to do.”
“I’m glad you’re enjoying this.”
He looked at the map. “We’ll go the rest of the way by foot. It’s not far.”
We grabbed our bags and switched off the Gray, leaving it in the dark. I hoped Mason would be able to find his way back here.
Strong fingers grasped my hand. Warmth shot up my arm and through my chest. But instead of Avan’s voice, Mason’s said, “To keep you from wandering off.”
Flustered, I didn’t say anything as I reached out and felt for Avan’s hand as well. I touched his stomach first, then he took my hand in his, squeezing lightly.
“Can you see?” Avan asked Mason. The darkness felt less oppressive with the two of them on either side of me, but it was still pitch-black.
“Yes,” Mason said without further explanation. Maybe the collar improved his night vision.
We walked for about ten minutes. Even after my eyes adjusted to the dark, it was unnerving being able to see only a few feet of dirt and black shapes. It didn’t help that the only sound was our footsteps—mine and Avan’s, because Mason had the eerie ability to move without sound. Mason pressed my hand when we reached another outcropping, and we stopped.
Mason released me and knelt in the dry earth. I heard a click. He grabbed something and yanked roughly. Dirt cracked and skidded off the lid of a manhole cover as he raised it from the ground. It sounded like a rockslide in the silence. I looked around uneasily. What if the sound attracted gargoyles?
Avan and I knelt around the opening as Mason descended into the sewer. All I could see was the uppermost rung of a disintegrating metal ladder. A moment later, Mason called for us to follow him down.
With a glance at Avan, I went first.
Rust along the ladder’s rungs dug into my palms. I couldn’t see where to put my hands and feet. When my foot finally hit solid ground, I eased off the ladder, brushing my hands against my pants, and retreated a few steps to allow Avan room. Light burst through the darkness. I shielded my eyes. Had we been caught already?
But it was just Mason. The light was coming from his arm, bright enough to illuminate the tunnel. I shuffled forward, blinking.
“What is that?” I asked, looking at his arm brace. It was made of metal, darkened to a dull finish that wouldn’t reflect the light. A few buttons lined the seam alongside some roughly cut details.
“I’m not sure. It’s Irra’s creation.” Mason aimed the light into the space in front of us. “Better than a lantern.”
The light revealed a walkway that ran along the side of the tunnel. The sewage pit in the middle had long since dried up. Didn’t smell that way, though. I wrinkled my nose.
Two passages branched ahead; the left side had collapsed, blocked by crumbled stone and distorted metal.
Avan dropped down beside me, and Mason gestured for us to follow with a twitch of his head.
“We’re still a ways from the wall, but Ninu keeps the sewers patrolled for a couple of miles out,” Mason said. “They’ll have passed by this area already. We should be safe. I don’t think the gargoyles have found their way down here yet.”
“You don’t think?” I asked.
I could hear his grin as he said, “I’ve learned not to underestimate them.”
“Fantastic,” I muttered.
“There are a lot of unused sewer passages in Ninurta,” Mason continued. “Most of them are left from before Rebirth. They still patrol the unused ones as well, but most are caved in. That’s why we can’t use them to sneak an army inside. Too unstable.”