“Kirstin would be better at this,” Danika muttered as she jerked Captain Reiter’s knife through a piece of leftover sheet. Kirstin took the fashion chances. Kirstin never cared what people thought. Kirstin was dead. Kirstin had to die to convince the captain to free them from the nets. Kirstin died to free them from the nets. She swiped her palm over her cheeks. “There’s no way this will ever look like a shoe.”
“The Sisters wear white slippers,” Mirian told her dropping to one knee and wrapping a square of fabric around Danika’s right foot. Her nose inches from Danika’s leg, she tied the fake slipper in place with a long strip of sheet—around the ankle, down under the arch, back around the ankle. “And no one,” she added, moving to the left foot and cutting off whatever protest the captain had been about to make, “would go barefoot in the palace. Perception is important.”
“Getting out before we’re overrun by armed guards is more important,” Reiter grunted, lifting Jesine out of Tomas’ hold and up into the small room. It was crowded already, particularly since none of them would touch the…body…folded up over the chair. Fortunately, Jesine was small. Mirian held up a hand for another square and shuffled over to wrap Jesine’s feet.
“Forget it, Captain.”
Danika turned to see Reiter on one knee, holding out his hand to Stina, who, fortunately, looked amused as she added, “Get out of my way, I can manage on my own.”
When Danika translated, Reiter stood, hands spread, and backed to one side. She considered it a point in his favor that he stayed close enough to lend a hand if necessary.
It was definitely crowded with Stina in the small room. Danika moved closer to the edge, but maintained a hold on the billowing panels of purple fabric. Sheets weren’t known for traction. Glancing down as Tomas bent to boost Annalyse to the ledge, she saw a fan of light spill into the room below. Before she could speak, Annalyse threw herself forward and out of sight, Tomas right behind her.
There was a meaty thud and a groan, then Tomas reappeared dragging Adeline.
The triangle of light disappeared and Annalyse stared up at her, eyes wide, green flecks gleaming. “I hit her with the baton!”
“Good girl,” Stina called.
There was light enough to see Annalyse flush.
“Is she out?” Reiter demanded. He couldn’t look right at Tomas, Danika noticed. Imperials had such strange ideas about skin.
Tomas showed teeth. “Close enough.”
Annalyse needed even less help than Stina had, but then she was taller and almost fifteen years younger. Mirian, still on her knees, moved to her feet with the last two squares of sheet while behind her, Stina peered down at her own fake slippers and shook her head.
“Right, then.” The captain nodded at Tomas. “Let’s go.”
Tomas changed and trotted to the far end of the room. As he started to run, Danika wondered why it looked so familiar…
“The Pack! Tomas, stop!”
His nails raked the floor as he slid.
“Catch me, I’m coming down! Lord and Lady…” Danika spun around, to find the others staring at her. “…how could I have forgotten. The nets are off!” She turned back to the edge. “We have to get the Pack out!”
“Stop her!”
Danika’s foot was in the air when Captain Reiter threw an arm around her waist and dragged her back against his body. She called the wind, more than willing to knock them both down into the room where Tomas waited, but he held her with one arm and grabbed at the wall hangings with the other.
“Lady Hagen! Stop it!” Mirian grabbed her arm, and Danika got a close look at her eyes. None of the original color remained—only white and pupil—and the edges of her pupils were frayed. It was wrong and frightening. If this was what came of allowing the power to choose, the masters were right and she wanted no part of it.
When she flinched away, the wind stopped although she wasn’t positive she’d been the one to stop it.
“Captain Reiter will take you to safety. Tomas and I will free the Pack.”
“Tomas and you?” Fear sharpened her voice. “You’re children!”
Mirian released her arm and stepped back, bumping into Jesine. “And you have your child to think about plus another four. Sorry…” She glanced at Stina. “…five. You’re having twins.”
Stina rolled her eyes. “Oh, joy.”
“You could tell from touching her?” The gold flecks in Jesine’s eyes glittered.
“I didn’t mean to,” Mirian muttered. “It’s like first level metals by way of healing. Identify infant.”
“That’s not possible.”
“And yet…” She shrugged and turned her attention back to Danika, lip curled. Danika suddenly realized this girl would challenge her if it became necessary.
“They’ve been tortured and starved,” she growled. “What makes you think you can control them?”
“She has a better chance than you do.” Tomas said.
Reiter let his grip ease enough that Danika could look down at her brother-in-law. “Tomas, so help me, if you say she smells amazing…”
“She does. But she also has metal craft, and you don’t. They’re using silver to control them, right? I mean, logically, they have to be.”
Mirian’s mouth twitched at that although Danika saw nothing to smile about.
“You’d have to figure out the mechanics, if there’s even a way to get the silver off. Mirian wouldn’t. She can get rid of any silver, fast. And she’s…” He spread his hands although Danika wasn’t sure if words had failed him or he considered it blindingly obvious that Mirian was his Alpha. And probably Captain Reiter’s as well, although Danika doubted any of them had acknowledged it.
While age certainly had its place in Pack dynamics, in the end, position came down to power. Not only raw power, but also how that power was used. Ryder was…had been both strong and smart. Danika was the strongest Air-mage in Aydori. Mirian Maylin had made her way from Aydori to save the Mage-pack, even knowing she was the sixth mage Leopald searched for.
Danika stopped fighting the captain’s hold, and he allowed her to pull free. Meeting the girl’s eyes, forcing herself to focus on the white-on-white in spite of how uneasy it made her feel, she said, “I promised them.”
“Let me keep your promise for you.”
After a long moment, Danika tipped her head to one side. Behind her, Annalyse gasped, but the others were silent. Kirstin, who’d challenged and challenged and challenged, would have had something to say. Danika suddenly missed her so much she had to press both fists to her chest to hold in the pain.
Mirian looked past her to the captain and said, “I’m trusting you.”
“I’ll get them out.”
And Danika heard if it’s the last thing I do in Captain Reiter’s voice even if Mirian didn’t. Even if she was too young to realize that by helping them, by doing the right thing, he’d destroyed his own…
Mirian stepped off the edge.
Danika choked back a scream.
“What?” Mirian frowned up her as she floated gently to the lower level. “If I can float a leaf, I can logically float myself.”
“The Air-master said it was impossible.”
The frown became pique as she touched down. “Not to me.”
Stina snorted. “They’ll be fine.”
Mirian was close enough to Tomas when she landed that her skirt wrapped around his legs, the deep burgundy making his skin look even paler than usual. “Your clothes?”
“I’ll be more use in fur.”
“Told you you wouldn’t be in a jacket long enough to buy the expensive…” A sudden noise pulled her attention to the far end of the room. The guards weren’t banging on the door, not yet, but they’d definitely realized they couldn’t get it open. Reaching out, she touched Tomas’ shoulder, ran her hand down his arm, and finally laced their fingers together before she glanced up at the emperor’s nasty little room. “Where is he keeping the Pack?”