Chapter 16 · The Command Stone

"Nobody follows her!" Captain Dren shouted as the west tower cracked above us. "She's the assassin who tried to kill Commander Valko!"

A slab of burning stone dropped between us and the keep's inner hall.

I threw myself sideways. Heat slapped my face. Rafe caught the back of my coat and yanked me clear before the stone crushed my boots.

His hand stayed on me for one sharp second.

Then he shoved me away. "Move."

"You saved my life," I snapped, coughing through the smoke.

"Don't make it sentimental. I need you alive."

The fortress shook again. Dust poured from the ceiling. Somewhere below, men screamed as the lower passage gave way.

Dren shoved his sword beneath my chin. Blood ran down his arm, but his grip didn't weaken.

"You heard him," he said. "Prisoners stay out of command business."

"I'm not a prisoner."

The iron band around my wrist pulsed hot beneath my sleeve. Rafe's blood bond answered from across the corridor, tight as a chain between us.

Dren laughed. "You wear the commander's mark. You breathe because he allows it. That's a prison with a prettier name."

Rafe's eyes went cold. "Lower your blade."

"Or what?