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But she wasn’t looking atat my throat My hand flew up to my neck It was too late The scarf had slipped free

"Sankta," the woman moaned "Sankta!" She fell to her knees and seizedit to her wrinkled cheek "Sankta Alina!"

Suddenly there were hands all aroundatto push away from them

Sankta Alina Muttered, whispered, wailed, shouted My nan incantation to keep away the dark

They crowded aroundout to feelrip and realized it was the fabric of hter, pushing and shoving, shouting at each other, each wanting to get nearer My feet lost contact with the ground I cried out as a chunk ofto tear ht with sudden clarity It could be over that easily No htmares of broken skiffs or children devoured by the Fold, no more visions I could be free froht of their hope Let the They could give old halo around my head Alina the Heartsick, Alina the Petty, Alina the Mad, Daughter of Dva Stolba, torn to pieces onein the shadow of the city walls They could sell my bones by the side of the road

Sory shout Massive hands took hold of me, and I was lifted into the air

I opened rim face He hadin a slow arc

"Stay back," she warned the crowd I saw sori their heart rates, trying to calm them, but there were just too many A man dove forward Like a flash, Tamar had drawn her axes The man bellowed as a red streak bloomed on his arm

"Corinored h the crowd; Ta the path The pilgri toward me

"Now," Tolya said Then louder, "Now!"

He bolted My head banged against his chest as we plunged toward the safety of the city walls, Tauards had already seen the turates

Tolya bulled forward, knocking people froap between the iron doors Taed shut On the other side, I heard the thu, voices raised in hunger Still I heard ?" Tolya bellowed as he set uards were glaring at rily "We’ll be lucky if we don’t have a full-fledged riot on our hands"

The twins had horses waiting Tamar yanked a blanket from a market stall and threw it aroundthe collar She leapt into her saddle, and Tolya tossed me up unceremoniously behind her

We rode in harried silence all the way back to the palace gates The unrest outside the city walls had not yet spread within, and all we garnered were a few questioning looks

The twins didn’t say a word, but I could tell they were furious They had every right to be I’d behaved like an idiot, and now I could only hope that the guards below could restore order without resorting to violence

Yet beneath the panic and regret, an idea had entered , but I could not shake it

When we arrived back at the Little Palace, the tanted to escort ’s rooms, but I refused

"I’ I need to do"

They insisted on trailingto find what I wanted I’d been a mapmaker, after all I tucked the book under uards in tow

Toin the colass of tea

"Where were--" Mal began, but Tolya had hiainst the wall before I could even blink

"Where were you?" he snarled into Mal’s face

"Tolya!" I shouted in alarm I tried to pull his hand fro to bend a steel bar I turned to Ta just as angry as her brother

Mal ed his clothes froht There was stubble on his chin, and the s on him like a dirty coat

"Saints, Tolya! Would you just put him down?"

For athe life out of hiers and Mal slid down the wall, coughing and gulping air

"It was your shift," Tolya ruer at Mal’s chest "You should have been with her"

"I’ at his throat "I ht next--"

"You were at the bottom of a bottle," Tolya seethed "I can sain, ht to tear you apart"