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He gave a chuckle

“Did I just h?”

“Hardly a laugh”

The gates fully opened before we arrived, and the horses rode through the open doorway and brought us into HeartHolshots fitted with enor the walls, ready for use It was a battle station rather than an entryway

HeartHolme immediately felt different from the outpost, just by the way Queen Rolfe and Huntley were treated The horses were taken away, and men in uniforms with a feather crested on their chests caave her water, a tray of cheese and fruits, and real one Huntley was treated the same way, like royalty

They weren’t sure what to do with me

Queen Rolfe and her guards stepped into a carriage waiting for her arrival that took her away, down a stone pathway between buildings and shops It couldn’t have been more different from the outpost, which was earthy and open This was a city hidden away by the stone, opening into several streets with hoo People walked the pathways, wouettes and produce Kids played in the street, chasing one another into alleyways

It reminded me of Delacroix

Huntley walked up to me, his fur cloak and thick breeches replaced by an outfit far old chains across his chest, he carried his short swords at his hips and his ax across his back Even in the city, he was ar

I looked hi the way the sleeves covered his thick ly, the way his clothes fit his body like they wereover his broad shoulders nicely

He gave a nod in the direction ere going “Come on”

I joined him, still in the clothes I’d arrived in “So…this is HeartHolme”

“Not what you were expecting?”

“It’s…big”

“I told you there were a lot of us”

We walked through the streets, round level When the road curved a different way, I saw it The castle was at the highest part of the rand size, but also its elevation above the rest of the city The blue sky was behind it—and nothing else “Is the castle on the edge of a cliff?”