Rina walked toward Sara's trial with red eyes, the hood of her saffron cloak pulled low. She accompanied Anya, Anat, Martha—the latter two also disguising their Denese features. They took a narrow cobbled pathway used by servants, hoping to avoid as much notice as possible. The road was crudely cut and hugged the mountain slope, zigzagging between the district levels.

She stifled a yawn. She'd barely slept the night before. Thoughts had spun around her mind, weaving webs filled with gruesome outcomes, and no matter how many times she'd brushed the memories away, the sticky globules stuck.

News of what Sara had done to the lord had spread through the city and fed the long-held fear of the population. Sara, the Arkis-spawned tainted she-witch. This, this was why the Denese must be kept in their place—within walled outposts. A pair of gossiping maids had even questioned whether a hint of the taint had addled the brain of their emperor—Mai the Magnificent was half-Denese, after all.

They seemed to forget that Mai took the taint during the forsaking, protecting them all. Though it still had to pass through him, a treacherous part of her pointed out. What did he do with it?

She swept the thoughts away and proceeded along the path toward the administration level, where the court district sat. It would be a public trial. Sara would be tried before a mob that wanted to rip her to shreds. Something that made her mouth dry and sent washes of cold through her body. Why would Mai do this?

The sound of shouting brought them up short. Anya motioned with a jerk of the head for them to leave the road and wait for her.

Wordlessly, they made their way to a small garden nestled beside the limestone cliff face. Water trickled down the rocks, feeding a pool filled with lilies. Ferns, flowers and vines sprouted around it, shielded from the burning sun by a date palm.

The shouts continued. Shadows from the palm fronds slithered across Rina's robe in time to the slippery dread in her guts. The whites of Martha's enormous eyes shone white beneath her cowl. Rina took Martha and Anat's hand and squeezed.

"Mai won't let anything happen to us. We're his guests."

They all flinched at a large bang, followed by a shrill scream.

"I promise you. He won't."

"So why did he let us walk alone?"

The defiance in Anat's words made Rina grimace. But Anat had been so silent since Rina's return to the women's quarters, at least she'd recovered her tendency to question authority.

"We came with Anya."

Martha peered around to the road. "I'm inclined to agree with Anat. This isn't safe."

"Nobody forced you to come. Magister Ro did warn us," said Rina, a bite in her words.

Anat's breath hitched.

Martha shot Rina a glare. "Anat? Are you okay?" She let go of Rina's hand and cupped Anat's cheek." If you want to go back, we can. We don't have to go."

Still holding Anat, Rina sensed the trembling along the girl's body.

"No, no." Anat shook her head. "I need to go—to face this. To face them. " She indicated the walls on the other side of the pathway, separating them from noble estates. One of Lord Cassander's mansions would be near.

"As you wish." Martha stepped back into the street and peeked out, then turned back to them, chewing on her lip in the silence "Should we see if Anya is okay?"

Rina shuffled her feet. Anat's skin was cold, even in the heat of the morning.

Anyone who came this way would wonder what they were doing here. Their clothes were too grand for staff, and no noble or Magister would walk this way when they could take the ocean route. Were a patrolling guard to come upon them, their ears would perk at their accent. Not all the guards welcome the Denese presence.

"I don't know."

Martha clicked her fingers in agitation. "The trial is about to start." She started to pace. "If we don't move soon, I'm not sure I'll have any nerves left."

Anat let out a sigh. "Why didn't you let Olav come with us, Rina?"

She was wondering the same thing. Her pride had got in the way, and she had insisted he let them go alone. "Sorry."

"A bit late for that now." Martha faced them, fists clenched. It's still quiet. I think we should go before someone comes along."

Rina and Anat nodded. They returned to the path, the stone slick, and hurried between the cliff face and the tall fences.

The road bent, revealing the tunnelled walkway that would bring them to the administration level. Anya knelt before a figure propped against a wall—one knee up, the other straight before him— and dabbed a piece of cloth at his temple. Two other men huddled about, and a few stray apples rolled on the ground.

Martha rushed forward. "What happened?"

The injured man looked at them. Mehdi, his nose crooked and bloodied, one eye darkening. "Apples," said Anya in a matter-of-fact tone, gripping Mehdi's chin again. "Do I have your permission?" she said. Mehdi nodded. She placed a hand across his face, a faint green glow building there.

"What happened?" repeated Rina, looking at the other men—Nabu and a man she'd seen but didn't know.

Nabu shook his head, his lips twitching. "Mehdi's still got a mouth on him. Said something smart to some servants on their way down with a basket full of apples and didn't bother to hide his face." He rubbed his shoulder. "They're like rocks."

The glow under Anya's hand stopped, and she opened her eyes. "He's lucky they weren't rocks. Has anyone got any water?"

The third man pulled a skin of water from under his cloak and handed it over. Anya poured the water on a clean corner of her handkerchief and began scrubbing at Mehdi's face. "I hope you learned your lesson."

Mehdi's eyes lifted from the ground to Anya. "Thank you."

She took his hand and smiled.

"Alright, we're almost there. Shall we go on?" Anya stood and offered her hands to Mehdi. He took them and let her pull him up.

They got through the tunnel without any difficulty. They trailed Anya into backstreets, making their way to the towering structure of the courthouse that rose above the red-roofs of the various bureaucratic offices. Most people had the same idea, moving in their direction. Many carried baskets of fruit and vegetables.

"Thank the gods they outlawed throwing stones," Anya muttered.

They reached a high brick wall that surrounded the court complex. The throng angled left to the main entrance, while they turned right along the cobbled road hugging the wall. Anya stopped at a small door and rapped hard.

A slit opened to hazel eyes and closed again with a click. There was a grind of metal against metal, and the door swung open. The guard on the other side was dressed in the red cotton robes of the Magisterium guards but without the leather armour. Despite this, a bead of sweat ran down his tanned face.

"I'd hurry," he said. "The captain is impatient."

"So is the crowd," said Anya, voice cool. "I'd put your armour on—and consider a helmet." She leaned in close, lips quirking. "They're armed with fruit."

The guard scoffed. "Where's the rest?"

"They're not far off. Olav told them to keep their distance, and they obey their orders."

Anya moved past the man, leaving the small guardhouse and entering a hedged garden.

Rina hurried to Anya. "There were guards all along?"

Anya stopped and gave Rina a flat stare. "Of course, there were. Do you really think you'd be allowed to walk through hostile streets without them?"

"But you said—"

"I said nothing."

Rina gritted her teeth and trudged after Anya. She didn't like being tricked, and she wasn't ready to see Olav. Not after that kiss. Not when he kept looking at her the way he did.

Unfortunately, the devil himself appeared, stone-faced, shadowed by two other guards. He wore his shelled leather armour, right down to the vambraces on his arms, his face damp with perspiration. The soldiers beside him were bronzed from the relentless sun, but Olav's complexion remained pale as ever, this fact accentuated by his dark ringlets and obsidian eyes.

"What took you so long?"

Anya sighed. "This one," she jerked her head at Mehdi, "managed to cause a commotion."

Olav eyed Mehdi who shuffled his feet and reddened, traces of blood still smeared across his face.

"I thought it was just the four of you coming. Had I known, I would have—"

"They came separately, but we came upon them. I had to heal him or else—"

"It would have looked bad. You're right." Olav addressed Mehdi, Nabu and the other man. "You'll have to stand."

"Not a problem," mumbled Mehdi.

Olav quirked a brow. "He was never this compliant on the ship. What did you do to him, Anya?"

"I healed him. He's just a bit drained ."

Rina narrowed her eyes. Did Mehdi realise Anya used his own energy to heal him?

Olav grinned. "Too tired to kick up a fuss—I like it." His black eyes skimmed over Rina, light as a dandelion seed, but enough to make her shiver, and then he barked a command to his officers. The men took their place at the rear of the group, and, Anya and Olav leading, they made their way to the court complex.

★☾●☽★

A/N:

Thank you again for reading. I hope you enjoyed it.  Apologies for the short entry—I will get the next two parts of this chapter up as soon as possible. There will be some drama ahead *rubs hands together*