Dawn Study (Soulfinders #3)(80)

Heli touched his arm. “We still can’t stay here. We’re putting Teegan’s family in danger. We need to leave. Jaymes, you and your family also need to find a safe place to go. The Cartel won’t be happy when we escape, and they’ll question you or use you to get to Teegan.”

“When we escape?” Zohav asked. “You’re that confident?”

Heli resisted snapping at the girl. Instead, she glanced at Zethan and Teegan. “Escaping won’t be the hard part.”

“What’s the hard part?” Teegan asked.

“Making them think they have a chance to catch us.”

Except for Zohav, there were answering grins all around. Heli explained her plan, and the four of them slipped through the back door to their positions. There wasn’t much light, so they moved with care. The twins hid behind the well while she and Teegan sidled up to the stables. All three horses were awake, with ears pricked forward and nostrils flared.

Since Heli needed to know where the soldiers were, Teegan updated her on their positions.

“There are twelve of them now,” he whispered. “They’re climbing over the gate. Huh. Someone must have told them it squeaks.” A few long seconds passed. “They’re moving to surround the house. Two of them know how to pick locks.”

Heli gathered her power. “Let me know when they’re close.” Aiming a powerful and narrow wind gust took a great deal of concentration and energy. She hoped to loop it around the house and strike them all with one mighty gust.

“Almost there...”

The gate squealed open.

Teegan gasped. “Father. Reema.”





19





YELENA


The bright mid-morning sunlight woke me from a dreamless sleep. I yawned and reached for Valek, but his side of the bed was empty. Alarmed, I sat up. It was a few hours past dawn; he should have returned by now. Shoving the blankets off, I dressed quickly and hurried to the small living room.

Onora stood by the window, staring down at the busy market. A pot of water steamed on the stone hearth.

“Has Valek reported in?” I asked her.

She turned. “Not yet.”

“Shouldn’t he be back by now?”

“It depends.” Onora didn’t appear to be worried. “He might be following a lead.” She strode to the hearth and nudged the pot closer to the burning coals with the toe of her boot. She must have been out early, because she only wore her boots when pretending to be a normal citizen.

Her lack of concern only increased mine. “What if he was caught?”

“Not much we can do about it right now. If he’s not back by this afternoon, I’ll visit the Council Hall and see if I can learn what happened.”

I’d planned to go to the Keep today, but I’d promised Valek to wait until he checked it out. Perhaps he ran into trouble there. Too many possibilities. I strode to the window, hoping to spot him among the shoppers.

“Have some tea.” Onora poured a cup. “Sit down. I’ll make you something to eat.”

“Are you bribing me?”

“Would you rather fret until you’re sick?”

“Yes,” I said peevishly.

“And will that change anything?” She answered for me. “No. And it isn’t good for the baby.”

Fine. I flopped down on an armchair like an adolescent and dust puffed up, making me sneeze. My emotions had been erratic lately. I’d accused Valek of overreacting, but I guessed he wasn’t the only one. “Sorry,” I said when she handed me the tea.

“No problem. Besides, you’re doing better than my aunt.”

Strange comment. “What do you mean?”

“My aunt sobbed through her entire pregnancy. Or so it seemed. She’d cry when she couldn’t find matching socks or when a bird flew into the window pane.”

“So I can blame the baby for my mood swings?”

“Yup. And she was absentminded and really goofy at times. She called it baby brain.”

That explained quite a bit.

“And swollen ankles. Hers blew up like melons.” She spread her hands to demonstrate the size.

Lovely. I wondered what other effects the baby would cause. “You know more than I do about this. Were you close to your aunt?”

“I...” Onora focused on slicing an apple. “She raised us after our mother died.”

I realized I didn’t know much about Onora’s past. I knew that she’d trained as an assassin, and she’d been abused by her commanding officer. Valek’s news that Sergeant Gerik was her brother had been a complete surprise. “Do you have other siblings?”

“No. Just the two of us.” She paused. “When my aunt and the baby both died in childbirth, my uncle kicked us out, so we joined the military.” She shrugged. “You know the rest.”

“Sorry to hear that.”

“It’s all in the past.” Her tone remained flat.

She wasn’t fooling me. I’d spent a couple years running from my traumatic past, and I recognized the signs. It would catch up to her eventually. I just hoped I’d be there to help her get through it once it did.

Onora set a plate full of ham and apple slices for us to share on the table between the armchairs. The table had been wiped down.