Page 3 of Nocturn

Within a few steps, I was at my bed, pulling back the thick blankets to slide under. Piper climbed down my arm until she hopped onto the bed.

“I know not what to do,” I blurted before she could ask the question and sank onto the mattress without bothering to pull the blankets over me. The chill was keeping me grounded.

‘Should we run?’ Piper chittered, nestling closer, her small paws sinking into the edge of my pillow.

“I do not know, but Miriam will not oust us, so we have a moment to think about what to do next.” I reached over to grab my candle snuffer and placed the tin cap over the flickering flame, extinguishing it until only the moonlight from the small window lit my chamber. Piper rose, her onyx pelt shimmering blue where the moon caught her fur.

‘I suppose you are correct, Miriam will not say anything,’ she projected to me, confirming what I desperately hoped.

My heartbeat finally calmed, and I tugged the blanket until it was under my chin. An eerie howl echoed from outside, stopping me mid-movement, my hands seizing. Hollows would start their screeching outside the gates soon. The estate was well guarded, and that was only one of the barriers meant to repel the creatures. No Hollows would be able to get through.

I exhaled slowly, sinking into my mattress. Everything would be well. I believed that Miriam would keep her word. At dawnlight, after a night of rest, I could figure out how to hide the Sigil. Once I had a fresh mind, I would figure it out . . . I rolled onto my side, facing Piper. Her little ferret head was shoved into her belly, and she formed a tight circle.

“Must be nice to fall asleep so quickly,” I muttered. Piper did not react.

Sighing, I flopped onto my back. Sleep avoided me, so I settled on mapping the servants’ corridor. If I escaped through them unseen, I would have more time to run before the Bjorn’s contacted the Guard. I would need provisions for a week at least. If I had that much, I could remain hidden within the woods. That would offer me more time to not be caught. I heard what authorities did to redbloods who were captured after running. It led directly to maiming, or with luck, a quick death.

In a few hours, the kitchen would wake first, filling the first floor of the estate with the warm yeast smell of bread. I would rise before Miriam, press her gown, set out her shoes, then fetch her toast and tea to break her fast . . . but none of that would happen now.

Little had changed since I’d been gifted the small chamber a fortnight after my arrival at Bjorn Estate, and it was far better than where I’d been placed when I first came. At the time, I hadn’t cared for anything. I’d been too busy trying to revive myself from the horrors I’d seen that night my entire world was ripped asunder. When the Bjorns found me, I had not spoken a word about my family. As young as I was, I understood what mother had instilled in me for as long as I could recall.

Hide what you are . . .

Both of my parents were bluebloods, but their blue blood did not run in my veins. I recognized how they tempted danger by keeping me, hiding the truth, and forcing me to hide Piper. It was the reason we lived in the countryside. I had lived without worry for the first ten annum rotations of my life—before Hollows attacked our home and slaughtered my parents and younger brother Arik.

A knock jolted me out of my thoughts, and tension lined my limbs.

She could not have returned already.

I furrowed my eyebrows, opened my mouth, then closed it. Whoever it was could come back some other time, after I’d hidden my Sigil.

There was another thunderous knock.

“Miriam?” I whispered.

No answer other than a repeat of the knock and a muffled bellow from the other side. Had Hollows gotten inside? Not again. Not again. I cinched my eyes shut. Hinges squealed and the door flew open with a snap of wood. It was enough to yank me out of the fearful haze. I shot upright, shoving my feet into my slippers.

Lord Clair barreled inside, his boots stomping against the wood. The Earl of Northern Sycarious himself, here to collect me. He shoved past one of the officers from the Guard and charged at me.

Everything happened too quickly.

‘We have to run!’ Piper shouted in my head, and her claws dug into my arms as she climbed up onto my shoulder. There was no running—we were trapped.

Lord Clair grabbed my arm, yanking me upright. Blankets pooled at my feet with his harsh movement, causing Piper to lose her balance and thud onto the floor. I lashed an arm out to grab her, but Lord Clair’s grip tightened until I yelped. One of the young officers plucked Piper up.

I screamed as she squealed.

“Leave her alone,” I choked, writhing against the rough hands hauling me.

Shoving back my elbow, I smacked into flesh that gave, and the grip loosened. I lunged forward, focused on the retreating officer with a limp Piper dangling in his grip. My legs were swept out from under me, and I slammed onto the floor. Sharp pain spiked across my jaw. The other officer overpowered me, twisting my arm behind my back and wrenching free a scream.

“Cease struggling,” he grunted and yanked me upright. He was a senior officer assigned to this village. With a skillful move, he dragged me, keeping my arm twisted and high on my back.

“Release me,” I ordered, lifting my chin to meet Lord Clair’s greed-filled eyes. “I order you to release me. You have no right to be in my chamber,” I spat. “When he returns from the West, Lord Bjorn will not let this stand⁠—”

He laughed, the sound sharp and biting. “Child. You’ve never been more than an orphan.”

Rough hands yanked a burlap sack over my head. My vision went dark except for pinpricks of light spearing through minuscule holes. Its earthy scent filled my nose. Suddenly, I was hoisted up and my stomach pressed into a hard shoulder while I dangled. Blood immediately rushed toward my head, enhancing the pressure pulsing at my temples, and my scream choked off into a cough.