Page 113 of Highland Ruse

Kaid had told her to go his chamber.

Kaid had clearly forgotten who she was.

She was no damn guard to be ordered about. The soles of her shoes clacked hard against the flagstones, the sound echoing against the cold walls and then fading into the open night air as she stepped outside.

A flash of a blade reflected a glint of moonlight in a shadowed corner of the courtyard.

Sylvi—always finding a place to practice. It was exactly what Delilah had hoped for. Her body flared with energy. She wanted to let her anger explode out of her, unleashed on an opponent.

Soundless, she hurried over the uneven cobblestones to where only the subtle swish of a blade cutting through the air could be heard.

“What are you doing here?” Sylvi’s hard voice sounded from the shadows.

Delilah stepped into the darkness, and her eyes immediately adjusted to the absence of the moon’s wide-faced glow. Without a word, she picked up a discarded staff from where it lay on the ground. Sylvi never trained without several weapons at her disposal.

Delilah lifted the staff and whipped it behind her back before stopping it directly in front of her in a silent challenge. Her body braced for impact, her knees bent and her muscles tensed to strike.

Sylvi’s mouth curled into a smirk. “I haven’t had a good spar since I arrived at Killearnan.”

Instead of replying, Delilah pushed the force of her frustration and rage into the hearty swing of the staff, directly toward Sylvi’s legs. Sylvi leapt a scant second before the knobby wood head would have connected with her knees. She landed silent as a cat and swept the blade toward Delilah.

The attack was slow and easily avoided. Sylvi no doubt did this on purpose.

“Don’t go easy on me,” Delilah said through clenched teeth. “Not tonight.” She whipped her staff toward Sylvi’s head, but only succeeded in catching the end of one pale blonde braid.

Sylvi rolled on the ground and popped up in front of Delilah with a grin. “I take it someone made you angry.”

Delilah held her staff with both hands and shoved it so hard against Sylvi’s chest, the other woman grunted.

Sylvi held fast to the staff and pulled it from Delilah’s grasp. “It would appear as much,” Sylvi answered her own question and tossed her sword to the cobblestones with a metallic clatter. “Switch weapons with me and talk before you kill us both.”

Delilah snatched up the blade and adjusted her hold on the hilt. The wound leather there was still warm from Sylvi’s grip.

“Is this about the little girl?” she asked. “Claire?”

Delilah swung the blade, and a growl snarled from between her clenched teeth. Sylvi snapped the staff up in time to keep the blunted edge from connecting with her skull.

“How do you know about her?” Delilah demanded. Her body was alight with the burn of anger and vengeance. Each attack, each block, each flex of her muscles gave way to the comfort only spent energy could provide.

“I see more than you realize.” Sylvi thrust the staff toward her, but Delilah knocked it away. “And I know she’s been taken.”

Delilah thought back to the hallway where she first saw Claire. Sylvi must have been lurking in the shadows. How very like Sylvi to witness such an intimate moment and not reveal herself.

“Did you see what happened when I asked Kaid if we could leave now to save her?” A fresh wave of molten fury rushed through Delilah’s veins. She waited for Sylvi’s slight pull back on the weapon in preparation to attack before Delilah lunged into her.

Delilah braced Sylvi’s legs with her own then shoved hard at Sylvi’s torso. The blonde woman went down with whuff of air.

“He said no, didn’t he?” Sylvi stuck her arm up in silent request for friendly aid.

Delilah gripped the proffered forearm and hauled Sylvi to her feet in a smooth heft. “Did you see that too?” Delilah couldn’t keep the irritation from her voice.

“No.” Sylvi smirked. “But he’s a leader on the cusp of war, Delilah. Even if Claire were his own daughter and he had no one else left in the world, he would not sacrifice the lives of his people by departing prematurely.”

Delilah’s cheeks went hot with the certainty in Sylvi’s tone. “Even if there’s a child in danger?”

Sylvi stepped back and eyed Delilah. “Do you know which path she took? Which towns she’ll stop through?”

“No,” Delilah said. “But we know where they’ll end up.”