Starsinger

The Shadow

Aaron hoisted the bag Jace had given him higher on his shoulder as he made his way across the meadow. If anyone noticed one of Vivalta's workers out for a midnight stroll, they paid them no mind. The menagerie loomed ahead, ghostly pale as it reflected the moonlight, the only visible shape in the shadows.

He looped left around the back of the building, scanning the marble for the servants' entrance. The wood was so pale Aaron almost missed it, blending in with the white marble.

He closed the door gently behind him. The menagerie was dark except for a faint yellow light, so far away from Aaron's position that only sparse shafts reached him through the maze of bars and foliage. Shadows flickered and slithered with the creatures that lived in the cages. Soft coos and hisses saturated the air and with every careful step another pair of flat, glassy eyes caught the light, only to suddenly blink out again.

Every hair on Aaron's neck stood on end. He flexed his fists and kept moving.

He wound his way toward the center of the menagerie, the light growing slowly brighter. Raelyn had described the position of Sapphire's cage precisely. The sooner he found it, the sooner he could free her, escape this jungle nightmare and make for the gate.

Aaron stopped suddenly. The cage was there, exactly as Raelyn had described it – but Sapphire wasn't. He crept closer, wishing for all the world he still had his night scope. A chamber pot and a pitcher of water, but no—

Something touched his shoulder. Aaron spun, slamming his elbow back to collide with his attacker's gut. She ducked under it, then launched up to grab his other hand before it caught her in the face, pinning him back against the bars of the empty cage.

Sapphire smiled crookedly at him. "Got to be careful of wild things," she murmured. "Especially wild things in cages."

He was pinned chest-to-chest with his arm wrenched over his head and this was exactly the time to fire off a witty quip, but all Aaron could think of was the enormously goofy grin spreading over his entire face.

"It's good to see you," he said.

Something flickered in Sapphire's eyes. For half a second she seemed to press closer, but then instantly released him, so quick he might've imagined it.

"You're free," he whispered. "I was going to pick the locks. Jace made a set of picks in the smithy, I've been practicing..." He trailed off as Sapphire brandished a heavy iron key ring. "Well. That's one way to do it."

He motioned for her to follow him back to the servants' door, but she caught his arm.

"Not yet." Sapphire turned towards the yellow light, which Aaron now saw streamed from the windows of Lord Malcolm's study.

This was not part of the plan. Aaron could practically hear Jace shouting in his head. They were supposed to get to the gate as soon as possible so they'd be ready to open it when the rest of their team got there, then wedge the winches shut behind them and rappel down the other side of the massive wall. Ezra was here now. Only a fool would take chances with a fatemonger lurking in the shadows—

"The Resonant Stone," said Sapphire. "We can get it. For her."

Raelyn won't leave without the moonstone. How many times had Delia told that to Jace, arguing on the princess' behalf? Raelyn couldn't fulfill the prophecy without it. The Shadow will crush her unless she can awaken.

In the end, there was no contest.

Sapphire moved like a shadow, flickering along the maze of cages as if she were barely there at all. Aaron stayed close. The light led them to the foot of a floating staircase set into the marble wall.