It took Cael far less time to open the prison door than it had taken him to deal with my cuffs. “Sloppy,” he sneered as the bolt thudded open. “Who the fuck wastes a fancy-ass spell on a cheap-ass lock?” He sniffed derisively as he took the lantern off its hook and pushed the door open.

  I slowly climbed to my feet. I was starting to feel a bit better, but Cael glared at me when I tried to return his coat. Apparently, I still looked like hot garbage. I put his coat back on, properly this time, and followed him into the darkness.

  The air inside was cold and dank, smelling of fear and mildew. Any cargo that had been in here when the quay collapsed had been left to rot. The skeletal crates had been smashed open by debris and buried under the rubble.

  As soon as we approached, Emily flung her manacled hands over my head and drew me into a crushing hug. A tiny squeak escaped me; I had earned myself a few more bruises in my spectacular fall, and being squished was not helping.

  Cael snickered at my plight. The bastard.

  I looked over at the other prisoners, who had gathered around us. “Is anyone injured?” I asked.

  “Only cuts. Nothing broken,” an older man with greying hair answered. His English was good, but his accent was odd. A foreign merchant maybe? His clothes were dirty, but sturdy and well made.

  … Or his not-English. I replayed the conversation in my mind, focusing on exactly what words he had used.

  Had… had I been speaking a foreign language all this time and just not realized it?

  …

  Damn, I was a terrible detective.

  I mentally shoved aside the troubling mystery of my sudden polyglotism for the moment.

  Cael had already gotten the old man free and was working on the next person’s manacles. There were six prisoners in total: the old man, two guys in their twenties with whom he shared a family resemblance, a younger guy about the same age as Cael who kept alternating between terrified and furious, a calm, middle-aged woman, and Emily.

  “Is this everyone?” I asked, looking around.

  Young angry guy shrugged. “Think so,” he mumbled. “Didn’t see ‘em bring in anyone else.”

  He must have been here the longest, then. “When did they grab you?”

  Another shrug. “Three days ago, I think. Brought in everyone pretty sharp quick. Don’t think they keep people for long.” He said with a shiver.

  Cael snorted and dropped the last set of shackles on the ground. “Then let’s get the hells outta this damned pit.” He announced. He scooped up the lantern and made a beeline for the door, the rescued prisoners right behind him.

  As I turned to follow them, a faint clinking noise caught my attention, nearly lost beneath the howl of the wind. I paused, listening. Just as I was about to dismiss it as my imagination, I heard the sound again. The sound of something metallic clicking against rock, like a nail falling onto stone.

  Or a chain.

  My blood ran cold. We had missed someone.

  I listened for the sound once again, trying to pinpoint its location.

  The quay’s collapse had brought down part of the storeroom’s ceiling and partially cut off the far corner of the room. The sound seemed to be coming from beyond it. As I stepped around the blockage, I spotted a figure curled up in a tight ball, half hidden in the shadows. I stepped closer, and the person scrambled backwards, trying to make themselves even smaller.

  Shit. I wished Els were here. She was amazing at dealing with scared, hurt people in a way I envied. I’d always left interrogating victims to her.

  I crouched down, trying not to make any sudden moves and smiled gently. Harmless. “It’s all right,” I said softly. “I’m not going to hurt you, I promise. I just want to help. I’m going to come closer, is that okay?”

  No reaction.

  A bad sign. I bit my lip; I didn't want to traumatize them further, I couldn’t just leave them.

  Watching for any reaction, I slowly shuffled closer. They never moved, but I could see the tension in their skeletally thin frame.

  I stopped, just out of arm’s reach. “See?” I said gently. “I’m not a threat.”

  A pair or terrified eyes watched me, peeking over their tightly curled up knees. They appeared to be male, and taller than me. The tips of his pointed ears poked through his dirty hair. An elf. His clothes were badly torn, nothing but tattered rags. Heavy shackles circled both his wrists and bare ankles.

  “I’m going to touch you now. Is that okay?” I asked.

  He still didn’t move, but he seemed to relax slightly. I took it as an encouraging sign, and slowly reached out to him.

  His hand shot out and grabbed my arm, hard enough to leave me with another bruise. He pulled me a little closer, like he was afraid I was going to run.

  I fought not to react, keeping my smile friendly and calm. “It’s all right,” I soothed. “I’m not going anywhere.”

  “Princess!” Cael called, sounding a little annoyed. The elf flinched, his grip tightening just a little. “What are you waiting for?” Cael demanded. “Let’s go!”

  “Not yet!” I shouted back, giving the elf a reassuring smile. “I need your help. I found someone else.”

  “… Hells.” Cael swore.

  ---------------------------------------------------

  In the light of the lantern, the elf looked to be in even worse shape than I’d initially thought.

  Swollen bruises and cuts from multiple beatings covered his face and body. Fresh bruises were layered over older yellowed ones, speaking to long-term abuse. His pale pink hair looked like it had been hacked at with a knife and was stringy with dirt and blood. Both his ears were cut and torn, and the left one was missing a chunk of helix, the wound an ugly red that screamed ‘infection.’ I could only imagine the hell the poor guy had endured.

  He watched warily as Cael kneeled beside me and began to pick the locks on the shackles around his ankles, muttering and swearing under his breath. I had managed to persuade him to release my arm, but I stayed close.

  As the first shackle fell open, Cael swore loudly. The metal had cut deeply into the elf’s skin, and the flesh beneath was a raw and bloody mess.I untied my cravat and began to tear it into makeshift bandages.

  “I didn’t know he was here,” the young guy said in dull horror, holding up the lantern so we could work. “I swear.”

  “I’m not sure you could have,” I replied as I began to wrap the torn strips of silk around the elf’s ankle, careful not to aggravate the wound even more. “I think he’s been here a lot longer than three days.”

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  The elf nodded slightly.

  I smiled at him. “Then it’s well past time we get you out of here.”

  We worked quickly. I tied off the last bandage and stood, offering my hand to help the elf up. He stared at it for a moment, then reached out and took it. His hand was cold and clammy as his long fingers wrapped around mine.

  The elf was tall, I realized once I had dragged him upright. I didn’t even come up to his shoulder. Even so, he leaned heavily on me for support. The careful way he moved as he walked worried me. As we stepped out of the storeroom, he sunk to his knees, silent tears streaming down his face. I took off Cael’s coat and draped it over his too thin shoulders.

  “We’ve got a problem, Princess.” Cael took my arm and drew me off to the side, glancing grimly towards the bridge.

  “What’s wrong now?” I asked wearily. Hadn’t enough shit hit the fan today already?

  “Hate to break it to you, but I think we’re fucked.” He swallowed “I took a ‘look.’ They found those two assholes. Got five, maybe ten minutes before they stop fucking around and come here to kill us.”

  Apparently not.

  “Good news is, I think I found us a way out.”

  “What’s the bad news?” I asked. There was no way there wasn’t any.

  Cael sighed, pointing up along the collapsed quay. “We climb partway up that mess, then dig out a buried staircase. It’s doable, I think, but it’ll take time.”

  “Which we don’t have,” I confirmed.

  He nodded.

  “Are there any other options?” I asked, hoping desperately he would say yes.

  He shrugged. “We could swim for it, I guess.” He peered uncertainly at the dark, frozen water. “You and I might make it… Maybe… Not so sure about anyone else…”

  No. Absolutely not.

  “What we need is a distraction,” I said, thinking fast. “Something they care about more than killing us.”

  Cael glared at me, eyes narrowed. “You’re getting an idea, Princess. No. Stop it.”

  “I have a plan.”

  ----------------------------------------------

  It was unanimous; no one liked my plan.

  Unfortunately, no one had any better ideas either.

  I slowly crept up a set of stairs and along the hallway Cael had grudgingly told me to take, trying my damnedest to be as quiet as possible. Bright light and furious yelling spilled from an open doorway ahead, and I had nowhere to hide.

  “Shut the hells up or I’ll hang you all myself!” A woman’s voice roared.

  I peeked carefully through the door. It looked like it had been a small, orderly warehouse until recently. Now, open boxes littered the floor with their contents spilling out, and crates were smashed open. Cleaning out stashes of drugs, most likely. If you’re already trafficking people, drug smuggling would be a lucrative side hustle.

  A few desks stood off to one side, the contents emptied on top in a careless heap, and the empty drawers tossed to the side. The biggest one looked like it was still being emptied, but had been abandoned for something more pressing. Likely to deal with the pair of morons glaring at each other like sullen teenagers in the middle of the floor.

  A small circle of pissed off slavers surrounded the now awake Whiny and Gruff. They looked like hell, covered in dirt and even more bruises. The ones I had left on the side of Whiny’s face were even more spectacular than the ones I had left around her nose.

  A middle-aged woman paced in front of them, screaming. “I don’t give a godsbedamned fuck whose fault what was!” She ranted. “I want the pervert’s brat and the nob’s little fucking bitch found!” The boss spun, the light reflecting off the blonde highlights in her heavy braid.

  Not blonde. Pink.

  A flash of rage and disgust burned through me. The bitch had hacked off the elf’s hair and braided into her own.

  “Are you waiting for an invitation?! Do it NOW!” She snarled at the cowering slavers.

  If she insisted.

  I activated two of Wren’s little flash-bangs and stepped out from behind my wall.

  The slavers’ collective jaws fell open, and they began yelling and pointing at me in surprise. I waved. They probably never expected their prey to walk right up to them and smile. The boss spun, her face a rictus of fury as she spotted me standing in the doorway, smirking at her. I threw the two bombs directly at her and ran.

  The two pouches detonated on impact, filling the warehouse with smoke and screams. I hoped I had taken out a few of them, but there were still plenty of slavers who were likely only momentarily stunned.

  I vaulted over the large desk, scattering papers as I went. Cael had told me there was a door just past here, and I prayed he was right. I grabbed a rack of shelving and swung around it, grinning as I spotted it exactly where he had told me it was. It would be locked, he’d said, but I had no intention of letting that little detail slow me down.

  I gathered my magic, fed it every ounce of fear and anger I had, and sent a massive blast of wind at the obstruction.

  The door tore off its hinges and smashed into the wall on the opposite side of the alley outside.

  I ran into the night, the slavers howling for my blood as they gave chase. The small alley spat me out along the empty docks, my boots skidding on the icy boards. I slowed briefly and tossed the final pouch behind me into the alley.

  A sharp scream suggested I had managed a direct hit.

  The heavy winds coated me with spray as I ran along the quiet docks, soaking me to the skin. I shivered, the cold draining what little energy I had left. I had badly undersold just how exhausted I was when I had broached this plan. Breaking that lock had taken way more out of me than I had let on. Combined with the traces of whatever drugs they had given me still in my system, I was running on fumes.

  I skidded around a stack of crates and ran through a narrow space between it and the next stack, hoping to buy myself some time. I burst out the other side, only to stumble to a stop, gasping and shivering with cold and exhaustion.

  An empty pier. Nowhere to hide, nowhere to run.

  A cruel laugh echoed behind me. I looked over my shoulder to see the slaver boss strutting around the far side of the stack. Her slavers filed in behind her and spread out, cutting off my escape. I was thrilled to see her hair was a singed mess. One of Wren’s pouches must have hit her dead on.

  “Time’s up, squirt,” she called out coldly. “You’ve had your fun. Give up quiet-like, or you won’t like what happens next.”

  She tossed something towards me. It clattered and skidded along the pier before coming to rest against my feet.

  The magic suppression cuffs.

  “Put those on,” she ordered.

  My fingers trembled as I slowly picked them up. I needed to buy Cael and the others as much time as I could, and if that meant playing along for now, so be it. I did my best to look terrified. Judging by her smirk, I was doing a fantastic job of it.

  “Good boy,” she cooed.

  “I-if I surrender, what will you do to me?” I asked fearfully, not trying to hide my trembling.

  “You’ll find out the hard way if you don’t put the cursed things on!” She snapped, her face twisting in rage as her false patience slipped.

  I flinched theatrically at her outburst and let the cuffs fall from my numb fingers. As I took a small, fearful step backwards, the cuffs caught on my heel, and I ‘accidentally’ kicked them off the pier and into the river.

  “No!”

  She reached out, as if she could stop them from falling by will alone. “You stupid little slut!” She snarled, stepping forward and raising her hand to hit me.

  “I-I’m sorry!” I stammered, retreating from her towards the far end of the pier. She stormed after me, too enraged to notice that I was drawing her away from her henchthugs. I turned away from her slightly, using my body to hide the dagger as I drew it from beneath my vest.

  A shout of alarm broke the silence, and the other end of the pier exploded in a riot of yells and clashing metal.

  I watched in elation as the Watch poured onto the pier, quickly overwhelming the slavers. Among them, a tall redhead in a Knight’s uniform strode through the melee, wreaking havoc on anyone who dared stand in his way.

  As the boss stopped and stared, distracted by the melee, I lunged, slashing at her. My clumsy flailing caught her in the upper arm. I tried to dig it in deeper, but she twisted away and grabbed my wrist. She gave it a quick jerk, pulling me off balance as she twisted my arm up behind me. The knife fell from my numb fingers, clattering against the pier as she dragged me in front of her, using me as a human shield.

  “That’s far enough!” She snarled at the advancing Watchmen. She drew her own dagger and held it to my throat as I clawed weakly at her arm. “Move back and don’t try anything. Me and the kid are just going to walk out of here nice and easy like, and you lot’re gonna let us.” She ordered.

  “I don’t think so, witch.” Autumn’s cold voice rang out. Blood stained the front of his white greatcoat and dripped down his sword, staining the pier a deep red. His eyes burned with rage. “Your lackeys are dead, your hideout is ours, and the only thing keeping you alive is what's left of my patience.” He announced flatly. “You have nothing. Release him and surrender.”

  In response, she twisted my arm up until I whimpered in pain. Autumn’s lips thinned.

  “I don’t think so, sir knight,” she said with a harsh laugh. She forced my chin up with the tip of her knife, and I felt a trickle of hot blood run down my throat.

  Autumn growled.

  “See, I think this here’s the most valuable piece of all. Now, you’re gonna let me go,” she hissed coldly, “or I slit the pretty boy’s throat.”

  Autumn swallowed. He was going to give; I could see it in his eyes. He was a protector; he wasn't going to risk a hostage’s life.

  She grinned triumphantly as she saw his hesitation, her breath hot against my ear.

  I couldn’t let her get away.

  I let myself go limp, forcing her to catch my weight.

  She grunted in surprise. The dagger dropped away from my neck, and her grip loosened slightly.

  I slammed my head back into her face. Pain splintered through my skull, but she released her grip just a little as she stumbled back with a curse. Just enough for me to writhe out of her grasp.

  Or at least try to. with an outraged shriek, her hand tightened on my arm, and she dragged me backwards.

  I had to follow. i stumbled back a few unsteady steps.

  My foot met nothing but air, and I fell, straight into the dark, freezing water below.