There was another knock on the door.
“Dea help us,” Alessa said. “It’s the day before the apocalypse, and we’re throwing a party.”
Adrick stood outside, looking sheepish.
“What are you doing here?” Alessa demanded. “You’re supposed to be inside the Fortezza.”
“I knew you’d fuss, so I hid until the gates were locked. Too late now! I’m going to fight with the militia and help tend the wounded. Warrior medic, at your service.”
Alessa sagged against the doorframe. “Now you decide to be heroic? I swear, you’ll be the death of me.”
Adrick smiled hesitantly. “At least this time it’s not intentional?”
She sighed. “Come in, then. We have enough food to serve the whole army, but nothing’s hot, and the beverage selection is lacking, unless you’re a fan of room temperature limoncello.”
Adrick rubbed his hands together. “My favorite.”
“I believe some of you have met my brother.” Adrick’s assistance with their heist hadn’t been enough to outweigh his past offenses, but it appeared they’d tolerate him.
Dante strolled out, half dressed, as she finished the tense introductions. Adrick startled, visibly astonished at the sight of Dante glowing with health, in stark contrast to the broken wretch they’d smuggled out of the crypt the night before.
“Oh, hey. Gang’s all here,” Dante said, bicep flexing as he dragged a hand through his damp hair.
Adrick made a soft noise of approval and elbowed Alessa, which she pointedly ignored.
“They came to check on you,” she said. “And my jackass brother decided to become a medic at the eleventh hour, so we’re stuck with him, too. I’m kicking them out after we eat, because everyone needs a good night’s sleep.”
“Yeah, yeah,” Kamaria said, waving her off. “Any last minute instructions? Pep talks? Battle cries?”
“Yes,” Josef said. “We need a team motto.”
Dante eyed the book of proverbs in Alessa’s hands. “In bocca al lupo. In the mouth of the wolf. It means ‘good luck.’”
“The wolf’s mouth?” Kamaria said. “I don’t get it.”
“Some say it means to face danger—the wolf—and hope for victory. Others think it refers to how a mother wolf carries her babies, safe from harm despite her sharp teeth. The correct response is, ‘Crepi il lupo’ or ‘Crepi.’ May the wolf die.”
Alessa flinched.
“It’s just an expression,” Dante said to her alone.
“I like it,” said Josef. “In bocca al lupo!”
“Crepi!” Kamaria shouted back, fist raised, but it sounded more like crappy, and everyone laughed, except for Dante, and it seemed to cost him immense effort not to.
“When this battle is over, I’m giving you all pronunciation lessons.”
“All right,” Alessa said. “Now that we have our rallying cry, dig in.”
“Eat, drink, and be merry.” Nina passed a basket of fresh bread to Josef.
Kamaria raised her baguette like a flute of prosecco. “For tomorrow, we may die.”
Forty-Eight
Tutti son bravi quando l’inimico fugge.
All are brave when the enemy flies.
DIVORANDO
Doom had a color. Not quite black, but a dark gray shot with blue that reeked of foreboding.
A distant shadow on the slate sea grew closer and larger, expanding to hide the horizon. Below Finestra’s Peak, the surface of the ocean was still, holding its breath.
The low, steady beat of the infantry’s drum line was meant to evoke an army of steady heartbeats thumping in time. No fear, no doubt, no individuals. A collective.
Alessa’s heart revolted, hammering so fast it seemed to lose its rhythm every few beats.
Windows were boarded and streets swept clean. Her army was a phalanx of gleaming armor, but the wall of metal could not entirely hide the people behind it. The grimy but determined faces of the slapdash militia peered through the gaps, searching for salvation.
Searching for her.
She could almost see herself through their eyes. A girl on a cliff, clad in only a thin shift, a breastplate, and a helmet, her arms and hands, legs and feet bare. Every limb had to be exposed and accessible for her Fontes, not Fonte, to easily grasp even if they fell.
They, too, wore minimal armor. Only a tunic of delicate chainmail and a helmet, pants cut off mid-calf.
The Captain of the Guard and his finest fighters manned points around the peak, ready to die if needed to keep Alessa and the Fontes alive to fight. Dante stood between the Fontes and their ranks, a bit closer to Alessa than the rest of the guards because he was still, somewhat, pretending to be Kaleb.