It smelled like a pyre. All burning wood and singed hair.
When he burst through the other side, into the eye of the spinning flames, Rune turned towards him. His chest tightened at the sight of her ashen face.
Gideon closed the space between them in a single stride and threw the jacket over her, tucking her into it. Her whole body trembled with shock.
“You came,” she whispered.
He pulled Rune against him, trying to shield her from the heat. What would have happened if he’d arrived five minutes later? If he hadn’t made it here at all?
Don’t think about that. Just get her out of here.
“Ready to run?”
She nodded.
Scooping her into his arms, Gideon plunged through the flames. He didn’t feel the searing heat on his skin. Only Rune’s forehead pressed against his throat, and the lock of her arms around his neck. Bursting out the other side, Gideon choked on the thick smoke, lost sight of the stairs, and half stumbled down them, nearly dropping Rune.
At the bottom of the steps, he regained his balance and steadied them both, then kept running out of the smoke, toward the edge of the courtyard. Rune’s arms tightened around him as she stared over his shoulder.
“It’s coming for us.”
He could feel the heat on his back. See the flickering black at the edge of his vision.
Get to the doors.
This fire was no natural fire. There was a witch in their midst. A powerful one. He hadn’t seen magic this formidable in years. He only hoped that whoever it was, she didn’t also decide to lock the doors and trap them inside the courtyard.
When the doors were ten paces away, Gideon pumped his legs. Willing them to go faster.
His shoulder hit the wood first and the door gave instantly, swinging open and depositing him and Rune onto the floor of the hall. As they fell, Gideon twisted his body so that his shoulder blade hit the marble first. He winced at the impact but managed to spare Rune, who sprawled on top of him.
The guests were gone. The hall was empty.
With her palms pressed to the floor on either side of his head, Rune sat astride Gideon. His jacket hung from her shoulders, mostly burned, and her red-gold hair was a wild mess, filling his vision.
A bewildered expression lit up her face.
“Why did you do that?”
He frowned at her, his hands moving to her hips. “What?”
“Why … why risk your life for me?”
Gideon sat up so they were eye to eye. “Did you think I’d let you be burned alive?”
“Maybe? I don’t know! What am I supposed to think?” She was still sitting on top of him, her dress hiked to her thighs. “I didn’t hear from you for three days. You didn’t even send flowers!”
Flowers?
What is she talking about?
Gideon stared up at her ash-streaked face. “Do you … want flowers?”
“What?” Rune fell off him, trying to untangle herself from his jacket. “No. Never mind.”
Clearly she was in shock.
Before he could make sense of it, the smell of burning wood filled the air. They both looked to find that unearthly fire eating through the doors. As if it were ravenous, and only Rune would satiate.
As guards and palace staff arrived with buckets of water to put out the flames, Gideon scrambled to his feet. He pulled the remnants of his coat—which was all but singed to ash—off of Rune. Knowing water wouldn’t put out this fire, Gideon grabbed her hand and tugged her away from the door.
They kept running.
Remembering the days he’d lived in this palace, Gideon led her through the servants’ quarters and the kitchens. The cooking staff froze, gaping at the Blood Guard captain and the disheveled aristocrat rushing through their workspace.
He took Rune out through the back door used for deliveries. Not long after it swung shut behind them, and they were safe—at least for the moment—Rune pulled her hand from Gideon’s and fell against the stone wall, her breath coming in quick gasps. She bent over, pressing her hands to her knees.
Gideon kept his eye on the kitchen door, half expecting it to catch fire, too.
It was quiet out here, and they were alone. The full moon rose overhead, moving in and out of the clouds.
“What the hell was that?”
“A spell,” said Rune.
“I know it was a spell. Why was it targeting you?”
“I don’t know. I don’t know.” Rune slid down the wall to sit in the alley dirt. Black soot from the smoke smudged her face. “But if you had seen the look in Seraphine’s eyes … she wanted me dead, Gideon.”