The Curse of the Blessed

Chapter Thirty-Nine

Not much happened at lunch. Few things were said, as no one had much to talk about—or, at least, no one had much to talk about that wouldn't risk giving our plans away. Cass didn't seem to mind our lack of liveliness. After all, it made sense for people to be tired and hungry after they'd been traveling through the forest for a while. It made sense for us to go up to our rooms, as travelers would likely crave the luxury of a bed, and a mattress, and a clean, warm blanket.

Also, we needed to be well-rested for the events of the night.

My dreamlessness—and, therefore, my nightmarelessness—did not extend to the nap I took. The Magician was always there. He pushed me off cliffs and left me in darkness, his laughter fading into the silence of the grave. He cursed me, or cursed Bran or Lark, or un-cursed Reed and left him hanging by a hand on the edge of a bridge, just far enough that I wasn't able to reach him before his grip slipped and he fell.

I tossed and turned, waking up and falling asleep again and again and again in a restless rhythm.

When Lark shook me awake, I nearly thanked her for freeing me from the ever-terrible dreams.

We met in Cass and Ista's room, sitting on the beds and waiting until all of the team had assembled.

"Are we ready?" Cass whispered. She smiled when everyone nodded. "Good. Here's the plan. Lark will play music to make the guards fall asleep, and we'll tie them up. Like I said when we were planning earlier, Ista will tell Dren to transport us out if anything goes wrong. Right, Ista?"

Ista nodded. "Right."

"Once we're inside, we'll head to the lower levels of the tower. We'll rescue the Blessed we know will be there. If any other Blesseds are being held, and we find them, we'll rescue them, too." She grinned, suddenly wild and excited. "If there are any questions, ask them now."

Bran raised his hand. "If things go wrong, Dren will transport us out, correct?"

"Correct," said Cass. "However, if he's unable to do that for some reason, there's a plan set in place that'll still get us out safely. Hopefully, we won't need to use it. Anyone else?"

Silence.

"Great. Then let's go." She crossed to the wall and opened the window. "I chose this room because of its closeness to the stable roof. Land as softly as you can, but if you make a bit of noise, don't worry. Only horses are there to hear you."

She hopped out onto the roof, and we followed her along the wooden beams until we reached the edge and dropped down one by one into a convenient haystack.

The moon shone high above our heads, glinting off the metal tower that stood before us. We slipped through the shadows. Lark ducked around the corner with her a violin case, and a moment later, the sweet, gentle notes of music flowed through the streets. A song of peace. A song of long travels, and soft pillows, and the slow down-slipping of tired eyelids.

I watched from behind a barrel as, one by one, the guards in front of the tower fell asleep and toppled to the ground like discarded dolls.

Cass darted across the street in an instant, her whispered, "Come on," hanging behind her before it was blown away by a breeze of the cold night air.

I ran forward, into the moonlight and out of it in an instant, until I stood beside Cass.

She barely spared me a glance, her attention concentrated on picking the lock before her. "Remember the plan? Tie up the guards."

"Right," I said.

The moment had caught me up and swept me with it, and I'd forgotten what I was supposed to be doing. Nerves twanged in my belly. Like all the other Blesseds, I had good, strong rope in my pockets, and I used it to tie a guard's wrists and ankles together with a few swift knots, moving onto the next guard as soon as I was finished.