The princess sobbed and fell forward, pressing her forehead into the crook of Scarlet’s neck. “He was trying to protect me.”
Scarlet didn’t know if she meant the wolf or the guard. “You’re all right,” she said, more confirmation for herself. She glanced around. The menagerie disappeared in blackness, but she could hear the gurgle of a waterfall, the prowling of small paws, the leaves of a tree shaking as some creature scurried through it. She caught sight of the bundle of white fur behind Winter and her heart twinged, but she quickly smothered the feeling.
Like with her grandmother, there would be time to mourn later. Right now, she was getting them out of here.
Her brain clicked into overdrive.
Guards were always posted at the menagerie doors, and they would no doubt become suspicious when Princess Winter didn’t return. Unless Jacin had something up his sleeve for them, but either way, Scarlet wasn’t about to traipse out into the middle of the queen’s palace.
She looked past Ryu. On the far wall she could make out the vague outline of the door that led into the gamekeepers’ hallways, corridors used to feed the animals and maintain their cages. Jacin had suggested this route, and much as he got under her skin, she had no reason to question him.
“Come on.” She hauled Winter to her feet.
The princess peered down at her hands and started to shake. “The blood…”
“Yes, yes, the walls are bleeding, I get it. Look. Over there. Focus.” Scarlet grabbed Winter’s elbow and spun her around. “See that door? That’s where we’re heading. Here, I’ll give you a boost.” She knitted her fingers together, but Winter didn’t move. “Winter. I am giving you five seconds to get your act together and decide to help me out, or else I am leaving you behind with your dead wolf and your bleeding walls. Got it?”
Winter’s lips were parted and her expression dazed, but after three seconds she nodded. Or, her head dipped and Scarlet thought her eyelashes may have fluttered a little, which she was going to count.
“Good. Now step into my hands and get over that rail.”
The princess did as she was told. The act was clumsy, which was at odds with every movement Scarlet had ever seen her make. As Winter collapsed into the wolf’s enclosure, the reality of the situation crashed down around Scarlet.
That guard had given them a chance to escape. They were making a run for it.
Adrenaline rushed through her veins. Scarlet checked the knife one more time, then grasped the rail and hauled herself over.
She landed with a grunt and sprang back up, running for the door. It swung open, and to her relief, no alarms sounded. She glanced back to see the princess stooped over Ryu’s body, but before Scarlet could yell for her, the princess lifted her chin, swiped her bloodied palms on her skirt, and followed.
Thirty
The feeding halls were pitch-black. Scarlet paused to listen for footsteps or voices, but there was nothing but the muffled chatter of birds they’d left behind. The smell reminded her of the farm, a heady combination of feed and hay and manure. She oriented herself. Going right would lead her farther into the menagerie, but left might land them back in the palace—hopefully in some sort of servants’ quarters. With one hand on the wall, she grabbed Winter’s wrist and took off. Her fingers skimmed over closed doors and she used what she knew of the menagerie to count them. This must be the stag. This could be the snow leopard. Is this is the arctic fox?
They turned a corner and a blinking light caught her eye—hazy and distant. She headed toward it and found a control panel embedded in the wall, where one could control the menagerie’s lights and temperature and automatic feeders.
Beside the panel, barely seen in its faint light, was a door.
She pressed the unlock mechanism, hoping beyond hope that this door didn’t lead to the lion. Nothing happened.
Cursing, Scarlet pressed the unlock mechanism again. Nothing.
Then the control panel pinged, startling her, and a message scrolled across the top.
BE CAREFUL, SCARLET.
Her jaw fell. “What—?”
Before she could question it, she heard the door unlock. Trembling, she reached for the handle. The door slid open.
She flinched at the onslaught of light and pulled Winter against the wall, but a glance told her this well-lit hallway was equally desolate. Narrow and plain. If Scarlet had to guess what a servants’ hall looked like, this would be it.
She listened and heard nothing.
She looked up and her heart jumped.
A camera was rotating on the ceiling, scanning the hallway, back and forth. But no sooner had Scarlet spotted it than it froze. Its power light dimmed and went out. Startled, Scarlet leaned farther into the hallway and saw a second camera some fifty paces away just as it, too, shut off.
What had Jacin said? Something about handling the security?
But … how?
Fumbling for Winter’s elbow, Scarlet dragged her into the hallway. “Do you know where we are?”