I clutched hold of his sleeve. “You have to get out of here. They’re assembling—the governor’s men. They know you’re here and plan to attack.”
“Impossible,” said the first man, the one with the deep voice. As he came forward, I could make out long robes around him. They were almost like those an orthodox priest might wear, but these were dark on one side and light on the other. “No one knows we’re here—this is private land, granted to me while the owner is away. And how could some girl possibly know what the governor’s doing?”
Cedric stared down at me for long moments. “She would know,” he said grimly. “We need to go.”
“But the ceremony isn’t over,” one woman protested.
“It doesn’t matter,” said Cedric. “It’s more important for us to—”
“Look!” someone cried.
There, on the far side of the valley, on the opposite slope, I could see men on horses charging down. A few carried torches. I couldn’t be certain from this far away, but it looked as though all were armed.
“Scatter!” Cedric cried. “Different directions. Stick to the woods, where the horses can’t follow.”
Everyone instantly obeyed, and I wondered if they continually drilled for this sort of threat. Cedric grabbed my arm, and we ran toward the side of the valley I’d come from. For a while, all I could hear was the pounding of our feet and ragged breathing. Then, behind us, I heard shouts and, once, the sound of a pistol.
Cedric slowed to a stop and looked back. “What are you doing?” I demanded. “We have to get out of here!”
Another pistol shot sounded, and so help me, he started to move back toward the grove. I hurried forward, pushing myself in front of him.
“Cedric, don’t!”
“They need me,” he said. “I’m not going to run. I have to help them!”
“Help them by staying alive! Unless you’ve got more weapons than I can see, you’ll only get yourself killed. And me.”
That last part seemed to stir him. After another moment’s hesitation, he turned and continued on our previous trajectory.
After what felt like an eternity, we finally reached the tree line and burst into the woods, barely slowing our pace. Branches whipped at me, further tearing the dress, and we both tripped on more than one occasion. I had no idea where we were when Cedric finally brought us to a halt. We stood there, both of us panting, as he looked around, scrutinizing every tree.
“We lost them,” he said. “They didn’t come in this direction. They either got delayed going after someone else or headed for more accessible areas.”
“Are you sure?”
He studied the area once more, but all we heard were the ordinary sounds of a forest at night. “Positive. No horse could come through this, and we had too much of a head start on foot—because we let the others be caught instead.” He made no attempt to hide the frustration within him.
I sagged in relief, unwilling to admit how terrified I’d been of being found with a group of heretics by the governor’s men.
“How did you know where we were?” Cedric asked.
“Mira told me. She told me how to sneak out too. She’s very resourceful.”
He snorted. “She’s not the only one, apparently. Do you realize what kind of danger you put yourself in? Sneaking out of the house? Going through the woods alone?”
“No more dangerous than religious dissidents who insist on holding services out in the open when their faith is punishable by death,” I retorted. “Why do you keep doing that? Why don’t you find some sacred, windowless basement to worship in? It’s like you’re trying to get caught.”
Cedric sank to his knees. There was less light out here, but I could see him put a hand to his face. “The Star Advent has to be outside. I should’ve suggested another place. This one’s privately owned, like Douglas said, but they’ve used it before—and that’s dangerous. I should’ve been more prepared—helped them more.”
I put a hand on his shoulder, moved by the anguish in his voice. “You helped them. They may have all gotten away. You gave them some warning before the riders came.”
He stood back up. “Adelaide, why did you come out here?”
“Why do you think?” I asked. “Warren was bragging about how he was going to go round up some Alanzans tonight, and I knew my favorite heretic would be out with them.”
“Adelaide . . .”
Although I wasn’t able to truly meet his eyes in the darkness, I felt compelled to glance away from the intensity I could feel. There was no way I could tell him the truth, that Warren’s words had filled me with dread, that my chest had tightened with the thought of something happening to Cedric—imprisonment, or worse. The bureaucracy of the Glittering Court, Viola’s machinations . . . none of it had mattered if something happened to Cedric.
“And I didn’t want to see your father steal your commission if you got yourself killed in some weird star-worshipping ceremony.”
His amusement returned. “You don’t know what Star Advent is?”
“How would I? I’m a devout worshipper of Uros.”