The Assassin and the Underworld by Sarah J. Maas Page A

sure the guards would appreciate that. Maybe they’d invite me in for an ale, too. That is, after they finished pumping my gut full of arrows.” He patted the firm plane of his stomach. He was wearing the suit Arobynn had forced him to buy, and she tried not to look too closely at how well it displayed his form.
    â€œSo we can’t get in this door,” she murmured, sliding her hand along it again. “Unless we figure out when the servants dump the trash.”
    â€œUnreliable,” he countered, still studying the door. “The servants might empty the trash whenever they feel like it.”
    She swore and glanced about the sewer. What a horrible place to have almost died. She certainly hoped that she’d run into Philip tomorrow. That arrogant ass wouldn’t see what was coming until she was right in front of him. He hadn’t even recognized her from the party the other night.
    She smiled slowly. What better way to get back at Philip than to break in through the very door he’d revealed to her? “Then one of us will just have to sit out here for a few hours,” she whispered, still staring at the door. “With the landing outside the door, the servants need to take a few steps to reach the water.” Celaena’s smile grew. “And I’m sure that if they’re lugging a bunch of trash, they probably won’t think to look behind them.”
    Sam’s teeth flashed in the torchlight as he smiled. “And they’ll be preoccupied long enough for someone to slip in and find a good hiding spot in the cellar to wait out the rest of the time until seven thirty.”
    â€œWhat a surprise they’ll have tomorrow, when they find their cellar door unlocked.”
    â€œI think that’ll be the least of their surprises tomorrow.”
    She picked up her torch. “It certainly will be.” He followed her back down the sewer walkway. They’d found a grate in a shadowy alley, far enough away from the house that no one would suspect them. Unfortunately, it meant a long walk back through the sewers.
    â€œI heard you paid off Arobynn this morning,” he said, his eyes on the dark stones beneath their feet. He still kept his voice soft. “How does it feel to be free?”
    She glanced at him sidelong. “Not the way I thought it would.”
    â€œI’m surprised he took the money without a fight.”
    She didn’t say anything. In the dim light, Sam took a ragged breath.
    â€œI think I might leave,” he whispered.
    She almost tripped. “Leave?”
    He wouldn’t look at her. “I’m going down to Eyllwe—to Banjali, to be precise.”
    â€œFor a mission?” It was common for Arobynn to send them all over the continent, but the way Sam was speaking felt … different.
    â€œForever,” he said.
    â€œWhy?” Her voice sounded a little shrill in her ears.
    He faced her. “What do I have to tie me here? Arobynn already mentioned that it might be useful to firmly establish ourselves in the south, too.”
    â€œArobynn—” she seethed, fighting to keep her voice to a whisper. “You talked to Arobynn about this?”
    Sam gave her a half shrug. “Casually. It’s not official.”
    â€œBut—but Banjali is a thousand miles away.”
    â€œYes, but Rifthold belongs to you and Arobynn. I’ll always be … an alternative.”
    â€œI’d rather be an alternative in Rifthold than ruler of the assassins in Banjali.” She hated that she had to keep her voice so soft. She was going to splatter someone against a wall. She was going to rip down the sewer with her bare hands.
    â€œI’m leaving at the end of the month,” he said, still calm.
    â€œThat’s two weeks away!”
    â€œDo I have any reason why I should stay here?”
    â€œYes!” she exclaimed as loudly as she could while still maintaining a hushed tone. “Yes,