The Shadowhand Covenant by Brian Farrey

her arms up in frustration. “With most of our people locked up in Umbramore Tower, they’ve got easy access to the blood of the relatives for everyone in this camp. If bloodreavers get a whiff of that, they’ll find us in no time.”
    Kolo stiffened, his back going rigid as it often did when the pain in his arms became unbearable. “I need to think. We’ll discuss this in the morning. Leave me.”
    Warras clicked his beak in protest. “Kolo, we don’t have time—”
    â€œLeave me.” Kolo’s voice was gentle but insistent. Warras and Surral bowed and exited the tent. I scrambled to extract my head and duck into the shadows as Warras and Surral stormed by.
    â€œWe can’t wait for Kolo to make up his mind,” Warras muttered, the red feathers on his head twitching with anger. “The Dowager must be persuaded to act more quickly. Meet me at my tent in two hours, once Kolo is asleep. We’ll sendour own message to Her Royal Highness.”
    â€œWhat sort of message?” Surral asked.
    Warras pulled open his vest, revealing a large, gleaming knife inside. “The Grimjinx boy’s little finger should do.”

10
Escape
    â€œAny heist you can run away from is a good one.”
    â€”Shadra Grimjinx, master forger of Urik Province
    S omething not a lot of people know about me: I like my little fingers. And what I like best about them is where they are: on my hands .
    I thought about going straight to Kolo and telling him what Warras was planning. But as much as I admired Kolo, I didn’t know him very well. For all I knew, he might agree with Warras. There was only one sure way out of this that allowed me to keep my digits: run.
    I darted across the camp, stopping only to nod at theguard who stood outside the tent I shared with Maloch. Once inside, I lit a lantern and started throwing everything I could into my pack.
    Lying on his cot and half-asleep, Maloch moaned. “What are you doing?”
    â€œWe’re leaving,” I said, soft enough so the guard wouldn’t hear. “Now.”
    He sat up, suddenly interested. “What about the link? You said we could find out what happened to my da if we . . .” He must have noticed the blind panic on my face, because he went from looking very tired to looking very concerned. I stopped as he clamped his meaty hand down on my shoulder.
    â€œJaxter,” he said gruffly, “they’ve decided to kill us. Haven’t they? You can tell me.”
    â€œYes,” I lied. “They’ll be here in two hours. Everyone’s in bed by now. If we’re careful, we can slip past the sentries and—”
    Maloch knelt and pulled a rumpled blanket from under his cot. Spreading it out, he revealed a collection of breads, cheeses, knives, forks, and other assorted items.
    â€œI’ve been hoarding supplies,” he said, gathering everything up and stuffing it in his pack. “I, uh, only got enoughfor myself. I always thought if I escaped, I’d leave you behind. But if we ration it, we should have enough to make it to the nearest town.”
    â€œYou’re all heart, Maloch,” I said, extinguishing the lantern. “Let’s go.”
    With a dull knife, Maloch slit a hole in the back wall large enough for us to escape. With our meager supplies, we dodged behind and around tents, inching toward the edge of the camp. All the while, I kept an eye out for Reena and Holm. These past few days, we could hardly go anywhere without those two watching us from afar. With each step, I half expected them to be waiting, blowguns in hand.
    The moons, brilliant and full, shone down through the leafless trees. A thick blanket of new, fluffy snow glittered in the moonlight, giving the forest a dull white hue.
    I whispered, “Right, the sentry checks on us every thirty minutes. We’ve got that much of a head start.”
    Maloch’s eyes probed the black