Farona spun around, the bag slung over her chest shifting outwards with the movement before thudding back against the full fabric of her gown. “Sarah!” She put a hand on her chest. “You startled me!”
“Kevos is trying to kill me,” Sarah said, blinking back tears of terror. “I think he’s knocked out by now, but I hear an angry mob approaching, and I’m sure they’re after me.”
Farona’s mouth hung open. “Kevos… he did what? I don’t believe it!”
“Trust me, I was pretty shocked too when he stormed into my house covered in blood.”
Farona’s eyes narrowed. “Did he explain why he would commit such madness? What did he say to you?”
Sarah shook her head. “I have no idea what he was thinking. He just stormed in and grabbed me. I hit him with a dart. And a statue of Draku Rin.” Her breath faltered as she relived the terrifying moments. “Then I ran for it. I need to find Jotahan.”
Farona glanced from one side to the other, then turned back to Sarah. “I agree. If anyone can help you, it will be him. But if there’s a mob after you, then we can’t risk taking you through the heart of the skilev to the hunter’s lodge. There’s a small hut on the beach where Ha-tah and I used to go for privacy. I can take you there through the mines, then fetch Ha-tah and bring him to you. Then we can figure out how to fix all this and see Kevos punished for his crimes.”
Relief sagged Sarah’s shoulders. “Then you think Jotahan is still alive?”
Farona smiled Sphinxlike. “You don’t imagine Kevos could possibly take down Ha-tah? Of course he remains alive. He will be very worried about you. Come,” she waved her hand, “we must move quickly! The mob is close enough that they will soon cut off our path.”
Farona led Sarah through dark alcoves and alleys, making their way down the wing district until they entered the sternum district. They managed to avoid most of the yan-kanat and the few they passed seemed unaware of the growing anger of the mob, and its target, simply casting them curious looks as they headed to the mine entrance.
The main entrance to the mine was guarded to keep youths from entering and possibly getting hurt, but Farona knew about a side entrance and had a key. Soon they were inside the mine, inferno stones lighting the way for them, though the sight of the stone hanging above them made Sarah have flashbacks to the last time she went into a mine. She shuddered as she followed Farona deeper, towards the secret exit to the beach.
“Be careful here, Sarah,” Farona said, speaking in a normal volume now, since she’d reassured Sarah that no one came into this part of the mine at night. “There is a vertical shaft nearby. It’s covered, but the wood is old and brittle.”
“Trust me,” Sarah muttered, her eyes now adjusted to the inferno-lit mine so that she could spot the elevator apparatus of the shaft just up ahead. “I know how dangerous vertical shafts are.”
“Poor Ane-ata. She was so obsessed with Kevos,” Farona said, walking just ahead of Sarah.
“Yeah, news of his crime will probably somehow make her blame me even more.”
“Do you know, she came to me in a rage once she discovered that Kevos was my lover,” Farona said, her steps slowing.
Sarah was surprised by Farona’s words. “Ah, so he’s the mystery lover who has put that smile on your face lately. Oh, no,” she shook her head, “I’m so sorry, Farona. Maybe there’s some reasonable explanation for his behavior.”
She doubted it, but Farona had already suffered one crushing heartbreak with losing Jotahan. She didn’t deserve for Kevos to be the bastard he’d turned out to be.
“Ane-ata demanded I stop seeing him. She said he belonged to her. When I laughed at her ridiculous notion and explained that he had no interest in her, she threatened to expose some information that could have destroyed my businesses. What else could I do? I had no choice but to silence her.”
Sarah froze, her eyes widening on Farona’s back as shock filled her. The blue glow that lit up her skin in that moment brightened the shadows in the mine.
“But then I thought of a clever plan. After such a public confrontation with Ane-ata, Draku Rin’s newest resident—the nixir—undoubtedly had good reason to stab the poor, young fool in the back. And,” she turned to face Sarah, reaching into her bag, “that is the nixir way, isn’t it?”
Sarah took a step backwards, but froze again when she heard a familiar click as Farona brought up the gunslinger’s revolver to aim it at her chest. “Of course, thanks to all your useful notes, I have a far more efficient nixir way of dispatching a nuisance.”
She tightened her grip on the gun, shaking her head as Sarah shifted her weight forward. “Ah, ah. I assure you, I did a thorough study of your notes. Even the ones on the safe handling of this weapon. Especially the one that says, ‘don’t point the weapon at anything you don’t intend to shoot.’” She bared her teeth. “I think that’s excellent advice.”
Sarah slowly held up both hands. “Farona, you don’t have to do this! Ane-ata tried to blackmail you. I’m sure if you just explain things to the elders, they’ll go easy on you.”
Farona cocked her head. “Now, why would I do that? No one knows that I killed Ane-ata.” Her brows came together over her eyes. “Except for Kevos, perhaps. He must have found her body just after I left, and made his way to your place to get you clear of the mob I was raising to drag you out and execute you.”
She huffed in a chillingly amused sound. “He must have been very conflicted in those moments, feeling bound by honor to save an innocent female he despises from the one he loves.” She shrugged. “I will have to dispose of him after I take care of you, but you’ve made things easier for me by incapacitating him, and I can even blame his death on you as well.”
Sarah’s eyes were fixed on the barrel of the gun, the hole at the end of it seeming to expand until that darkness threatened to blot out everything else. “Why, Farona? I thought we were friends!”
Farona scoffed, bringing Sarah’s gaze up from the gun to see her expression twist into a snarl of anger and hatred. “Friends? Ha-tah is mine! He belongs to me. I claimed him from the moment I was old enough to speak. I don’t care what Seta Zul wills, he is mine!”
She raised the gun slightly higher, aiming closer to Sarah’s heart. “You were in the way. Nothing more. I knew that poisoning Seta Zul’s priest was only a temporary measure to delay the sealing ceremony until I could convince Ha-tah to have the seal removed, but I was finding it difficult to come up with a plan that would free him from his obsession with you. Killing you wasn’t enough. He would never recover from that. He had to see you for the monster you are, and hate you for it. Ane-ata’s death gave me the perfect opportun—”
Her words were cut off by Sarah crashing into her, one hand shoving the gun to the side. “Thanks for the monologue, bitch,” Sarah spat into Farona’s face. “Talking about your own brilliant plan always distracts a villain. Humans understand this very well.”
Farona was taken by surprise, but she was also insane and strengthened by her rage. They wrestled for control of the gun, and Farona didn’t drop it when Sarah put all her weight into slamming the slender female into the rock wall at her back.