An Unkindness of Ravens by Jeanette Battista

Author:Jeanette Battista
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: romance, assassin, magic, young adult, dragons, poison
Publisher: Jeanette Battista

Chapter Fourteen

Denevah left Malina’s house once the streets had quieted. The Doge’s guards had cleared everyone from the squares, so Denevah ran across only a few people as she searched the canals for an empty sandolo to take her home. Pain flashed in her head like heat lightning, unpredictable and violent. She felt unsteady on her feet, but blamed it on the events of the day and the fact that she’d taken her new supplements on a mostly empty stomach.

Her mind kept going back to the card reading. She didn’t understand most of it. She had no idea what to make of the things Malina had told her, but she did know the woman’s words left her feeling edgy and frayed. Her stomach was a leaden knot inside her body. Her steps carried her along absently as her mind worried at the tangle of words and predictions she’d just heard.

Denevah was so distracted that she didn’t see the gentleman rounding the corner until she slammed into him. The street had narrowed significantly, making walking two abreast a difficult thing. Strong arms caught her before she could go plunging into the canal. Her head swam for a moment before she righted herself.

“Easy there! I’ve got you,” a pleasant voice said, pulling her nearer to the wall.

“I’m sorry, I didn’t see you coming,” Denevah gasped, heart racing. After Navolio’s sacrifice of the girl, the last thing she wanted to do was end up in the water.

“No harm done.” He waited until she was steady, then removed his hands from her arms.

She looked up and had to place a hand against the crumbling wall. The man wore a black tabard. Picked out in golden thread above his heart was the insignia of House Corvus. The House of Assassins.

Several things happened at once. Another wave of pain crested behind her eyes, making her vision blur. The man stepped forward, his hand reaching for her. A faint rumble made the street beneath their feet tremble. Denevah fell against the wall with a weak cry, her hand coming up as if to ward off a blow.

Fear blasted through her. Her parents had been killed when she was a baby—it was how she’d come to be Rodolfi’s adopted daughter. It was why he’d kept her apart from the rest of Aerie, why she’d been forbidden to go outside without an escort. He had warned her that the people responsible for killing her parents might still be looking for her, and he insisted she take care. Could this Crow have been following her? Could the Crows be behind the death of her parents? And if so, who hired them?

Her vision cleared and she pushed herself upright. The man had pulled his hand back and it hung empty at his side. “Lady Denevah?”

Her eyes swept up to his. She reached up and discovered the scarf that covered her rather unusual hair had fallen down. She hastily pulled it back into place, tucking the stray strands beneath it. She took a moment to take stock of the Crow before her.

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