A Prisoner Worth Taking

Everyone's eyes fell on her at once. Colin's expression changed, and his finger tightened on the crossbow trigger.

"What do you mean?"

Isolde ignored his hostility and bent to pick up the Holy Lamp.

The handle was cold in her hand. Light from the sacred emblem slipped between her fingers, as though testing her presence.

The layer of disguise inside her trembled. Meng Yinyin's basic mage mark surfaced, and its gentle white glow clung to her palm, merging with the sanctity within Unicorn's Last Wish.

The Holy Lamp stayed lit. It did not reject her.

Hewen saw it. His gaze darkened, but the killing intent he had kept trained on Isolde finally eased a little.

At least it proved she was not an evil mage.

Isolde shook the snow off the lamp.

"A patrol from the monastery just died. There are traces of a Black Tower spell outside, too. What do you think the people at the gate most want to see right now?"

Colin sneered. "What? The killers coming to turn themselves in?"

Isolde glanced at him. "Oh? So you're not completely stupid."

"You—!" A vein throbbed at Colin's temple as he cocked his crossbow. "I should've put a bolt through your throat."

"Enough, Colin." Hewen seized his arm and held it down, his warning unmistakable.

He turned to Isolde, his gaze piercing. "People from the Northlands don't like games. Say what you mean."

"The monastery almost certainly doesn't know the Black Tower is involved yet," Isolde said. "They've laid out a path for us. We might as well use it. I can disguise myself as a monk and bring in a prisoner important enough to matter..."

Colin was the first to catch on. His head snapped up.

"No. How do we know you won't sell us out to the Holy Court the moment you get inside?"

Isolde met his stare and even stepped forward, putting herself in the crossbow's sights.

"If I wanted to hurt you, I wouldn't have drawn the patrol away."

"I could've stood right where I was and shouted, 'There are Witch Hunters here.' You'd be fighting them already."

Colin gritted his teeth. His knuckles whitened around the crossbow. "Or you did that because you want to use us."

"Of course that's possible." Isolde nodded. "But I'm not asking all of you to go inside."

"Go on," Hewen said.

"I put on a monk's robe, take the Holy Lamp, and escort one prisoner in." Isolde pointed toward the depths of the monastery. "The rest of you lie in wait near Corpse Transport Road and support us from outside. With any luck, you might even find the person you're looking for."

The older Witch Hunter frowned. "How can you be sure they won't see through you once you're inside?"

Isolde raised the Holy Lamp.

"I only have to look like a terrified menial worker from the outskirts who barely made it back alive."

"Once people decide you don't matter, they can't be bothered to check your story from beginning to end."

Colin's expression shifted. He seemed to have thought of something, and his brow tightened further.

Hewen asked, "Why are you helping us?"

"Because we're both trying to save someone," Isolde said. "I don't know if it's the same person, but our interests don't conflict. Once we're inside, we go our separate ways and take our chances."

"Easy for you to say," Colin rasped. "What if you leave us behind?"

Isolde's glance was cold. "You can always keep waiting out here."

Colin stiffened and pressed his lips together.

"You've been circling the place for three days already, haven't you?" Isolde added. "If you had another way in, you wouldn't be standing here wasting words on a stranger you know nothing about."

After a stretch of silence, Colin slung his crossbow onto his back and stepped forward.

"I'll go."

The Witch Hunters froze.

"Make me the prisoner." Colin stared Isolde down. "As long as I get through the gate, I'll find Aiven myself."

"No." Hewen's voice was cold and final.

Colin whipped around. "Captain!"

"You're too impatient."

"He's my brother!"

The words sounded as though they had been torn from his chest.

Colin's eyes were bloodshot. Looking at Hewen, he could no longer seem to hold back the fear that had built over the past few days.

"You said he might still be alive. You said we'd wait for a chance at night. But every minute we wait brings him closer to death! If I don't go in, am I supposed to stay here listening to that damned bell? I can't!"

Hewen grabbed him by the collar and slammed him against a tree.

"It's precisely because he's your brother that you can't go."

"The moment you see so much as a shadow that looks like him, you'll lose control. Then you won't save anyone, and you'll get the whole team killed!"

Colin opened his mouth. His breathing came fast, but for a long while he said nothing.

Isolde stood to one side and watched quietly, as though none of this concerned her.

One word from her now would be a spark in dry tinder. She had no intention of getting caught in the blast.

Hewen drew a deep breath and turned around. "I'll go."

"Hewen!" the older Witch Hunter cried.

Hewen raised a hand, silencing everyone.

"If the Holy Court captures an ordinary Witch Hunter, they may not open the gate right away. If they capture me, they'll want to interrogate me personally."

Hewen's judgment was calm—and dangerous.

He was willing to enter the monastery himself not only for the plan, but to keep Colin in check.

If Colin went, he might die.

If Hewen went himself, he could at least keep the risk of losing control to a minimum.

Colin stared at Hewen, his voice strained. "I don't agree."

Hewen kept his back to him. "It isn't your decision."

"Captain!"

"That's an order."

Colin stood frozen as the wind swept snow between them.

Isolde watched his fingers slowly loosen on the crossbow, then tighten again.

He lowered his head. His throat worked several times before he forced a hoarse "Yes" through his teeth.

Hewen began removing his outer cloak and weapons.

The Witch Hunters moved quickly.

They stripped the outer robes from several dead Holy Court monks and handed Isolde the one in the best condition.

Isolde put it on, tucked her gray cloak beneath it, and used snow to scrub away the dirt stains that didn't belong on the sleeves.

She tied her hair a little lower, then picked up the Holy Lamp.

Its light fell across her face. Yu Lingye's features looked plainer than ever, and all the easier to overlook.

The other Witch Hunters dealt with the bodies.

The older Witch Hunter took out a bottle of gray powder and scattered it over the footprints. One gust of wind erased them.

Colin said nothing. He only helped strip Hewen of every piece of equipment, working with a fierce haste.

Isolde came over with the Holy Lamp and looked Hewen up and down.

His weapons were gone, and his hands were bound behind his back with a Witch Hunter's rope.

The binding looked real. It had a hidden release, but no outsider would spot it.

There was still one problem. "You look too normal."

Isolde raised the lamp, throwing light across his hard face and making his scar look even more severe.

"You don't look like someone who was just captured."

Hewen understood at once. So did Colin.

The young Witch Hunter's expression turned complicated.

"Isn't there another way?"

Isolde said nothing. She only looked at Hewen, leaving the decision to him.

Hewen rolled his neck and forced out a single word.

"Hit me."