A nod, but he wouldn’t meet her gaze.

“Fadey, no one is going to blame you for cracking. You survived a terrible experience.”

“No one else thinks that way. They all say I’m a coward. Then to rub it in, the prince assigned me to be Rohana’s assistant and if I don’t locate artifacts for her, she threatens to send me back to the prince.” He shuddered then hooked a thumb behind him. “Those dogs outside my door are looking for the hunters who got away.”

A spark of hope. “Some escaped?”

“A few. Fortunately, I don’t know all the hunters in Zirdai so couldn’t name them, and they’re smart enough to stay far away from me. No one has visited me except you, and now he’ll know you’re alive.”

“No, he’ll learn someone came to visit you. They didn’t recognize me.”

Looking miserable, he put his head in his hands. “They’ll ask me, Shyla. And I’m not strong enough to keep it secret.”

“Don’t worry about it.”

He glanced at her. “Are you that confident you can avoid being arrested?”

“No, but I’m learning how to stay hidden, probably like the hunters who escaped. Or do you think they left Zirdai?”

“I don’t know where they are. If they’re smart, they’re long gone.”

“Do you know who escaped?”

“Someone tipped off Dekel and he told his crew. They scattered right before the guards arrived.”

“Is Aphra part of Dekel’s crew?”

“Yeah.”

Shyla was glad the woman escaped. Aphra had treated her like a normal person.

“I answered your questions, now it’s my turn. What happened to you?” Fadey asked. “The deacons said you went topside during the killing heat and died. We spent an entire service thanking the Sun Goddess for taking you home.”

She found it interesting that the priestess hadn’t informed her flock that the evil sun-kissed had returned. That would be quite the embarrassment. It also might proved to be to Shyla’s benefit.

“They lectured us about reporting sun-kisseds as soon as they are born. Sorry.” He ducked his head.

Everyone believed Shyla had been left on the sands to die when she was a newborn, including her until eighteen sun jumps ago when she’d learned she was born in the monastery and Hanif was her father. “Why are you sorry? You haven’t sacrificed any sun-kissed babies, have you?”

He stared at her in horror. “No!” Then he recovered. “They want us to report all sun-kisseds.”

“Does this mean you’re going to report me?”

“Of course not. But why would the deacons lie about you?”

“They didn’t. I did go topside right before the killing heat.”

“How did you survive? No one has before.”

Shyla leaned closer to the man. “Fadey, look at me, please.” She lowered her shield as he met her gaze.