Cion had Rodric pinned against the well. But more guards were pouring into the square. One headed straight for Cion.

“Cion!” I cried. He turned just in time to fend off a blow, but it also meant that he’d had to release his hold on Rodric, who used his bulk to smash into Cion’s shoulder, sending him spiraling to the ground.

Without thinking, I rushed toward him. I stopped the arc of Rodric’s blade before it could connect with Cion’s neck. “Your fight is with me,” I said. I pulled my blade back, drawing Rodric’s attention with it.

“It would have been with you, if you hadn’t run away,” Rodric said. “I’m surprised you survived at all under the Desert Boys’ water rationing system. I thought you would’ve dried up by now.”

While he spoke, Cion struggled to his feet behind him. Dimic had appeared at his brother’s side and deflected the attacks of the closest guards.

“You’re going to regret coming here today,” Rodric continued. He advanced toward me. I watched his wrists for any movement that might betray his next move. His arm twitched, and I brought up my sword to fend off a blow that didn’t come.

Rodric’s eyes went wide, his mouth gaping open.

Behind him, I saw Cion slice a small dagger across Rodric’s side. Drops of blood stained the sand. It wasn’t a deep wound. No worse than the one I’d gotten in the arena.

Rodric roared and swung his blade in a circle hoping to catch either Cion or me.

“Go,” Cion shouted, using Rodric’s unbalanced movement to knock him aside. Dimic ran for the other end of the empty square, but I couldn’t leave Cion behind.

“Come on,” Dimic shouted, frantically motioning with his hand while casting glances at the line of guards. “He can take care of himself.”

As if to prove Dimic’s point, when Rodric lunged for Cion, he sidestepped and let Rodric crash into the guards.

I didn’t wait to see what Rodric would do next.

I ran.

Cion caught up quickly. He led us through a maze of streets before pausing at a squat building with an old barrel outside. He leapt on top of the barrel and hoisted himself onto the roof. Dimic climbed next. Cion held his hand down to me, and just like during my initiation test, I took it and hauled myself up.

We jumped across rooftops and flew over alleyways.

When we reached the last house, I didn’t turn back to look at the palace. I plunged off the edge with all the other boys and ran past the crumbling gates and out into the desert.

CHAPTER

17

By the time we’d made it back to the hideout, all the Desert Boys had returned from dropping off buckets of water around the town. And to my surprise, they were all clutching abandoned bits of wood or broken shutters.

“How many injured?” Cion asked.

Dimic stepped forward. “Liten got a bad cut on his stomach and Rivel got his nose bashed in, but Tania and Bala are seeing to them. Everyone is accounted for.” He paused for a moment, tightening his grip on the wooden board he held. “Can we go?”