The last time I’d worn such fabric, I’d performed the sand dance.

I blinked back tears.

I didn’t know if any of those boys were still alive. Especially Dimic. I’d been the one to involve him in the plan. It was my fault he was dead.

Latia was right. I didn’t know what I was getting them into.

And what about Cion? Whatever he was going to face was because of me. Because I sought him out. Because I couldn’t face my problems on my own. No wonder the scorpions had stung me. I wasn’t strong enough. I wasn’t Tamlin. The desert hadn’t chosen me.

The door to my room squealed open to reveal Rodric carrying another pair of shackles.

He secured them around my feet and produced a key. “Now,” he said, wagging the key in front of my face, “you can either be released from your hand shackles and come with me, or I give the order to have Cion killed right now without giving you the chance to save him.”

I studied his face. I didn’t really see I had a choice in the matter, and if my hands were free, I’d have a better shot at finding a way to attack.

“I’ll behave,” I said.

“Good.” He slid the key into the shackles and freed me. “Then let’s go.”

Several guards waited in the doorway. Rodric motioned for me to take my place between them. The chain around my ankles scraped against the floor as I walked, but it wasn’t visible under my long dress.

Guards fell in around me. One of them was Sievers. He gave me the slightest of nods, so slight I wasn’t sure I’d seen it at all. Maybe he’d help me escape. Maybe that nod was his signal to me to keep strong until he found the right moment to help.

But he was so rigid standing there I started to wonder if I’d imagined him nod. Was I still delirious from my scorpion stings? All of this could be a dream.

No, a nightmare.

I kept wanting to glance at Sievers, but he was stationed behind me. And Rodric had taken up his position at the very rear. No doubt because it would offer the best view of me going for any of the guards’ spears or swords.

Instead of moving up through the palace, we moved down. All the way to the tigers’ cage.

I had one moment of panic that Rodric was going to throw me into the cage, but we breezed past it into the tunnel leading to the stadium. My heart dropped when I spotted that one of the tigers was missing.

“I’d much rather you be publicly seen in my company so soon after my gallant rescue of you from your captors,” Rodric said, “but I couldn’t trust those desert rats not to make one last rescue attempt. So the tunnel will have to do.”

It wasn’t as dark as I remembered. Someone had lit torches at even intervals. They played against the long claw marks running down the walls. Fire-legged flies buzzed over spots of dried blood caked to the walls.