Neither of them had a plan. They had legs and adrenaline and that was going to have to be enough.
Serena and Elara sprinted through the service corridor, their footsteps echoing off the narrow stone walls.
Behind them, two guards gave chase, their armor clanking and their boots pounding against the stone.
Two guards. For two women. The Fae were either respecting their threat level or deeply understaffed. Serena chose to believe the former.
The corridor forked ahead. They hadn't agreed on a direction since they arrived and Serena didn't want to break the streak now.
Her instincts said right. Elara's said left. Both were probably wrong.
The guards split to follow.
Serena ran until her lungs burned, taking corners blindly. She could hear her pursuer gaining, his heavy breathing getting closer with every stride. She spotted a recessed doorway and threw herself into it, pressing flat against the wood, holding her breath.
