Jessica was back with Daya in the crowded street.
There was a bark of a voice on the other side of the square. The square emptied with amazing speed. Pengali-shaped shadows jumped onto walls, in trees, abandoning the drums.
Four figures came into the middle of the square. A Mirani patrol, hands on their crossbows.
Daya pressed himself against the trunk of one of the trees that lined the alley. All the natives around him sank into a silence that . . . tickled.
Jessica prodded him. Go ahead, connect with them. He could see for himself why she couldn’t leave the Pengali.
But Daya just stood there.
Ahead, the barking voice spoke. “You are sheltering a dangerous criminal. Give him up, and none of you will be harmed.”
In the shadows, a voice yelled, “Kusi.”
Two of the soldiers raised the
