“Ennie, no noise and follow me fast,” Tain ordered in a soft voice, then she ran toward the nearest space between two warehouses. None of the combatants were watching two unimportant slaves, which made this the best time possible for her and Ennie to disappear.

Tain didn’t stop until she reached the shadow of the wall she’d aimed for, and a moment later Ennie slid into the shadow behind her. The results of the attack were what had let Tain do the necessary, since Killen’s orders to her had been clear. She hadn’t been allowed to take off on her own unless something happened to Killen, and now something had happened to him.

“What’s going on?” Ennie asked softly as Tain saw Tandro hit just the way Killen had been. The attackers had kept Killen in his saddle even though the man was obviously unconscious, and they did the same with Tandro. “Why are those men using clubs instead of knives?”

“Probably because they want prisoners instead of dead bodies,” Tain answered just as softly, watching as the attackers took the two unconscious men and their horses into the warehouse opposite the one she and Ennie hid beside. “I don’t know why those people want prisoners instead, but they obviously do. And not one of them noticed we were around.”

“Does that mean we’re free to go where we please?” Ennie asked, her tone sounding faintly disturbed. “But even if we are, how do we get out of this city? The gate guards aren’t likely to just let us walk out, not when it’s clear we’re slaves.”

“There’s a way to get through the gate,” Tain murmured back, not lying or wishful thinking. All she and Ennie had to do was follow along behind the pack horses of any two men who were leaving. Chances were the men would not even notice them, and once they reached the forest she and Ennie could slip away into the trees.

Even if the men did notice them and tried to keep two free slaves, Killen had protected her well enough. She’d been commanded not to take orders from anyone but Killen, and once she rendered the men unconscious she could apologize and explain politely about not being allowed to take orders from them. After that she could have Ennie take off her red armbands and she would do the same for Ennie. Without the glaring red of the armbands it would be much easier to hide in the woods, and getting back to base would take a short while but would be far from impossible.

The only question, though, was whether she should leave at once or stay and try to free Killen. Without any weapons she wasn’t likely to do Killen much good, and after the few words she’d exchanged with Ennie a glance showed that the girl had now retreated back to being barely alive. Ennie was her partner, and you owed something to your partner. Back at base Ennie would be able to get professional help, so it was Tain’s responsibility to get Ennie back.

Tain touched Ennie’s arm to get her to follow, and then led the way toward the back of the warehouse. As she moved, Tain couldn’t help but wonder if the relief she felt was because she really was on the way back home, or because she was leaving Killen behind. Whichever, she knew she was making the right choice. There was certainly no confusion about that…