The Bloody Quarrel (The Complete Edition) by Duncan Lay Page A

be here for turns of the hourglass. Meanwhile you can be away and back at the castle while they still watch the front of my house.”
    Fallon was not sure about this but she was insistent … and attacking men in the street seemed like a recipe for disaster.
    “If you go now, they will never expect it,” she said. “I shall make sure I am seen at the windows, pretending to talk to you.”
    She embraced Fallon quickly, which made him stiffen in shock, then she drew back. “Live,” she said. “Do it for your wife and son.”
    The back door was opened and the alleyway behind scanned quickly. There was no sign of any watchers, so the four of them hurried onwards.
    “Well, I feel much happier about this trap now,” Gallagher said as they walked down a crooked alley, back towards the main road. “At least the Duchess seems on our side.”
    Fallon grunted. The houses were bigger and much nicer here than in the rats’ nest of houses in the poorer quarters. Still, the smell was just as bad.
    “At least there is no sign of those cloaked men,” Fallon said.
    “That’s if we can find our way out of here,” Devlin said as the alley took yet another turn. “Who designed this stupid city?”
    “Fallon was right about it though. This is the place to fight the Kottermanis. We can use the roofs and places like this to destroy them,” Gallagher said. “Imagine it, looking up, barely able to see the sun and not knowing if there was going to be a hail of spears or crossbow bolts from above at any moment.”
    Fallon looked up, as Gallagher suggested, then swore loudly.
    “Get your backs to the walls. There’s more up there!”
    The four of them flattened themselves against the rough alley wall, eyes scanning above. But the roofline was empty.
    “What did you see?” Devlin asked.
    “Three hooded men,” Fallon replied shortly. “Just for a moment, then they ducked away.”
    “The one from out the front? How could they have got here?”
    “They didn’t. These look completely different,” Fallon said.
    “Do you think this is the real trap?” Brendan wondered. “Did the Duchess push us into it?”
    “Let’s worry about that later,” Fallon said.
    He unstrapped his crossbow from his back and swiftly loaded it. Devlin and Gallagher did the same. Brendan just hefted his huge hammer but that was more than enough of a weapon in his hands.
    They hurried down the alley, which led into a maze of others. No longer worrying about finding the way back to the main road, Fallon just led them left and right, looking to put some distance between them and whoever was above. He was horribly aware they were completely exposed but could not think who was after them. King Aidan had them at his mercy in the castle – if he wanted them dead then he would just send in his guards. The Duchess? But why not attack while they were inside her house? Obviously Swane wanted them dead but he was in a cell somewhere. And, anyway, they had killed his men. Or had they?
    “Are they still up there?” Devlin asked as they stopped by a corner, all puffing hard.
    “Can’t see.” Fallon craned his neck to check the rooftops. “But there’s so many places to hide up there.”
    “Do we wait or do we go?” Brendan asked.
    “I think these three might be the snatchers, the ones Cavan said he chased across the rooftops. The ones Eamon was protecting, the ones we weren’t able to find,” Fallon said.
    Devlin stopped looking up and swung around. “The ones Cavan said had skin like wood that swords just bounced off?”
    “But we don’t look like children! Well, maybe Devlin if you put him next to Brendan,” Gallagher said.
    Fallon instinctively paused for Devlin to make some joke in return but nothing came.
    “Let’s keep moving,” Devlin said instead.
    They jogged down a series of alleys.
    “Who builds these? There’s not a straight line among them!” Gallagher protested.
    Fallon caught a glimpse of the main road down a side alley.