Wintercraft: Blackwatch by Jenna Burtenshaw

Kate. ‘And you can’t come either. What about Tom?’
     
    ‘He likes it here,’ said Edgar. ‘He’ll be safe enough. And I’m not letting you go out there alone.’
     
    Kate did not say anything. No words would be enough to say how grateful she was to have at least one person left whom she could trust. Edgar hoisted his bag on to his shoulder and Kate hurried along with her head down as the guards’ warning bell sounded behind them.
     
    ‘They’ve found him,’ said Edgar. ‘Let’s go.’
     

6
     
    Allegiance
     
     
     
     
     
    When the Blackwatch had gone Silas tried to free himself from his chair, but his body had other ideas. Going for Bandermain’s throat had hurt him more than he wanted to admit. His muscles screamed out whenever he tried to move them and his broken bones grated together, forcing him to stay still. He should have been able to loosen his ropes and break his way out of that place easily. Instead he was stuck to the chair like an animal caught in a trap.
     
    The room he was in was an ordinary cellar. The floor was thick with decades’ worth of coal dust and dirt but there were clear spaces round the edge of the floor where boxes or old pieces of furniture had been sitting until recently. Bandermain’s men must have emptied it in a hurry, and it was clearly not meant for holding someone securely.
     
    For years, the worst fate for any soldier of the Albion army was thought to be finding themselves in the hands of the Blackwatch. He had heard stories about the mistreatment of prisoners under Blackwatch guard during past campaigns into Continental territory, and had known dozens of men who had been taken by their agents. Only two of them ever found their way back, carrying gruesome stories that helped to make the Blackwatch legendary among those who were sent out to face them.
     
    Silas was not worried for himself – the Blackwatch were no threat to him – but he was concerned about what they planned to do with Kate. If the Continental leaders finally got their hands on a powerful member of the Skilled it could turn the tide of the war spectacularly against Albion. They knew Kate’s name. They wanted mastery of the veil and now they knew exactly whom to hunt to get it. What greater prize could Bandermain present to his masters than a girl able to demonstrate the power of the veil and a traitor to Albion who could not die? The Blackwatch would not stop until they had what they set out to collect. Trouble was heading into the heart of Albion, and Kate was going to be right in the middle of it.
     
    Silas tried to reach out for the veil, but again he felt nothing. Kate was a weapon just waiting to be found and he could not do anything to help Albion so long as he was tied up in someone’s worthless cellar.
     
    Blackwatch voices filtered down from the room above. A door slammed shut and Silas could hear harsh coughs and a conversation unfolding through the floorboards overhead. Bandermain and his men were close by. He stayed still and listened.
     
    ‘Send in more men,’ said Bandermain. ‘Call them back from border patrols. Use the ship and tell them not to return until they have the girl in custody. We are close enough to the attack to risk a few lives. Concentrate our efforts upon the capital, but do not neglect the northern cities. Send men everywhere we have the manpower to reach and make sure all agents are aware of their responsibilities well ahead of time.’
     
    ‘They have already been informed,’ said another voice.
     
    ‘Have they found their way into Fume’s understreets?’
     
    ‘All entrances to the City Below are being monitored, sir. Runners have been sent down into the tunnels, but our agents are holding back until the posters are distributed, as ordered. If our intelligence is correct, we should have control of the main gathering points by dusk tomorrow.’
     
    ‘ “Should” is not good enough,’ said Bandermain. ‘Those people live underground like