Shadow and Bone by Leigh Bardugo (z-lib.org).mobi

“For everything.”
“Hmph,” she said. “Go now, girl. Be quick and take care.”
I turned my back on her and ran.
Endless days of training with Botkin meant I knew the grounds well. I was
grateful for every sweaty hour as I jogged over lawns and between trees. Baghra
sent thin coils of blackness to either side of me, cloaking me in darkness as I
drew closer to the back of the Grand Palace. Were Marie and Nadia still dancing
inside? Was Genya wondering where I’d gone? I pushed those thoughts from my
mind. I was afraid to think too hard about what I was doing, about everything I
was leaving behind.
A theatrical troupe was loading up a wagon with props and racks of costumes,
their driver already gripping the reins and shouting at them to hurry things along.
One of them climbed up beside him, and the others crowded into a little pony
cart that departed with a jingle of bells. I darted into the back of the wagon and
wiggled my way between pieces of scenery, covering myself with a burlap drop
cloth.
As we rumbled down the long gravel drive and through the palace gates, I
held my breath. I was sure that, at any moment, someone would raise the alarm
and we would be stopped. I would be pulled from the wagon in disgrace. But
then the wheels jounced forward and we were rattling over the cobblestone
streets of Os Alta.
I tried to remember the route that I had taken with the Darkling when he had
brought me through the city those many months ago, but I’d been so tired and
overwhelmed that my memory was a useless blur of mansions and misty streets.
I couldn’t see much from my hiding place, and I didn’t dare peek out. With my
luck, someone would be passing at just that instant and catch sight of me.
My only hope was to put as much distance as possible between myself and the
palace before my absence was noticed. I didn’t know how long Baghra would be
able to stall, and I willed the wagon’s driver to move faster. When we crossed
over the bridge and into the market town, I allowed myself a tiny sigh of relief.
Cold air crept through the cart’s wooden slats, and I was grateful for the thick
coat Baghra had provided. I was weary and uncomfortable, but mostly I was just
frightened. I was running from the most powerful man in Ravka. The Grisha, the
First Army, maybe even Mal and his trackers would be unleashed to find me.
What chance did I have of making it to the Fold on my own? And if I did make
it to West Ravka and onto the Verloren, then what? I would be alone in a strange
land where I didn’t speak the language and I knew no one. Tears stung my eyes
and I brushed them furiously away. If I started crying, I didn’t think I’d be able
to stop.