Chapter 183

Citlali's POV

"Sewers always drain downward to the lowest point," Rowan explained rapidly, his mind clearly racing. "Water flows to the lowest ground. If the palace is built in a depression, then all the sewers in this district must drain toward it or past it."

"And sewer water has to go somewhere," I continued, catching his excitement. "It can't just pool up. So the outlets must be even lower than the palace foundations—"

"The beach!" we said simultaneously.

The rocky beach at the base of the cliffs. Where the sewers would empty into the sea. Away from the heavily guarded walls and gates. A potential way in that the guards might not watch as carefully because it seemed impossible to approach.

---

We immediately reached out through mindlink to report this discovery to Aldric.

Aldric, this is Citlali, I sent urgently. We've found something. The palace is built lower than the surrounding city—we think the sewers might provide a way in. The outlets should be on the beach below the eastern cliffs.

There was a pause as Aldric processed this information. Then his response came, sharp with interest: Good work. That's the first real lead we've had. Tonight we'll search the beach for sewer entrances. If they exist and aren't too heavily guarded, that might be our way inside.

Understood, Rowan sent back. We'll continue observing the palace perimeter, gather more information about guard patrols and shift changes.

Be careful, Aldric warned. Don't get caught. We need you both tonight.

The connection faded. Rowan and I looked at each other, hope flickering in both our eyes for the first time since we'd entered this cursed city.

We continued our observation for the rest of the afternoon, carefully noting the timing of guard patrols, when shifts changed, which areas seemed to have slightly less coverage. Every detail might matter when we tried to infiltrate tonight.

As the sun began to set, painting the sky in shades of orange and red, we made our way back toward the mill. My feet ached from walking all day, my shoulder throbbed from the old silver wound, but my heart felt lighter than it had in days.

We had a plan. A dangerous, probably insane plan that involved crawling through sewers and infiltrating the most heavily guarded building in the city. But it was a plan.

---

The three groups reconvened, gathering in the dim interior. The atmosphere was tense but excited—we all felt that we were finally getting somewhere.

Dorian spoke first, his voice carrying grim satisfaction. "We have information. Real information this time, not just rumors."

He and Lysander had spent the day watching the military barracks from various vantage points. As evening approached, they'd spotted a soldier leaving the compound alone, heading toward the seedier part of town. They'd followed him at a distance.

"He went to a brothel," Lysander continued. "Spent about an hour inside. When he came out, he was drunk and alone. We followed him into a deserted alley."

Dorian's expression was hard. "We ambushed him. Dragged him into an quiet place nearby. Tied him up with rope, gagged him with cloth so he couldn't scream."

"I put my dagger to his throat," Dorian said flatly. "Told him we'd kill him unless he answered our questions about the captured wolf girls."

The soldier had talked, the words spilling out in a terrified rush:

The wolf girls had been handed over immediately upon reaching the capital. The soldiers who escorted them had no idea where they went after that—they'd simply delivered them to the city gates and been dismissed.

The capture order had come directly from the king himself. The soldiers were told only to bring the prisoners to Argentum alive and unharmed. Nothing more.

The soldier had heard rumors—just rumors—that the girls had been taken into the palace. But he didn't know where in the palace, or why, or what was being done to them.

He'd also said that anyone asking questions about the wolf prisoners was "looking to die." The king was extremely sensitive about anything involving wolves. People who asked too many questions tended to disappear.

"We tied him up again after he talked," Dorian finished. "Gagged him, locked him in the warehouse. He'll be found eventually, but not until after we're done here."

Aldric nodded approval. "Good work. That confirms what we suspected—the girls are most likely in the palace."

He turned to Branimir. "What about the church?"

"We watched it all day," Branimir rumbled, his deep voice thoughtful. "Didn't see any sign of imprisoned wolf girls. But there was a lot of unusual activity—wolf hunters coming and going constantly, more than normal. We couldn't get close enough to hear details."

Finally, he looked at Rowan and me. "Your report?"

I explained what we'd observed—the overwhelming security around the palace, the impossibility of daytime entry, the various approaches we'd scouted. Then I described our discovery about the terrain and the sewers.

Aldric was silent for a long moment, his mind clearly working through the implications and risks. Then he spoke, his voice carrying the weight of command.

"We go tonight. All of us head to the beach and search for sewer entrances. If we find one that's accessible and not too heavily guarded, that's our way in."

He paused, making sure we all understood what he was about to say. "But we can't all go inside. Too many people means more noise, more chance of being detected. Once we find an entrance, only two will go deep into the palace to search for the girls."

His eyes moved to Rowan and me. "You two.."

"The rest of us will wait at the sewer entrance," Aldric continued. "Hidden, ready to provide support or create a distraction if needed. We maintain mindlink contact at all times—report every ten minutes without fail. If there's danger, you retreat immediately. No heroics, no fighting unless absolutely necessary."

He looked at each of us in turn, his expression grave. "If we don't hear from you within an hour, or if the mindlink cuts off, we're coming in after you. We don't leave anyone behind."

The weight of what we were about to do settled over us like a heavy cloak. Infiltrating the palace through the sewers. Searching for imprisoned girls in the heart of enemy territory. With no backup and no way out if things went wrong.

"Get some rest," Aldric said quietly. "We move in two hours, after full dark. This is it—our best chance to find them."