Cress reached the headland on the twenty-second day.
She came by herself, which none of them had expected. Aldric had said the second southern circle would send someone with her. Instead, an elderly woman rode up the narrow, winding path at midday on a small grey donkey, a single worn bag fastened behind the saddle and a walking stick resting across her lap. There was no escort. No guard. No one at all.
Aria spotted her first from the round room window.
Then she went down.
By the time Aria stepped into the courtyard, the woman had already climbed off the donkey. She stood beside it, one hand resting lightly on the animal’s neck, her gaze lifted toward the tower. There was no awe in her face. No fear either. She was slight smaller even than Senna had been. Her hair, cut short and comple
