The words struck like a thunderclap.
The camp exploded in sound—a roar of fury, hunger, triumph.
Laila barely had time to register the shift before she felt them closing in.
Hands. Rough. Calloused. Grabbing at the silk, the gold, the sacred ornaments that marked her as untouchable.
"Strip her of her jewels!" someone shouted. "Let her know what it means to be one of us!"
The hands came closer.
And then—a blade flashed.
A whisper of steel through air.
Amunet's sword came down like a striking viper, stopping just short of the throat of the nearest man.
The camp froze.
