Kaira lifted her tear-drenched lashes and looked up at the moon, which had climbed higher in the sky. I’m not dead yet, she told herself firmly. I’ve survived meeting a dragon and a bear. I could still get out of this.

She turned from the window and peered into the oppressive darkness. The light from the moon crept further into her cell and she saw that such it was. Straw lay scattered on the stone floor about a couple of heavy chests. There was no furniture. There were no metal objects either that she could use as a tool. She went over to the chests and pulled up the heavy lids. Inside were some old clothing and she wondered if she could make a ladder out of them. But no—the bars on her window were placed too close together. No matter how much breath she held,...

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