Caroline's words sounded foreign to his ears. He gave her a puzzled expression, examining the distress plastered across her lovely features. Of course, he had been meticulous in studying the ballroom and every person in attendance. Ender had been on alert for any threat since entering the White palace and found nothing amiss.
There were guards and indeed the typical aristocrats that were the staple of such events, but until Caroline's fainting episode, nothing occurred to him as out of the ordinary.
As if to contradict Ender's thoughts, shapes began to emerge from behind the trees lining the darkened courtyard. Barely visible to the human eye, they hovered silently, hooded and cloaked in black.
Ender cursed and made to block Caroline from their view. Battle witches of the Ibudali army began to close around them, likely using the same spell that Caroline had so often to block any sound they made. No wonder he hadn't heard them.
