Flashback ( PDFDrive )

But it also reminded Sophie that her own security situation was
very much still up in the air. And she couldn’t help noticing that there
was definitely not a seven-foot-tall goblin anywhere in the Healing
Center.
“So . . . ,” she said, pulling Ella tighter to her chest. “Has anyone
heard from Sandor?”
“We have,” Edaline told her, and Sophie couldn’t breathe—until
Edaline’s lips stretched into the hugest smile ever. “He’s not going
anywhere! He wanted to tell you the good news himself, but again,
we’re trying not to draw too much attention to the Healing Center. So
I promised I’d let you know—and Grizel wanted me to inform you that
you’re allowed to come up with one punishment for him for what he
put you through.”
Sophie laughed. “I don’t need to punish him.”
“You might want to put a pin in that thought,” Elwin told her,
“because if you think he was overbearing before . . .”
“It’s worth it,” Sophie insisted. “And hey, he’s leaving me here
without a guard, right?”
“Oh, you have guards,” Elwin told her. “Queen Hylda assigned fifty
goblins to Foxfire.”
“Fifty? As in five-zero? Not fifteen?”
“Fifty,” Edaline confirmed.
“That’s . . . a lot of goblins.”
“That’s what we want,” Edaline agreed. “The Neverseen need to
understand that if they try to get anywhere near you, they’re going to
face an army.”
Sophie pressed her nose between Ella’s ears, wishing any part of
that sentence actually made her feel safer. “So did Sandor say who the