A Soul for Vengeance (34 page)

 “It’s an honor to be here alongside you, Your Majesty.” The knight bowed, then reached into his pocket to pull out a small metal box. “Foresco asked me to deliver this to you along with a message.”

Kell took the box, finding within seconds that it was locked. “And a key, too, I hope.”

Fane shook his head. “No, no key. But he said you’ll know when to open it.”

“Was that all of his message?”

“You know how he can be,” the knight said with a shrug. “Mysterious as always, but I think he took a liking to you. He’s known more for his swords than little trinkets like that, and somehow, you’ve managed to receive one of each.”

Kell shook the box, curious about its contents. But when he stared into the keyhole, a vision slammed into his mind. He saw Zara opening the box, her lips parting in astonishment at what it held. He blinked, and the vision was gone. “I’ll save this for the moment Foresco intended, then.”

“Wise choice,” Fane replied, grinning.

That night, he dined with friends old and new, catching up on the lost months and discussing the battle ahead. But when they parted for the evening, Arden pulled him aside. “Where’s Zara?”

Worry and grief strangled his throat. He’d only received a brief message from one of her contacts in the city, telling him about the army under Barsaulus. But at least she was still alive. “She’s already in Trivinus.”

Arden searched his face, her blue eyes darkening with concern. “I hope for your sake she’ll be alive and well when we find her again. I’d like to meet her in person.”

He’d lost count of the number of times Zara had referred to Arden as the “yellow-haired witch.” It might be a tense meeting between them. “Why?”

Arden smiled. “Because she saved you.”

As Arden walked off with Dev, the full-meaning of her reply hit him. Yes, Zara had saved him in more than one way. She’d saved his life by rescuing him from the ship. She’d saved his hope by believing in him when he struggled to believe in himself. And she’d saved his heart by teaching him to love again.

Now it was his turn to save her.

Chapter 30

The kokalla-tainted sherry had run out two days ago. The rebel armies had been spotted yesterday and would be at the walls of Trivinus by nightfall. And Zara was waiting for the moment when her plan would all come together just as she imagined it would.

Originally, she’d planned to wait for all three members to fall into madness and assassinate them by any means possible. The yellow-haired witch and her Gravarian forces had taken care of one of them for her. Now she was left with only two.

She watched them through her lashes as she served them breakfast, looking for the tell-tale signs of withdrawal. Ermane remained as stoic as always, but Decindra was far more interesting. Her face twitched, her movements jerked, her speech becoming pressured and veering off subject at times. And yet, at other times, she appeared to be herself. How long would it take for her to descend into full-blown withdrawals?

Or worse, have someone figure out what was going on in time to stop her?

“What is our status?” Ermane asked as he ate.

Decindra jumped, knocking over her teacup. Zara jumped in to clean it up as she said, “We have, um, about ten thousand men in the city. Wait, make that, five. Or, um…” She massaged her temples and closed her eyes. “We had ten, but then Barsaulus took five with him, leaving us five.”

“And when can we expect backup?”

Her gaze drifted to the mirror. “Not for a week.”

What she wouldn’t give to be able to relay this information to Kell in some way.

“And are we prepared for a long enough siege to withstand the rebels while we wait for our forces to arrive?”

Decindra’s hands trembled. She hid them in her lap under the table. “I’m not sure. We were expecting those supplies to arrive from home, but the rebels—”

Ermane silenced her with a glare. “I hear they have a powerful witch in their midst. We destroy her first. Then, we go after the prince leading them. There’s nothing complicated about what we have to do.”

“I know, Ermane, it’s just—I mean, I can’t—” She bolted from her chair and paced the length of the table. “I’m worried we underestimated them.”

“They’re nothing more than stupid Ranellians. Remember how easily they fell? They’ll fall that way again.” He tossed his napkin down on his plate. “I’m going to speak with my generals. Maybe they’ll be able to tell me what you can’t.”

Decindra continued to fret after he left, constantly moving from one end of the room and muttering to herself. The longer Zara watched her, the happier she became. It wouldn’t be long before she could take out the next member of the Triumvirate. She smiled to herself and piled the empty breakfast dishes on her tray.

“You!” Decindra marched across the room and grabbed Zara’s wrist just above the metal bracelet that marked her as a slave. The dishes shattered on the floor as the tray slipped from her grasp. The Thallian pressed her finger to the metal, heating the metal to the point where it burned into Zara’s flesh. “I thought so. Imposter!”

Zara wrestled away, her eyes stinging from pain of her blistered flesh. Her pulse pounded in her ears as she searched for a weapon. “What are you talking about, my lady?”

“You’re one of them, aren’t you?” She pointed her finger at Zara, her eyes burning with hatred. “You switched places with one of the slaves to spy on us, didn’t you?”

Zara backed toward the serving table where the butler kept the serving knifes, struggling to keep her outward demeanor calm when every inch of her muscles tensed in panic. “Why would anyone switch places with a slave? This is all madness.”

“Madness?” Decindra’s eyes widened and stared past Zara. Her mouth fell open. She repeated the word one more time before fury twisted her face into a snarl. “What have you done to me?”

“Nothing, my lady.” She opened the drawer on the serving table, frantically feeling for the knife.

“Liar!”

A bolt of magic whizzed past Zara’s ear, burning a hole in the wall. The next bolt barely missed her, exploding the silver serving dishes instead. Zara darted out of the way, seeking shelter now instead of a weapon.

“I won’t rest until I’ve extracted every bit of rebel information from your head!”

She ducked behind a chair, only to see a plume of smoke rising inches above her head. The sound of feet thundered up the stairs. If Decindra didn’t kill her first, the soldiers would once their leader informed them of her suspicions. Either way, her chances at survival were grim.

Zara closed her eyes and offered a prayer to the Lady Moon that Kell would be successful.

Everything moved in slow motion as she charged around the chair toward Decindra, staying true to her mission. The other woman crumpled under the force of their collision. Zara took advantage of her momentum and lifted Decindra on her shoulder, carrying her toward the window looking out over the courtyard five stories below. The glass shattered. Shards nicked Zara’s skin, but they didn’t stop her. Decindra’s screams drowned out her own. Zara fell forward, catching a glimpse of the hard stones waiting for her.

But someone caught Zara before she tumbled out of the window.

Her body jerked to a stop. She released Decindra, letting her continue the journey down to her death. A splatter ended the Thallian’s screams.

Then the world came rushing back to Zara. She fell back on the floor, her head connected with the hard corner of the serving table. Black dots bloomed in front of her eyes. She saw a flash of metal and prepared to meet death.

But it never came.

Instead, several pairs of rough hands picked her up and bound her in chains, dragging her down the corridor to the cold, merciless surviving member of the Triumvirate, Ermane. He flicked his gaze over her like a man deciding whether or not he wanted to purchase a horse. “My, my, my, quite the troublemaker you are.”

The corner of his mouth twitched, and her stomach jumped. The withdrawals were starting to hit him.

“I think it’s time I got some answers from you.” He turned to the soldiers. “Deal with the rebel army. I’m going to take my time making her wish for death.”

The soldiers dropped her like a sack of potatoes, letting her fall. The carpet burned along her cheek as she slid forward. A pair of boots stopped in front of her. Her scarf ripped off, and Ermane pulled her up by the roots of her hair. A presence probed her mind, seeking out information.

“Now tell me everything you know, Zara of Cordello.”

She sucked in a breath. He knew who she was. “I know nothing,” she lied, erasing all the thoughts from her mind so he’d have to dig deep to retrieve any more information.

“Funny, I don’t believe you.”

A storm of magic crackled along his arm and poured into her, stealing the breath from her lungs and locking all her muscles into one agonizing spasm. She couldn’t move, couldn’t even draw in life-sustaining air. Her vision grew dim. She sat on the verge of passing out when he released her. The air burned her raw lungs, turning her first few breaths into bone-rattling coughs.

“Shall we try this again?” Ermane asked.

“I know nothing,” she repeated, refusing to betray those she loved.

He chuckled and hit her with the same spell.

This time, she gladly surrendered to the blackness.

Chapter 31

The sun was setting when Kell caught his first glimpse of Trivinus. The castle still sat on top of the hill, silhouetted by the dying light. It was strong, resilient, having survived dozens of kings and a handful of takeovers over the centuries. And it was the one place he called home.

An army flanked the city’s north side. Ortono had arrived and was positioning his men as ordered. He looked to the west, expecting Fermo’s men to be approaching, but saw nothing. A wad of unease lodged in the center of his chest. Zara had always been suspicious of the duke’s loyalties. Had Fermo finally betrayed them?

Bynn’s jaw hardened as he took in the same scene. “I expected Fermo to be on time.”

“So did I. We need his men if we want to have any chance of reclaiming Trivinus.” Kell scanned the heavily armed walls using a spyglass. “The Thallians are ready for us.”

“But are we ready for them?” Dev asked, coming alongside him with Arden. “Something tells me we may have to shift our plans.”

The lump in his chest grew larger, pressing on his lungs. “I hope Zara was successful in carrying out her plan.”
And I hope she’s still alive when I find her
.

Bynn nodded, his face tense with the same worry. “Niestro said she’d been feeding them the nightmare dust. Now that we’re here, she’ll stop and send them into the withdrawals.”

The combined armies from Bynn’s camp and Gravaria continued their march toward the city. By nightfall, they’d come as close as they dared and set up camp. Ortono joined them for a sparse meal as they discussed their options. No one dared to mention the missing ranks over the meal, but the cautious light in everyone’s eyes showed they were all thinking about it.

“We’ll need to spread our men out thinner than we’d planned to make sure we can encircle the city,” Kell said, rearranging the figures on the map that represented their army.

Bynn merely nodded, but Ortono’s cheeks flushed. “And what about Fermo?”

Kell closed his eyes and massaged the pounding artery along his temple. He’d threatened the duke, and this was the consequence. “Once we capture Trivinus, I’ll deal with his treason just as I said I would. Right now, we need to take advantage of our current situation.”

“There were at least ten thousand Thallian soldiers in the city at last count, Your Majesty, and the gates have all been sealed with magical barriers.” Anger laced the young captain’s voice. “I was there when they invaded. I saw what they were capable of doing, how quickly they destroyed our forces. We can’t take them on with our current numbers.”

“Then we lay siege to them,” Bynn countered. “Winter’s over, and we can be quite comfortable outside these walls for months.”

“Until the Thallians send more soldiers to surround us.” Ortono circled the figures on the map. “Besides, if we lay siege to the city, we won’t only be starving the Thallians—we’ll be starving our own people.”

Redness crept up Bynn’s neck. “Do you have any other suggestions, Captain?”

Ortono’s face hardened, his experience as a member of the Royal Guard adding weight to his voice. “The tunnels.”

Dev shook his head. “We can’t take those. Arden caved them in when she battled Sulaino.”

“She caved in one of them.” Kell crossed his arms, mulling over Ortono’s suggestion. “There is a tunnel from the river to the inside of the castle, but I worry the Thallians might have already sealed it.”

“There’s only one way to find out, Your Majesty,” the captain replied, daring him to try.

“It’s too risky, Kell.” Bynn traced his finger along the river on the map. “You’d have to come in this way and escape the notice of the Thallian guards on the wall. The river’s too swift at this time of the year to swim.”

“You can always use a small boat with a tarp over the top.” Parros’s suggestion silenced the hot tempers. The old knight joined them at the table and stared at the map. “Lady Zara used that ploy more than once with success. A hollowed-out log would work in a pinch.”

At the sound of her name, Kell was reminded that the one person who understood how to make the most of their resources, the true leader of the rebellion, was locked inside the castle. His chest tightened with worry. What he wouldn’t give to have her next to him right now.

Voices shouted outside his tent. Shadows moved, depicting a scuffle between the guards stationed outside and someone else. “I have a message for the king.”

The king. Him. The title was still too new to him. Without the castle in Trivinus, Kell was nothing but an imposter, a man who wore the title but had nothing to show for it. “Let him in.”

The guard brought a boy too young to be called a man and yet old enough to draw a sword into the tent. Mud caked his clothes along with blood, both fresh and old. When they released him, he fell to his knees and bowed his head. “Forgive me, Your Majesty, but I come bearing ill news from the Duke of Fermo.”