The Key (20 page)

Darmik shook his head. Did the rebel have a death wish? Chek glanced to Darmik, who gave the signal.
Chek swung the mallet, crushing the man’s other kneecap. This time the prisoner let out a loud grunt, but kept his teeth clutched together, still looking ahead at nothing.

“Who trained you?”

Silence.

Chek
looked grimly at Darmik. The prisoner’s eyes darted to Darmik, and then away again. Darmik hated to use brutality, but it usually provided the information they needed in a quick and efficient manner. Darmik nodded, and Chek struck the man’s right elbow. This time the man cried out in pain. He would have fallen from his chair had he not been chained to the ground.

“Where
are your headquarters located?”

The man was breathing heavily, about to pass out from the pain.

Chek wacked the prisoner’s left elbow, and the man screamed, his eyes rolling back in his head.

Darmik
cringed, wondering why the man didn’t give in and answer. Even if the information was false, the prisoner still could’ve said something to protect himself.

Borek
and Chek pulled the tub of water next to the chair. The prisoner’s chest heaved up and down. Darmik raised his hand and his men stepped back from the prisoner, giving Darmik room. He pushed away from the wall, moving closer to the rebel.

T
heir usual methods weren’t working this time. Darmik squatted until he was eye level with the prisoner. The rebel wouldn’t look at Darmik, but the man kept blinking, aware of the commander’s presence.

“I admire your loyalty,” Darmik said. “To have such conviction and passion for your cause is commendable.” An idea formed in Darmik’s head. It was a long shot, but it might be the only chance they had.

Turning to his men, Darmik ordered everyone to leave. Erikk, Chek, and Borek did as instructed, but Neco remained standing against the wall.

“You too, Neco.”

“Sir,” Neco said, shocked. “Even though the prisoner is chained, I can’t allow you to remain in here, alone.”

Darmik knew it was hard when the king had given an order that Darmik be protected at all times. However, he knew Neco would follow his command over the king’s. “I gave you an order.”

After a long moment, Neco said, “I’ll be right outside if you need me.”

The door
banged shut. The only sound was the heavy breathing from the prisoner.

“Your name, please. I just want to be able to talk to you.”

The rebel glanced at Darmik’s face and spit on the ground.

“Well,
soldier, we seem to have a problem. I have questions, and you have the answers, but neither of us is willing to budge.”

“Are you
Prince Darmik? The commander?” the soldier whispered, breathing hard.

“Yes.”

The man squeezed his eyes shut, then opened them, looking directly at Darmik. “I am prepared to die for my cause.”

“I assumed as much.
”

Darmik twisted the man’s arm, verifying the lack of a mark. The rebel’s wrist was bare, and he
wasn’t wearing an identification band.

“
I’m willing to give you something if you’ll do the same,” Darmik said. He stood and moved closer to the table filled with weapons and continued, “I have a pretty good idea where your base camp is located. It’s only a matter of time before I find it.”

If
the prisoner didn’t go along with Darmik’s plan, Darmik would have to lock him up or have him killed. There was no point in torturing the man—it wouldn’t produce the desired results.

“I also know there’s only one possible heir
, and I’m already working on verifying it.”

Darmik
still hadn’t discovered if the babies weren’t tattooed until age one. If that was the case, then there was no heir. But if they received the tattoo before their first birthday, then Darmik knew the heir was alive—he just had to find her. And he figured if he found the basecamp, he’d find the heir.

Darmik focused on
the prisoner. “If I provide you with a one-man escort, will you take a message to your leader?” Darmik hoped to have someone follow them, thus discovering the base camp’s location.

The man
’s eyes narrowed. “Captors never return to camp. That is one of our orders.”

These rebels were well organized, working under orders. Neco’s theory of an army was beginning to make sense. Without the rebel’s cooperation,
Darmik’s plan wasn’t going to work. He left the room.

“Neco, execute the prisoner,” Darmik
said. A public death was best. Then word would reach the rebel’s leader that Darmik had no mercy for such lawless behavior.

“What reason do you want posted?” Neco asked.

“For not bearing a region mark,” Darmik said. “See that there are stations set up in every town. I want every person checked. Anyone without a mark will be executed on site. Get the word out.”

Rema

Rema
sat on the chair before the fireplace, trying to get warm. She pulled the key out from under her nightdress and lifted it over her head. It left a red mark on her chest where it had been crushed tightly against her body while she was sleeping. When she twisted the key, the light cast from the fireplace gleamed off the ruby, making the entire key appear red. Rema carefully opened it up and stared at the words, trying to decipher them.

REMA

remember to always look

back

and you’ll be

OK

but not at night, only in the

AM

Trust in him,

Your family

Rema still didn’t understand why the key was inscribed with “
REMA
” instead of her real name, Tabitha. Since Rema hadn’t heard her aunt or uncle talk about another Rema, ever, she decided that this necklace was intended for her. However, Uncle Kar and Aunt Maya wouldn’t have said
your family.
Anytime they gave her a gift, like new riding boots, they always said,
Love Uncle Kar and Aunt Maya.
They only ever referred to her parents as
her family,
and never by name. Rema hadn’t thought about it before, but that was odd—to not use her parents’ names. She had always assumed it was too painful to discuss, so her aunt and uncle never talked about them. Was this necklace from her parents?

There was a
hard knock, and Cassie entered. Her eyes were red and swollen, like she had been crying.

“Are you
well?” Rema asked, jumping from the chair and rushing over to her.

“What’s that?” Cassie
snapped, pointing to the necklace clutched in Rema’s hand.

“Nothing,” Rema said, slipping the key around her neck, where it belonged.

“Did Prince Lennek give
it to you?” Cassie harshly asked, moving closer to Rema. Her hand reached out, as if to grab the necklace.

“No,” Rema answered,
taking a step back. “It’s from my family, and it’s none of your concern.”

Cassie laughed, the sound
bitter. “You think you’re so much better than me, don’t you?” Her hands balled into fists. There was a wild look to her eyes. “But you’re not. And when Prince Lennek’s done with you, he’ll discard you like trash.”

Rema knew saying anything would only make matters worse.
Cassie had walked into the room upset over something, and Rema had only further aggravated her.

“He said he wa
s going to marry a commoner,” Cassie whispered. “When he took me to bed, I thought I was special. And it’s not like I could’ve said no. He’s the Crown Prince.” Her eyes filled with tears. “Why you? What makes
you
so special?”

So not only was Cassie carrying Lennek’s baby, but she was also in love with him.

“I don’t know,” Rema shook her head. “I wish I understood Prince Lennek’s motivations, but I don’t.”

Ellie entered
, carrying red fabric draped over her arm. “Everything all right?” she asked.

Cassie turned to face her. “I’m not feeling well.”

“I’ll take it from here. You go and rest,” Ellie said.

Cassie glanced back at Rema. “No matter what he tells you, he’s lying. He can’t possibly love you.”

Rema didn’t respond. Cassie stalked out of the room with her head down.

“Will she
recover?” Rema asked.

Ellie nodded. “She’s a fighter.”

“What’s that?” Rema pointed to the red material.

“It’s your dress for tonight.” Ellie went to the bedchamber and hung the dress up
in the armoire. “But you don’t have to get ready yet,” Ellie said, coming back into the sitting room. “I thought you could use some company since you can’t leave the room.”

“Not even if we t
ake the guards with us?”

Ellie shook her head. “Prince Lennek’s order
s are that you’re not allowed from your room until the party tonight.”

Rema sighed with frustration. All of this inactivity was getting to her. She would give anything to ride a horse right now.

“Do you want to . . .” Rema trailed off. Ellie was staring at Rema’s necklace, her mouth hanging open and eyebrows bent inward. “What is it?”

“I
…um…you…” She scratched her head and glanced away.

“Ellie, is everything all right?”  Rema led Ellie to the settee. “What is it? You can tell me.”

Ellie looked directly into Rema’s eyes. “Where’d you get that necklace?” she asked.

When Cassie had asked the question, Rema knew it was out of jealousy over Lennek.
With Ellie, however, there was something else fueling her desire to know.

“My Aunt Maya gave it to me. It’s a family heirloom.”

Ellie folded her hands in her lap and whispered, “That necklace, there’s no way a merchant’s niece, or daughter, or even wife, would have something that valuable.”

“What are you getting at?” Rema asked.

“Shortly before your arrival,” Ellie said, “I was assigned to be your chambermaid. After completing my work one evening, I was on my way to the servants’ wing when a man stopped me. He wore palace livery, but I had never seen him before.” Ellie took a deep breath. “The man asked if the key had arrived yet. When I told him I didn’t understand, he said that a young lady would arrive wearing a key. He said to tell the bearer that ‘they are waiting.’ And he said to tell you that ‘the code would lead you to him.’ Then he disappeared.”

Rema ran her fingers over the key. “What did he look like?”

“He was about forty years old with long, dark hair and brown eyes. No defining features.”

It
couldn’t have been Uncle Kar. But, who was it? And how did they know about the hidden message in the key? Rema looked at Ellie. Could she trust this girl whom she’d just met?

Since
she was having no luck figuring it out on her own, perhaps with the two of them working together, they could decipher the message. Rema lifted the necklace over her head and opened the key. Ellie leaned in as her eyes widened.

“
I think the code he was referring to is this,” Rema said. She read the inscription to Ellie.

Looking at it
with a fresh perspective, Rema realized it must have been written this way to emphasize certain words. “I think
REMA, back, OK,
and
AM
are important,” she said, since these words stood on a line by themselves.

“It appears so. But why isn’t
back
capitalized like the others?” Ellie asked.

“I don’t know.”

“Let’s look at it line by line,” Ellie said. “They’re telling you to always look back.”

“But look back at what? My life?”
Rema wondered aloud.

“Maybe
it means literally?”

Rema
glanced behind her. “Sorry, all I see is the chair!”

“The part I don’t get,” Ellie said, “is this bit about
only in the AM.
Why not day? Why say
AM
?”

“It must have some significance,” Rema said. “But then there’s this
line about trusting in him. Who’s
him
? And is this
him
the same person the man was referring to when he spoke to you?” There was a knock on the door. Rema closed the key and slid it around her neck, frustrated.

“I’ll keep thinking about it and let you know if I come up with anything.”

“Thank you, Ellie.” Rema felt better with her help.

A guard entered with food.
Ellie took the tray and handed it to Rema. “You’re so lucky,” she whispered.

“What do you mean?”
Rema asked, watching the guard leave. Being locked in a castle and forced to marry was hardly what she considered
lucky
.

“The king is feeding you. And not just bread and water.”

Rema recalled her studies with Aunt Maya. The king established a law that all food grown on the island had to be handed over to the king. Then the food was sold back to the people at an exorbitant rate that hardly anyone could afford. Half the time, the food went bad before making it to the people. Rema’s family had always been fortunate living next to Bren. Since Bren’s family was farmers, they illegally kept enough food for their family as well as Rema’s.

Most were not so fortunate.

But perhaps Rema could take what little influence she had and put it to use, then some good could come out of the horrible situation she was in. “Ellie, if I request food, can you see that it gets out of the castle, to the people who need it?”

The corners of Ellie’s mouth turned up.
“I’m sure something can be arranged. Especially if I am following your orders.”

****

Two guards stood with Rema outside the Grand Hall’s entrance, waiting for Prince Lennek to arrive.

Rema glanced down at herself, fingering the soft
, silk dress. The tight bodice sucked in at her waist and its long sleeves draped to the ground, flowing like water around her feet. Rema hoped she wouldn’t trip, and that her sleeves wouldn’t land in her food.

When
Ellie had first helped Rema put the dress on, there was a “V” shaped slit in the material between her breasts. It revealed so much that little was left to the imagination. Rema refused to wear the dress, but Ellie insisted Rema didn’t have a choice. Prince Lennek had the dress designed for Rema, specifically for this evening. Luckily, Rema knew how to sew—she never thought that particular skill would come in handy. Working together, they managed to close much of the “V” and as a result, most of Rema’s chest was now covered. Still, she had never worn anything this seductive before.

The mousey steward
Arnek approached. His mouth dropped open, and he fluttered his eyelids. “Uh,” he stammered, “Prince Lennek is on his way.”

One guard softly
chuckled, and the other guard shook his head. Both of them were studiously looking anywhere but at Rema. When her guards had first arrived, their eyes got so big Rema thought they would roll right out of their sockets. Ellie laughed, thinking the entire ordeal was funny. Of course, Ellie wasn’t the one wearing the suggestive dress. Since Rema had asked them not to stare, they’d been diligently following her request.

“I’ll just go and see if the prince needs any help.” Arnek tripped over his own f
eet as he hurried away. Even Arnek, who despised her, was taken by the alluring dress.

Rema never imagined wearing something so exquisite, yet,
she felt awkward and out of place. This wasn’t who she wanted to be, and she didn’t like the attention that came with it.

Prince
Lennek strolled forward, his eyes roaming up and down Rema’s body. He nodded in approval, unable to suppress a smile. Lennek wore black pants and a red tunic that matched her dress. The colors complimented his hair and eyes. Under normal circumstances, Rema would’ve told him that he looked handsome. However, things were far from normal, and Rema suspected he already knew. Besides, she hated him. Loathed him. She didn’t want to waste a compliment on one so undeserving.

“Oh Rema,” Lennek happily
cooed. “You exceed my expectations.”

She hated the way his eyes lingered over her body
, like she was a possession instead of a person.

They stood before the doors, waiting to enter the Grand Hall. Rema heard th
e king announce the engagement of his son. When the doors swung open, Rema grabbed Lennek’s arm and forced a smile. Her hands were clammy and shaking, and she feared that she would trip and fall. Even though she despised the prince and hated touching him, she clenched his arm as he led her inside to greet the nobles and courtiers who were dressed in refined, rich clothing.

T
he Grand Hall was ostentatiously decorated with white flowers, the stems wrapped with red, satin fabric. Candles were on the walls, tables, and hanging from the ceiling in chandeliers. All the tables were covered in the same lavish material, matching Rema’s dress. The smells of perfume and food were overwhelming. So many people were present that Rema couldn’t even count.