by Sophie Stern
Edward might be the king, but something tells me that Wyatt has thought of everything.
We’re walking in blind, but he’s going to be prepared for us.
“Wyatt has an amulet,” I tell Edward as we stride toward the castle in unison. “That means mine is basically useless against him,” I say. If he uses his own amulet, he’s going to see me. No matter where I am, he’ll notice me. Unless I can manage to sneak up behind him, that is. Wyatt is tricky, but even an amulet won’t let him see what’s behind his back.
“Only against him, though. Other creatures won’t be able to see you,” Edward says. “You’ll still want to use it.”
“What other creatures? How many do you think he has? Do you think he’s even actually in the castle?” My mind seems to be working in overdrive now. I hate that. I hate how there are so many different thoughts screaming through my mind when I should really be focused on just one thing: getting to the castle.
“Yeah,” Edward tells me, slinking along a wall. He peers around the edge and motions for me to follow him. We’re darting through the town like a couple of teenagers who are sneaking around after curfew, but I suppose that’s basically what we are right now. We’re not supposed to be here. We’re not supposed to be wandering around Dark Falls like we own the place. We’re supposed to be dead or locked in the dungeon, but we’ve moved past all of that.
“What kind of creatures?” I ask.
“Demons, for one,” Edward says.
I scurry across an alley and duck into a doorway as someone pushes a cart past. They pay no attention to the couple in the doorway, which is good because both Edward and I can go for a little privacy right about now.
“You think he has demons?”
“It explains a lot.”
“You think he’s the one who’s been setting them free,” I say.
“I do.”
“But why demons?”
“They’re dumb and easy to control,” Edward says. “It wouldn’t take much bribery to get them to do what he wants. Besides, keeping the potion from people is enough to scare everyone. When people are scared, they’re better at following orders.”
“I suppose you’re right.”
“I’m definitely right.”
“Cocky.”
“Always,” he winks, and grabs my hand, pulling me along as we scurry toward the castle. It seems wrong, somehow, that we’re running back to the place we just escaped from, but after a good night’s rest and a good evening of fun-filled activities, I feel recharged and regenerated and ready to move forward and stop Wyatt.
If we can.
I’m not under any impression that this is going to be easy or simple. After all, Wyatt has had years to plan this. Edward and I have had only hours. Some of those hours we spent losing ourselves in one another. Some of those hours we spent trying to forget the pain of losing everything we love.
Of losing everyone we love.
And it felt good.
Right.
Wonderful.
I should feel regretful, perhaps, that my first time was in the secret house of a renegade wizard, but I don’t. What happened between us was so perfect that I don’t think I could feel bad even if I wanted to.
So I don’t.
And I move along with him.
Edward leads us to house that’s a few blocks from the castle.
“Another secret entrance?” I ask. He just smiles and shrugs. Then he knocks on the door three times quickly, two times slowly, and four times quickly.
The door flies open.
A little old woman stands inside. It’s dark inside the home, and it’s hard to see very much, but she smiles at Edward as though it’s her long-lost grandson that she hasn’t seen in ages.
“Henrietta,” he says, smiling at her.
She bows quietly, but does not speak.
“It’s time.”
Henrietta steps aside. Edward and I move into the little house. Once we’re inside, I can see that this really is a grandmotherly-type of home. It’s filled with books and trinkets and blankets and pillows. It’s the perfect place to spend a winter afternoon. I imagine that Henrietta likes to curl up on her sofa with a cat and a book and perhaps a cup of hot tea.
She closes the door behind us and motions for us to follow her into the next room. There’s only one thing in the room: a large wardrobe. I look around, but there’s nothing else. There are no pictures on the walls: no other furniture. Henrietta stands quietly just inside the doorway and looks at Edward in surprise. She looks like she can’t quite believe that he’s here.
“It’s still here,” she says.
“I can’t thank you enough,” Edward murmurs. He pats Henrietta on the shoulder like a dear friend, and then he steps forward.
“What’s this?” I ask.
“An emergency plan,” Edward says. “My father and Henrietta were friends.” Henrietta smiles, and nods.
“He was a good man,” she says. “And a good king.”
“She agreed to protect this in case I ever needed it,” Edward explains.
Unless he’s got a unicorn in that wardrobe, I’m not sure how it’s going to help us breach the castle. Wyatt likely has guards in place. He’s definitely got some sort of plan of action. He’s going to have to announce to the world that Edward is either dead or a traitor and that he, Wyatt, has done the noble thing and stepped up in Edward’s place.
Edward pulls the doors to the wardrobe open and inside there are an assortment of weapons, as well as a few magical charms that can help us get close to our targets. Wyatt already has an amulet of invisibility. We’re going to need at least a few magical tokens if we’re going to even have a chance to getting close to him.
And oh, I want to get close to him.
I may not have known Edward for a long time, but I’m deeply connected to him now, and I hate the idea that he was betrayed by someone who was supposed to be trustworthy. He was pushed aside by someone who was supposed to be his best friend, who was supposed to have his best interests at heart.
That’s not okay with me.
“What is it?” I ask, gesturing toward the wardrobe in the room.
“Everything we could possibility need,” he says. He reaches in and pulls out a few charms. He slips them into his pocket and hands me a couple, too. I don’t even glance at them. I just take them and shove them deep into the pocket of my pants. I trust Edward if he says this is what we need right now.
He gives me a couple of daggers and those I tuck carefully inside my cloak. There’s a bow, arrows, and a sword, but he leaves those and instead goes for a few smaller items.
“These will be easier to carry,” he tells me. “And more discreet.”
Edward closes the doors to the wardrobe and turns back to Henrietta. I’m surprised when he wraps his arms around her and pulls her in tight for a sweet hug.
“Thank you,” he whispers. “For everything.”
Henrietta cups his cheek and smiles.
“For you, dear, anything,” she tells him.
“And the pathway?” He asks.
“Still clear,” she says. She motions to a discolored floorboard and stomps on it with one foot. Sure enough, it sounds hollow. Henrietta reaches down and pulls the boards aside so we can climb down into what must be a tunnel directly to the castle.
How many secret entrances does one king need?
Apparently, Edward’s father was a little paranoid, but it’s definitely paying off since we’re going to be able to sneak easily into the castle now.
“Thank you,” I say to Henrietta, and she hugs me, too.
“Take good care of him, love,” she tells me. “He’s a keeper.”
I look at Henrietta’s bright, beautiful eyes and her wrinkled skin and the years of happiness that she must have felt with her own mate, and I nod.
“I promise,” I tell her.
Then I follow Edward into the secret tunnel.
Chapter 15
Edward
> The tunnel is dark, infested with spiders, and cold, but Rose and I scurry through it as quickly as we can and soon, we’re in the art room of the castle. We exit from behind a painting and I carefully slide it back into place. As far as I know, I’m the only one left alive who knows about that entrance.
Well, and Rose now, too.
“Where to?” She asks.
“The throne room,” I groan.
Perhaps it would be more kingly for me to conduct royal business in a private chamber or even an office; however, Wyatt is a cocky bastard, so it’s my guess that he’s definitely tucked himself away in a most obvious place, which is probably the throne room. It’s where I would go to steal a kingdom, if I was the stealing type.
As it is, the only thing I want to steal is Rose’s heart.
We reach the entrance of the art room and we look around. We don’t see anything. There’s no one here. I’m not sure where everyone has gathered, but that doesn’t quite matter. Once we kill Wyatt, we’ll be able to get rid of his troops easily. Where there’s no leader, there’s no army. They simply won’t be able to stay organized, and I don’t think the demons we’re facing are intelligent enough to elect a new leader on their own.
Rose follows as I guide her down one incredibly empty hallway. Then we go down another. The castle is mystifying and difficult to move through until you know the layout of each floor. My father wanted to make it difficult for intruders to find their way around and he definitely succeeded. The layout of the castle makes no sense and is quite strange. Maybe once I have my kingdom back, I’ll make some changes.
As it is, we manage to make our way to the throne room. Outside of the doors are two guards. To my surprise, they aren’t demons. They’re fairies. More than that, they’re female fairies. One of them I recognize as a woman who tries to flirt with me. Suddenly, I’m very glad that I didn’t give in to her even when I was lonely, or sad.
She would have killed me in my sleep, I bet, and all for Wyatt.
The guards turn and notice us. Rose moves to spin the amulet, but it’s too late. The charms aren’t going to work when we’re this close to other people, anyway. They’re more effective when you want to sneak up on someone: not when you’re standing directly in front of them.
“You!” One of the fairies says, and she lifts a dagger and throws it. Rose and I dodge the knife and I throw one of my own. It hits the fairy in the chest and she falls, clutching the dagger. The other fairy looks at us, drops her knives, and runs.
Rose looks at me, silently questioning whether I’m going to kill her or even hunt her down, but I’m not. I won’t. Not this time. Not like this. There has been enough death today. One fairy dying is already too much. Who knows how many others Wyatt has killed over the years? I think back to friendships that have waded away, to people who silently vanished from the castle, and I think of all the excuses he made to me about it.
He would tell me stories about places people went. He would say they quit, or they got sick, or they had an ill family member that required tending. Sometimes he’d make up fantastical stories, but something tells me that all of that, every bit of it, was fake.
Every bit of it was a lie.
Every bit of it was designed to keep me in the dark about my own kingdom.
And the embarrassing thing is that it worked. I should have known. I think it’s obvious that I should have known. I should have realized what was happening. What kind of king doesn’t know that his advisor is a huge asshole?
I failed my kingdom, but I’m going to make up for it right now.
I march to the doors, look over at Rose, and nod.
This is it.
This is the moment.
I don’t know what we’re going to face when we walk through those doors, but I know it’s not going to be good. No matter what happens, no matter what comes after this, at least I’ll know that I did everything I could to redeem myself. I don’t want my legacy to be one of fear and pain and loss.
I want people to remember me as the king who tried.
Rose comes up beside me. I look at her, and when I do, I see more than just a random lady I met in a dungeon. She’s not just a girl who tried to save her sister. She’s a woman who is fearless. She’s a woman who has an endless supply of courage. She’s got more than enough to share. When I look at her, I know that she believes in me. That in itself is its own reward.
That in itself is enough to give me the strength I need to keep trying.
I push the doors open and I step inside.
THE THRONE ROOM IS usually a sort of empty place. I don’t spend much time there. Why would I? I have enough to do around the castle: signing papers, working on documents, helping citizens with their questions. Sitting in the throne room is something I only do for ceremonies, so it’s a bit of a shock when I walk into the room and see that it’s packed.
Only, it’s not full of citizens.
It’s full of demons.
They line the walls of the room. There must be fifty of them. Maybe more. They all turn when I walk into the room, but they don’t move. They don’t flinch. They don’t try to hurt me and they certainly don’t run away.
“Oh shit,” Rose says beside me.
She’s right, too.
Shit indeed.
She spins the amulet and vanishes from sight. I don’t think Wyatt saw her. His own amulet is hanging from his neck and I can see him clearly, so I know he hasn’t spun his own. He’s too cocky for that now, or perhaps he’s waiting until he’s ready to kill me. Then he’ll spin it and be able to attack me without consequence.
I know that the demons definitely didn’t see Rose vanish. They’re much too focused on me right now. They’re much too intent on staring at the man who used to be their king.
The two rows of demons continue along the length of the room. At the opposite end of the room from the door we entered through is a large throne. There’s only one. There were two, long ago, but I had Cheryl’s throne removed after she passed away. It seemed strange to sit alone in the room. It seemed cruel.
Now I’m not surprised to see that the throne is empty. Wyatt is sitting there. He’s wearing white robes and his wings are out and spread. They’re white, like the pale color of his hair, and they glisten even in the dim light.
“Ah,” he says, smiling at me. “I wondered when you’d arrive. Please,” he motions to the room. “Do come in.”
“Should I be surprised you knew I would come here?” I ask, walking toward the traitor. He just grins: a ruthless smile.
“Of course not. I know you better than you know yourself, Edward.”
“That’s King Edward to you.”
“Not anymore,” Wyatt shakes his head. He motions to himself, to his body. “I believe the position of king has been taken by another, my friend.”
“You won’t be up there for long,” I tell him.
“I believe you don’t understand how power works, Edward,” Wyatt says. He stands and steps down from the throne. He takes a few steps toward me, sneering. I’m well aware of the fact that every demon in the room has tensed. They’re all paying careful attention. Now is not the time for me to try to be smart or vicious or to attack Edward. Were I to be stupid enough to do so, he would have my head in an instant.
I want my kingdom back.
I don’t want to die.
“And I believe you don’t understand how loyalty works,” I retort.
“Loyalty? You want to talk about loyalty?” Wyatt sneers, irritated. Yeah, I’d say I hit a sore spot right there. He doesn’t understand the first thing about loyalty, but I’d bet he somehow feels wronged or betrayed right now. He probably thinks that somehow, everything that’s happened is not his fault at all.
I raise an eyebrow, but say nothing. Wyatt is about to start ranting, and I’m fine with that. It gives me a chance to check my surroundings. Rose isn’t visible to me right now. When we entered the room, she spun her amulet. I can sense her presence, but I’m not sure where
she is. Maybe she’s trying to sneak up on Wyatt. I don’t know. I just hope that whatever she’s doing doesn’t get her killed.
Now that I have her, I don’t think I could possibly live without her ever again. I’ve already lost one love. The idea that I might find another woman to share my life with seems impossible. Whether it’s Rose’s cleverness, craftiness, or the unbreakable mating bond we now share, all I know is that without her, life will be empty and unkind.
Life will be cruel.
“Loyalty is when you don’t start dating the woman your friend loves,” Wyatt says.
Cheryl.
He’s talking about Cheryl.
“You didn’t have to kill our son,” I say, because now that I know the truth about what he did, I can’t un-know it. Wyatt stole so much from me. He took our little boy. He took my wife. He took our family. Everything Cheryl and I ever wanted, everything we could have had: it’s gone. It’s all gone because of him.
As much as I want to move forward and think about the positive things in my life, like my bright future with Rose, I’m also forced to wrestle with the fact that a fairy stole my darling bride.
He stole my child. He stole the crown prince. He stole the child that was supposed to rule the kingdom after I die.
And now Wyatt has done more than that.
He’s taken everything.
It may have taken him years, but slowly, bit-by-bit, he has made it his mission to destroy me.
And he’s done a wonderful job of it.
I don’t like admitting that he’s conquered the kingdom. I don’t like knowing that he’s destroyed everything, but I especially don’t like the knowledge that this is all because of a childhood crush.
“She didn’t love you,” I say.
“You knew I liked her,” Wyatt says. He looks like a petulant child about to stomp his foot.
“This isn’t the schoolyard,” I hiss. “This is a kingdom, Wyatt. This is everything.”
