The Power of The Ruby Ring

by Allison Brown

  Bile rose in Nathan’s stomach.

  “Lane is right.” Briggs’s raspy voice deepened and grew louder. “It is about power! And if all the power you have behind you is that fragile woman with a ruby ring that I just destroyed, then the war is already over—and you lose.”

  “Danni!” Nathan screamed her name, desperate to know what Briggs had done to her. He struggled so hard against his captors that he freed one arm. Two more men stepped in and overpowered him again.

  Briggs laughed, then his voice turned to ice. “You needn’t worry. She isn’t dead yet. I haven’t the strength to even imagine what Lord Donavan would do to me if I killed her before he had the pleasure of meeting her.”

  “What have you done to her?”

  “See for yourself.” Briggs snapped his fingers and another figure stepped from behind a boulder. Lane backed up as the man approached carrying a limp form in his arms. The last of the fading sunset reflected off long auburn hair.

  “Here is your precious Danni.” Briggs chuckled.

  The man dropped her in a heap at Nathan’s feet.

  “Danni!” Nathan’s captors released him and he sank to the ground by her side. He touched her cheek and recoiled at its coolness, then drew her into his embrace and cradled her head. “Help her, Doc!”

  Released from his captors as well, Doc knelt beside her and touched her forehead, her cheek, and then felt her neck. “She is alive,” he glanced at Nathan, “though I have no means to help her.”

  Nathan held her closer and rocked her cradled head.

  “Get them up!” Briggs’s harsh voice shattered the silence into a thousand broken pieces. His men closed in on Nathan’s group and aimed their swords at their chests. Nathan watched them advance, then scooped Danni into his arms and stood. He glanced once more at Lane, who studied his boots. Then Briggs’s men prodded Nathan in the back with their swords, so he stepped forward.

  They were marched down from the hill toward the city, then turned into a wooded area. After a while the woods opened up into a clearing filled with tents and horses. In the dim light, Nathan could make out little else.

  The soldiers took him and the others to the edge of the camp to a cage attached behind a heavily loaded horse cart.

  “Nate!” Will appeared inside the cage and reached his arm through the bars toward him.

  A bit of relief washed over Nathan to see that his friend was well.

  Guards pushed him up the stairs, then unlocked the door. He carried Danni into the cage, followed by the others. He laid her on the floor and tried to make her comfortable. He noticed several things. Her dress, once an elegant portrayal of her royalty, was tattered, ripped, and burned in several places. Her cloak and adorning metalwork belt were gone, most likely stolen by Briggs’s men, or even Briggs himself. Her wrists were raw and a glove no longer covered the ruby ring, though it remained on her finger and shined brilliantly despite the darkness.

  The others watched him in silence.

  When he felt she was as comfortable as he could make her, he removed his own cloak and covered her with it, then he turned to Will.

  Will’s lower lip trembled. “Forgive me, Nate! I…” He hung his head.

  Nathan closed his eyes and let out a long sigh, then he drew Will into his embrace. “It is not your fault, Will.”

  “I failed.”

  Nathan’s despair turned to anger. “No, Will. This is Lane’s fault, not yours!”

  He turned to Doc. “Is there anything more we can do for her?”

  Doc frowned. “I am afraid not. We have no medicine nor food, and she hasn’t regained consciousness. We can do nothing more than to make her comfortable and keep her warm.”

  Nathan sat down beside her and leaned his back against the prison bars. He ran his hand through her tangled hair, pulled out snarls, and smoothed it again.

  He looked at Will. “Tell me everything.”

  Will’s head jerked like he had been slapped and he stared at Nathan. In his wide eyes, Nathan saw terror and revulsion. His stomach clenched and he braced himself for the dreadful story.

  Will took a deep breath, then began. “Our troubles started immediately after we separated from you.” He stopped, and his eyes shone with tears.

  “Please, Will,” Nathan begged. “Tell me.”

  So Will told him of Danni’s torture until sobs drowned out his voice.

  Nathan closed his eyes at the horrors Will described, then he buried his head in his hands.

  No one spoke while he struggled to bear the burden of their suffering. He gazed upon Danni and nearly broke down and cried. She had gone through so much agony and he didn’t know if she could recover from it.

  After some time, Will finally spoke. “What are we going to do, Nate?”

  Nathan coughed to clear the lump in his throat, then he wiped at his nose. He glanced at the others, then at Will. “There is nothing we can do tonight. Get some sleep. Perhaps things will seem a little better in the morning.”

  Nathan heard them curl up on the floor and try to get comfortable. After some time, gentle snores and deep breathing filled the night.

  Alone in the darkness and silence, he stroked Danni’s hair. Guilt tore at his soul as it had with Emma, but he fought it. He had to remain strong this time. If there was any chance to save Danni and free his men, he had to be alert and ready for it.

  Chapter 30

  Their prison jolted forward and Nathan awoke. He blinked in surprise at the bright sun that shone from well above the mountains. For the first time in all the nights he had slept outside, he hadn’t woken with the sun.

  “I am sorry I overslept.” He sat up and assessed the situation. Though they traveled with Briggs’s army, they seemed nearly alone. The wagon took up the rear of the group and was piled so high with supplies that they couldn’t see the driver or the horses that pulled it. He could see the back side of two soldiers who marched near, and a horse and rider galloped toward them, circled the cage, then cantered off again.

  “Here.” Garin handed him a bowl. “It is a sorry excuse for breakfast, but it is all they have given us.”

  The cold lump did not look appetizing, but Nathan ate it anyway. They would have to maintain their strength since they had nothing else to rely on. He sighed and looked at Danni, then at his men. There had to be some way to escape, but he had no hope with six men against nearly sixty. Six men. That couldn’t be right. He sat up straight and counted his companions. Lane, of course, wasn’t with them, but who…? Peter.

  “Colter.” Nathan turned to him. “Where is Peter?”

  Colter turned his head sharply and looked at Nathan with hollow eyes. Then his gaze shifted to Danni’s unconscious form and back to Nathan. Their eyes locked and Nathan felt his breath catch. Something terrible had happened.

  He waited, but Colter remained silent.

  He turned to Will.

  Will closed his eyes and blew out his breath.

  “Where is Peter?” Nathan’s voice rose in fear.

  Will opened his eyes and blinked away the moisture that had again filled them. He swallowed hard. “He didn’t make it, Nate.”

  Nathan stood. “What happened?”

  Will turned away and slammed his fists against the bars.

  Nathan watched his shoulders rise and fall several times. “Will?”

  Will clung to the bars as though they were all that held up his defeated body. After a few deep breaths, he began the tale. “You have to understand that Danni had lost control. She was hysterical and screaming and throwing the ring’s power here and there. And then, it was too much. They pushed her too far.” He turned and faced Nathan, his blue eyes hollow and haunted. His voice shook when he continued. “She gathered all the magic of the ring to her and let it go in one final, desperate attempt to protect the innocent people and a bit struck us by accident. We were blown off our feet and when we got up, Peter was…well he was…there was debris everywhere and part of a wall must have hit him and he…he was
…dead.”

  Nathan stared at Will, unaware that his mouth hung open. Danni had killed Peter. It was too much. He couldn’t believe it, but the look on Will’s face testified to the truthfulness of his words.

  Nathan rubbed his neck and blew out a breath, completely at a loss for words. Surely he should speak to Colter, but there seemed no fitting condolence. Peter was gone. Forever. “I—I am sorry, Colter,” he finally managed, though he knew it was a pathetic phrase that brought no comfort. People had said it to him so many times after Emma’s death. But there was nothing else to say.

  He didn’t know what he would say to Danni if he got the chance either. It would ruin her. It had not been her fault, but she would never forgive herself, as he had never forgiven himself for Emma’s death.

  He sunk to the floor, buried his head in his hands, and massaged his aching temples. When no relief came, he reached out to Danni and stroked her hair.

  He watched over Danni all morning, though she never stirred, and he pondered what his companions had suffered. The others remained silent, probably deep in thought as well. Around noon, the incessant bobbing of their prison stopped.

  Nathan glanced up and found a most unwanted visitor approaching.

  General Briggs swaggered toward them, a nasty smirk on his well nourished face. Nathan’s blood turned to fire. If Briggs wanted Danni, he couldn’t have her. Nathan would die before he let that despicable man near her. He took a step forward and balled his fists. Will, Edward, and Garin joined him.

  Briggs stopped a few meters from the wagon. “So, Nate,” he said as though he addressed an old friend, “how is our beautiful princess today?” His grin broadened into a full smile and his gaze roved over Danni’s unconscious form. “Well, she used to be beautiful, until I broke her.”

  Nathan’s anger boiled over and he charged toward the bars, desperate to reach Briggs and show him how he felt about what he had done to her, but Will and Garin held him back.

  “It isn’t worth it Nate,” Will whispered in his ear. “You can’t do anything anyway. Don’t let him upset you.”

  Briggs chuckled harder at Nathan’s anger, then walked away. His laughter trailed behind him.

  Will patted Nathan’s shoulder but kept a restraining hand on his chest. Nathan released a great huff of air which must have signaled to Will that he had calmed down, because Will released him and sat back down.

  Nathan remained upright and watched Briggs’s retreating form until their cage lurched forward and they moved on again.

  ∞∞∞

  Nathan jerked awake. Sometime in the monotonous afternoon he had drifted off to sleep. By the sun’s position he knew evening approached. The others slept soundly. Danni lay beside him and her head bobbed with the sway of the wagon.

  He couldn’t place what had woken him. Perhaps a large bump in the road. Then he heard a faint moan from Danni and knew that was what had woken him. Her eyebrows crinkled and her breathing became irregular.

  He placed his hand on her cheek. “Danni.”

  Her face turned toward his voice, then her eyelids fluttered.

  “Danni,” he said again. He put his other hand on her face and cupped her head in his hands.

  Her eyelids fluttered again, then opened. He sucked in a breath at the sight of her eyes. Once so startlingly green and vibrant, they were now pale, dull, and gray. They rolled and couldn’t seem to focus, then found his face and held his gaze for a brief moment before they closed again and she lay still.

  He lifted her head to try to wake her again, but she was unconscious.

  He let out a great breath. She had woken up. It was brief, but gave him hope that she might return to him soon.

  He reached under the cloak that covered her and found her arm. Her warm skin comforted him. He pulled her hand from beneath the cloak and stared at the ruby ring. It twinkled in dusk’s fading light with a strength too powerful for her frail body. The blood red ring usually stood out in stark contrast with her emerald eyes, but not that night. He pondered her eyes, then shuddered as he realized they reflected her condition— broken and dying.

  Broken. Everything was broken. Their situation seemed hopeless, yet he continued to search for an escape. There had to be some way out that he hadn’t discovered.

  He searched his mind for anything he might have missed, then he remembered once again the legend of the ruby ring—Danni’s legend. She will wade through sorrow, pain, and the wickedness of the world to gain the strength and courage needed to conquer at last. She had definitely gone through sorrow and pain and had seen more wickedness than she deserved. Then he considered the last words. Strength. Courage. Will had mentioned her remarkable strength several times.

  That was it. He reached his hand out and brushed it along her pale cheek. She was powerful. He had been amazed at her abilities when she saved him, but he couldn’t fathom the strength Will had described when she had lost control.

  A plan formed in his head, but to his displeasure it revolved completely around her. He wanted her to be left alone. He wanted her to never suffer again, but he feared she was their only chance. All their lives—including her own—were at the mercy of the power of the ruby ring.

  Chapter 31

  Nathan’s men began to stir a few minutes later. He reviewed his plan and waited for them to fully wake.

  Doc stretched and Will yawned. The others opened their eyes and sat up.

  Nathan glanced around to make sure there were no soldiers within hearing range. There were none, and even the wagon driver couldn’t see or hear them over the enormous pile of supplies, the clopping horse hoofs, and the clattering wagon wheels. The area seemed clear. “I may have a plan.”

  Each man perked up and shifted a bit closer to him.

  “Um, Nate?” Will nodded at Nathan’s hand that still held Danni’s. “You might want to be cautious. Her ring really does burn. I watched Briggs touch it twice. Only a great featherhead like himself would be fool enough to touch it twice.”

  “Believe me, Will. I know how it burns. You are right to be careful, though.” He felt for her other hand and pulled it from the cloak. A tattered glove covered it. With great care, he pulled the ragged glove off, slipped it over her right hand, and checked that the ring was covered. “There.”

  “Thank you. I feel better now.”

  Nathan studied each man and again pondered the risks of using Danni. She was weak and might be injured more by the plan, but there was no other way.

  “There seems to be no hope,” he began. “They haven’t opened this cage once while we’ve been here and I doubt they plan to. We cannot escape.”

  Their stares turned blank.

  Nathan leaned in closer. “I have a plan, though I do not like it. I fear we must use Danni. We will rebuild her strength. You heard from Will what she is capable of. After all she has done, it should be simple to break these bars, and then we can escape.”

  The expressions on the others’ faces clearly said they doubted his sanity.

  They sat in silence for a moment until Will finally spoke. “Nate. She hasn’t even moved in two days.”

  Nathan smiled and shook his head at Will. “You are wrong. She has moved. Not fifteen minutes ago she opened her eyes and looked at me. She lost consciousness immediately, but she was there for a moment.”

  He took a deep breath and again checked the vicinity. “For now, we are on the same path we would take to the Central Palace, and we are moving faster than we would on foot. In about three days we will reach the crossroad where they will turn south toward Donavan’s castle and we need to turn north toward the Central Palace. That gives us three days to get Danni strong enough.”

  He paused to see if anyone desired to speak. Apparently they were still too stunned by his plan.

  “They give us little food,” he continued. “Danni needs nourishment, so I suggest we each save some food for her. When she wakes up for brief moments like she did a few minutes ago, we give it to her. She doesn’t have to be
completely healed to break these bars. It shouldn’t take much strength, considering what she has done these past few days.”

  Nathan glanced at each man and lowered his voice to a whisper. “We cannot let Briggs find out. If he sees her improve at all, he will take her and torture her again.”

  Silence.

  Then Doc sighed. “It is dangerous, Nathan. She is so fragile. If she did too much she could die.”

  Nathan took a deep breath. He knew the risk—oh, how he knew. But he also knew that she would die if they sat there and did nothing. “I know, Doc. I hate to put the risk on her, but if we don’t escape soon, we will all die, even her.”

  The men nodded.

  “All in favor?” Nathan asked.

  One by one, each hand raised. Despite his brave words, Nathan’s hand was the last to rise.

  ∞∞∞

  Darkness fell upon the camp. Night sounds filled the air. Mice scampered about and owls hooted while the soft light of a sliver moon bathed the night with a gentle glow.

  Nathan stared through the darkness with his back against the bars to keep himself wide awake. He did not want to miss the next time Danni stirred. His men had saved a portion of their meager supper and some water for her when she woke again.

  His mind drifted back to the first time he met her. Her beauty had startled him and her eyes mesmerized him. The more he got to know her, the harder it became to fight his emotions. He couldn’t resist her genuine goodness and humility, her kindness and charity, and the strength he saw deep within her—the strength he knew had sustained her through Briggs’s torture. When he had lost her, he could no longer deny how strongly he had grown to care for her. He could not imagine his life without her in it.