Again, the wood moaned. The holes in the side of the ship caused a spiderweb effect of cracks along the sides. The windows in the cabin below broke out of the panes, sent to free fall into the ocean waters. Alara felt the top deck sway back and forth as they took on more speed with every bit of magic Iren could muster.
The ship swayed, and Alara heard Iren scream from behind her. “Get to the side. I can’t hold it any longer.”
Alara chanced a look behind them. The fleet that had destroyed their ship closed in fast. They needed to get off of it and get to land. The sooner they did, the better the chance they could lose their attackers within the trees.
“Look there.” Declan pointed to a cliff not far from where they were. “Go that way. We can jump to the cliff and avoid the water.”
Iren gave the prince a nod and closed his eyes. He held the side of his head with his hands as if the pressure against his temples relieved some of the pain. Sweat coated his skin, which looked paler by the minute. “Move quickly.” He panted between his words.
“You’re coming with us,” Scarlett told him.
“Yes, …of course. I’ll let go of the ship at the last minute, which will be after Alara and Declan are safely on land.” He struggled.
Alara knew better than to argue. Everyone had agreed, and she knew they would all be more concerned with her safety than their own. The best way to help them would be to hurry, not fight. She nodded at Scarlett, who gave her a stern look.
“I’m going.” She turned to find Declan standing at the bow with an outstretched hand to her. Just as she tried to grab it, the ship hit the side of the cliff. “What’s happening?”
They were all thrown to the deck as the ship began toppling over. Iren concentrated as best he could, but the wood groaned underfoot, and the vessel collapsed within itself.
Another boom made Alara look behind them. A massive cannon blast headed right for them.
“They’re firing on us!” she yelled.
Cedric pulled himself from the deck, moved toward Alara, and swept her into his arms. He ran as fast as he could with her clinging to his side. One foot lifted, landing on the railing of the ship, and he propelled himself and the queen over it, onto the cliff. He hoisted Alara to the safety of the grass above them but lost his momentum. He found himself hanging by a hand down the side of the cliff as the ship collapsed into the water.
“Declan!” Alara screamed.
A tidal wave of water rushed up the side of the cliff from the impact of the wood hitting the surface.
She scurried to the edge and wrapped both of her hands around Cedric’s wrists. “Look at me.” She coaxed him to look up instead of at the waves below. “He’s fine. We will find him once we get you to safety.”
He nodded, and she could see the tears welling in his eyes. It only lasted a fraction of a minute, but they were there. With one blink, they disappeared.
Cedric found his footing within the rock, and placing his feet in it, he hoisted himself over the edge. The angle of the cliff made it difficult for him to climb. His lower body was tucked under the rim, where Alara held onto Cedric’s hands.
She closed her eyes. She couldn’t lose him. Not again. No matter what truth, the others believed. If there were even a small hope that he was back, she would not let go. She concentrated hard on the position of his body, the breeze off the water, the cannon fodder in the distance, and blocked it all out. All she knew was the feeling of his hands in hers. The heat of his skin seared her and filled her to her core.
“What’s happening?” Cedric's head whipped around as his feet came free of the wall. He moved up, floating.
Alara concentrated as she had when she needed to heal herself. Desperation fueled her magic as it had then, and Cedric was soon far enough over the cliff that he slid his foot over the ledge and pulled himself up. She lost hold of the magic as he grasped a tree root of an oak overhanging the ridge.
“Thanks.”
Alara was thrown backward as her hands let loose from his. She moved quickly to help him as he hooked his foot up and over, and then the other.
“You okay?” she asked.
When he nodded, she went to the edge and gazed below. She anticipated a sign of the other three in the water but saw nothing. She caught a glimpse of Scarlett’s red cloak and saw the girl underneath it, crawl to shore.
“Come, Lara, we need to get to him.”
Alara whipped around to Cedric as he spoke. Shock rang in her ears.
“What did you say?”
“We need to get down there, now.” He grabbed her by her hand, and she let him move her from the edge.
She shook her head. She knew what she heard. Tomas had only ever called her Lara when they were alone. He was always proper in front of others. She was Alara the Queen, and pet names were for the privacy of their own rooms.
Instead of focusing on it, however, she let Cedric pull her to her feet and down the other side of the embankment by way of a trail. Wildflowers grew on either side of the path, and they kept to the middle. If times were different, they would have been more careful. Neither one wanted to go slow. Alara was glad for the tenth time in so many days for the low-heeled boots but realized her cloak remained with the broken ship.
Cedric slowed as they neared large boulders. He ducked down behind them, pulling her to his side.
“What are we doing?” Alara asked.
“Shh, look.”
Men wearing red guard’s uniforms walked by. They were obviously headed towards the shipwreck below.
“What are we gonna do? Even if Declan is okay, he can’t handle five guards on his own. Not after dropping into the ocean.” Her eyes pleaded with him, but he only tugged on her hand slightly and smiled.
“I don’t intend to let any of them get that close to our boy.” He kissed the knuckles of her hand and let her go. Brandishing his sword, he snuck behind the guards and did something Alara had not seen him do once since she’d met him.
Three men walked ahead of the other two. Shoulder to shoulder, with hands on their weapons at their sides, they were ready for anything.
With stealth and speed, Cedric swept behind the guards. He tapped one on the right shoulder and ducked, tapping the other on the left. When the guards looked at each other accusingly, Cedric came behind them and pushed their heads, clanking their helmets together. The men dropped to the ground, but the other three heard the noise and turned in time to see Cedric swing his sword in front of him.
He stabbed at one and turned his body, landing his foot in the gut of another, all while dipping his torso under a blow from the third.
The first man fell with a thump to the ground. Cedric pulled his sword from the man’s trunk and held it in front of the other two. He moved with such grace; it was as if he were composing choreography for a grand event. One went high with his sword, while the other tried to get behind Cedric.
Cedric ducked, sliding his foot in a complete circle under the second man’s feet, who landed on his backside with a thud. While the first man attempted to redeem his posture from his miss, Cedric had enough time to fall his weapon into the man’s chest, who stared up at him. Then he turned, sword raised overhead and swiped it at the other man’s neck with just the tip of the blade. His throat opened, spraying blood everywhere.
The other two had recovered, but before they could reach Cedric, Alara jumped from behind the boulder. She impaled the first one in his back. The long blade went through his chest, and the soldier just stared down at the sword in disbelief before she removed it, spun around, and sliced the second guard’s head from his body. She stood facing Cedric, whose smile was so big, she couldn’t help the laugh that escaped her.
“Nice job, my lady.” He bowed, mocking her.
Another trait of her belated husband. Instead of commenting on it, she pushed on.
“Thank you. Let’s go.” She wiped her sword on the tunic of one of the dead guards, placing it back in the sheath at her side.
E
ven going downhill, it took longer than either of them had expected. The path veered too far inland, so they were forced to walk off the trail, keeping close to the shore. The ship that had fired on theirs stopped moving. The anchor let down into the water, and smaller boats were loaded with men to bring them to shore.
Alara stopped long enough to look at the beach.
Scarlett leaned over the still body of Declan. She pushed on his chest, and water rushed out of his mouth.
Alara felt a tear escape her eye when she blinked, and it ran down her face. She didn’t bother wiping it away before she grabbed Cedric by the shirt sleeve to pull him down the remainder of the steep terrain. Before they made it to the beach, they saw men pulling their small boats onto the embankment.
Scarlett looked around, frightened. She moved, leaving Declan lying in the sand, and hid behind an overturned tree in front of Alara and Cedric. Cedric pulled Alara out of sight behind a standing oak. She moved reluctantly.
“Twenty men, Alara. We may be able to take five, but not that many!” he whispered as she pulled from his grasp.
“Then what do we do? Let them take him?” Tears freely fell down her face.
“Yes, there is no other option. Talia needs him. She won’t risk hurting him,” he said, trying to convince them both.
“I pray you’re right, because if you’re not, and she hurts even one hair on his head, Tomas or no, you’ll meet the same fate.” She glared at him sideways.
“Duly noted.” Cedric nodded in agreement, then he watched as one of the men pulled the unconscious prince from the beach and hoisted him over his shoulder.
Another yelled from down shore some ways. Whatever he said was lost to Alara. They were too far. She saw the man overturn a body with his foot, shake his head, and walk away. All of the men returned to the boats and headed back to their ship, taking Declan with them.
When she realized she’d been holding her breath, she let it escape her lungs before looking where Scarlett still sat, hunched low to the ground. She gazed in the direction of the old man lying on the beach.
They couldn’t risk going to him until the men were farther out to sea. However, Scarlett didn’t seem to care. She unhooked her red cloak and bolted from behind the tree towards Iren, all while looking toward the boats in the water.
“They have the prince. They won’t come back for commoners. They probably thought Iren was a fisherman caught in the wreck,” Cedric said, righting himself. He held out his hand for her to take.
Alara stood, straightened her shirt and belt, and moved around Cedric’s outstretched hand. The last few steps down the embankment were steep, but she managed without falling over, and Cedric remained close by. When she reached flat land, she took off in a run, looking over once to see the small boats had reached the massive ship and emptied. She flung herself down at Iren’s side when she reached him, partly out of worry for him, and somewhat out of exhaustion.
“Is he?” She couldn’t bring herself to ask.
Scarlett shook her head. “No, they didn’t bother with him. He is weak. I don’t know if he will be able to make it far.”
Cedric walked up behind them. “We just need to get him into Esix. From there, we can get him on a ship to Idrisi.”
Alara’s brows creased in question. “Why would he go there?”
“He needs to rest; to regain his strength. He can’t do that if he’s traveling all over the place with us. We don’t even know where we're going.”
Alara stood quickly and glanced back and forth between the two. “I know where I’m going. To get my son.”
It was Scarlett’s turn to make her see reason. “What are you going to do, hmm? Storm the palace gates, just you and your sword? The only thing that will accomplish would be to get you killed. We need backup.”
“Backup?” Cedric asked the dark-haired girl.
“Yes, and I know just where we can get some,” Scarlett said, and Alara thought she saw the girl’s eyes glint red.
“MOVE!” Talia screamed at the staff who got in her way as she ran from her chambers to Declan’s.
She’d been out of sorts for days.
Landon turned up ill the afternoon of the coronation, postponing the entire thing. Then to her surprise, Declan was found on the shore of Esix. He was unconscious but alive. Something in Talia woke then. When they brought her the news he’d been delivered to his room, she began her tirade through the palace to get to him.
“There he is. My son is finally home,” she said, falling to his bedside. She took his hand in hers and brought it to her face to feel the warmth of him, making sure he still lived. “Get the healer. Now!” she screamed to no one in particular, raising on her knees to brush his hair from his forehead. “What has happened to you, my son?”
Landon entered the room behind Talia.
Layana stood close by the door but remained in the hall.
“I see my brother has arrived home, finally.”
Talia turned to see him standing there. “I see you’re feeling better.” She held out her free hand to him, beckoning him to her side. When he obliged, she took him into an embrace, pulling him to the floor beside her. “Both of my boys are with me again.” She looked between Landon and Declan.
“How is he? Your son?” Landon shot out, a small bit of jealousy piercing Talia like a knife.
“I gave him life when I conceived you and my potion gave him leave to grow. I raised him as my son. Would you have me abandon him to her?” She sneered at him.
“No, I suppose not.” He let his head fall.
“It’s okay. You are both my boys. You will be king, and he will be at your side.” She watched as Declan slept and held tightly to Landon.
They sat close to Declan’s bedside for what felt like all day. When Landon asked to be excused, Talia let him go with a kiss on his brow.
He looked back only once to see his mother straightening his brother’s blanket and fuss over him before he stepped out of the room.
Layana waited for him, sitting on a nearby bench in the hall. Her maid stood close by, near an open window. They walked down the hall before either made a noise. When she finally did, it was more of an audible sound than any words, but Landon understood her meaning. Something was not right.
They stopped when they reached her room. “Do you want to come in? We could have tea and talk about it.” She didn’t look at him but instead played with a long section of her hair that continued to fall over the front of her shoulder.
“No, I think I’m going to go for a walk.” Landon bowed before turning on his heel and wandering off.
He didn’t want to think about what they had spoken of earlier. A resemblance to the king. Not just his brother’s, but his own. That was to be expected, which was his answer. Then she pointed out the resemblance they both had to Alara, and how neither of them looked anything like Talia.
What Layana suggested wasn’t possible, and he’d told her as much. Layana looked at him cross-eyed. “Landon, she’s a witch, born a sorceress and made the heir of Iren of Ikrith. She has more power than even the great sorcerer himself has. She’s capable of anything, why not that?”
He’d shook his head. He couldn’t believe he’d done everything for her because she was his mother, only to find out he’d been fooled. To find out he was used as another pawn in Talia’s games. He just couldn’t figure out her end game. He’d have to wait till Declan woke. Then he would ask his brother if his brother would even speak to him.
“Landon?” Talia broke him from his thoughts. He stopped thinking and took a good look around at where he’d gone. Returning to his brother’s room wasn’t what he had in mind, but there he was. His mother seemed to have just left, though she looked agitated.
“Yeah, I guess I wasn’t paying attention to where I was going.” Shifting on his feet, he straightened his back.
“It’s just as well. Now you can walk me to the council room. I need to conduct a meeting.” She held out her arm, hinting for her son to a
llow her to take his and lead her to the council chamber. He lifted his arm, so his elbow jutted outward. She hooked her hand through it and placed the flat of her palm against his wrist. “Our plans can move forward. We have an army and your brother. Now we can go to Grandin.”
Shock overwhelmed him, but he managed a stoic approach with his questioning. He needed to be careful not to upset Talia’s balance of things, not until he spoke with Declan. “Grandin? Why would we go there?” He led her to a staircase, slowing at the foot so she could lift the hem of her dress.
“There is a great power deep within the lands of Grandin. A power that even the people there don’t know about.”
Landon saw her wide grin and eyes then. She was definitely excited about the prospects of gaining such power.
“But to go means to deal with those people. We hardly know what they are. Or have you sent scouts to take care of that too?” He thought for a moment. “The missing villagers,” he said, so low he didn’t realize she’d heard him.
“What do you know of the villagers?” she snapped, pulling her arm from him in the middle of the staircase. She took two deliberate steps ahead of him to look down at her son.
“Only what Alara’s companion stated. That several villages were told they had to volunteer their services. She said many never returned.” He looked ahead of them, then behind before continuing. “Did you send them to the wastes to figure out what creatures live there?”
She didn’t try to hide it, and she held no remorse. “Yes.” It was that simple for her. No further commentary was needed or wanted since she picked the hem of her dress up once again and ascended the stairs alone.
Landon quickly followed behind. He thought about what she’d just confirmed. Had she sent the nobles there? No, she must have them elsewhere. The villagers, however, would be gone. All of them that never returned would never see their homes again.
Alara's Curse Page 20
