Prince of Shadow and Ash

by Selina R. Gonzalez

  He released her and stepped back. She fell on her hands and knees, gasping for air and coughing. Her throat felt raw, like she had been screaming. Her neck ached and throbbed. She looked up in fear as she struggled to catch her breath. But Regulus had withdrawn a couple feet and collapsed to his knees on the ground. He rested his arms on his legs, palms up, his left hand dripping blood, and stared at the floor.

  Dresden, one hand clutching his head, staggered over. He hesitantly put a hand on Regulus’ shoulder. Regulus flinched, but otherwise didn’t move.

  Adelaide healed her neck and dropped her hands to the cool stone. As her breathing evened out, she eyed Regulus, trying to determine if he had regained control. His cheeks glistened in the sunlight, and she realized he was crying.

  She moved closer, swallowing back her fear. That wasn’t him. Regulus wouldn’t hurt her. Not as himself. Slowly, she reached for him. “Regulus...”

  He drew back from her touch. “Don’t,” he whispered. “Don’t come close.”

  She looked at her hand and pulled it back. “Oh. Right. I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to—”

  “What?” Regulus looked up, his brow furrowed above watery eyes. “Why are you apologizing?”

  She swallowed, her mouth still dry. “For hurting you.”

  Bewilderment showed in his expression. “You...think I blame you?” He laughed, but it was a bitter, angry sound. “You tried to help. Then I...” He choked and looked away. “I hurt you. I’m sorry. I feared something like this would happen.” He hung his head, his chin resting on his chest. “I should have stayed far away from you. I should have ended this before it began.”

  She wrapped her arms around her torso as his words slashed into her heart. Her gaze dropped to the stone floor. “You wish we didn’t know each other?”

  “Maybe the sorcerer would have picked someone else if you hadn’t been with me when he searched for a mage. Now you’re part of my mess. Now you’re in danger.” His voice seemed small in the vast hall.

  She moved closer to him. Blood pooled on his left hand. If she attempted to heal it, would her magic clash with the sorcery within him again? It hadn’t last time she healed him. But the fury in his eyes as he had strangled her made her hesitate. Coward.

  “I’ve tried everything to break the bond.” Regulus clenched his fists. The muscles in his neck bulged with tension. Understanding of the scars on his arm dragged her heart down to her gut. “I can’t even die.” The whispered words hung in the air between them.

  Dresden paced back and forth behind Regulus’ bent form, his hands clasped behind his back. “You have to help him. The sorcerer said if Regulus brings you to him, his debt will be repaid. He will be free.”

  Regulus shook his head. “He could be lying.”

  “Here.” Adelaide took his left hand, pulled back the fingers. “Let me...” Blood still covered his hand, but she didn’t see a cut. “You...healed.”

  “Hm?” He looked down. “Oh. Yes.”

  “I thought sorcery couldn’t heal.”

  “Not the way pure magic does,” Regulus said. “This is evil. Corrupted. It hurts as it heals...and sometimes after. It leaves scars. And it doesn’t heal minor injuries. Just ones that affect my ability to be a useful slave. I could have bled out. My bond to the sorcerer won’t allow that. So it healed.” His tone was flat, emotionless.

  “Reg.” Dresden sat at the table. “You can’t avoid this.”

  “I know,” Regulus murmured. He looked at Adelaide, sorrow and apology in his eyes. “I can’t let him... I can’t kill you. Or Dresden. Or Harold. Innocent people, people I care about, will die at my hand.” His gaze fell to her throat, his face twisting with horror. “I can’t control myself when he takes over, but I can see and feel everything. It’s as if I’m a puppet that has gained consciousness and sensation, but I can only do what the puppet master wishes. I could—” His voice cracked, and he looked away again.

  She shuddered, remembering his hand crushing her throat. He was suffering as much as I was. She pressed his blood-stained hand between hers, but he pulled away. She wiped his blood off on her dress. “Regulus—”

  “I could feel your skin.” His jaw pulsed as he clenched and unclenched his teeth. “I felt your throat as you tried to breathe, your hands trying to pull mine away. I saw the fear and panic in your eyes. And I couldn’t stop it. I tried. Etiros, I tried. I only stopped when he let me go. When he had gotten his point across.”

  She gazed at the broken man before her, at the hopelessness on his face. The man who had sacrificed his freedom to save the lives of his friends. The man who fought against the desires of this sorcerer, despite the pain he brought on himself. The man who won tournaments but recoiled from her touch in fear of himself. He didn’t deserve this. No one deserved this.

  Adelaide pulled Regulus’ sleeve up past the mark. She thought the diamonds looked like chains as she placed her hand on it and winced. He was in pain. Because of her. Was facing a sorcerer any worse than facing Nolan? She slid her hand down and entwined her fingers in his. His gaze drifted up to her eyes, surprised.

  “I see you. Your heart. Your strength. Your courage.” She cradled his face in her other hand. “And I love you.”

  Regulus’ mouth trembled as his eyes searched hers, hope and fear, joy and dread warring in their silvery depths. “You...”

  “I love you, Regulus.” She blinked to hold back the tears that threatened to fall as Regulus’ eyes watered.

  He crumpled toward her and drew her into his arms, his forehead pressing against her shoulder. “I love you.” His arms tightened around her. “I tried not to, for your safety, but... I love you, Adelaide. Completely and utterly. I can’t begin to express how much I love you.” His shoulders shook. “I wish... I’m so sorry.”

  “It’s not your fault.” She stroked his back, her throat thick with emotion. “We should go, before he hurts you again, or worse.”

  Regulus pulled away, relief mixed with defeat in his expression. “You’ll come willingly?”

  “Yes.” She had wanted to sound braver than that. If Regulus could be brave when a sorcerer could take control of his body at any moment and force him to hurt his friends, she could be brave, too. “I’ll do what the sorcerer wants.” Surety returned to her voice as she spoke. “We will free you. If he refuses to honor his word, we will find another way. There must be a way. And then figure out how to stop Nolan. Together.”

  A smile pulled at Regulus’ mouth as his gaze filled with devotion and warmth. But then his expression fell. “There’s something else.”

  What else can there be?

  “The sorcerer...” His throat bobbed. “He’s The Shadow. He promised not to kill you. But you should know.”

  The Shadow. Her lips parted. The threat she had hid from her entire life, the reason she was alone and didn’t understand her magic. The Shadow that hated mages enough to murder children. Her breathing went shallow. What if he didn’t keep his word?

  But Regulus was in pain. He was enslaved to the evil she feared. And they didn’t have another choice. She could go willingly...or she could watch the love leave his eyes as the sorcerer took over again.

  “Thank you for telling me.” Her voice barely made it past her lips. She cleared her throat. “But it doesn’t change anything. It only makes me want you free more.”

  Regulus released a breath. “I don’t deserve you.” He reached for her face with his free hand, then grimaced at his bloody palm and drew it back.

  “I hate to say it,” Dresden said, “but you two need to go.”

  Regulus nodded glumly. “Can you wait here? I need to change.”

  She nodded, and Regulus trudged upstairs. She felt drained. Too many complicated emotions. Dresden still sat at the table, watching her. She stood, and he did the same, steely gaze never leaving her.

  “I’m not going to run, if that’s what you’re thinking.”

  Dresden’s fingers drifted to his own bruising throat. “I wouldn
’t blame you if you did.” He clasped his hands behind his back. “I like you. Truly. But I would do anything for Regulus. Including things he might not appreciate—like knocking you unconscious if you try to run.”

  “I understand.” She stepped forward. “Here. I can heal those bruises.”

  Dresden blinked. “I...okay. Thank you.”

  She healed his bruises, mulling over the sorcerer’s words through Regulus. “The bearded one and that squire barely escaped last time.” “He attacked you. Before today.”

  “Yes.” Dresden rubbed his healed neck, his eyes sad. “Me and Harold. Terrified Harold. But it broke Regulus. It’s...taken him a long time to heal.”

  Adelaide looked at the shadowy stairwell, her heart aching.

  “I think you’re good for him,” Dresden said quietly, drawing her attention back. “He felt he had to distance himself from us. He’s a wolf who tried to protect his own pack by leaving it, but Regulus is at his best with others, when he feels like he has a place to belong. And you bring out the best in him.”

  She blushed and lowered her gaze. “He’s a good man. A better and braver man than most.”

  “A good man?” Dresden’s mouth curved into a half smile. “He’s the best man I’ve ever known.”

  Chapter 42

  REGULUS WAS SILENT as Harold helped him into the Black Knight armor. Magnus sat next to him, incessantly licking his hand. Harold moved around the big shaggy dog, cinching and straightening the layered pieces of armor. He respected Regulus’ unspoken need for silence. He didn’t ask about the blood Regulus washed off his hand in the water basin. Didn’t question the scratches on the back of Regulus’ hands as he buckled each oversized piece into place. Regulus gazed out the window, staring at nothing. Hoping against hope this was the last time he would don this armor.

  He didn’t want to wear it. But he didn’t know where this door Adelaide was supposed to unlock was—or what might be on the other side. More importantly, he wanted to keep the sorcerer as happy as possible. Besides, if anyone spotted them, they would see Adelaide captured by the legendary Black Knight, not running away with Regulus Hargreaves.

  Regulus sheathed the sword and took the helm from Harold, his heart heavy. Why couldn’t he be stronger? Why was he too weak to fight the sorcerer’s will? He wished he had found another way to save his men two years ago. And why couldn’t he have saved them all? But such thoughts changed nothing. He laid a black-gloved hand on Harold’s shoulder, the metal plating on the brace and gloves clinking. “Thank you, Harold.”

  “Of course, my lord.” Concern wrinkled Harold’s forehead.

  “Can you pack some food and bring it out to the stables? Enough for...for two.”

  “Yes, my lord.”

  Regulus bit the inside of his lip. “If things go right, when I return, I’ll be free. But if they don’t—I might not come back.” He held Harold’s gaze and squeezed his shoulder. “You and Drez look out for each other, okay?”

  Harold nodded slowly, his eyes wide, then shook his head, fast and hard. “No.” He threw his arms around Regulus’ armored chest. “We all need you to come back.”

  Regulus returned the embrace, his breath catching. “I’ll try.”

  “Good.” Harold pulled away and took a deep breath. “Be safe, my lord.”

  Regulus smiled weakly and headed downstairs. The heavy fall of his boots and metallic rubbing of his armor reverberated in the winding staircase. He emerged into the hall and felt surprised yet relieved to see Adelaide and Dresden sitting peaceably.

  “You didn’t leave,” he said before he could stop himself.

  Adelaide looked up, lips pursed. As she took in his appearance, he noted the slight widening of her eyes, the inaudible gasp. “You’re...” Her jaw hung open. “The Black Knight. You’re the Black Knight?”

  “Oh.” His face heated. “Yes.”

  “Several things just made a lot of sense.” She shook her head, her expression softening. “As for not running away, you don’t have sole ownership over the role of self-sacrificial hero.” Her tone was confident and teasing but kind.

  “I love you.” The words tumbled out as a mix of emotions from adoration to guilt twisted his gut.

  Adelaide smiled and walked to him, her hips swaying. She took the helm from his hands and examined it, then glanced at Dresden. “You’re blessed not to have borne this alone.” Regulus felt a stab of guilt over how often he had shunned Dresden’s help.

  “Please.” Drez scoffed. “We do what we can, but the fool always goes it alone.”

  “Not this time.” Adelaide handed the helm back, then brushed her fingertips over the scar on his face. “We do this together.” He still felt the lingering touch after she dropped her hand. “Shall we?”

  Regulus nodded. “Together.”

  He led her through the hedged lane to the stables. Adelaide went to mount her horse, but he stopped her. “This way.” She shrugged and followed him to the trap door. As he stepped down onto the dirt steps, Harold ran into the stables.

  “You have to hurry!” Harold panted. “Nolan Carrick is here with Sir Gaius, Lord Drummond, and several knights. The gate was open for deliveries, and they just rode in, didn’t even slow for the guard. Carrick says Lady Belanger is missing and he’s accusing you of kidnapping her. Dresden said you’re not at home, but Carrick wants to search the castle, and I don’t think Drez can stop him. You need to go now. I’ll put a barrel over the trap door. Go!”

  Anger surged, but Regulus couldn’t do anything about Carrick. He led Sieger down into the tunnel, not bothering with stopping to light the torch. Adelaide followed close behind, but her horse whinnied and pulled back.

  “Easy, boy.” She stroked his face. “Come on.” The horse backed away from the tunnel, yanking on the reins.

  “You have to go!” Harold’s voice sounded muffled from above the tunnel.

  “Let’s try this.” Adelaide placed her hand on the horse’s forehead. A faint blue shone between her skin and the horse’s forelock. The gelding calmed, and she led it down into the tunnel. Harold closed the trap door and the tunnel became pitch black. A scraping sound indicated Harold moving a barrel over the door.

  “There’s a torch in a nook over the steps if you can get to it,” Regulus said.

  “No need.” A soft blue glow illuminated her face and grew to a pale blue shining orb hovering over her palm. As Adelaide lifted her hand, the orb drifted just below the top of the tunnel, above Sieger’s rump.

  “Right.” He smiled sheepishly.

  The blue-white light illuminated the tunnel. They walked in silence, the orb floating with them. At the end of the tunnel, Regulus moved aside the door and boulder and put on his helm before emerging into the space beneath the tree. No one around. Good. He went back down for Sieger, and Adelaide followed, her orb of light vanishing without a sound.

  Regulus replaced the door and boulder over the tunnel entrance and turned to find Adelaide watching him, her forehead wrinkled and head tilted.

  “I was right.” She looked at the boulder and back at him. “You were holding back at the tournament.”

  He blinked. “Yes. The mark enhances my strength. You...could tell?”

  “I’m used to holding back power.”

  “Oh.” He went to Sieger’s saddlebags and paused, biting his cheek. “I don’t want you to take this the wrong way. And you can say no. But I think it might be a good idea if...” There’s no good way of saying this. “If we tied your reins to my pommel and bound your hands.”

  “Why?” Adelaide stepped back, uncertainty flashing over her features.

  “I’m not doubting you!” he said quickly. “But there’s a chance someone could see us. I try not to be seen, but it happens. You know, you’ve heard the stories. It might be better for your reputation and safety if someone sees us if they think you’re a captive.” He held up a hand as she frowned. “Just a thought. You don’t—”

  Adelaide sighed. “You have rope?”


  He pointed at his saddlebag with his thumb. “Yes.”

  “All right.” She mounted Zephyr. “Do it.”

  He tied the ropes as loose as possible without them falling off. She could get free easily, but at a glance, the binding was convincing. He pulled the reins over Zephyr’s head and tied them to his own saddle before mounting.

  Regulus kept off the roads as much as possible and listened and watched for signs of people so he could avoid them. They narrowly evaded a hunting party. A few minutes later, a solitary man in bright clothes, riding a gray horse and brandishing a bow, broke through the brush.

  “Gerard, I swear if you leave—” He stopped short as he realized they were not his hunting party. His wide eyes looked to Adelaide. “My lady...” He knocked an arrow and trained the bow on Regulus, but his hands quivered, making the arrow bounce against the side of the bow. “Release the lady, foul villain!”

  “Stand down.” Regulus lowered his voice, letting it rumble in his helm. The man released the arrow. Frightened as the hunter was, it would have flown right past Regulus. He reached out and caught it anyway. Both the man and Adelaide gasped.

  “Run!” Adelaide screamed. Regulus looked back at her, startled by her high-pitched outburst. “Flee!” She gave him the slightest nod. Oh, she was clever. “Find the Drummonds and Nolan Carrick! Find Regulus Hargreaves of Arrano!”

  He pulled the reins to her horse, drawing Zephyr closer. “Silence!”

  “Tell Lord Hargreaves the Black Knight has taken Adelaide!” The hysteria in her voice made the man turn pale. He backed his horse up, jaw trembling.

  “I said silence!” Regulus covered her mouth with his hand but didn’t touch her.

  She pulled his hand down. “Tell Nolan Carrick!”

  Regulus yanked his hand free and covered her mouth for real this time. “You will be silent!” He cringed under the helm. The man turned his horse and fled. Regulus dropped his hand. “I’m sorry. Are you all right?”