by A. M. Hardin
He backs me up against the hard wall of the tunnel and buries his fist in my hair, pulling slightly. Not hard enough to cause pain, just enough to feel the slight bite of it. His mouth leaves mine and he trails his lips down my neck, stopping to suckle and nip at the sensitive skin.
A loud, shrill scream from the other side of the painting entrance pulls us apart, both of us breathing heavily.
"Stay here," he mutters and kisses me hard before letting me go to walk back where we came.
Shocking myself, I stay put as he opens it and disappears out the other side before shutting me in on my own.
I reach up and touch my fingers to my lips while I try to control my breathing and calm my racing heart. What the hell is going on with me? First Xander, now Kade. I can’t deny that my feelings for all three of my guards have been growing into something slightly more than just friends or guard and princess. I just hadn’t realized that those feelings could possibly be more than one sided.
Kade comes back several minutes later, his face a mask of rage. His expression softens slightly when he sees me leaning where he left me but not a lot.
"What's wrong?"
"We need to get you to your father. Now."
He takes my hand in his and navigates us through the tunnels for at least five minutes until we come to another entrance. He pushes it open, revealing my fathers office. We exit the tunnels and I frown when I see my father standing at the window with his fists clenched at his side.
"What's going on?" I ask.
My father spares me a quick glance and the rage and sorrow twisting in his gaze hurts my heart. He turns back to the window, breathing deeply, like he's trying to calm himself.
"What happened?" I ask again, looking from my father, to Kade and then to Elazer.
The door to the office opens and Xander, Andrei, Forrest, and his guard enters the room.
I look around at all the gloomy, furious faces, wishing like hell it wasn't just me that was out of the loop because I was starting to freak the fuck out and make me nauseous as hell from all the anger.
"Your brother," Andrei starts, "Crown Prince Dago, is dead."
I blink at him, unsure if I heard that correctly. "I- What?"
"Dago is dead," my father snarls from the window.
I meet Kade's eyes and he nods his head once. I look over at my other brother that I haven't really had the chance to get to know and I see that his face is almost carefully blank. Then again, his expression is always like that whenever I've seen him.
I look back to my father and ask the question burning to get out. "How?"
"The goddamn Ikishri bastards," he growls in answer.
Understanding dawns and I close my eyes. The Ikishri kingdom is the kingdom we're at war with. They've been killing off the royals as quick as they can. Considering that my father had a lot of kids but he's now down to Forrest and myself... I can't imagine the pain he's been going through.
It felt like my world was ending when Ella and my parents died. I can only imagine how it's feeling for him that out of the twelve kids he produced, now only two live.
For a long minute, no one moves or speaks. Deciding I need to do something, I move towards my father and I wrap my arms around him from behind. "I'm sorry," I mutter quietly.
My father's hand squeezes mine tightly for a moment before letting my hand go. I drop my arms from around him and step back.
He turns to face the room. "I don't believe I need to tell you all that security is going to need to be tightened more than before." His gaze sweeps over the guards. "This should not have happened. We've been without any incidents for months, we've grown careless with our security."
"Yes, sir," the guards answer as one.
"Elazer, Andrei, I want you two to ensure the castle is secure and find out what you can about who killed Dago then come give me a report after." My father turns back to the window and clasps his hands behind his back. "Now, leave me."
I open my mouth to speak but he shakes his head.
"I know you want to help, Cherish. I just want to be alone. Go with your guards and stay in your room for the rest of the day. Give my sanity some peace."
I nod at his back, even though he can't see. Kade takes my wrist in his hand and Xander places a hand on the small of my back, both of them leading me to back to my room.
Xander shuts the door behind us when we get into my room and leans against the door with his arms crossed.
"What happened?" I ask after we sit in silence for far too long for my comfort.
"It wasn't far from where we were earlier that it happened. I don't know if your brother knew and trusted the person who did it but there weren't any signs of a struggle. One of the maids found him with a dagger in his chest and his throat slit," Kade says.
My stomach churns. "Why go the extra mile?" I ask quietly.
"He probably didn't die quick enough for their liking," Xander says. He looks up to meet Kade's gaze. "I don't think it was just one person though."
Kade nods. "There were two. It's the only way that makes sense."
"What the hell are you guys talking about?" I snap.
Xander and Kade exchange amused glances.
"Dago's throat was slit, but he was also stabbed through the heart," Kade starts. "The blade that slit his throat and the blade that was in his chest looked like they were two different blades. The difference is that the second one is nowhere to be found."
"I think whoever it was, wants us to believe that there's only one person behind it, and they don't expect us to suspect more than one person," Xander adds.
"Do you know if Andrei had any leads before he came to the king's office?" Kade asks.
"No, he didn't. All we all know for sure is that whoever stabbed him in the front should have been covered in blood. Every person we crossed didn't have a spec of blood on them. Hopefully they can find who that is before they disappear for good."
"Assuming they haven't already gotten away," Kade says cryptically.
"This conversation isn't making me feel better," I mutter quietly.
"We're not trying to scare you, mia. We just won't keep secrets from you. You've had more secrets kept from you in your lifetime than you deserve. We all made a pact after we brought you here that we wouldn't do it again."
I smile softly at them. "Thank you."
Chapter Twenty-Two
Andrei
Crouching down, I lift the sheet off of Dago's body, I release my magic into the air, feeling for any spells or enchantments that have been cast in this area or on Dago himself recently but don't find any.
Picking up the dagger that had been left in Dago's chest I study it and have to fight the growl from escaping my chest.
I gave this dagger to Cherish a few days after we came back here. She never carried it on her, it was always under her pillow when she slept. She didn't do anything else with it, she just kept it close.
A part of me wonders if she's worried something will happen and she's essentially been using the dagger as a security blanket.
"Find anything?" Elazer asks from behind me.
I stand up dagger in hand. "Maybe. I'll be back. I need to check something real quick."
"Alright. Make it quick."
"You got it."
Keeping the dagger hidden from anyone who might be watching or wandering in the hallways, I stick it in my back pocket. I quickly make my way to Cherish's room. When I get there I knock once and go inside.
She's sitting on the bed with her head in her hands, her long hair draped over her like a curtain. Kade and Xander are playing a card game at the small table in the corner by the window, though I don't think they're paying much attention to the game since both their gazes flick to Cherish too often for them to really be focusing on the cards.
I shut the door and they all look at me. Kade and Xander stand.
"What is it?" Kade asks.
"Cherish," I say, without looking at the guys, keeping my focus completely on the fema
le in front of me. "Where's the dagger I gave you?"
Her brow furrows and she pouts a little. "It's in here." She turns and reaches to move her pillow. Tossing it aside, she frowns when she sees that there's nothing underneath. "But, it was there this morning?" She brings her thumb to her mouth as she turns back to me. "I don't understand it was there this morning when I got out of bed."
I sigh and reach behind me to pull the dagger out of my pocket and wiggle it slightly.
"What's going on? Where'd you find it?"
"Buried in your brothers chest," I tell her bluntly.
She flinches and shakes her head. "I didn't do it, Andrei. I don't even know Dago. Let alone know him well enough to want him dead."
Xander and Kade walk to her, each placing a hand on a shoulder, offering her comfort.
"Andrei's not saying that you did it, princess," Xander assures her.
"Did anyone come in here today?" I ask Cherish.
She shakes her head again, her eyes filling with tears. "No, just you guys and me. I haven't even met anyone around here that I'd even want to hang out with besides you three. As far as I know, we're the only ones who have been in here."
I let out a breath and set the dagger on the dresser. "So someone managed to get in here without any of us knowing?" I clarify, glancing to each of them before continuing. "Kade, you know the tunnels better than anyone of the guards, including myself and Xander. Is there an entrance in here?"
Kade's expression darkens. "Yes."
"What the fucking shit?!" Cherish shrieks, twirling to face Kade. "Are you fucking kidding me! There was a damn secret entrance to my room and you never told me?"
Kade and Xander flinch back from her, making my lips twitch. It's always amusing when she gets pissed. She's like an angry kitten. "Yes, there's another entrance. I didn't mention it because last I knew it hasn’t been accessible for years."
"What do you mean?" I ask.
"I mean no one's been able to open the door for years. There's a spell in place to prevent anyone from opening it. I don't know why or who put it up. I haven't been able to counteract it so that we have somewhere for Cherish to go while she's in here and something happens."
"Go check to see if the spell is still active. If it's not then we know that someone snuck in through the tunnels."
Kade nods and leaves the room. I look at Cherish and see she's still chewing on the pad of her thumb. I move over to her and gently pull her hand away from her mouth.
"I don't understand," she mumbles. "Why would someone make it look like I did it?"
My eyes meets Xander's for a brief moment before turning back to her. "You said that there were plenty of people here that weren't happy with you being here?"
She nods and glances off to the side, wrapping her arms around herself. "Pretty much everyone has some kind of anger or frustration with me being here. Dago didn't seem to care and I can't really get a feel for how Forrest thinks of me because his face is always hard to read. I tried actively reaching for his emotions to see what he was feeling earlier and I couldn't feel what he was feeling. Elazer hasn't outwardly shown any distaste towards me, but I know he's not happy with my being here. I think you guys and my father are the only ones that don't actually mind having me around."
"Elazer doesn't want you here?" I ask, shock blasting through my system. He's never once spoken out about her or her being here. Even before she came he seemed to be supportive of the king's choice to bring her here.
She moves to sit on the bed. "Nope. He doesn't give off the whole hate vibe that most of the others do, though. It's more of an annoyance, like he doesn't like that I'm here but he's accepted it."
"I'll speak to him and see what he thinks is going on later," I assure her.
She looks down at her hands, wringing them together. "If you plan on asking why he's not happy that I'm here, don't bother. It's not important. What is important is finding who killed Dago. So, please, just focus on that."
My chest tightens as I look at her, her expression dejected and showing how over she is of all the shit. "Of course." I look up when Kade enters the room, clearly full of rage. Guess that answers the question about the doorway.
"The spell is down and I have no idea how," he grinds out through clenched teeth.
"So someone is framing me for Dago's death?" Cherish asks, her voice cracking.
"It would seem that way." I glance at the watch on my wrist and know I need to make this quick before someone comes to find me and discovers the dagger and what happened with it.
"What are we going to do?" Kade asks.
"I'm going to get rid of the dagger and we should let the king know what's going on and convince him that pulling Cherish away from here is probably for the best." I lift her chin up with my finger so she meets my eyes. "Start packing. Pack light to be safe. Hopefully we'll leave here within the next couple hours."
She nods. Satisfied, I turn and leave her room. Entering my room, I stick the dagger in my safe and lock it shut, spelling it to keep anyone but me out of it. Once I'm sure there isn't any way for anyone to get in it I leave and go back to the room Dago died.
Elazer is talking with another guard when I enter the room. He looks up and tilts his head for me to come to him, making me grit my teeth. I hate being summoned by anyone that way. Unless it's the king or Cherish.
"What'd you find out?" He asks when I get near.
"It was a dead end," I tell him. Though it's not completely the truth, it's not totally a lie either.
Chapter Twenty-Three
Cherish
A knock comes at the door a few minutes after Andrei leaves and Kade glances at me before going to open it.
"What is it?" Kade asks whoever's at the door.
"The king wants you and Xander to meet him at his office. He'll be there shortly but he wants to speak to you alone," the voice says. I can't see who it is from here.
Kade tenses and looks to me. Xander doesn't look any more relaxed than Kade. I shoot them a reassuring smile. "Go on, I'll be fine. Just, hurry back."
They nod and leave the room, albeit reluctantly.
I grab a bag from under my bed and toss it on top, opening it so I can start putting clothes and other necessities in the bag before we need to leave. Moving to the dresser I pause in opening it when I hear a click on the other side of my room. I finish opening it the rest of the way and grab the knife I have stashed in the drawer, keeping my hand inside the drawer.
I turn my head and double blink. "Forrest? What are you doing in here?" I feel the blood drain from my face as three more men walk through the secret entrance behind him. None of them are looking too friendly. "What's going on?"
Forrest scowls at me. "I think you know what's happening, little sister," he sneers the word sister as if he's tasting acid when he says it.
I raise a brow at him. "Four against one seems kind of... cowardly, don't you think?" I ask, unintentionally goading him. Fury blasts out of him in waves and I cringe inwardly. Fuck.
"You need to die," he says, sounding like he's just talking about the weather.
What a dick.
"Was it you that killed Dago?" I ask.
"No, though I was in charge of ensuring it happened. Just as I'm in charge of ensuring that you die."
"Why? Why kill Dago? Why kill me?"
He smirks evilly. "Isn't it obvious? I want to be king. Father has always overlooked me for the throne because in our world he gets to pick his successor. I thought I'd only have to kill a few of my siblings in order to gain the crown. Never imagined I'd have to kill all of you bastards."
"I don't want the crown. I don't want to be a queen," I tell him.
He shakes his head. "It doesn't matter what you want, Cherish. You have to die. Not that it matters since Father should be facing his own execution as we speak."
My stomach lurches at those words. "No," I say quietly. "Why do you want to be king so bad that you'd kill your family for it?"
"I've made a d
eal with the Ikishri king. You don't need to know all the details. Just know that your death, as well as the rest of our families will go a long way into ending the war between the kingdoms."
"Majesty, we need to hurry before her guards come back," one of the males behind my brother says.
He waves him off. "Yes, yes, I know. Kill her. I'm done talking. I just want to watch the life drain from her eyes."
The three men start walking toward me. I turn around fully, taking my hand out of the dresser revealing the dagger in my hand. Three against one is not good odds on a good day when it's females against females. Three males against one female? Yeah, that's shit luck.
They pause for a mere second before moving to surround me, cutting off my exit. I watch them closely, looking for any weak points in their little wall.
Finding one I meet the eyes of the guy I'll be going through. "You really don't want to do this," I tell him finally.
He snorts. "Oh yeah? Why not?"
"Because you're going to die," I state simply. Without giving him a chance to respond I lunge for him, thrusting my dagger into his heart then pulling it out and pushing his body into the guy next to him. He's the slowest of the group so he didn't get a chance to react to me attacking him. He falls to the floor after his and I make a run for the door, jumping over his immobile body.
A hand clutches my arm and yanks me back painfully. I bring my dagger down to slice into the arm holding me and they flinch back from the pain.
As I near the door I start muttering under my breath hoping all the while that this works, "Ptoly la shi." As soon as I walk past the threshold of my door the shield pops into place, stopping the remaining two mercenaries from following after me.
I run down the hallway towards my father’s office, hearing Forrest shout at the men, "Go back through the fucking tunnels and get her. It's one fucking human girl!"
Yeah, bet that stung, being evaded by a human. Fucking motherfucking asshole.
