No, I had to figure this out on my own.
Time was running out, and I couldn’t afford to hesitate, so I went left and committed to that direction with all speed. There were less people down this way, and the ceiling lowered to a mere twenty feet. In addition, the space was narrower, and there were no columns.
Whereas the main corridors featured prominently white and clean colors, this hall felt older and mustier, with mostly browns and beiges to go with the dark red carpet.
The hall turned right so I had no choice but to follow and see where it led. At the far end, a set of stairs went up, and another set went down. Down seemed like the most logical place for a dungeon, but if they were holding a prisoner they didn’t want the king to know about, they probably wouldn’t keep him in a conventional place.
Up it was then.
Gods, I hope I’m going the right way.
I reached the top of the stairs and was greeted with a single narrow hallway that terminated at a back wall. Six doors adorned the walls, two on the left and four on the right.
I could go back now and try a different route, or I could stick with this one and take a look around.
I didn’t have time to try again. This was it. He had to be here. If he wasn’t, well then, I was screwed.
Reaching for the first door on the right, I took hold of the knob and turned slowly, then eased the door open. Darkness lay beyond. I didn’t care what was really inside, since I highly doubted that Izaiah would be guarding Leon in the dark.
I pulled the door closed and moved to the first door on the left. It was locked. I rattled the handle just in case it was only stuck, but still nothing.
Moving on to the third door, it once again opened. But this room, too, was dark. As I began to shut the door, the one behind me—the locked door—clicked and started to open. My heart jumped into my throat.
I immediately slipped into the current room, closing the door all except for a tiny crack.
Izaiah peered out from behind the locked door and looked up and down the hall.
A strange mixture of emotions coursed through me all at once: Relief that I hadn’t been seen, fear that he would still see me, joy that I’d found Leon, and panic that I still wasn’t going fast enough.
When Izaiah gave up his search, he closed the door, and the lock clicked back into place.
Well, now I knew where to go, but how would I get in there without being seen?
Opening my door a little wider to let the hallway light in, I found a lamp and ignited it. The modest flame provided a tiny measure of light, at least enough for me to have a look around.
It was someone’s dressing room. Two massive wardrobes took up most of the space inside and another door in the wall likely connected to the first room I had checked. Lastly, there was a small end table, and on top of it sat a silver serving tray and an empty cup of what had probably once been tea.
An idea started to form in my head. Lifting the cup, I slid the tray out from underneath and set the cup back down.
I left the room and closed the door behind me, then I sidled up alongside the wall just to the right of Izaiah’s door. After taking a deep breath to calm my nerves, I knocked.
The sound of a chair sliding back and an annoyed sigh came from within.
The door opened once more, and Izaiah stuck his head out.
Before he could see me, I slammed the tray into his face, sending him sprawling to the floor inside the room.
He cried out in pain but didn’t get knocked out as I’d hoped.
Fortunately, though, the force of the blow had caused him to spin around as he fell. With his back to me, he started to rise.
I didn’t waste another second as I pounced on him, placing my arms around his head and locking him into a sleeper hold. Izaiah struggled, but he was still disoriented, and it didn’t take long for him to succumb.
His body went limp in my arms, and I slowly set him down. The affinity mark on my hand pulsed as I leveled up again.
That was strange because I hadn’t killed anyone. I guessed knockouts counted, too.
Oh well, no time to ponder it now.
Leon was tied up in the corner of the room, staring at me in awe and wonder and perhaps, a little bit of impatience.
I rushed over to him and took the gag off of his mouth.
“What are you doing here?” he asked.
“What’s it look like I’m doing? I’m busting you out,” I said.
“Are you insane?” he said. “They’ll know it was you, and Lucian will have your head.”
“I don’t think so,” I said, shaking my head. “Not while my father still needs me for the peace talks.”
I loosened the rest of his bindings and helped him up.
“It’s still a risk,” he said.
“A risk I’m willing to take,” I said. “Do you know anything about Rayf and Elsie?”
Leon shook his head. “They aren’t here. When that explosion rocked the facility, a hole opened up in my cell. I got out and went looking for them. I didn’t see Elsie at all, but I saw Rayf racing across the compound grounds. He managed to escape into the forest. Before I could go after him, Lucian’s goons picked me up and took me back to the air cruiser.”
I pursed my lips and thought about what he said for a moment. “Is there a chance they got to Elsie first?”
Leon shrugged. “I don’t know. As soon as they took you away, they locked me in your cell. I didn’t get a good look around. Scepters are big cruisers. It’s possible she was on board, but not likely.”
“All right, well, they’re going to be looking for me any minute. I’m already out of time. Can you sneak around and keep an eye out for her?”
Leon nodded.
I stood and walked over to the door to leave, when I reached it, I turned around. “Something’s going down tonight, Leon. Something big. And it’s not good. The king has asked me to be at the council chambers at six o’clock. Do you think you can find your way there?”
“I’ll do my best, but no promises,” he said.
“That’ll have to be good enough.”
At that moment, Izaiah groaned and started to stir.
“Come on! Let’s go,” I said, waving Leon over. He stood and followed me out into the hallway and back down the stairs. We turned the corner, and at the first intersection, we parted ways.
I continued on down to the end of the hallway, turned right, then left, then right again.
Glancing over my shoulder to make sure I wasn’t being followed, I rounded the corner and smashed into someone. We tangled together, and the force of the collision knocked us both to the ground. I hit the floor first, and the person fell on top of me.
It only took a second for me to recognize Bella’s bright blue eyes staring back at me.
Chet. I’m screwed.
My mind screamed for me to run, but where was I going to go? She was pinning me down.
When Bella saw me, her eyes went wide, and she froze, likely debating calling out for backup or taking care of me herself.
Then she grabbed my face, and I expected her to head-butt me.
Instead, her soft lips touched up against mine, sending a tremor coursing through my body, followed by a rush of heat. A moment later, the sheer shock of the whole situation quenched the budding flames in my chest.
Of all the weird things that had happened to me in the last few days, this one took the cake.
My father was a king, Lucian was my brother, heck, I was basically a walking Balgyran assassin—I could live with those things.
But this? What was this? I was convinced at any moment her mouth was going to open wide, and she would eat me whole like a snake devours its prey.
As she ended the kiss, she sighed and shuddered. Then, as if the last few seconds hadn’t happened, she scrambled off of me, and her head whipped from side to side to make sure no one had seen.
“What are you doing?” she whispered to me, her voice husky and breathless.
&nbs
p; “What am I—? What are you doing?” I retorted, pointing at my lips.
“Sorry,” she said, frowning. “I guess four years is a long time. But tell me you don’t still feel the same?”
I was flabbergasted. What was I supposed to say to that?
“Forget it,” she said. “There’s no time. You need to get back to your room before Lucian finds you.”
I was still trying to wrap my mind around the fact that she hadn’t immediately turned me in. And now what? Was she actually helping me?
“What good will that do?” I asked. “He likely already knows I escaped.”
She shook her head. “Hayden and I decided not to tell him until we had something to report. You don’t know what Lucian’s like. He’s been… different since you left.”
“What about Hayden? He doesn’t seem like the type to let this slide.”
“Make up some excuse about being in the washroom or sitting out on the balcony,” she said as she peeked around the corner. “He might be suspicious, but he’ll accept the excuse to avoid Lucian’s wrath.”
“All right,” I said. “But why are you helping me?”
“Later,” she said. “Now go.”
I opened my mouth to speak.
“Go!” she shouted as loud as she dared.
Fourteen
I wasn’t back in my room two minutes when Lucian came barreling through the door.
“Where is he?” he demanded.
“I’m afraid you’re going to have to be more specific,” I said, putting on my best confused face.
Izaiah stepped into the room next, a decent sized goose egg on his head. This was the first chance I had to get a good look at Izaiah without his full combat gear on. He was short for a man—even a young one—and a bit stocky, but not in a fat sort of way. His blonde hair marked him as having been born in the Southern Isles, where my mother was evidently from, if my own hair color was any indication.
Keeping a straight face, I nodded at his wound, "You might want to get that checked out."
Lucian glowered at me, and I put my hands up in mock surrender as Hayden and Bella came charging in shortly thereafter.
“There you ar—what’s going on?” Hayden asked.
“The prisoner’s missing,” Izaiah said, then he pointed at me, “and he helped him escape.”
“Me?” I said, placing my hand on my chest. “I don’t know what you’re talking about. I haven’t left this room.”
Bella looked away, and Hayden's eyes narrowed, but neither one of them spoke. Bella had been right: fear of Lucian was enough to stay Hayden’s tongue. I didn’t think I was out of the woods yet, though.
“Is this true?” Lucian asked Hayden and Bella. “Wait a second. You were supposed to be watching him, but you came in behind us. Where were you?”
The accusation in Lucian’s voice was unmistakable.
Bella started to say “I was—uh—”
“She was grabbing me some food from the kitchens,” I interjected. “I haven’t had a bite to eat in a day or two.”
Bella’s lip twitched ever so slightly into a smile.
Lucian narrowed his eyes. “So, where is it?”
To Bella’s credit, she didn’t miss a beat. “All the food from breakfast was gone, and the staff was slaving away on lunch, so they sent me away.”
“And you?” Lucian asked Hayden. Thankfully, Lucian chose that moment to look back at me and must have thought better about interrogating his men in front of me. “It doesn’t matter. If he didn’t release the prisoner, who did?”
“Maybe the prisoner escaped on his own?” I offered.
Izaiah was shaking his head before I finished. He pointed at his forehead. “Someone outside the room where we were holding him did this to me.”
Lucian looked at me, then at Izaiah and back again. I could have sworn I was done for.
After a long silence, Lucian muttered, “Balgyrans.” He crossed his left arm and placed his right hand on his chin in thought. “This complicates things, but it might work to our advantage.” Once again, he glanced at me. “Izaiah, come with me. We need to get ready for the peace talks. Bella and Hayden, keep an eye on him. And I better not find him alone again, understood?”
“Yes, sir,” Hayden and Bella said in unison.
At that, Lucian and Izaiah left the room.
The door had barely closed when Hayden advanced on me, putting his arm under my chin and pushing me up against the wall.
“Where were you?” he growled.
“I’m afraid I don’t know what you mean,” I said, struggling to breath.
“Don’t play dumb. I came back to check on you, and you weren’t here,” he said.
“I didn’t realize I was a prisoner. I’m not sure my father would appreciate hearing that I’m being treated like one,” I said.
“Hey,” Bella said to Hayden, placing a hand on his arm to pull him away from me. “Ease up, all right?”
“Why do you care?” he asked.
“I don’t,” she bristled, “but he’s the king’s son, same as Lucian. That means we’re here to serve him, not the other way around.”
“I’ll lay off when he answers the question,” Hayden retorted.
“Did you check the washroom?” I asked.
Hayden recoiled, as if that thought had never occurred to him. “I—well, no—I—you weren’t here, and we just left.” He pulled away from my throat slightly, then pushed back again with intensity. “Why did you cover for her? With Lucian?”
That was an easy question.
“Lucian can be pretty scary when he’s angry,” I said. “I didn’t want her to get in trouble. You know?”
Hayden released me and backed away.
“Yeah, I know all about that,” he said, pulling up his sleeve to reveal a large scar on his shoulder.
“Whoa, what happened?” I asked.
“Don’t worry about it, just remember what happens when you piss him off,” he said, a look of disgust in his eyes.
“Why do you work for him then?”
“Like I have a choice?” Hayden said. “You probably haven’t noticed, since you haven’t left the room and all—” He said that last bit in a serious tone laced with sarcasm, like he still didn’t quite believe my excuse. “—but I’m the only Kardonan in the whole palace.”
Kardona was another country to the deep south, beyond the Southern Isles. It could take weeks to sail there from Drayton, the major port in the Isles. Hayden’s dark skin marked him as a Kardonan surer than anything else could.
“How does a Kardonan end up in the capital city of Allyria and a member of the king’s royal guard, no less?” I asked.
“Like I would tell you, Oathbreaker,” Hayden spat. “Let’s just say I owe my life to Lucian a thousand times over, and I wouldn’t be here without him. So, however bad his temper gets makes no difference to me.”
“This is fascinating and all, but I seriously haven’t slept in ages,” I said. “Well, besides when you drugged me—”
Hayden snorted, and the corner of his lip curled up.
“—so, do you mind leaving, or at least standing outside the room, so I can get some rest?”
“Fine, but don’t think we’re letting you out of our sight this time,” Hayden said. “Do whatever you want, go wherever you like, stay here and sleep or go explore the palace, but know that at least one of us will be so close to you that you won’t be able to break wind without one of us hearing.”
“Kind of disturbing and a little gross, but thanks,” I said as I flashed him a thumbs up.
Bella chuckled.
And Hayden glared at her. “Let’s go,” he said.
Both Bella and he exited my room and took up a post just outside my door. I could tell because their shadows were clearly visible through the fogged glass panel in the center of the door.
Well, I might as well make myself comfortable.
I walked over to the bed and lay down to rest.
A minute
later, I heard Bella say, “You should probably go explain your side of the story to Lucian. I hope you come up with something good. Don’t worry about Aren, I’ll keep an eye on him.”
Hayden grumbled something I couldn’t hear, and then his shadow disappeared from the door.
When he was gone, my door opened, and Bella slipped back inside.
“We don’t have long,” she said. “He’ll probably only be five or ten minutes.”
“Why are you helping me?” I asked.
She blushed as she spoke, “I—I love you, Aren. And I thought you loved me, too.”
Obviously, she had some feelings for me. It wasn’t every day a random girl kissed me for no apparent reason. But without any memory of our past together, there wasn’t much I could offer her.
“It’s been four years, Bella,” I stated matter-of-factly.
“And not a day has gone by in those four years that I haven’t thought about you,” she said.
“That’s touching and all, but—”
“But you don’t feel the same?” she asked, her shoulders sagging a bit.
“No,” I answered, “but it’s not what you think.”
I winced as soon as I said it.
“What do you mean? Do you have another girlfriend or something?”
“Well, no, I—”
What did I do? Did I tell her the truth? Only Leon knew about my amnesia so far. But Bella seemed like the type of person I could trust.
Still, what if this was all a ruse?
In the end, I decided to trust her. I didn’t have too many people I could call friend, and if being honest with her now could forge a new bond between us, then I would take all the help I could get.
“I don’t remember you,” I said, immediately regretting my choice of words.
Bella slapped me, and deservedly so.
She raised her hand to do it again, and I yelled, “Hold on a minute! Let me finish.”
I proceeded to tell her everything—Claire, the sun about to explode, the green and white flash of light, waking up with no memory of my past, Leon, the facility, and as many of the little details in between as I could.
Sworn Guardian: A LitRPG/GameLit Adventure (Forbidden Magic Book 1) Page 11
