Treason: Book Two of the Grimoire Saga (a Young Adult Fantasy series) Page 12

  Demnug glanced to the floor and shook his head.

  “Thanks,” Kara said with a small nod.

  The guards filed out of the room, and Aislynn shut the door once they were through, locking herself in the room with Kara. A muffled cry came through the door, and someone tried the handle without any luck.

  Kara took a deep breath and braced herself, her hands tightening on the bed’s baseboard. So Aislynn had lied about needing to see to Evelyn—she had just wanted to get Kara alone.

  Aislynn sighed. “My dear, that was for show. You have nothing to fear from me.”

  “You’re awfully convincing.”

  The queen bowed. “It’s merely a defense. I must be able to control a conversation if I’m to get anything out of it.”

  “What do you want?”

  Aislynn walked closer, lowering her voice to a whisper. “I want you to go to Braeden.”

  “You do?”

  “He needs you now more than ever. I know you two are more than—”

  “We’re not,” Kara said sharply.

  Too sharply.

  Aislynn narrowed her eyes. “Very well. I meant only that he needs you. You cannot escape Ayavel on your own, and I cannot let you go for fear that the other Bloods would figure us out. But you can keep him calm and clear-headed for tomorrow’s trial. He will need quite an argument if he’s to survive.”

  “Where is he?”

  “The dungeon. I chose this room on purpose. Do you see that mirror?”

  Kara turned. A full-length mirror mounted to the wall reflected her frown and tangled hair. Golden vines framed the glass, all wound around a single red stone inlaid at the top of the structure.

  Aislynn continued when she didn’t answer. “Push the ruby to open a hidden passage. You will come across a few side tunnels, but always continue straight. That will take you directly to Braeden’s cell.”

  “Won’t they notice I’m gone?”

  “I’ll forbid them from entering and take the key. You have only an hour, though, until Frine or Ithone will grow restless and want to send their guards to take the captain’s place. They will not wait outside.”

  “Why are you helping us?”

  “So you and Braeden are an ‘us’?”

  “That’s not what I meant.”

  “You don’t need to say it aloud, though that might help Braeden.”

  “Aislynn, answer my question.”

  “You should not be ungrateful to those who wish to help, Kara. You have an hour.”

  Aislynn turned without another word and left, closing the door behind her. Metal grated against wood as the lock turned from the outside, sealing her in.

  Kara took a deep breath. She peeked into her satchel and lifted Flick from its depths, grateful that no one had mentioned him or tried to take him away. She set him on one of the bed’s pillows and curled his tail around him to keep him comfortable.

  A plate of food—just bread and some cheese—sat on a tray by the bed. Kara grabbed what she could and slid it into her bag before she crossed to the mirror. She pushed the ruby, and sure enough, the glass slid into the wall without a sound. Kara turned back to the door, but no one spoke in the hallway.

  Beyond the mirror, stone steps led away into a curving stairwell lit by sparse sconces. As she had no idea how long it would take for her to get to the dungeon, she needed to hurry.

  She started down the stairs. Once she crossed through, the mirror slid into place and the stairwell plunged into near-darkness. Kara ran her hands along the wall for balance and hoped this wasn’t a trap.

  A shuffling sound in the cell pulled Braeden from his frantic sleep. Moonlight sliced through the barred window, casting stripes of shadow across his feet. The spiked cuffs shifted in his wrists and ankles, but as long as he didn’t move, he didn’t lose blood. Numbness had long ago set into his arms and legs, but now it trickled toward his shoulders.

  Despite his best efforts to remain still, he twitched and fidgeted each time he thought of Kara. The political scene was aflame, and she was caught in the middle of the bonfire. He didn’t know what would become of her. He stared into the moon, or what shards of it he could see from the dungeon. Craters covered the moon’s face like freckles.

  The scrape of rock grating against stone broke the silence. A figure loomed in the shadows beneath the window. He couldn’t tell who it was. For all he knew, Gavin was back for more information Braeden didn’t have. He tensed his jaw at the memory of his beating earlier and prepared himself for his brother’s hatred. But instead of thick eyebrows and a general expression of disgust, he saw a beautiful pale face with gray eyes.

  “Kara!”

  He could barely move or breathe, but the whisper still rang through the empty dungeon in a fierce echo. She shushed him and wrapped her arms around him in a gentle hug.

  “How are you holding up?” she asked, pulling a loaf of bread and some cheese from her bag. She broke off chunks and fed him.

  “I’ve been better,” Braeden said around a lump of bread. His stomach growled, and he hoped she had more food in her bag.

  She leaned on his wrist near the spikes. He winced. More dark blood trailed down his arm.

  “I’m sorry.”— Kara wiped it away— “Man, I’ll never get used to that. Black blood.”

  He didn’t answer.

  She turned back to the bread. “Sorry, Braeden, that was rude.”

  “Don’t apologize. You’re right. I haven’t showed you enough of what I am, and I’m tired of running from it.”

  Kara narrowed her eyes. “What does that mean?”

  “I’m tired of denying what I am. I am a Stelian. This isn’t my natural form. And though the other Bloods don’t deserve it, I want to do what it takes to redeem myself in their eyes.”

  “You’ll never make them happy. It’s like they need to hate you. You’re a scapegoat.”

  Braeden laughed weakly. “Thanks.”

  “I was trying to come up with a way to convince them that you’re good, but maybe we should just leave. Aislynn hinted that we couldn’t teleport out of here, but maybe I can call Ryn”—Kara sighed and stopped fidgeting with the bread—“but it all feels so hopeless. How can we possibly do anything with everyone in such an uproar?”

  Braeden tried to laugh, but a tremor of pain ran through his core and made him cough instead. “That’s what Carden wanted. Besides, I’m not out of tricks yet, Kara. Don’t give up.”

  “Do you have a plan to escape?” She eyed the cuffs on his wrist.

  “In a way. If we run from them, we have absolutely no allies. We’ll have nowhere to hide. I might never get them to love me again, but at least they will protect us. In the loosest sense, we’ll have someone to trust.”

  Kara stuffed a piece of bread in his mouth, though he assumed it was to stop his talking. She kept feeding him bits of the food until the small portions she brought were gone and she had nothing else to keep him silent.

  She sighed. “The man you grew up with disowned you the second he discovered who you really are. Without a second thought, he threw you in chains and is putting you on a fake trial. How can you ever trust someone like that?”

  “You’ve been eavesdropping on how Blood trials work,” he murmured and smiled wryly.

  She sneered. “I don’t know if I’d call it eavesdropping, but back to the point. You can’t trust Gavin with anything, even if you do get out of this your way.”

  “You’re right. I can’t. But the rest are trustworthy. And they need you, Kara. They need to believe there’s something more to life than bickering.”

  “I wanted to research and ask the Grimoire what to do. I promise. But I haven’t had a moment alone. All of the Bloods are even having me watched while I sleep”—she shivered—“and besides, everyone thinks I’m evil because I’m the only one not stuffing you full of pitchforks. They locked me in my room and threatened to kill me if I tried to escape.”

  Braeden tensed against the shackles, but his rush o
f anger outweighed the pain. “Who did?”

  “Demnug warned me. The rest didn’t want me to know, Braeden.”

  He sighed. “I’m sorry you’re in the middle of this. I knew this would happen eventually, I just didn’t want you to see it.”

  “You knew?”

  “It was just a matter of time.”

  Kara brushed a bit of hair from his face, but her eyes slipped out of focus. “I wish Adele and Garrett would get here already. They have to know something’s wrong.”

  “We can’t rely on them to fix our problems. We have to get out of this ourselves.”

  He caught her gaze and couldn’t suppress a smile. Her freckles dusted her nose like they hadn’t wanted to disturb the flawless face when they’d landed. Her eyebrows dipped over her deep gray eyes, and for a second, he wasn’t afraid.

  “The Bloods will come around,” he whispered.

  She leaned her head against his and nuzzled into him.

  “It’ll all work out,” he promised.

  He brushed her nose with his and leaned down to kiss her again. She pulled back.

  He cocked a weak grin. “What, I don’t get a last request?”

  “No,” she whispered. Her lips twitched into a forced smile, but she couldn’t hold it.

  “Why not?”

  “Because last requests are for the dying. You aren’t going to die if I can do anything about it.”

  She kissed his forehead and disappeared into the shadows beneath the window. Rock scraped against the ground. When she was gone, Braeden’s world was silent and empty again.

  He should have told her to leave Ayavel and save herself. When the Bloods killed him—because they probably would—she would be their next target. And if she didn’t obey, they would kill her, too.

  A strong man would have made her leave, spurned her, rejected her—done anything at all to make her stop caring about him. But Braeden wasn’t strong. At some point in the last few months, he’d fallen for her. Seeing Kara gave him a renewed faith that his fate was worth escaping.

  Chapter 6

  Ultimatum

  Kara’s mind raced with panic as she tore back up the stairs. She had already gone over her allotted hour, and she wasn’t even back yet.

  The mirror slid aside as she came to it. Muffled yelling poured through the closed door from the hallway. She could make out Gavin’s voice, as well as Frine’s. Ithone was out there, too, as was Aislynn. They all seemed to be yelling at Demnug.

  “…STRICT orders not to…”

  “…was Blood Aislynn…”

  “…no key? How can you…”

  “Gentlemen!” Aislynn’s voice pummeled through the wood so loudly that even Kara took a step back.

  Kara raced to the bed and sat down next to Flick’s pillow as the mirror slid closed behind her. She set her satchel under the bed to hide it from view. She also took off her Grimoire pendant and slid it beneath a pillow, in case any of the Bloods tried to take it from her. If they asked where it was, she would lie and say Gavin took it already. He deserved as much.

  The door unlocked, and a flood of yakona poured into the room. The Bloods stood closest, their faces twisted with anger as they glared at one another. Only Aislynn stood apart from the mob. She shot the smallest of winks at Kara before she turned back to the Bloods and frowned.

  “The girl deserved a good rest, if only for an hour. No one can sleep while being watched! So much for that, though. All of your yelling managed to wake her up!”

  “You had no right to leave her alone without discussing this with us first!” Gavin shouted.

  “Watch your tone, boy,” Aislynn said, glaring.

  “I am a Blood! However close you may have been with my mother, you will not address me as a child!”

  “Guys!” Kara shouted.

  All eyes turned to her. As much fun as it was to watch the melee, she needed them to calm down.

  “Your lack of formality annoys me,” Frine said.

  “Bloods,” Kara corrected. She resisted the impulse to roll her eyes.

  “What, Vagabond?” Ithone snapped.

  “Aislynn was just trying to let me sleep. As you can see, I haven’t gone anywhere, nor do I plan to. There are plenty of guards watching my window—yes, Gavin, I noticed—and it’s not like I can escape a fortified castle. So if you don’t mind, just keep your guards out there, and let me go back to sleep. I’m exhausted, we’ve all had a hard couple of days, and I’m sure I’m the least of your worries at the moment.”

  Kara suppressed a grin. With as many lies as she had just rattled off without flinching, she wanted to celebrate.

  “If she was able to escape, she would have done so by now,” Aislynn added.

  “But you said she couldn’t escape,” Gavin said.

  Aislynn sighed. “That was my point.”

  “Guards will check on you at random intervals, Vagabond,” Ithone said, as though the armies of all four kingdoms were at his command.

  “Let her rest,” Aislynn said with a nod to the door.

  “Ah, no, after you.” Gavin stood behind the Queen, apparently learning from his mistake the first time he’d left the room before Aislynn.

  The Bloods and soldiers filed out. Once the door closed, someone locked it yet again from the outside.

  Kara leaned against the headboard and released a long sigh. Flick’s paw twitched, and he moaned. Kara smiled and scratched his ear as he blinked his eyes open.

  “Welcome back, little buddy,” she said.

  He squeaked and burrowed back into the pillow.

  Kara grabbed her Grimoire pendant from its hiding place and slipped it around her neck once more. That had been way too close. She needed the Vagabond’s help.

  If guards were going to check on her at random intervals, she didn’t want them to see her reading the Grimoire. It was a miracle they hadn’t already taken it from her—they’d all likely guessed she kept it in her pendant by now. It might have been the frenzy of the last few days or the constant power struggle that had distracted the Bloods, but she didn’t want to remind them.

  Her best bet of speaking to the first Vagabond was for him to bring her into the Grimoire, as he had in Kirelm all those months ago. Back then, he’d wanted to learn more of her situation. But now, it was her turn to ask questions.

  She lay on the bed and took slow, deep breaths. There was no telling if this would work, but she had to try.

  “Vagabond, we need to talk. Pull me in.”

  Kara chanted the words under her breath, repeating them until sleep tugged at the corners of her eyes. Her eyes stopped darting around, even though she tried to move them. Goose bumps raced along her neck. The light from her bedroom dissolved, plunging her into darkness.

  It worked!

  “What is it, Kara?”

  The first Vagabond’s voice echoed around her. Mobility returned. She stretched her fingers and sat up, but the bed had disappeared. She floated in a void, and the Vagabond was nowhere to be seen.

  “Braeden is in trouble,” she said, hoping he could hear her.

  “I know,” he responded.

  She nodded. Of course he knew. He saw what she saw, and probably took a lot more from it than she did.

  “What do I do? How can we save him?” she asked.

  “I have an idea, but it is risky and may not even work. It also comes with a price.”

  “What price?”

  The Vagabond stepped into view as if he’d simply walked out of the shadows. He glanced over her at first without answering, his skin solid. In her head, he always appeared as he was in life: tanned, scarred, and without a hood. He crossed his arms and grinned.

  “Wouldn’t you rather hear my plan first?” he finally asked.

  “By all means.”

  “If you allow me to possess you during his trial, your natural power would be magnified. I could force them to listen to you. But because you would undoubtedly need to use magic, the possession woul
d take nearly all of your energy and may still not be enough to change the Bloods’ minds. I will defend Braeden, but it wouldn’t be like the time I saved you from his daru. You would undoubtedly faint afterward. You would be unconscious for several days and weak when you wake up. You would need someone to protect you during that time.”

  “I can find Twin. She—”

  “No one with the Bloodline. Because you haven’t made more vagabonds, your only hope is for the muses to come.”

  She ignored his jibe. “That’s a pretty big risk.”

  “Yes. Adele will undoubtedly sense that she is needed, but she may not be able to come. If they don’t, you will be vulnerable. Is Braeden worth it?”

  “Of course he is.”

  “Why do you want so badly to help him?”

  “He protected me. I’m just returning the favor. It’s what friends do.”

  “I know when you’re lying, Kara.”

  She rolled her eyes. “I’m not—”

  “Answer me truthfully, for once! Do you love him?”

  “Just tell me what to do, Vagabond.”

  “It is a simple question.”

  “You can’t throw that word around! Just tell me what to do!”

  “I will, but as I said, it comes with a price.”

  “And what’s that?”

  “You already know.”

  Kara paused, and it took a few moments before it clicked in her mind. “No! I won’t make more vagabonds!”

  “Then Braeden will die.”

  “You—!” Kara cut herself off. Calling him names wouldn’t solve anything.

  “You don’t have much time left to debate your options, my girl. Turn someone you trust. Task them to create one vagabond for every Grimoire I made. It will be your job to distract the Bloods while he or she creates your army. Do that, and I will help you save him.”

  “If I don’t, you’ll really let him die? After all he’s done for us?”

  “Yes.”

  Kara cursed under her breath, though loud enough for him to hear.

  “This is what I meant, Kara, when I told you vagabonds cannot love. This is the lesson I learned with Helen, a lesson that broke me. Please, don’t make me do this to you! Just learn from my mistakes! Braeden is leverage. He is your weakness. If you care for him, if you love him, others can use him to make you do what you otherwise never would.”