by Jody Hedlund
Finally, Rex’s shoulders slumped, and he bowed his head. “I am doing what I should have done from the start. And I only regret I did not do it sooner.”
The king nodded. “Good—”
“I am protecting my wife.”
The king’s lips stalled before his expression contorted. “Then you have proven you are not worthy, and I revoke your right to be the next king. I give the throne to Magnus.”
The other soldiers watched the interaction between the king and Rex with wide eyes. My surprise matched theirs, leaving me speechless. Part of me wanted to assure Rex I could fend for myself through the labyrinth, that he had no need to defy his father on account of my safety. And yet another part of me couldn’t release him to die for the king. The king didn’t deserve such a sacrifice.
“Did you hear me?” the king shouted breathlessly. “I give the throne to Magnus.”
“So be it.” Rex remained with his head bent. The king rained down curses upon Rex, cajoling and belittling him until he choked on his words and began to wheeze. He clutched his throat with black fingers, his eyes widening. “You poisoned me.”
“I would never hurt you!” Rex slammed a hand against the floor. “I have remained loyal to you and attempted to gain your affection.”
I bent and stared at one of the gold coins that now littered the floor. Had there been a deadly invisible trap within the treasure chamber after all? Had it been within the chests themselves? Perhaps a deadly poison covering every coin?
The king had been the only one to touch the gold, had reveled in it, had been holding the coins.
“The gold,” I said. “What if the gold was coated in a layer of poison?”
Rex glanced from the coins on the floor to the king’s black fingers. With alarm tightening his features, he then peered up at the guards surrounding us, then at me. “We need to get the king above ground and find the medical bag as quickly as possible.”
I nodded. “I’ll lead the way.”
He started to shake his head, but I cut him off. “We’ll need to move fast if we have any hope of saving him.”
Rex didn’t argue and instead commanded one of the guards to help him carry the king. Two others took hold of the treasure chest, leaving the gold coins where they’d fallen. I led the way back through the maze, consulting the map, but moving rapidly the way we’d already come.
When we finally reached the entrance, the faint light filtering from the opening told me we’d spent the entire night in the labyrinth and that dawn was breaking. As Rex and his men labored to heft the king up the steep slope, I wiped a weary hand across my eyes.
Though the king was still breathing, he’d lapsed into unconsciousness. His hands had turned completely black like charred wood, stiff and brittle. It wouldn’t be long before the poison streaked through the rest of his body.
The remnant of soldiers left behind to guard the camp hefted us above ground. Once we were in the cave, Rex laid the king out and began issuing orders for his care.
Although I wasn’t skilled in the healing arts, I knew enough to assist the blood-letting in an attempt to drain the poison from the king’s body. Another soldier mixed a concoction for the king to drink, something that would purge the poison.
Even so, the king’s breathing became shallow.
Rex kneeled next to me on the cave floor, watching his father’s face. His expression was grave, especially because the other poisoned soldier lay only a dozen feet away and was barely alive, his neck and face already streaked with black.
As we worked to save the king, a guard rushed into the cave. “Your Highness,” he said without waiting for permission to speak. “We’ve caught sight of the usurper’s war party, and our guess is that they’ll be upon us within an hour.”
Chapter
23
Rex
“Prepare to leave immediately.” I rose from my spot beside the king.
“But your father.” Emmeline tipped the king’s arm, allowing his blood to dribble out to the cave floor. “He won’t be able to travel.”
“I shall ride with him.” I strode toward the mouth of the cave. “Bandage him and get him ready for the journey as best you can.”
After consulting further with the lookout who’d spotted the incoming war party, I knew we’d have to leave in a circuitous route to avoid any conflict. I couldn’t afford to lose any time with a skirmish, not with the king’s life at stake. If we rode hard and evaded confrontations, we might reach the Iron City of Middleton in less than two days. There I’d be able to locate a skilled physician who could lend his expertise to saving the king.
“The treasure chest, Your Highness” One of the soldiers who’d helped carry it out of the labyrinth approached me and bowed. “What should we do with it?”
I glanced to the cursed box just inside the cave. We’d been fortunate the chests themselves hadn’t been covered in poison. I shuddered to think of Emmeline lying next to the king in the same condition.
If the king were coherent, he’d demand we take the gold along. But I wouldn’t risk any other lives by having the men touch the gold to put it into sacks that we could more easily transport. The poison was especially potent, and even though they were wearing their gauntlet gloves, I didn’t want to expose anyone else.
“We must leave it,” I said.
The soldier bowed again, but not before I caught sight of the relief upon his countenance. I guessed all the other men would feel the same way, and likely now considered the gold cursed for what it had done to the king. Perhaps it was. Perhaps the whole quest to find the treasure was cursed.
As I readied our horses in the dawn light, my mind spun in a dozen different directions. Without the gold to pay for mercenaries, we’d have to endure a prolonged siege. The people would suffer even more than they already had under the king’s harsh rule.
Yes, he’d ruled harshly. As much as I wanted to continue to ignore or make excuses for his methods and philosophies, I no longer could. He’d been a selfish man, using the people around him—including me—to advance himself and his plans to find the treasure.
Maybe a part of him had held some affection for me as his son. But ultimately, his love of power and gold had been greater than anything else. He’d been willing to make any sacrifice to get the ancient treasure and retain his throne.
For many years, I’d given him my deepest allegiance and had worked to earn his approval. I’d even put my loyalty to him above Emmeline’s needs. But it had been for nothing. In the end, he’d rejected all I’d offered him, renounced my inheritance of the throne, and, most of all, revoked any love he may have harbored.
I let my focus drift to the arched entrance, to the silhouette of Emmeline kneeling beside the king, rolling a bandage around an arm while one of my men wrapped linen around the cuts in the other arm.
For the briefest of moments, my mind flashed to the memory of her inviting me to lie down with her in the smaller side cavern after our arrival yesterday. Her eyes had been a luscious warm brown filled with such welcoming trust. Although I’d kidnapped, manipulated, and used her since the day I’d met her, she’d opened her heart to me anyway.
I didn’t deserve her. Not after the way I’d treated her—with the same selfish tactics the king employed. Although the king believed we were different, I was like him in more ways than I wanted to admit.
I’d rejected her need to free her parents. I’d subjected her to stealing from her sister and betraying her conscience. I’d given in to the king’s whim to bring her to the labyrinth. And even when we’d been deep inside the tunnels, I’d gone along with him time after time, putting her in harm’s way.
Turning away from the sight of her, I leaned my head against my steed, nausea roiling in my gut. I wasn’t worthy to be her husband. Not in the least. Especially now that I wouldn’t be king.
I mentally tallied the number of soldiers who’d heard the king’s declaration. Several of them were among his most loyal bodyguards and would carr
y out his wishes to make Magnus king. I could kill them all now and keep only those who swore loyalty to me. But by using murder and cruelty, I’d only continue down the path to becoming more like the king, and that was a path I wanted to change.
If I abdicated to Magnus without a fight, he’d relegate me to a position far away from Delsworth and the court—if he didn’t kill me first. And then what would become of Emmeline? I suspected he’d show her no mercy.
What about the people of Bryttania? Could I really stand back and allow Magnus to take over where the king left off? Knowing Magnus’s temperament, he’d show even less compassion to the people.
A shudder worked its way up my spine and served only to solidify the resolve that had been growing since we’d climbed out of the dark depths of the labyrinth. The kingdom was in ruins. The city of Delsworth was under siege. The king was dying. And now Magnus would be the next ruler.
For the love of this kingdom and its people, I comprehended with sudden clarity what I needed to do. As Father Patrick had once admonished, I had to do what was right in the sight of God and man.
“The king is bandaged,” Emmeline said from behind me. “But I don’t think you should attempt to move him.”
At the realization of the hurt I would cause Emmeline, pain pierced my heart as deeply as if someone had plunged a dagger into it. In the short term, she might not understand and might hate me. But maybe eventually, she’d see the wisdom of my plan and realize I only wanted her safety, along with the security of her future.
“Perhaps we can offer the hand of peace to Adelaide,” she suggested. “And negotiate a truce with the promise of half the treasure?”
Her presence behind me was strong and beckoned me to spin and pull her into my arms. Instead, I took a deep breath and pushed past the pain in my throat. “The queen will have it all.”
“She will?”
“I am leaving the chest of gold here.”
“I see,” she said after a moment, her voice laced with disappointment. “Then you hope to defeat her soldiers by subjecting them unknowingly to the poison.”
“No.” I turned so I was facing her and forced the words I knew I must say. “You will stay behind and warn them of the poison.”
“I cannot—”
“You will be safer this way.”
Her luminous eyes searched my face, and she stepped closer as though sensing the chasm growing between us—a chasm of my own making. “I don’t need you to worry about my safety. I’m stronger than you know.”
“It is precisely because of your strength that I am leaving you behind.” Ultimately, she would overcome the hurt I caused her and go on to have a good life, one with her sisters and even her parents—if I could get to them in time.
“I don’t understand.” She lifted her hands to my face, but I stepped out of her reach. If I let her touch me, even slightly, I’d be lost. I wouldn’t be able to think clearly, and my desire for her would overshadow my resolution.
I climbed up into my saddle, putting myself even farther from her. “You will be better off with your sisters.”
“That’s my decision to make.”
“You belong with them.”
“I belong with you.”
I shook my head, my frustration mounting. “I took what was never mine to begin with.” Those were the king’s words, but I was beginning to believe them.
“But we’re married. It’s too late to have regrets.” Her voice hardened, and her chin jutted out with her telltale determination.
“It is never too late to make things right.”
“You vowed you would love and cherish me.”
Yes, I’d vowed I would love and cherish her until death. And in the deepest region of my heart, I would. Even so, I’d broken my vow by siding with the king instead of with her. My integrity, my word, my promises—they were already useless. What was one more offense?
“I have failed you one too many times.”
“What about what I want?” Suddenly, her tone was threaded with desperation.
I stared off into the distant craggy landscape, watching as the rising sun turned the rocks to crimson, and I steeled myself for severing our bond. It was the only way to save her, and I had to stay strong though everything within me demanded I dismount and draw her into my arms.
“You will build a new life for yourself,” I finally said. “And eventually, you will forget about me.”
“You’re despicable,” she said, the same words she’d uttered once before. Only this time I knew she was right. I was despicable, just like the king, which was all the more reason to let her go.
I shouted orders to my men, attempting to ignore Emmeline’s eyes upon me and the hurt within them. After a whispered conversation with my second-in-command, my men hoisted the king into the saddle in front of me. Only then did I chance a final glance at her.
She stood back, her arms crossed, her beautiful eyes blazing with fury.
I gave her a curt nod good-bye. Before she could react, I twisted away and kicked my horse into a gallop. I needed to put as much distance as possible between us so I wouldn’t give way to the longing to throw aside all caution, gather her into my arms, and beg her to stay with me forever.
I couldn’t do it. I had to leave. If I didn’t, I’d never be able to follow through on the difficult task set out before me.
Chapter
24
Emmeline
I stood staring at the trail where Rex had ridden away, unable to pull my eyes from it, praying I’d see his proud but strong frame as he rode back for me.
But with each passing minute, my chest throbbed more painfully with the realization he’d left me and had no intention of returning.
Inside the cave, one of Rex’s knights had remained to tend Alaric in his dying moments. He knelt beside his comrade and was doing his best to make him comfortable.
“You should leave now,” I called to the knight, “before the queen’s army arrives.”
He stood and exited the cave. “The prince has ordered me to stay, Your Highness.”
“They will take you as their prisoner.”
“Aye, they will.”
“And what if they put you to the sword?”
“So be it, Your Highness.”
“And if I command you to leave?”
“I will obey the prince and stay.”
“You don’t owe him such loyalty.” I couldn’t keep the anger from my tone. The prince didn’t deserve my loyalty either. Why, then, was I waiting for him?
“I don’t owe him, Your Highness.” The knight stared off in the direction Rex had gone, his eyes sad. “But I’d willingly do whatever he asks, even lay down my life for him.”
Something in the man’s expression sent a shiver of trepidation through me. I wasn’t surprised that the knights Rex had brought from Warwick were loyal to him. He was a hard master, but I’d learned he never asked them to do more than he was willing to do himself. He advanced on danger fearlessly, took the lead, protected his men as best he could, and showed them compassion when it most counted.
My eyes clouded with moisture, and I blinked rapidly to keep my tears from spilling.
Rex was a good and decent man. So why had he broken his vow to me? His promise from after the hasty wedding in the forest had stayed with me: I meant my vow to you. And I will choose to love and cherish you unto death.
The heat of my anger turned suddenly cold. I spun and looked at the trail with understanding. The only way he’d break his vow was if he suspected he would die in the fight to come.
I started toward one of the remaining horses. I needed to go after Rex and stop him. We could find a way to end the conflict without him having to give up his life.
Rex’s faithful knight abandoned his work and raced after me. “Your Highness, the prince asked me to give you something.”
He was trying to stall me so that then he could grab me and keep me from going after Rex.
I didn’t break my strid
e and was near my horse when he rounded me, putting himself between me and my means of getaway.
“He wanted you to have this.” The soldier held out a key. It was plain, similar to the one for the scriptorium.
I took it hesitantly.
“The prince said you’d know what to do with it.”
I turned it over and studied it. I’d seen the key recently, but where? My mind flashed with the image of Rex using it as we’d crawled through the tunnel underneath the moat leading out of Delsworth.
Why had Rex given this to me? Did he expect me to use it to gain entrance into the castle?
“The prince was wrong.” I held the key out to the knight. “I don’t know what to do with it.”
Without taking the key, he crossed his hands behind his back. “Your Highness, if the king dies . . .” The look in the soldier’s eyes told me he knew as well as I did that it wasn’t a matter of if the king would die, but when. “The prince may have to battle his brother for the throne.”
“You don’t think the king was serious about giving the throne to Magnus, do you? You all love Prince Ethelrex and would fight for his right to be the next king.”
“Aye, we’d fight for the prince. But the king’s loyal men would fight for Prince Magnus, and we’d soon find ourselves warring each other at the same time we’re battling an invading army.”
Rex, with his small band of knights, would be at a disadvantage against Magnus and the king’s much bigger army. Even if Rex had sufficient forces, I doubted he’d want to fight his brother for the throne and cause even more strife in his kingdom.
“Why did he want me to have the key?” I fingered the key again.
“He didn’t come right out and say, Your Highness. But my guess is that he doesn’t want his people to suffer any more than they already have.”
I tested the commander’s words and tried to make sense of them. Was Rex giving me a way to bring an end to the conflict not only with his brother but with Adelaide? Was he inviting me to betray him, capture his city, and ultimately doom his life and his claim to kingship?