With a respectful nod, Lady Rahman said, “Thank you, Your Highness, but the credit belongs to my scouts.”
“Have we received any additional word on Ellaria’s whereabouts?” Jess asked Tanvir.
He shook his head. “Not since she was sighted near that small village outside of Ygres.”
Jess nodded. She hadn’t expected anything more. Ellaria had set out with a very small party, and there was no way of knowing how deep support for her cause ran amongst the peasants. For all they knew, Ellaria could be parading down the streets of any village in broad daylight, and Jess and Tanvir would never be any the wiser.
“A party her size riding at full speed could easily have reached Skyhold by now,” Lord Talmar said, tracing the route with a fingertip. “Even if they took the smaller roads.”
“We must assume she’s inside the tower,” Jess said, her voice like steel. The lords and lady straightened their spines at her words. “We must assume there’s more than one secret entrance.”
“But could she have slipped past us?” Lord Weymarth asked. “We’ve been combing the forest ever since we received word of her imminent defeat.”
“She could easily have slipped past us,” Jess said. She pointed to the map, tracing the grids they’d established. “On the first day we covered these sectors. On the second day, these. Today we’ve covered this area. That still leaves large swaths of the forest. As little as any of us wants to believe that Ellaria could have evaded us, we cannot deny the possibility.”
Lord Weymarth looked unhappy, but Jess knew his unhappiness wasn’t with her. She shared the feeling. It wasn’t just that the idea of Ellaria eluding them with such seeming ease tweaked her pride, it killed her to know that the woman could have been so close and yet escaped their grasp. Jess’s desire to see Ellaria brought to justice was second only to her desire to rescue Dev.
“We’ll see her answer for her crimes yet,” Tanvir vowed, his voice as steely as Jess’s had been.
“I must go in without further delay. If Ellaria is in that tower, Prince Devaran’s life is in grave danger,” Jess said, pushing off from the table. She wanted to run from the tent and race to the cave, but she forced herself to wait.
“Are you certain that’s wise?” Lady Rahman asked, her tone delicate. “Perhaps it would be better to wait and see if Ellaria makes any demands. It may be possible to negotiate Prince Devaran’s release.”
“No,” Jess said, not realizing how harshly she’d spoken until she saw Lady Rahman flinch as though Jess had slapped her. “I will not trust Ellaria with Prince Devaran’s life. At this point she has nothing to lose, and we already know she was bent on vengeance. Why would she surrender meekly now?”
“I think Princess Jessmyn is right,” Tanvir said, though he didn’t sound happy.
“We all knew the risks,” she reminded him, laying a hand on his arm. “I will not back down now.”
“It would be best to wait until nightfall,” Lord Talmar said. “Then we can attack, drawing the focus to ourselves and providing you with some cover, Your Highness.”
“We can rattle the guards by making a show of marshaling our forces for the larger attack,” Tanvir said. “Princess Jessmyn, I think you should make yourself quite visible for the rest of the afternoon. We want to be sure you’re sighted, so that word will get back to Ellaria.”
Clenching her fists at her sides, Jess gave a tight nod by way of reply. She knew Lord Talmar and Tanvir were right, but inside she was screaming, almost incapacitated with alarm at the thought of leaving Dev with Ellaria, even if it was only for a matter of hours. Forcing herself to speak, Jess said, “It’s a sound plan. How far out from Skyhold is my mother’s army?”
“Her Majesty should be here by the morrow,” Lady Rahman replied.
Jess sighed and rubbed her forehead. Chances were Ellaria knew of Queen Farah’s impending arrival, which made Jess’s worries multiply. Ellaria would be prepared for them to strike.
Working quickly, the five divided the perimeter of the tower into zones, each of them heading off to take one. Jess’s mind was focused on what she needed to do, and she would have strode from the tent without a backward glance had Tanvir not grabbed her arm, halting her.
“Promise me you will be careful,” he said, his eyes searching her face. With everyone else gone, he had let his guard down, and Jess could see just how fearful he was.
“I promise,” Jess said, meeting his gaze. “I will bring Dev out safely, you have my word.”
“It’s not just Dev I’m worried about. I don’t want to see you come to any harm either.”
She gave him a lopsided smile. “Tanvir, you and I both know there’s no guarantee no one will come to any harm.”
“I know,” he said, his eyes filled with pain.
“Whatever happens, I want you to promise me that you will take care of Lyrane. I know you would make an excellent king to Estoria, so I have no worries there. But if I were to fall… Promise me you’ll offer your aid to my parents, that you’ll help ensure a smooth succession.”
“Jess, please don’t—”
“Promise me,” Jess demanded. Her voice broke on the fierce words, and a tear slipped down her cheek.
“I promise,” he said. He pulled her into an embrace and they hugged for a long moment. Jess drew what strength she could from him. He would keep his word if the worst happened, and it provided her with some small measure of comfort.
Breaking from his embrace, Jess hurried to her tent, calling for her squire to come and help her with her armor. She spent the next few hours riding up and down the lines of troops, making speeches and doing her best to be as conspicuous as possible. The windows and arrow slits of the tower felt like eyes, boring through her armor and under her skin as she played at preparing her troops for battle.
Jess wanted to scream with relief when night fell at last. Spurring her horse, she retreated to her tent, as if to take a final meal before the attack. Her squires stripped her of her armor once she was inside. Though there was a meal laid out for her, Jess touched none of it, instead spending the next half hour pacing restlessly until her guards announced the arrival of one of her captains.
“Your Highness,” Taleshia said, bowing.
“You’ll make a fine princess,” Jess said, trying to smile, but her nerves felt as if they’d been scraped raw.
“There is no finer princess than you,” Taleshia replied, her voice filled with conviction. The words brought tears to Jess’s eyes, and she could do nothing more than nod in response. She waved her squire forward and the boy removed Taleshia’s armor, replacing it with Jess’s. Once Jess’s helm was in place on Taleshia’s head, no one in the tower would be able to tell the difference.
“May the gods be with you, Your Highness,” Taleshia said.
“And with you,” Jess said. “Dismissed.”
Taleshia bowed and pressed her fist to her shoulder, then left the tent. Jess had already put on her leathers, and she slid her twin dirks into the visible sheathes at her hips before tucking more blades into the sheaths concealed in her armor: one in her boot, one on her left upper arm, and one on the right side of her ribcage.
By the time she made her way through her troops, Jess was at the outskirts of the forest, and it was easy to slip into the cover of the trees. Her five companions awaited her, Pala holding the reins of both her own horse and Jess’s.
“Let’s go,” Jess said, swinging up into the saddle.
Chapter 41
“Good morning, sleepyhead,” a voice purred when Dev’s eyelids fluttered. He felt groggy and his head was fuzzy. How long had he slept? Suddenly he realized why the voice sounded familiar, and he tried to scramble up in bed, finding to his dismay that his limbs were once again floppy and slow to respond to his commands.
“Oh, that,” Ellaria said, noticing his attempts to move. “The situation has grown a bit more…complex. It’s important that you cooperate.”
With a great deal of focused effort,
Dev was able to raise a shaking hand to his eyes. “Why are you here?” His voice came out thick, his words slurred.
“Things didn’t go quite as I’d planned,” she responded, her voice sounding funny. He forced his eyes open so he could look at her, try to figure out what was going on, but what light there was in the cell hurt his eyes, and it was difficult to fight back the sleep that threatened to overcome him.
“You lost?” he managed to say.
She laughed, the sound humorless. “Yes, I suppose I did. You see, I had expected Warrior Queen Farah to ride against me, and I’d expected to face Estoria’s army. What I hadn’t anticipated was that Mahlia and Beland would be willing to put their loathing for one another aside and form an alliance with Estoria and Lyrane.”
The words surprised him, making it possible for him to open his eyes at last. Jess had managed to persuade Mahlia and Beland to help her? His disbelief must have been evident because Ellaria chuckled once again, and the cold sound of it made him shudder.
“It would seem your lady love is more resourceful than I had anticipated. I thought I could do it.” Her sigh was almost dreamy, and Dev managed to turn on his mattress, enabling him to see her face at last. For some reason the mattress felt even more uncomfortable than usual, and with a flash of insight he remembered his straw men.
Jess. Tanvir. They’re outside! Dev thought, fighting to keep his expression neutral. Staying awake was struggle enough; trying to contain his emotions threatened to drain him of his last reserves. But remembering that Jess and Tanvir were outside made Dev remember that he needed to hang the straw men, to warn them.
“My father wasn’t a traitor, you know,” Ellaria said, her tone strangely conversational. Directing his attention back to her, Dev was disturbed by her appearance. She looked almost happy, a small smile touching her lips, her eyes unfocused. “He saw the corruption within the Realm. He saw how Mallaric the Elder’s retainers violated his laws and defied his will but remained in the king’s good graces by plying him with gold, with troops for his army, with flattery and deception. Mallaric saw what he wanted to see, and of course this arrangement suited the lords and ladies just fine.”
Dev frowned. What she said had a hint of truth, but just a hint, and he knew he was hearing a version of history that had been colored by a combination of Ellaria’s perceptions and whatever misinformation her father had fed her. While he knew Mallaric the Elder hadn’t been the noblest of kings, the aspirations of the Reykstends were infamous in the history texts, and Dev’s parents had often spoken of those days with disgust.
“So you kidnapped me and killed innocents in an effort to rehabilitate your father’s name? And you think that makes you better than Mallaric the Elder?” Dev asked, his voice full of contempt.
“You will never understand,” Ellaria said, her voice lowering to a hiss. A venomous expression shot over her face, and she regarded him with cold hatred. “No one understands. No one could appreciate his vision, what he hoped to accomplish—not even those who called themselves his friends. But I did. I always have. My father groomed me. He taught me. He made me see how extraordinary his ideas were.” Maniacal fervor filled her eyes as she spoke, and Dev shivered. He didn’t even want to know what her father had done to her that had left her so damaged.
The gleam in her eyes vanished abruptly, and Ellaria began to weep. “Forgive me, Father. I have failed you. My shame overwhelms me.”
“What do you intend to do now?” Dev asked, his patience wearing thin. If he’d had the strength, he would have tried to claw the walls down with his fingernails. Jess was there, she was just outside, yet he was in more danger than ever, trapped inside the tower with a madwoman.
“Now I die,” she said, sounding as though she couldn’t believe the answer wasn’t clear to him.
“Don’t let me stop you.” He spat the words at her.
A cunning smile spread over her face, and her eyes lit up once more. “Ah, but not just yet, and not alone. The perfect moment will come, I just know it. It’s as if I can hear his voice again, telling me to be patient, to wait. Even as he rotted in that dungeon before they took his head, he cautioned me to be patient. ‘Our day will come,’ he said.”
Horrified, Dev stared at her. She had always seemed unstable to him, but now he could plainly see just how unhinged she was.
“Sleep now, my dear prince,” Ellaria murmured. “I’ll be back for you soon enough.”
She strolled to the door, her sedate pace suggesting she was taking a stroll through a garden rather than facing certain defeat at the hands of her enemies. As if her words were a spell, he could feel his eyelids grow heavy, and he suspected she had drugged him just before he had awakened, but he couldn’t remember. He couldn’t remember when she had arrived either, and it frustrated him to be reduced to a helpless state again.
No. I won’t be helpless. Whatever she has planned, I will not lie here sleeping while she carries it out. I will stop her.
The thought filled him with determination, but his body still ignored his commands. He struggled for what he knew must have been hours, judging by the change of light in his cell, every moment worried that she would return or that she would send one of her guards in to drug him. If that happened, he would no longer be able to fight.
Gradually he regained control of his limbs. At first he could do no more than sit up, but it felt like a victory to him just the same. Still, he feared it was too little too late, and he gathered his strength, willing himself to fight harder. He swung his legs over the side of the bed, assaulted by a wave of dizziness so powerful it nearly knocked him flat on the mattress. He closed his eyes for a few seconds, taking deep, slow breaths until the dizziness loosened its hold on him and he felt steady. Pushing off from the mattress, he managed to stand, and he tried putting one foot in front of the other. He lurched and swayed and almost toppled over, but he did manage to make it across the cell and to the small window cut in his door.
Sound floated in on the chill breeze, and he realized he’d been so focused that he hadn’t heard the noise coming from outside, though it was now such a cacophony he couldn’t understand how he’d missed it. He listened for a moment, and a smile spread over his face as he recognized the sound at last: the army outside was on the move. No longer afraid that his scuffling steps had alerted his guard, he peered through the bars and saw the stupid man standing just outside, fidgeting as if he had a burr under his armor. Sweat beaded the man’s forehead, and his eyes kept darting to the empty cells and the staircase. He looked like he was debating between having a look outside and flinging himself down the stairs, running for his life.
Satisfied that his guard was distracted, Dev made his way back to his bed. His progress was slow and painful, and he worried he was being far too loud, but no one disturbed him. Twilight began falling as he struggled to pull the straw men from the mattress. He dragged his chair to the window and climbed up on it. Unsteady, he wobbled and almost fell, stopping himself only by clenching his muscles so tightly his left leg spasmed. After what seemed an eternity he felt more stable, and he gritted his teeth and set to work tying his signal to one of the bars on his window.
Twice he almost dropped the straw men, which would have sent them tumbling to the ground, useless. Shifting his position, he fell against the wall, scraping his cheek raw, and he had to bite his tongue to prevent himself from crying out. Despite all this, he managed to tie the straw men to the bar at last, then he half stepped, half collapsed to the floor, where he sat for a moment, waiting for his limbs to stop trembling.
The rattle of keys outside his door made him jump, and his heart seized. He doubted he had the strength to fight Ellaria, and he sucked in a breath, feeling like he was inhaling water rather than air.
“Come with me. Hurry!” an urgent voice whispered when the door opened. Dev stared dumbly, unable to believe what he was seeing. The servant girl crouched just outside, her eyes so wide with terror the whites were vivid in the semi-darkness. “Hur
ry!” she repeated. He hadn’t known it was possible for someone to whisper and yet sound shrill.
Though his body moved of its own accord, preparing to follow her, he stopped, wariness stilling his steps. How could she have overpowered his guards, and where did she intend to take him? How did he know this wasn’t part of Ellaria’s plan? True, she looked like she was about to keel over from fear, but perhaps she was simply a masterful actress.
“There’s no time! Trust me or don’t, it’s as simple as that. She’s gone mad! She wants to kill us all, burn the tower to the ground. I don’t want to die, and I can’t just leave you here to burn.”
“How did you subdue the guards?” Dev muttered, trying his hardest to listen for any sounds indicating someone was coming up the stairs, but it was difficult to hear over the noise coming from outside.
“I drugged the wine,” she hissed. “Are you coming or no?”
“Yes, but I’m slow,” he warned her.
“She drugged you, I know. You can lean on me.”
Shambling over to her, Dev dropped his arm across her shoulders and she led him out of the cell. “Why are you doing this?” he asked.
“You had no part in what happened to her father. I can’t let her kill an innocent. If I leave you here I’ll have to live with it for the rest of my days.”
“If she catches you helping me you won’t have any more days.”
“We’ll both die here if you don’t keep quiet and move.”
“How will we get out? I don’t think they’ll just let us skip through the front door.”
“I know where the secret passages are. We’ll have to go up in order to reach one that will lead us back down. There are guards everywhere on the lower levels. We’ll never make it out if we head down the main staircase.”
Dev still didn’t know if he should trust her, but it was either go with her or sit in his cell waiting for Ellaria to return. At least this way he might be able to grab something to use as a weapon, giving him a fighting chance if she did take him to Ellaria.
[Fairytale 02] - Asleep (2013) Page 24