It is all your fault.
She could no longer see the cruelties before her. She knew not what she did or who she was. The weight compressing her chest, a desperate guilt, and sheer agony dragged her like a noose toward a dark abyss.
In a final desperate attempt, she gathered the ring’s power to her and let it all loose with an ear-piercing scream that surely ripped her heart in two. Her hands swept across the room in a blood red blur. Then she fell into the awaiting blackness.
∞∞∞
The tail end of the ring’s incredible force went too far. For the first time, Will, who was still chained behind her, felt its strength. He was thrown backward off his feet until his chains caught his body with a bone-jarring jerk and he fell to the ground.
It took him a few seconds to open his eyes, then he blinked to clear his vision, but couldn’t quite rid it of a hazy red. His head pounded and he could already feel a bump. He stood, then reached down to help Colter to his feet. Colter blinked, shook his head, then tried to get his wobbly legs to support his weight.
“Are you all right?” Will asked.
“I—I think so.” Colter rubbed his forehead. “What happened?”
“Danni.”
Colter turned toward her unconscious form, then he scanned the rubble around them. “Where is Peter?”
Will peered beyond Colter and saw Peter sprawled across the ground and covered in debris from a destroyed wall. His face was chalky and gray and his eyes stared sightlessly at the ceiling. Blood trickled from his pail, lifeless lips.
“Peter!” Colter’s scream shattered the silence.
Time remained still. Will watched Colter fall to his knees beside his brother, the brother who had once saved his life. Colter shook him gently, then harder when there was no response. Then he took Peter’s head in his arms and cradled him. His tears fell onto a face that would never again smile back at him.
Will tried to pull his gaze from the scene before him, but could not. Peter couldn’t be…Danni couldn’t have…It was too terrible to even think. It hadn’t been her fault. She hadn’t known what she was doing. It was Briggs’s fault—that vile, despicable man!
Will tore his gaze away from Peter and Colter and looked around the room. It was destroyed. Briggs’s men had put out the fires before they left, but they hadn’t taken the dead—about twenty—spread throughout the room, nor had they cleaned the rubble that littered the floor.
Will’s gaze shifted to Danni. She seemed tiny and broken, crumpled in a heap on the debris strewn floor.
Unable to bear anymore, Will sank to his knees on the stony ground, buried his face in his hands, and sobbed like a little child.
Chapter 27
Nathan awoke refreshed, despite his still aching head. His arm no longer throbbed and he felt confident and in control.
He studied the three men with him. “I want to go to the east hill today and search the path the others took. Maybe something happened there.”
The others agreed, and they left the inn for the east hill. Nathan had known there was an alternate path, but he had known little about it. The approach to the hill was gentle from the city side. It rose over a rather short distance and around a few bends to the top.
Lane had said the path was little used because it was longer, but Nathan found many recent footsteps. The queasiness that had nearly become his constant companion returned. Something was amiss.
From the top of the hill he had a good view down the back side. Below a small hill lay a beautiful grassy meadow. The path continued to the right and became steep along the hill’s drastic edge. Then the path met the edge where the hillside fell away to the bottom. He hadn’t realized how dangerous the path was. If Lane had explained, he might not have sent Danni that way.
He scanned the area and his eyes stopped on a section where a landslide had recently thundered down the hill. The broken tree stumps were still green and raw. His heart leapt into his throat and he hurried down the path, his eyes locked on the landslide’s debris.
Without a word, the others followed.
He tried to focus while his speed picked up, but found it hard to look away from the wreckage. He did notice recent footprints on the path, but couldn’t prove who’s they were.
They reached the landslide area and spread out to search for their companions. Nathan noticed that, while the rest of the hillside bore scars from the recent landslide, the actual path was untouched by the falling rock and debris. Footprints were clearly visible on the ground. The landslide had somehow skipped over the path. That wasn’t possible unless Danni had protected them.
He shuddered. “I think they were here when the landslide hit.”
“How can you know that?” Garin turned a quizzical gaze toward him.
“The landslide skipped over this spot. The path should be destroyed, but it isn’t. It seems untouched. If the landslide fell on top of them, Danni would have used the ring to protect them.”
“It is possible.” Garin rubbed his dark beard.
“If that is indeed what happened,” Nathan continued, “then they survived and made it to the top. So where are they now?”
He found no answers to his question, so he led them back to the town. They spoke to a few locals as they passed, but learned nothing of their companions. They returned to the inn and spent another night discouraged and worried for the others.
∞∞∞
Merk entered the room and approached Danni. Will clenched his fists. A livid heat filled him and he wished Merk would step close enough that he could vent his rage on him. He was angry that Lane had turned on them, angry that Briggs was so putridly evil, angry at the misery heaped upon Danni, angry at Peter’s tragic death, and angry that there was absolutely nothing he could do about it.
Soldiers had come a few hours after the incident to carry off the dead. They had taken Peter’s body with them. Colter hadn’t said a word, but watched as the soldiers dragged his brother away. Now he hugged his knees and rocked back and forth.
Merk approached Danni with his standard water buckets.
Will growled and strained against his chains.
Merk laughed at Will, then threw a bucket of water on Danni. No response. He threw another. Water slopped against the stones around her, but she didn’t stir. He slapped her face and shook her. Still nothing. Then he cursed and left the room.
Briggs entered and Will charged toward him, no longer able to contain his fury. Briggs glanced at him when Will’s chains stopped him, then he turned back to Danni.
“Pathetic,” Briggs muttered to himself. “What a weak little girl.”
He knelt beside her, and greed twisted his features.
“Surely the ring’s power has weakened with her.” Briggs rubbed the scar on his hand, then pulled Danni’s limp arm onto his lap. He stared at her ring glittering dully in the torchlight, then he reached for it.
His hand closed over the ring. He screamed and yanked his hand from hers. He stood, curses flowing from his lips, then he kicked her. He stormed from the room and slammed the heavy wooden door behind him.
Will stared after him, not even aware that he still strained against his shackles. When no one else entered, he sat down and rubbed his wrists where the chains had dug into his flesh. He let out a great shudder and put his head in his hands. Lane had betrayed them, Peter had been killed, Danni lay broken on the ground beyond his reach, and Colter sat curled in a ball, lost in shock.
Nate. He squeezed his eyes shut in thought. I am sorry I failed you.
Chapter 28
Nathan sat up, jerked from a nightmare. Sweat poured down his face and he panted. In his mind’s eye he could still see images from his dream of Danni being tortured. They were so vivid he knew they must be real.
Darkness prevailed outside, but the faintest glow suggested dawn drew near.
The bed creaked as he left it. He moved to the basin on the table in the begrimed room and splashed water on his face. He rubbed at his eyes, then wiped the
water from his face, hoping to wipe the dream away with it.
That morning marked the fourth day since he had let her go.
“Nathan?” Doc sat up in his bed.
“Hmm?”
“Are you all right?”
Nathan sighed and turned toward the window. The more important question was if Danni was all right. He rested his elbows on the window sill and stared out at the gray morning. “I will be fine when we find Danni and the others.” He stood. “Let’s go find them.”
Edward and Garin stirred at his words.
Nathan was about to make a plan for the day when a knock sounded on their door. He rushed to answer it and pulled the door open with such force it nearly came off its rusted hinges.
The inn keeper stood outside, a letter in his hand. “A man brought this in earlier and asked me to give it to a group with your description.” He held the note out to Nathan.
“Thank you.” Nathan took the letter and felt his heart pound in anticipation. He ripped the letter open the instant the door closed. With a jolt he recognized Lane’s meticulous handwriting. The note contained seven words, which he read out loud:
Meet at the east hill at sunset.
“It is signed, Lane.”
Nathan’s head spun. So many questions flashed through his brain that he couldn’t muddle through them all.
“Do you think it really is from them, or is it a trick?” Garin met Nathan’s gaze.
“This is Lane’s handwriting,” Nathan replied. “He is my cousin, I would recognize it anywhere. He always carried his journal around and wrote his thoughts in it and probably solved the world’s problems. I know Lane wrote this. But why now? It has been four days.”
Edward shifted his feet. “Do you think they have been captured and someone forced him to write it?”
Nathan rubbed his chin. “It makes no sense. If they had been captured, why would Donavan’s men care about us? If they have Danni, why would they wait four days to find us? We are of no value. They would have taken her and fled back to Donavan’s castle as fast as they could.”
It took all his willpower to speak of Danni in such a manner. Imagining her in Donavan’s hands filled him with more dread than he could bear, but he had to keep calm. He had to stay in control. He had to be the leader. The lives of his companions were still his responsibility and he could not fail them again.
“Maybe they were hunted and are in hiding,” Garin suggested. “Maybe they found where we were and hoped to avoid meeting in a public place.”
Again Nathan thought on this theory.
“It is possible.” Doc went to the window. “Anything could be possible at this point.”
“Doc is right,” Nathan said. He folded and unfolded the letter. “However, I know Lane wrote this, so we will do what he says. Let us hope all is well and they have their reasons for not meeting us sooner. It does seem a bit odd…” His voice trailed off. “We will have our swords at the ready and be on guard. We will have to trust Lane.”
Nathan gathered his belongings and the others followed his lead. “We will not sit here and waste our day. We will search the city again. Perhaps we can find something that might give us a clue about what is going on. We also need to restock our supplies and possibly find a horse or two.”
His men nodded. Garin opened the door and they filed out to search the city one last time.
∞∞∞
Merk returned two other times to wake Danni. No matter what he tried she didn’t stir. Will began to fear that she might never wake again.
A while later, a man Will had never seen before entered the room. He approached Danni, pulled out a key and unlocked her chains. With the chains gone, Will could see that her wrists were even more raw than his own.
The man stared at the ring on her finger, then he touched it. His scream reverberated around the cavern and he shook and rubbed his hand. He hopped about for several minutes before returning to Danni. He scooped her limp body into his arms—careful to stay far from the ring—and carried her from the room.
Will panicked. He jumped to his feet and pulled at his chains. “Stop!” he screamed. “Where are you taking her? Bring her back!”
The door slammed shut.
About an hour later the man returned with five other men. One man held his sword to Colter’s throat while the first man took out his keys again and unlocked Colter’s chains. Two other men held his arms and dragged him from the room. They returned moments later to do the same to Will.
A man put his sword to Will’s throat. “If you even think about trying to escape, I will be the last person you ever see.”
Desperate to find Danni, Will obeyed. He was ushered out the door and down a long hallway that smelled of mold and damp earth. Then another door opened and he emerged into blinding sunlight. He had been in a dark room so long that his eyes couldn’t adjust to the brilliant sunlight.
Unable to see, he tripped on the stairs the soldiers forced him to climb. He finally made it up five steps and was shoved onto a wobbly floor. He heard bars slam shut behind him and a heavy lock click into place.
He felt around on the floor to learn of his surroundings. Hazy images formed before his blinded eyes. He reached out to a shape before him and felt a man’s arm.
“Colter? Is that you?”
Colter grunted.
Will continued to investigate their new prison. He felt strong metal bars around the whole cage. When his eyes finally adjusted to the sunlight, he saw that they were indeed in a cage, but it was on a wagon that could be pulled by horses. They were alone and he couldn’t see Danni anywhere.
“Where is Danni?” he asked.
Colter shrugged.
Will cried out in frustration and kicked a metal bar. Then he sat down beside Colter and wondered what would happen to them next.
Chapter 29
When evening approached, Nathan gave up on their useless search. They had purchased supplies, but had not found a horse they could afford with what little money they still had. They had also found nothing concerning their companions.
“It is time to go.” He led the others toward the east hill at a rapid pace. He hardly noticed the change from homes to shrubbery when they exited the town. His heart pounded faster the closer they got to the hill. Before long they began the assent to the top.
When he neared the summit, he broke into a run. He couldn’t shake the feeling that something was wrong, so he drew his sword. The others drew theirs too. He rounded the last bend into the blinding sunset and raised his free arm to block the light. A glint of steel within the bright rays halted him and he moved his arm to stop his companions. Men stepped from the shadows and from behind trees and bushes. They were surrounded.
“Drop your weapons.” A large man stepped forward with scraggly dirty-blond hair that looked like fire with the red sun giving off its final rays behind it. He had a nasty smirk on his pudgy face and eyes that reflected pure evil.
Danni and the other companions were not there.
“I do not jest, Nate,” the man said. “Drop your weapons or my men will run you through.”
Nathan knew he had no choice, so he let his sword fall. It struck the ground with a harsh clang that reverberated across the hill. “Drop your swords,” he said to the others.
His companions’ swords clattered to the ground.
Two men came at each of his companions and three rushed him. They pinned his arms behind his back and blocked his way forward.
“It is good to finally meet you, Nate,” the portly man said in a raspy voice. “I have heard so much about you.”
Nathan struggled against his captors. “Who are you and what do you want from us?”
The man’s chuckle made Nathan cringe. “Let me introduce myself. I am General Briggs of Lord Donavan’s army. May I also congratulate you on bringing Princess Dannilynn A’ Donna this far. Quite an accomplishment. I have heard all about your journey.”
Nathan strained against his captors. “Where i
s she? What have you done to her?”
“Where is she?” Briggs mocked. “As the leader, you should know where she is. What leader would let something as precious and innocent as her out of his sight?”
“Where is she?” Panic squeezed Nathan’s chest until he nearly gasped for air.
Briggs stepped closer to him. “She was given to us four days ago by someone in that little group you sent her with.” He laughed. “You have been betrayed.”
“That is a lie!” Even as Nathan said it, he knew Briggs spoke the truth. His chest clenched tighter still. He had known they shouldn’t split up, but he had let them anyway. Now someone he trusted had betrayed them and Danni was in trouble.
“I do not lie,” Briggs cooed in his ear. “I suppose a man like you would be surprised at what another man would do for mammon. Apparently the lust for wealth and status supersedes not only the ties of friendship, but also the bond of blood.”
Nathan felt the color drain from his face as his entire being filled with a heavy, cold dread.
“That is right, Nate. Your own cousin…” His voice faded and he pointed behind him.
Lane stepped from the shadows, his eyes cold and unrecognizable.
Nathan gaped at him, too shocked to comprehend his cousin’s betrayal. The sun dipped behind the mountain and left the sky streaked with red, like blood staining the night.
“Lane…” Nathan could hardly speak. “How…how could you?”
Lane ambled forward and studied Nathan. Their eyes met for a moment, then Lane blinked and glanced at the ground. Just as fast he returned his gaze and spoke. “Well, Nate, I saw things as a guard at the Outer Rim—things you wouldn’t believe unless you saw them yourself. I saw men from both kingdoms commit terrible acts, men you would have called good. I realized there is no good and evil or right and wrong, there is only power and prosperity! You hold neither and have always been disgustingly content with nothing. James has both, but was never willing to share it despite our years of loyal friendship. I no longer have to sit in your shadow and beg for recognition and sustenance from Prince James. Now that I have joined the winning side, I have been promised great power and wealth of my own. Maybe you should reconsider which side you want to be on, too.”
The Power of The Ruby Ring Page 13