Shattered Assassin

by Knight, Wendy

  He shook his head ruefully, a smirk playing around his lips. “I promise.”

  Several minutes later they were racing down the hill — Kazia on Harousse, and Luke on his big black horse that he had refused to let her name. “We’ll try to catch up with the others before the sun is too high.” He glanced back at her, worried.

  “The tunic and mask cover me well enough that I should be fine in the sun.” As long as I don’t collapse first. Because now that the adrenaline had worn off and the assassin had retreated, the pain was rushing in, attacking her joints and her muscles. If she didn’t get it under control, it could attack the things that made her live — and she wouldn’t live anymore. She didn’t say anything, though, just tried not to grimace every time she rocked on the back of her horse, and wished fervently for a saddle.

  CHAPTER SEVENTEEN

  THE SUN WAS HIGH in the sky when her eyes wouldn’t stay open any longer. Luke, as if sensing her exhaustion, rode by her side. Riding during the day kept them safer from wolves and bandits, but Kazia’s allergy to the sun made it just as dangerous. Add to that the fact that neither of them had slept for over twenty-four hours, and she wasn’t surprised when Luke said, “We need to stop,”

  “We can’t…” she mumbled, but she couldn’t even hold her head up. “We’re so close, Luke.”

  “Yes, we are, but it won’t do us any good if we get there and you’re dead.” He led them closer to the mountain, where there was shelter from the sun under the jutting cliffs rising above them.

  She slid off her horse and tied her while Luke unraveled his bed roll and set up camp, gathering sticks and shrubs for a fire. The air was already crisp with chill but with the setting sun it would be even colder. Kazia dropped her pack next to the fire and sat on the ground with an unceremonious thunk, unfastening her bedroll from the bottom of her pack and shaking it out. As she laid it next to Luke’s, it finally occurred to her exhausted brain that it was just the two of them. It was wildly inappropriate, even more so given her history with him, and well, her feelings for him didn’t help either.

  Luckily, she was too tired and in too much pain for anything inappropriate at all to happen. All she wanted was to curl up in a ball and sleep for a week. “I’m gonna be a horrible queen,” she muttered.

  Luke eyed her from across the fire, where he knelt warming their dinner. “You’ve decided this, have you?”

  They hadn’t talked much during their ride. She’d been too tired and even if she hadn’t, she wasn’t sure what she would have said. Hey, so we’re together again. Did you know I talk to my dead pet and my dead family? Oh you didn’t? Yeah, that’s about as insane as me being an assassin, isn’t it? She blinked, realizing she’d forgotten to answer him, what with the internal conversation she was having. “Yes. How can I be queen if I can’t be stressed without it nearly killing me and I’m allergic to the sun? What kind of queen will that make me?”

  Luke got up and handed her a bowl of something steamy and she wrapped her hands around it, letting the warm air soak against her face.

  “It will make you whatever kind of queen you want it to make you.” He settled next to her, kicking off his boots and unstrapping his sword. “Your disease doesn’t define you, Kazia.”

  She leaned against the smooth rock of the giant mountain behind her, looking up at the sky. Clouds were rolling in, obliterating the moon and the stars. It would be a dark night to travel through, and she was determined to only rest a few hours before they started again.

  He bumped her with his shoulder, gently, although she still almost spilled her soup. “I mean it.”

  She gave him a weak smile. “I know you do.” They ate in silence, watching the coyotes prowl through the high grasses in the valley below them, and Kazia didn’t even realize she had fallen asleep until she felt Luke pulling her blanket over her and prying the soup bowl out of her hand. She snuggled down deep, trying to hide from the chill that seemed to sink into her bones, and was out again.

  She was cold. So cold. Her entire body shook so hard her teeth felt like they might shatter. The cold was coming from the inside out, which was a very bad sign and also meant it would be very hard to get warm.

  “Kazia. Kazia?” Luke’s voice was groggy as he shook her shoulder, but all she could do was whimper. There was rustling of bedcovers as he dragged his bedroll right next to hers and then flopped the blanket over on top of her. She wanted to object — how would he not freeze without a blanket? But her mouth was too busy chattering to form words. And then he lifted her blanket and slid under the covers with her, wrapping his arms around her and pulling her tight against him. He was fully clothed, as was she, and she knew she should probably object but the warmth was so wonderful she didn’t care if the whole kingdom saw her like this. As her shivering subsided, just a bit, she could feel his heart pounding underneath her palms. It was hard and fast, and his breathing was slightly ragged.

  “Kazia, if you hadn’t made me promise…” He trailed off gruffly.

  “If I hadn’t made you promise we would both be in trouble right now, Luke,” she whispered. Half her brain was begging him to kiss her, but the other, more logical side of her brain was pleading with her to go back to sleep.

  He seemed to be having the same dilemma, and after several seconds he cleared his throat, once, twice, and finally after the third time, he spoke. “Sleep, little princess. We’ll ride as soon as it warms a bit.”

  She forced her eyes closed and her tired body took over. Sleep, thankfully, came quickly.

  The sun was just rising over the mountains, but they had been riding for hours when her horse snorted, throwing its head back and pawing at the ground. “What’s the matter with you?” she muttered.

  “Don’t —don’t look,” Luke said, jerking his horse in front of her.

  “What? What is it?” Luke dropped to the ground, pulling her horse and his past what she first thought was a pile of debris. And then her heart stopped in horror. It was a family of wolves, torn apart by hunters. She choked on a sob, pressing her fist against her mouth.

  And then the smallest sound — a whimper of pain or maybe fear. Luke’s head jerked toward the carnage and he let go of the horses, rushing over. “Kazia! This one’s alive!” She slid from her horse, keeping a tight grip on the reigns because Harousse was still skittish. Luke cradled a little black wolf pup, not even as big as his hand, against his chest. It was bloody and shaking. “Is it hurt? Is that its blood?“

  Luke came over to her, holding it toward the light, but there were no wounds. “She’s not injured. And Kazia, look.” He gently turned the pup’s face toward her and she cried out — a gray face peered back at her, with one green eye and one brown and it batted at her with a huge paw. Kazia hugged the baby to her chest, Luke and all, and for once she didn’t even try to hold back the sobs.

  She carried the pup with her, wrapped in her cloak because it was small and shivering. Such a little thing — but look at those paws! Nakomi had big paws too, Kazia thought fondly, stroking the tiny face.

  “Captain!” Behind her, pounding hooves startled her out of her thoughts and she nearly fell off Harousse. Luke pulled up on his horse and it stamped its feet impatiently. Kazia’s exhausted brain was thinking she really needed to name that thing — she couldn’t keep calling it it.

  Benjamin rode up, pulling hard on the reins, Heath right behind him. “You found her!” Heath crowed like Kazia wasn’t sitting right there.

  “She was where I thought she’d be.” Luke glanced at her and smiled. Of course he would remember the place.

  “We received word from the others. They made it back to the castle but emissaries from three other kingdoms are there, demanding proof of your existence, your highness.”

  “Oh no.” Kazia groaned.

  “The only thing stopping them from claiming your kingdom for their own is King William,” Heath interjected, a grim smile on his face. “He came immediately after you left his kingdom, guessing there would be trou
ble… I guess.”

  He knew I wasn’t going home. And he had protected me. Kazia smiled, so grateful for the kind man that he was. “Well.” She straightened, which was awkward on the back of a horse with no saddle, and dug deep for some reserve of strength she knew must be there somewhere. Assassin? There’s no one to kill but I need you. “I suppose we better go prove to them all that I’m still alive.”

  “Are you sure you’re up to it, Princess?” Luke asked quietly, waiting until she met his gaze.

  She nodded. “Yes, Captain. Er — Luke. Sorry, Benjamin.”

  Benjamin smiled. “I still call him Captain, too, Princess.”

  “Okay, then. Let’s get moving. If we hurry we should be there by sundown.”

  Their horses raced across the valley, evenly matched in strengths and endurance so that they flew fluidly together across the open, grassy floor. “Hee-ya!” Kazia yelled, kicking Harousse, who responded, leaping forward and taking the lead. Her long black mane and tail streamed out behind her, mixing with Kazia’s messy blond braid. The wolf pup stayed snuggled in the makeshift pack at her chest, although she did yip in fear every so often. Kazia promised to make it up to her once they were home and had averted war.

  The sun was setting and the horses were lathered and breathing hard. To keep pushing them after hours of running so hard could mean stumbles and breaks. “We’ve got to let them rest!” Kazia yelled to be heard over the pounding hooves. Luke caught her eye and nodded, and as he pulled up so did Benjamin and Heath, but they couldn’t afford to walk for long. Luke waited until the four horses’ breathing weren’t quite so labored and drove his heels into the big black horse’s flanks once again. He jumped, racing ahead, and Harousse was quick to follow. From the roaring behind her, Kazia knew Benjamin and Heath also followed, although she didn’t dare turn to see. They pushed the poor, exhausted horses until they reached the forest surrounding Kazia’s castle.

  “We can’t run them here!” Kazia yelled. It was too dangerous, especially in the dark — there were too many obstacles, too many things that could break a leg and end the horse’s life. If they’d had Nakomi to lead them, then maybe. But they did not have Nakomi, and Kazia wasn’t willing to end any more lives, not when these horses had given everything they had and then more.

  “Princess, if we don’t get to the castle before morning, we might be too late,” Benjamin said, his gray eyes grim in the deep shadows of the forest.

  Kazia frowned, her mind racing. “Then I’ll run.”

  “What?!” Benjamin and Heath yelled in unison.

  “Not a chance.” Luke growled, glaring hard as the horses picked their way through the forest. “What trips a horse can trip you too.”

  “But it won’t. Don’t forget what I am, Luke.” She was already sliding off Harousse, unfastening her pack with the tiny wolf pup inside. She handed it up to Luke. “Bring her home for me.”

  Luke took the pack but handed it straight on to Benjamin. “I’m coming with you.”

  Kazia wanted to scream. There was no time for heroics. Instead she laid a hand on his thigh, peering up at him through the dark. “Luke, I know this forest. I can’t tell you how many times my father sent me through it to take care of his enemies. There are shortcuts, but not any big enough to allow a horse through.” As he opened his mouth to object, she shook her head, cutting him off. “Not big enough for even you.” Use your weakness as your strength, her father’s voice echoed through her head, her heart. She was small, and she used it to her advantage.

  Without another word, she spun and escaped through the trees. She heard them call — and they all sounded furious, but she couldn’t stop. There was no time. Her heart pounded in her chest as she ran, immensely grateful when the assassin finally took over, edging out the pain, sending energy bursting through her tired muscles, and she felt like her feet had wings as she flew over the ground. She could almost picture Nakomi running with her, as she had so many times before, bounding in front to smell for threats, bounding behind to make sure they weren’t followed, sprinting to catch Kazia when she got distracted, the long black tail just tipped toward the sky. Kazia’s heart hurt but also healed at the memory, and inside, she smiled.

  Ahead, the skies were graying. Not long and they would be pink, and the sun would rise. She had to beat it. She leaped over a fallen log, the marker that hid the entrance to the catacombs beneath the castle. They were mostly caved in, so only a child could fit through them.

  Or Kazia.

  She hated the catacombs. Being in small, incredibly dark spaces for what seemed like an endless amount of time was something she’d had nightmares about her entire life, but now she didn’t hesitate, diving into the tunnel, landing hard on her knees, and crawling. She wound her way through the darkness, wincing when she’d hit a rock on her bare hands, gasping when something large with many legs would crawl down her back or get tangled in her hair. But she didn’t stop. She felt her hands start to bleed, and then the knees of her tunic started to wear and eventually her knees bled too, but she didn’t stop. Above the surface, she knew the skies were lightening, even if it was dark as the deepest hour of midnight here. So dark that when the tunnels curved, she couldn’t see them and usually ran either a hand or her face into the wall. One particular crash left her forehead bleeding, and she was beginning to think even if she did make it in time to stop a war, no one would recognize her as the princess she was supposed to be.

  When she could take no more, and was certain she was going to die down here, alone and lost and completely insane, she saw the light ahead. It was a pink light, which meant that the sun was coming up. Despite her stiff, aching knees and back and her bloody palms, she crawled faster, falling a few times when her tired arms didn’t want to cooperate as fast as her brain was asking them too. She was beyond dirty and bloody and dusty when she reached the cellar grate. She stood, pushing against it with her back.

  It didn’t move.

  “No no no no no!” She screamed, furious at everything. It had been too long since she’d used the catacombs. The grate must have rusted shut. She pushed harder, felt it tearing at her tunic and then the skin underneath, so that soon her shoulder would look as horrible as her knees and hands. When she felt the bones start to shatter under the pressure, she quit, collapsing to the dirt floor. She wanted to sob, but she was too tired. There was no time to cry. Forcing herself to her feet, she rammed her non-injured shoulder against it, feeling the sharp edges of the grate smash into the back of her head. Once, twice, and she could feel the blood running down her scalp as waves of dizziness hit her over and over.

  And then she heard it move, just a bit, when she hit it the third time. Euphoria and hope surged through her and she slammed into it with everything she had left, feeling her shoulder break as she did so. She screamed in pain, a horrible cry that sounded, to her ears, like Nakomi’s howl. But the grate was loose. She shoved it away with her less-injured arm, squealing as it moved the broken shoulder blade. Getting out would be a problem, though, and she was just realizing she would have to crawl out using her broken arm when the cellar door swung open and Derock exploded into the room.

  “Your highness? Did I hear—?”

  “Derock! Help me! We must stop the war.” He was kneeling beside the hole in seconds, lifting her out. She screamed again when he pulled on her left arm, where the broken shoulder blade throbbed so much she thought she would pass out. But not yet.

  “They’re in the throne room,” Derock said after apologizing profusely. “Duels have already been challenged. They’re sending their men against each other any minute.”

  Kazia swallowed the bile rising in her throat. Not yet, not yet. “You might have to help me,” she said as she struggled to stand. He nodded, scooping her up, careful of her injuries, although he couldn’t avoid them all, and he ran. With every jostling step Kazia thought she might lose consciousness, but she fought. Brodi’s voice echoed in her head, encouraging her, fighting for her. Hold tight, little princ
ess. I’m with you. Just a few minutes more.

  Several steps outside the throne room, Kazia could hear the yelling. Her eyes, which she hadn’t realized had fallen shut, snapped open. Derock swung her to her feet, holding tight until she could stand steadily. Her other guards, the one’s whose names she had never learned, all stood ready at the doors, as if they had never doubted she would be there in time. She limped forward, fighting tears as she neared the door. Hold your head high, little sister. You are their queen. I’m with you. We’re all with you. Kazia sucked in a breath and raised her head as Derock swung the door open.

  “Her Royal Highness, Princess Kazia!” he yelled into the room. It wasn’t his job to announce her presence, but the man who usually did it was trying unsuccessfully to hold off the fighting. Her throne room was a disaster. The thrones were upturned and charred from the fire, the beautiful tapestries torn and burned, and the exotic plants her mother had loved so much were trampled in the dirt of their broken pots.

  Kazia was overcome with rage, which was a good thing. It ebbed away at the pain. “What is the meaning of this?” she yelled as she stalked into the room. Thanks to her shoulder, her knees and legs barely bothered her. The room fell silent as, in unison, twenty pairs of eyes all turned to gape at her. She didn’t have time to be self-conscious about her appearance, though, and strode into the room, refusing to limp.

  The only one who didn’t stare at her in horror and revulsion was King William, whose eyes sparkled even from across the room. “I knew you’d show up sometime,” he said.

  “Thank you, King William, for your kindness and for protecting my kingdom in my absence.”

  He inclined his head with a smile and she wondered if he was grateful for the distraction. He seemed almost amused by the chaos he’d been trying to control. Kazia turned slowly toward the rest of the room as her guards filed in behind her. “As for the rest of you, how could you do this? Look at my throne room! This is my kingdom — and you thought you could come in and take control? How dare you!” she yelled, which a princess must never do, but she was more than a princess. She was her father’s greatest assassin, and she was strong enough.