by Kelly Blount
Without warning, the door flung open and Algid stood with a strange smile on his face.
“My love! We have a visitor! Please come and pay your respects.”
A visitor? Who the heck visits someone so late at night? Especially since we’re in the middle of nowhere?
“Prince Algid, it’s late and I’m scared. Can’t I just stay here?”
He ignored her comments and reached out for her hand. “Please be careful. I’m told our guest has something that will help the pain in your shoulder.”
Something in the pit of her stomach told her it was best not to inquire about the visitor and just take her husband’s hand as he led her into the dark forest.
“This way, my love,” said Algid, leading her further from the carriage.
They kept walking. Scrawny branches from nearby bushes slapped at their legs and something sticky brushed against her face.
“Where are we going?” she asked.
Algid remained silent and kept walking.
Something felt wrong, very wrong. Even Algid’s palms felt clammy.
Stepping out from behind a massive tree, a rumbling voice greeted her. “Princess Sophie, I’m so sorry to interrupt your trip to Dratun.”
Grishma’s rancid smell, coupled with her abhorrent appearance, made her stomach clench tightly.
“How is your trip going?” Grishma asked.
She stammered, “Everything was going well until a short time ago.”
Grishma frowned, “Do tell. What happened?”
“Here,” said Algid. His movements seemed almost robotic as he handed Grishma the threatening note.
“Oh dear—this doesn’t look good.”
“No, it doesn’t. Especially since we received it attached to a dead body,” said Sophie.
“I suppose it doesn’t. Well, I hate to be the bearer of bad news, but I also have something alarming to share,” growled the Grishma. “You see, the King received a detailed letter claiming someone was going to kill you on the way to Dratun.”
Panic seeped in and her own palms began to sweat.
“It certainly appears someone wants you dead,” snarled Grishma.
“But why? What have I done?” asked Sophie.
“You know too much,” answered Grishma.
“I beg your pardon?” asked Sophie in disbelief.
Grishma roared, sending shooting pains through her head. Gnashing her razor sharp teeth, she spewed, “I said, you know too much and now you must die!”
Chapter Twenty-Two
RYDER FOLLOWED THE GIRL WITH the golden hair and eyes the color of the sea into her room. She smelled of sweet flowers and fresh spring air. He found himself distracted and he had to force himself to focus.
“So, you said you just saw Brianna? Which way did she go?”
“Give me one second, I just need to close the door,” said the girl.
Ryder spun around and admired her lavishly decorated room. “Wow, this is really nice.”
When he turned again, he found himself looking directly at a gleaming sword pointing directly at his throat.
“Who are you? And why are you looking for Brianna?”
“What the—”
“I don’t like to repeat myself, so I’m going to ask you this one last time. Who are you and why are you looking for Brianna?” spat the girl.
Before he answered, his eyes focused on the decorated hilt of the razor sharp blade pointed at his jugular. “Wait a minute! Why do you have my father’s sword? Where did you get it from?”
The question caught her off guard. “Huh?”
That’s all the time Ryder needed. He dropped to the floor and kicked the girl’s legs out from under her. She crashed to the ground.
The sword clanged on the wooden floorboards. Both Ryder and the girl reached for it.
The girl had one hand on the sword’s hilt and the other reached for Ryder’s face. She managed to scratch his cheek with her nails and draw blood.
He wrapped his legs around the girl and squeezed tightly. Then he rolled over, sitting on top of her, and grasped hold of the sword with both hands.
Finally, he ripped the sword away and held it above her head. “Don’t move!” he warned.
The girl took a deep breath and pursed her lips. “Fine.”
Ryder rolled off the girl, keeping the sword pointed at her.
“Sit down, over there.” He motioned toward an oversized chair with a high back.
Ryder pulled the sheet off her bed, ripped it down the middle, and quickly wrapped it around her in the chair and tied her arms to her side.
“Now, listen. I need you to tell me how you know Brianna and why you have my father’s sword.”
“Brianna is my cousin and I found this sword hidden in the royal garden after some party crashers had a nasty skirmish with Grishma.”
“She is not your cousin! That’s a lie!” snapped Ryder.
“It is not!” hissed the girl.
“It is too!” argued Ryder.
“Really? Then prove I’m lying!”
“Um, okay, that’s simple. I’m her brother. If you’re her cousin, then you’re my cousin, too. And I’ve never seen you before. That’s how I know you’re lying.” The girl’s jaw dropped and her eyes widened. “Wait a minute, you’re Ryder?”
“Yes, who the hell are you?”
“I’m Alexia. I may not be your real cousin, but I’m the closest thing you’ve got to one!”
“Explain yourself, now!”
She rolled her eyes. “Fine, it all started several years ago. My mother, Lady Quinn, is a member of the Royal Court and one night, I became very sick. I was feverish, delirious, and I began to have convulsions. My mother was worried I would die and she begged the King for help. He sent for your mother and asked her to make the medicine necessary to save my life. She rushed to give me the concoction and stayed by my side until I had fully recovered. Without her help, I would have died. From that point on, she always treated me like one of her own.”
Ryder’s demeanor softened. “So you met Brianna through my mother?”
“Well, sort of. You see, two years ago, Brianna was appointed as one of Princess Sophie’s ladies in waiting. Naturally, they spent loads of time together. Since I’m a daughter of a royal court member, I spent a lot of time with them, too. Once I found out Brianna was your mother’s daughter, we became even closer.”
Ryder cocked his head and squinted while looking at Alexia.
As if reading his mind, she blurted out, “I’m not lying! Just ask your mother!”
“My mother is gone. She’s left the castle and is safe with my friends.”
Alexia looked at him in disbelief. “Seriously? How did you manage that?”
“Look, I don’t have time to go into detail. I need to know if your intentions are true. Were you really trying to protect Brianna when you lured me in here?”
“Yes! I was afraid you were trying to hurt her!” she said.
“Are you going to turn me in to the King?” asked Ryder.
“No! Weren’t you listening? I’m on your side!”
Without warning, someone knocked on Alexia’s bedroom door.
“Quick! Untie me or we’ll both be caught!”
With a split second to decide, Ryder sliced through the sheets and freed Alexia.
“Make haste and crawl under my bed! Now!” she whispered.
BANG, BANG, BANG!
Trying to remain calm, she shouted, “Coming!”
She closed her eyes, took a deep breath, and then answered the door. “Yes?”
An armored guard stood with his hand raised, about to knock again. “Have you seen anything unusual tonight?”
“No,” she replied.
“Are you sure?” asked the guard.
“Yes, I’m sure. I just got to my room a few moments ago. I’ve been at the wedding festivities all night.”
The guard peered into her bedroom, searching for anything out of place. He was just about to turn around and leav
e when his eyes focused on something on the bedroom floor. “What happened to your sheets?”
“What I do in my bedroom is none of your business! Now please leave me alone before I report you to the King for taking too much interest in my personal habits!”
Completely caught off guard, he began backing out of the room, mumbling, “If you see anything, report it at once.”
She closed the door behind him and leaned against it. “That was way too close for comfort!”
Once it was clear, Ryder crawled out from under the bed. He asked “So why are you so intent on helping me again?”
“For the hundredth time, your mother saved my life and I want to repay the favor,” said Alexia. “Plus, if even one tenth of the stuff you just told me is true, you need all the help you can get!”
“What if we get caught? Your mother would get kicked out of the Court and your family would be disgraced, put in prison, or even killed.”
“Grishma has long plagued the King and the Royal Court! I would be honored to help bring an end to it!”
Ryder hesitated. “Okay, well, if you change your mind, I’ll understand.”
Alexia rolled her eyes, causing Ryder to laugh.
Ryder scratched his head and furrowed his brow. “Okay, well, first I think we should go find Brianna. Then we can go find Princess Sophie, I mean, Brooklyn and—”
Alexia held up her hands. “Seriously? You’re just going to walk into the most heavily guarded part of the castle, find Brianna, and convince her you’re her brother and you’ve come to save her?”
“Well…” Ryder trailed off.
“Then what? Burst into the wedding suite and tell Price Algid that his new bride isn’t who he thinks she is and you’re just going to do them both a favor and sneak her out of the castle and take her home?”
Ryder had to laugh. When she broke it down, he realized his plan had slim to no chance of succeeding. “Okay, okay, smart-ass! You raised several valid points. So what’s your grand idea?”
“I think we need to leave the castle tonight with the other wedding guests. That way we won’t raise any suspicion. We can meet your mother and your friends under the city walls and stock up on weapons and supplies. Then your mother can lead your friends to the caves until Grishma has been murdered, otherwise their lives will be in grave danger.”
“Wait,” Ryder interrupted. “You expect me to leave the castle tonight without Brianna or Brooklyn?”
“Sorry! But it’s the best and more importantly, the safest option!”
“Okay, so if we leave tonight, then what?”
Alexia brushed a silky strand of hair out of her face. “We will wait until the royal carriages depart in the morning and we’ll follow them until an opportunity presents itself.”
Ryder stood up and paced around the bedroom. “What if an opportunity doesn’t just present itself?”
“It will, trust me.”
He sat on the edge of Alexia’s bed and rubbed his eyes. After several minutes, he shrugged and said, “Okay, your plan sounds way better than mine.”
Sneaking out of the castle proved much easier than Ryder anticipated. They simply followed a group of tipsy wedding guests as they stumbled out the castle and into the streets of Sumner.
They continued to follow the group of people until they reached a deserted alleyway. When they saw their opportunity, they ducked behind an old whiskey barrel and regrouped.
“To the city walls next?” Alexia asked.
“Yes, hopefully all went as planned and my mother and friends are there,” said Ryder.
The two walked as inconspicuously as possible, occasionally bumping into drunken Necohians still quite jovial from the wedding festivities.
“Hey,” slurred one man wearing a mint colored suit with a white bow tie. He sized up Ryder, staggered, then managed to say, “That’s an awfully pretty lady to be walking in the street without a proper escort. What are you doing out here so late, misss?”
Ryder stepped up. “Sir, we mean no harm. Now please let us be on our way.”
The man mocked Ryder. “Sirrrr, we means nos harms, paleaasse let us be on our wayyy!”
Anger coursed through his veins and he clenched his fists until his knuckles were white. “Excuse us,” he said as he attempted to push past the intoxicated fool.
The man stuck out his leg, tripping Ryder and causing him to fall to ground.
“That’s it, asshole!” Ryder sprang into the air and unsheathed his sword. “Back off or—”
“Or wawhat?” grinned the inebriated man. “You’ll poke meee with that little sword?”
Without further delay, Ryder tossed his sword to Alexia and slammed his first into the man’s stomach.
The man stumbled backwards over a wooden box placed near a small stone building. “Isssss that all you gots?” he cackled.
The man put his arms up and motioned for Ryder to come to him.
Ryder raced toward the man and they collided, smashing a window in the process. The two fell to the ground, where the man slugged Ryder in the arm and kicked him in the shins.
The man’s hot breath reeked of liquor. “You had enough yet?”
Ryder couldn’t take it anymore and he wrapped his arms around the man’s neck. His grasp tightened until he felt the man go limp in his arms.
Alexia’s eyes widened. “Did you just kill him?” she stammered.
Ryder shook his head. “No, I just forced him to take a very long nap.”
Alexia sighed with relief and gave Ryder a hand, helping him up.
“Hey! What’s going on here?” bellowed a loud voice.
“Crap!” whispered Ryder as a large armored guard approached them.
Alexia wrapped her arms around Ryder’s neck and pulled him in against her body.
She had caught him by surprise. “What the hell are you doing?” he whispered.
“Saving our lives,” she said as she pulled him in for a kiss.
The guard was getting closer. “What are you two doing?” he demanded.
Alexia pulled away and batted her eyelashes. “I’m so sorry, we were, um, just getting to know one another and we accidentally broke the window.”
Ryder caught on. “It’s my father’s shop. He’ll deduct the cost of the window from my wages.”
The guard looked at Ryder and then Alexia, who had wrapped her arms around Ryder’s waist and looked up at him lovingly.
“Okay, but take it inside, you two, before you break anything else.”
They didn’t dare move an inch until the guard was out of sight and around the corner.
“That was close,” said Ryder.
“We better get to that wall before we run into anyone else,” said Alexia.
The two hurried through the streets and alleyways until they reached the city walls.
“It should be right over here,” said Ryder as he looked through the thick grass for the lever disguised as a stone.
He pulled the lever as soon as he found it and a small opening appeared. “Come on, quick!”
It took a moment for their eyes to adjust after they climbed down into the tunnel beneath the wall.
“Hello?” whispered Ryder. “Mom, are you here?”
“Son!” His mother embraced him as he entered the clearing. “Oh, thank goodness you made it!”
Alexia stepped out from behind Ryder. “Bethenny, I’m here, too.”
Ryder’s mother exclaimed, “Alexia! Is that you?”
“Yes, I helped Ryder escape and I’m going to help him find Brianna and his friend Brooklyn.”
Bethenny hugged Alexia then held her arms and looked into her eyes. “It’s far too dangerous! Your family could lose everything!”
“Grishma is destroying the Kingdom of Sumner! The King is only a puppet in Grishma’s quest to rule all of Necoh!” said Alexia.
“Are you sure you want to risk it all?” asked Ryder’s mother.
Alexia nodded. “I’ve never been more sure of anything in m
y life.”
Ryder looked at Pidifer and Albie. “Are you still okay with accompanying my mother to the caves?”
“Yes,” responded Albie.
“Hopefully Lant, Kroy and the others will already be there,” said Ryder.
“Yes, they’ll be there, I know it,” said Albie.
Pidifer remained silent.
“Pidifer?” asked Ryder.
“I’m coming with you. I have to find Cridifer,” said Pidifer.
“Friend, I can’t put you in any further danger. Please, help my mother and Albie back to the caves. I promise I’ll find Cridifer and bring him home,” said Ryder.
He looked torn. “But I cannot abandon my brother. I would die for him.”
“I know you would,” said Ryder. “But please believe me, I will bring him home and my mother will fix him. I promise!”
“What happened to Cridifer?” asked Ryder’s mother.
Pidifer buried his face in his hands and started crying. “It was horrible! In the middle of the royal gardens, Grishma turned him into a black statue!”
“Ah, the petrification curse… I know it well and it is true, I can fix your brother. But to reverse the curse requires many rare ingredients. I already have many of them in our home in the caves and I should be able to find the rest in the surrounding woods,” said Ryder’s mother.
Pidifer sighed. “Are you sure you can cure my brother?”
“Most definitely,” replied Bethenny. “I appreciate your bravery, Pidifer.” She patted him on the back, then stood and began digging through her knapsack stuffed with supplies. “I think it’s best if we depart tonight,” she said. “We want to be as far away from the castle as possible when someone notices we’re missing.”
His mother continued to pull out supplies and place them in a smaller canvas bag. “Here, this should be enough food and water for several days. Also, take this,” she said, handing him a small glass vial of runny black liquid that looked like ink.
“What is it?” asked Ryder.
“I found it in the castle’s cellar. It temporarily paralyzes whomever it touches. Drip some of it on your sword and your prey won’t stand a chance!”
Ryder looked at his mother and hugged her. “Mother, I’m so glad we found you! Please stay safe!”