Chapter 30 Zara
Chapter thirty
Zara
It takes every fiber of my being not to rush right back out into the hallway from the tunnel that Alfrie shoved me into.
He saved my life, and Emlyn’s, and he's out there fighting that thing with Alix.
Fear grips my heart, and threatens to crush it into a billion pieces.
I face the door, listening as steel hits stone and growling rages on from the other side.
I press my hands on the wooden door, and I have to force myself to lower them to my sides.
I gaze at Emlyn. She’s supporting her weight on the stone wall of the tunnel, and I return to my senses. I weave an arm around her waist and she leans into me. We move as quickly as we possibly can back down the secret corridor.
I’ve got to find Leer and my father. I haven’t seen either of them since the army of Unseelie soldiers burst into the great hall with canon fire.
What if…
No. No, I cannot think about what if’s. I grit my teeth and practically lift Emlyn’s body against mine with each step until we reach the entrance where Alfrie and I came in through from the main level of the palace.
I release Emlyn and lean toward the door, listening for any signs of soldiers trolling the halls.
I don’t hear anything, but the wood feels warm, and I remember the flaming arrows that were shot at those running from the Unseelie army.
I check the floor to see if there's smoke creeping under the door. “We’ll have to run to the kitchens from here.” I look at Emlyn, and she already looks exhausted.
She gives me a weak nod and slowly reveals the hilt of a dagger hidden in her corset to show me she’s ready.
I quietly push open the door, and we sneak into the dark alcove, our bodies flush with the wall in case someone is lurking nearby.
I don’t hear any footsteps or screams, only the crackling of the small fires that consume the curtains and carpet.
I hold my arm in front of Emlyn, motioning her to stay put until I see who or what is out here.
I slink around the corner of the alcove and glimpse down the corridor.
Flames engulf the other end of the hall, eating through tapestries and wooden side tables that line the space. I glance in the other direction and gasp. I clamp my hand over my mouth to keep quiet, but tears stream down my cheeks.
More than half a dozen bodies lie bloodied and burned along the floor. Some still have flaming arrows lodged into their chests and backs, others are missing their heads and limbs. I swallow down the bile in my throat. I’ve got to get ahold of myself. I can cry later.
I grasp Emlyn’s hand and we tip-toe around the bodies of dead servants and guards that are strewn in our path.
When we turn the corner toward the staircase that leads to the kitchens, shouts of soldiers and heavily armored boots fill the air.
We take off running down the spiral stairs, Emlyn struggling to keep up with me.
I pause in the middle of the steps and turn back to help her, but the beady black eyes of a soldier are savagely eyeing us.
Emlyn spins around to the monster behind her and yanks the small blade from her corset.
She thrusts the dagger into the soldier’s neck and topples backward on the stairs.
Her body collides with mine and we both tumble down three or four steps until we hit the bottom of the staircase, the Unseelie monster furiously stomping after us.
We scramble to our feet and race toward the kitchen, Emlyn using my shoulder as a crutch as we run. But we’re not fast enough. Another Unseelie soldier steps out into our path of retreat as the other stalks up from behind us.
We’re trapped.
The soldiers move in closer, sandwiching us between them. The monster that Emlyn stabbed reaches out his savage gray hand and grabs her by the throat. He backs Emlyn against the stone wall and lifts her off of the ground by her neck. Her hands scratch and pry at his as they squeeze harder.
I lunge toward the monster, but the other soldier hooks his arm around my waist and yanks me back toward him. He spins me around and has me on my back in an instant, his strong arms pinning me to the floor.
I scream out hoping someone somewhere is still alive and will rescue us. The soldier covers my mouth, and I fight against his hold, unable to breathe under his large and scaly hands.
He narrows his black eyes at me, “Stop fighting. It will be over soon.” His voice makes the hair on the back of my neck stand up. I know his voice.
Byron.
My eyes widen with recognition, and I buck against his weight, biting his hand as it falters with my movement. He pulls his injured hand to his chest with a howl. It’s all I need to wriggle from his grasp, and I start crawling away from him to get to Emlyn, who is now lying motionless on the floor.
“Em!” I cry out and choke on sobs as I crawl to her.
Byron grabs my hips, and I pull against him as hard as I can but it’s no use.
He’s too strong. He tugs my body to him, and this time wastes no time as he straddles me and wraps his hands around my neck.
I struggle but the corners of my vision darken and blur.
I’m going to die. I let my arms drop to the floor and stop kicking, waiting for the end.
A surge of electricity sparks in my core and travels up my spine.
My body tries to react and fight against death, a feral need and instinct to shift.
But nothing happens. Byron smiles down at me, tightening his grip and my eyelids flutter as my eyes roll upward.
The pressure lifts from my neck and my body, and I choke on the rapid breaths my lungs are feverishly pulling in.
I turn onto my side, gulping the precious air.
My vision clears, and I see my father and King Hardin battling the Unseelie soldiers, thrusting their swords through the dark Faes’ armor.
Both soldiers fall to the floor, bleeding, and the kings bring their weapons down swiftly on the soldiers’ necks, removing their grotesque heads.
My throat aches and I’m too weak to get up from the ground. My father rushes toward me and he lifts me into his arms. “Zara! It’s going to be okay. I’ve got you.”
“Emlyn…” I whisper hoarsely against my swollen throat.
“She’s alive. Hardin has her.” My father carries me like a baby in his arms, and I softly cry into his chest as we approach the tunnel to the basement.
He sets me down and I brace myself on his forearms. “I need to go back and see who Byron was working with.” His eyes are weary with the strain of betrayal from his most trusted advisor.
“I should have seen this coming. I’m so sorry, Zara. ”
I hug him tight and weep into his silver hair.
His shoulders shake slightly, and he whispers, “This is my fault. I’m so sorry.” He holds me at arm’s length. “You need to get to safety. Go with Hardin.”
I nod and he holds the door open. King Hardin carries an unconscious Emlyn, and motions for me to lead the way. I glance back at my father who guards the entrance, waiting for all of us to get a good ways down the tunnel.
“I’ll be right behind you.” He offers an encouraging smile that I feebly return. A shadow looms behind him, and then I see it. An Unseelie soldier impales my father through his spine with a long sword. King Jeffery falls onto his knees and stares at me as a trickle of blood spills from his lips.
“Father!” I scream out and start racing back to my father.
The soldier looms over my father and places a small blade against his throat, dragging the knife from end to end.
“No!” I cry out and wail as his limp body collapses to the floor. The Unseelie soldier watches me with black eyes and a vaguely familiar expression as I trip over my own feet trying to get to my father. Then he simply walks away from the tunnel.
I’m almost to my father’s body when King Hardin grabs me by the arm and drags me kicking and screaming in the opposite direction. “We have to go now, or we’ll all end up dead!”
I claw at his arms, fighting with everything I have against his hold, and cry out for my father.
Hardin's grip on my arm burns like fire, and I finally give in, following him to the basement. I glance over my shoulder for one final look at my father, but I can’t see him through the shroud of tears. He’s dead.
The King of Masseda is dead.