Chapter 31 Zara
Chapter thirty-one
Zara
The king is dead. My father. Is. Dead. And I’m…numb. My wrist aches beneath Hardin’s tight grasp as he dragged me down the tunnel to the basement. When he opens the door, Alix rushes to aid him with Emlyn, who is strewn over the king’s broad shoulder.
Hardin lowers Emlyn into the waiting arms of Alix. “She’s alive. Just unconscious.” Hardin's speaking to Alix, but his voice is muffled as if he were miles away.
I think Alix asks about me. His lips are moving but I don’t hear anything other than murmuring. His brow creases as he looks me up and down then he retreats to a corner with Emlyn cradled against his chest.
Hardin glances at his fingers still wrapped tightly around my wrist and releases me.
There's no emotion on his face. No sadness.
No understanding of my loss. Nothing. He gently puts his hand on my back and ushers me forward into the safe room my father built years before in the midst of the Great War.
The basement’s sole purpose was to protect the royal family if Masseda was ever attacked by the Unseelie Court.
It’s never been used to my knowledge. I’ve never seen the inside of the tiny room, and honestly, I don’t notice much about it now.
My eyes glaze over, and I stare at nothing, my father’s murder replaying over and over in my mind.
King Hardin guides me to the back corner of the room and he assists me as I slink down to the floor. He cups my cheek and assesses me with the same blue eyes that Leer possesses. “It’s going to be okay.” He gives me a sort of nod and pads a couple feet away from me toward the door.
For the first time since we entered the safe room, my brain begins to process my surroundings.
Alix sits cross-legged on the stone floor in the opposite corner of the room rocking Emlyn in his arms and stroking her hair softly.
His shirt is torn and several scratches crusted with drying blood cover his chest. Next to him, lying sprawled out on the ground is Alfrie.
He's completely motionless with a bandage on his shoulder that's moist with bright green liquid.
My heart stops. I exhale in relief when I note the faint rising and falling of his chest. Thank the gods.
A handful of servants huddle along the gray brick on the other side of the tiny hole of a room. Their clothes are singed and torn, and their faces and limbs covered in soot. Hardin leans his shoulder against the stone wall near Elara, who appears to have an injury to her left thigh.
I lift my fingers slowly to my neck and brush them along the bruises that I know will be visible tomorrow. I scan the space again, panic gripping my throat tighter than Byron’s hands had. I’m unable to breathe. I don’t see him.
Leer.
Where is Leer? I quickly scramble to my feet.
“Where’s Leer? We have to find him!” I rush for the tunnel door only to be blocked by Hardin’s strong arms once more.
Tears flood my vision. “Please! I need to get to him.” I fight and hit Hardin’s chest with balled up fists and crumple into a weeping mess.
He folds his arms over my shaking body, not to console me but to control my flailing, and I soak his bloodied shirt with tears.
Everyone in the room startles when the tunnel door swings open. Hardin pushes me aside and pulls his sword from the sheath on his waist and Alix jumps up, ready to defend all of us with his bare hands.
“It’s me!” Leer steps through the doorway, his hands held high above his head. “Leer.”
I run toward him, throwing my arms around his neck.
He winds one arm around my waist, the other falls limply at his side, sticky red liquid dripping down his sleeve.
I hold him as if I might stop breathing if there's any space between us. I pull back and place my hands on his cheeks, searching his face. I must look horrendous, my eyes puffy and red, but I don’t care.
I press my lips hard against his, and he holds me tighter to his body.
“I searched the entire palace for you. When I couldn’t find you—" His mouth is on mine again and he kisses me as if he thought he would never get the chance again.
Hardin clears his throat and Leer steps to my side. The king eyes his son for a painfully long moment then pulls him into an embrace. Hardin backs out of the hug, staring awkwardly at the ground.
“How many soldiers did you see on your way here?” Alix rolls up his shirt sleeves and returns to the corner, kneeling between Emlyn and Alfrie. “Alfrie's been poisoned. We need to get him out of this basement as soon as we can.”
Leer takes me under his arm and holds me close to his side.
“I think they’ve left. For now. I didn’t see any more soldiers around the castle.
Nor did I see any other survivors…” Leer’s voice trails and he clenches his jaw.
“The king. I saw—King Jeffery was slain.” He gives me a sidelong glance and squeezes my shoulder.
I shut my eyes and try to block out the image invading my mind. I could have saved him. I should have fought harder to save him.
“We saw it happen.” Hardin speaks to the floor then he looks at Elara. “I’m terribly sorry, Elara.”
Elara doesn’t say anything. Her face is stone hard, and she simply lifts an eyebrow as she stares at nothing.
She lifts her chin a touch higher. “He died trying to save Zara. Once again, her poor decisions have put someone else in danger.” Her steely gaze meets mine, a hatred so powerful radiates from her, and I shrink back against Leer.
“This is not the time for blame. This was an attack from the Unseelie Court. We should've been more prepared after what happened to Emlyn and Zara in the Woodlands. I should've been more prepared.” Alix tears a piece of fabric from his ripped shirt and wraps it around Alfrie’s blood-soaked bandage.
Elara sneers at Alix. “How dare you tell me who is to blame! I am—”
“I will not apologize for speaking the truth. The king is dead. It’s not Zara’s fault. It’s mine.” His voice is rough, and he shoots a look at Elara that gives me chills. I’ve never heard Alix oppose anything that my father or stepmother has said. Ever.
Alix’s chest heaves and I know he’s fighting to hide the grief for my father that threatens to expose itself and Alix's vulnerability. After all, he's like my brother, and the king was a father to him too.
My heart aches for Alix. It aches for our loss. I go to him and fall to my knees, pulling him into a hug. “Thank you for rescuing Emlyn. And Alfrie,” I whisper into his ear. I release him from my embrace and his throat bobs. He swipes at his eyes and pivots to check on Emlyn.
“I’ll go out to see if we're in the clear.” Hardin pulls a dagger from its sheath at his waist and opens the door.
“I’ll go with you.” Alix stands and wipes the blood from his hands onto his trousers. He jerks his chin to Alfrie, “Keep pressure on his wound if it starts bleeding again.” Alix leans down and kisses the top of my head then follows Hardin out of the basement.
Elara glares at me from across the space and I busy myself with adjusting Alfrie’s bandage.
Leer sinks down to the floor on the other side of Alfrie. “I hope we can get him out of here before the poison sets in too deep.” He frowns at his friend’s state and presses his palm against the wound for pressure.
Alfrie stirs under the weight and without thinking, I take his hand and hold it tightly in mine, hoping to ease some of the pain he must be experiencing. He winces in his unconscious state, and I wonder just how hard Leer is pressing.
I glance at Leer. His eyes narrow on Alfrie’s hand in mine, then he meets my gaze, a muscle twitching in his cheek. I can’t describe the emotion on his features. But it’s unsettling. I gently lower Alfrie’s hand onto his stomach and place my own in my lap.
Leer retracts his hand from Alfrie’s shoulder and leans his head back against the wall.
He reaches out his arm, motioning for me to come to him.
I crawl over to him and he pulls me onto his lap, like a child who has just had a nightmare and needs the comforting arms of a parent.
I pull my knees to my chest and lean into him, burying my face into his neck, wishing all of this had only been a nightmare.