Her throat stung, the back of her skull aching where the Usurper had struck her, and Zarrah blinked as everything came back into focus.
She was being dragged by a large man in the uniform of an imperial soldier, and when Zarrah lifted her head, she recognized him as a long-standing member of the Usurper’s bodyguard. These men were as indoctrinated as she’d ever been. Would be loyal to the bitter end.
Which was probably why the Usurper hadn’t bothered to gag her.
“She’s awake,” the soldier rumbled, his voice echoing in the narrow tunnel.
“Good.” The Usurper glanced over her shoulder, dark eyes meeting Zarrah’s. “She does not deserve the mercy of death. I want her alive so that she can witness the horror of what she’s done. Want her to witness Valcotta’s fall from grace, to hear everyone curse the woman who brought them to ruin for the sake of her lust for a man.”
“You’ll be waiting for a very long time,” Zarrah croaked, though in truth, with Petra discredited and Zarrah locked away, it would be a race to the throne among the Valcottan nobility.
Her unease must have shown on her face, because the Usurper gave her a cruel smile. “Yes, Zarrah. Civil war. Whether your lover involves himself or not will matter little. Valcottans will turn against Valcottans, and thousands will die. All their blood will be on your hands.”
The accusation didn’t have time to sink in as a roar of noise shattered Zarrah’s ears, the walls of the tunnel shaking.
“Run!” someone shouted, and Zarrah was dragged back to her feet. “It’s a cave-in!”
“It’s the Ithicanians!” the Usurper shrieked at them. “They’ve blown the hatch. Go!”
Keris was coming.
Zarrah threw her weight backward, fighting against the soldier holding her. “Keris!” she screamed. “Keris, I’m here!”
Then the Usurper was on her.
Fingers caught hold of her hair, slamming her against the wall of the tunnel. Zarrah fell to her knees, only to be kicked in the kidneys.
She screamed in pain, trying to roll, to regain her feet, but she couldn’t do it with her wrists bound.
A foot struck her in the ribs with a crunch of breaking bone, flipping her over. The Usurper knelt on her chest and slapped her, nails raking across Zarrah’s cheek. “You think he’ll still want you if you’re ugly?” she screamed. “Do you think he’ll march his army for you if your face is in tatters? You’ll need me then because no one else will want you!”
Zarrah screamed as the monster clawed at her face; then one of the soldiers was pulling her off. “Empress, they’re in the tunnel. We need to flee!”
For a heartbeat, Zarrah thought the Usurper would think shredding her face worth the delay, but then she snarled, “Carry her! We need to reach the boat!”
Everything was agony, her head spinning, but she heard Keris’s voice echoing through the tunnels. “Zarrah!”
Spitting blood, she grinned wildly at the Usurper. “It’s a Veliant who is hunting you, Auntie. I doubt you can run fast enough.”
For the first time in her life, Zarrah saw fear in Petra Anaphora’s eyes.