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“Where is Nolan Carrick?” Her heart pounding, Adelaide drew two throwing knives and readied them as Regulus stopped next to her. “What did he do?”
The men circled them and raised their swords. “We don’t want to hurt you,” the deep-voiced man said. “But you have to come with us.”
She threw a knife into his leg. He cursed and howled as he stumbled backward. “Where is Nolan Carrick?”
The blond bolted to one of the horses. She threw a knife at his neck, but he moved to mount the horse and it hit his back, bouncing off his chainmail. She cursed in Khast and drew another knife.
“Watch out!” Regulus’ sword grated against its scabbard.
She looked back at the man with the braid just as he grabbed her cloak and pulled. She twisted and stabbed the knife into his forearm as she slid sideways in the saddle. The man cursed and leapt back, yanking her cloak against her neck so she tumbled out of the saddle and fell hard on her arm. Adelaide drew a dagger and staggered to her feet as Regulus ran up next to her. Her knife still stuck out of the man’s forearm, but he had dropped his sword. Regulus held the tip of his sword to the man’s throat.
“The lady asked you a question.”
“He’s at Belanger castle!” The man glanced at his friend, but he had sat down a few feet away and was trying to stop the bleeding from his leg. “He got some men together and took the castle by force.”
“By force...” She swayed, suddenly dizzy. “Lord and Lady Belanger, are they alive?”
The man nodded rapidly. “Sir Carrick locked ‘em up! But they’re safe. I swear it! He said none of the Belangers could be hurt.” She lowered her dagger, relief mixing with fear.
“Why were you posted here?” Regulus asked.
“To keep an eye out for you.” The man swallowed hard, his eyes wide. “We was ordered to kill Hargreaves and take Belanger to Carrick. And if we couldn’t, to let him know you’re coming.”
Oh no, the blond! Adelaide whipped around, but he was gone.
“How many men does Carrick have holding the castle?” Regulus looked eerily calm as he held his sword to the man’s throat. Meanwhile, panic pushed against Adelaide’s lungs and squeezed her throat. Incoherent thoughts of despair and anger chased each other through her mind.
“I don’t know!”
“Think about it,” Regulus coaxed. Adelaide wanted to shake the man. Or scream. Or cry. Maybe all at once.
“He brought twenty with him—”
“Nolan took Belanger castle with only twenty men?” Adelaide’s eyes widened. “Was there a sorcerer with him?”
The man shook his head and glanced toward her knife still embedded in his forearm. Blood dripped from his elbow to the ground. “I don’t know about a sorcerer! But you ever seen a man get run through with a sword and shake it off like a punch? You ever seen a man rip an arrow out of his throat and keep walking? Seeing that does things to men’s spirits. He ripped a side door off its hinges, and we walked right in. We only lost a few men before the castle surrendered. Carrick locked up anybody who didn’t join him.”
“Join him?” Adelaide clenched her fist. “My father’s men would never—”
“Carrick can’t die and keeps saying he’s gonna be the second most powerful man in Monparth soon. Greed and fear get men to do a lot.” The man looked from her to Regulus. “I answered your questions. Please don’t kill me!”
Adelaide and Regulus looked at each other. She hesitated before she stepped forward and pulled her knife out of his arm. “Go.”
Regulus lowered his sword, and the man stumbled over to his companion. They ran to their horses, as best as the other ruffian could with a wounded leg.
“They’ll go to Carrick,” Regulus noted.
“That’s probably where the other one went, anyway.” She cleaned and sheathed her dagger and pressed the heel of her hand against her temple. “What if he’s wrong? What if my parents are—”
“No.” Regulus sheathed his sword. “He’d be an idiot to kill them.”
She paced next to Zephyr. “We have to go rescue—”
“No.”
“What?” She stilled and clenched her fists.
“You can’t go near the castle. Absolutely not.”
“Are you insane?” she shouted. “He has my parents—”
“Exactly.” Regulus’ eyes searched hers. “Think. Why? What will you do if he threatens them? If he puts a sword to your mother’s throat? What would you do, Adelaide?”
She opened her mouth, closed it, opened it again, then snapped it closed. She wanted to say she would save them, she’d use her magic, she’d find a way. But what if she couldn’t?
“We both know what you’d do,” he said gently. “Because you’ve done it before.”
Adelaide screamed and threw her knife into the ground with such force only the tip of the handle stuck out of the dirt. “Then what am I supposed to do? I can’t leave them! What if he gets tired of waiting? I have to do something! I can’t—”
A sob tore from her throat and she bent over, her chest seizing. She kept picturing Nolan standing over her parents’ bloodied, lifeless bodies, that cavalier smile on his haughty face.
Regulus pulled her close and Adelaide sobbed into his shoulder. They had been outwitted. Outplayed. All Nolan had to do was threaten her parents, and she would surrender. Nolan knew it, too. When he threatened to tamper with Minerva’s carriage, she had caved. He had pushed her at Arrano, and she had agreed to marry him to save Regulus and Gaius. He likely overheard her telling her parents she helped the sorcerer to help Regulus. She had a history of giving in to save others. Nolan had a history of being unbothered by hurting others. If she went to the castle, she would give herself to Nolan before she watched her parents suffer or die. But for all she knew, he would kill them if she didn’t go, anyway.
Adelaide cried until her stomach hurt from gasping through her tears. Regulus held her close but didn’t say a word. He let her cry and rubbed her back in big circles. Even when she could finally breathe normally again, she leaned against him. She had soaked his shoulder with tears, and more embarrassing, snot. Once her face was dry, she pulled away.
“What do we do?”
Regulus cupped his hand to the side of her neck and rubbed his thumb over her jaw. “They’re going to be okay. But if Carrick is there, and the sorcerer is not, there is a good chance the messengers didn’t get through to the king.” She nodded, even though she couldn’t think about that right now. Regulus sighed. “We’re going to have to split up.”
“What?” She grabbed his arm. “You can’t leave me! And I’m definitely not leaving you! Not after—”
“Shhh.” He smiled sadly. “You need to warn the king. You have a better chance of getting there, and once there, you can probably get in. You’re Lord Belanger’s daughter. I’m nobody. If we want any chance of preventing the sorcerer from seizing the throne, the king must be warned.”
“But my—”
“I’ll get my men, and we’ll rescue your parents. We’re mercenaries. This is what we do.”
Adelaide shook her head. “Even with your men, how will you defeat Nolan? He has more men. And a castle! It’s impossible.”
He gave her a look of deep hurt. “Glad to hear you have so much faith in me. The men are going to be offended, too.”
“I didn’t mean...” She sighed.
“It’s this or we both go to the king. Carrick has too much of an advantage over you. Your parents wouldn’t want you to knowingly walk into a trap. Your father would want you to warn the king. So, I rescue your parents without you, or we leave your parents until after the king is warned.”
She chewed on her lower lip. All right, fine. If she ended up captured trying to rescue her parents, they would be beyond livid. Father could be chained up in the dungeons, and he would still lecture her about tactical miscalculations.
But what if he was chained up? What if Nolan had put Mother in the dungeons? The thought of Mother, alone on a hard, dirty dungeon floor, shackles on her wrists, made Adelaide’s blood run cold. What about her half-brother and his wife and their infant? Even though she didn’t like Landon and Julia, they were still family. Nolan wouldn’t put Julia and her baby in the dungeons, would he? Adelaide couldn’t abandon them. But she couldn’t hand herself over to him, either.
“It’s the best way,” Regulus whispered. He leaned his forehead against hers. “The king is warned. Carrick won’t kill your parents when you’re not around. I’ve done many stealth missions. I can rescue your family. I promise you, I’ll get them to safety. Trust me.”
She closed her eyes. His plan, though imperfect, made sense. This was the man who had fought demon sea serpents and dragons. He could sneak her parents out, right?
He shifted, holding the sides of her face in his strong, capable hands, and kissed her forehead. “We’ll see each other again, mareh piahre. I promise.”
“I’ll hold you to that.”
Regulus pulled her to him and kissed her urgently. Adelaide tangled her fingers in his black curls. If passionate kisses could ensure his survival, she’d make sure he lived to be a hundred. When they finally separated, she rested her forehead on his shoulder, her chest heaving and stomach doing flips.
“I need to go,” he whispered. “The sooner I get to Arrano, the better.”
She didn’t want to let go, but she did. They gave each other one last embrace that said everything they couldn’t articulate. He handed her his satchel with the last bits of food they had, and they mounted their horses.
“Swear to me you won’t go near your parents’ castle.”
“I swear it.” She swallowed back her sorrow.
“And promise you’ll keep practicing your magic, even while riding.”
“I promise.”
Regulus turned toward Arrano. Adelaide watched him disappear into the twilight, then she adjusted course for the palace. She had a king to warn, and as much distance as possible to put between herself and Nolan.
