“Where is he?” My heart feels as if it will thump right out of my chest. “Is he alive or…” Is it just his body? I gulp past the fear.
“I don't know.”
“Then we have to hurry. The longer we take to get him, the more likely they are to kill him.” I hop on my feet and head toward the door.
“There's just one problem.”
I turn back at the sound of Wilric's voice. “What is it?”
“The reason I came back—I need more guards. There are over fifty men in the house Nash is in.”
I give a short, hard gasp. Fifty? That's more than even I can deal with. I round my shoulders. There's no way we'll get him out alive. I straighten.
At least we can get him out, even if it's just his body. I owe him that much.
“What about Stird’s parents? How did you get them out?” Maybe we can do the same.
“He was held in a different spot, nearby but less guarded.”
Drat. “How did you find out where he is?”
“I did some reconnaissance around the area before we went in. Saw Nash through a window.”
I want to ask how he looks, but I don’t dare hear the answer. “He’s alive?” That will have to suffice.
“I couldn’t tell under the circumstances, but I’m certain it was him.”
“We're going. Afet, gather as many men as you can get on the sly. We'll do whatever it takes to get him back.” Without crossing any more ethical lines, that is. But we will get him back. Even if he's already gone.
I choke back my emotions, struggling to get them under control while Afet leaves the room with a, “Yes, my lady.”
Eldim approaches. I know what he's going to say, and I don't want to hear it. “I'm going. There won’t be enough men to keep me safe, but I need to be there. Need to do this. Nothing you say will make me change my mind.”
He opens his mouth and closes it again. With a bow, he steps out of my way. I head toward the barracks, wondering if I should send his mother a note. She has a right to know what's going on, especially if I don't survive. Problem is I don't want to take time to write a note. The more time we waste, the more likely Daros is to move Nash.
“Inkga?”
“I'm here, Your Majesty.” She hurries forward, pushing her way through the group of guards surrounding me. “How can I be of service?”
“I need you to go to Nash's family's house. Tell them what’s going on and that I'll do my best to bring him back safely.” I can't bring myself to say he'll probably be dead. They'll have some closure at least. We all will.
“Consider it done.”
Before I can say anything further, she’s commandeered four men from the back of my group and is headed in the opposite direction. I send her good wishes. If only there was more I could do for her. For all of us.
I wish the First Queen was here to reign with her commanding presence, so I'd be even freer to go after Nash. But I'm going to do it anyway. I've done so many stupid things since he was taken. Why not add one more to the list?
Besides, he's calling to me. I can feel it.
Wilric is by my side. I say, “They’re going to have a lot of men in there. What else do we need?”
“Just the guards,” he says. “If we have enough, we can take him. Your Majesty, I hate to say this, but—”
“I know.”
“I have to say it anyway. Once they see us coming, they’re unlikely to keep him alive.”
“I know.” All too well. “We'll have the dark on our side. If we keep as silent as possible…” I'd like to say there's a chance, but really, there's none with Daros in charge.
“We'll do our best.”
By the time we make our way to the barracks, a large group of guards is gathered. It would be nice if I had time to change out of my dress, but I don’t—not when lives hang in the balance.
There are enough men here to take down Daros. He better be at the same place as Nash.
Wilric gets a report that there are one hundred and three soldiers here. That should do the trick. He leads the group, while Afet and Eldim cushion me in the middle of the soldiers. They were serious about keeping me safe.
If only it was that easy.
We march through the city more quietly than I thought we could. I don't glimpse anyone else out and about, but then being stuck in the middle of the group limits my sights. By the time my gaze reaches them, the people are probably hiding, not understanding that we aren't coming after them.
My people need to know they’re safe, but that'll have to wait. When they realize we didn't attack them, and instead attacked a known culprit, they'll understand. I hope.
We don't make talk on the walk. It's much too fraught with nerves and danger. I grip my daggers like they're an extension of me. For all purposes tonight, they are.
We come to a house that looks like any other in the neighborhood, and the guards surround it. It isn't far from where Daros used to live. To think we were that close to Nash all this time and didn't know it. They hid it well when we were looking. That, or they’ve been moving him around.
How have they gotten away with having so many men and not being noticed by the neighbors? Daros always had people coming and going, but I never knew how he did it.
Everyone is silent. There's no movement inside. No flickering candlelight. Nothing.
They have to know we are here.
They're staying inside, waiting for us to attack one by one. It's the best way to take out larger numbers, and I wish they came out swinging.
On the signal from Wilric, my men storm the house. The only sound is the clanking of metal and feet moving. Though I have a good number of people on my side around, Afet and Eldim have me hanging back with several other guards.
Why did I come? I'm of no use back here, doing nothing.
Several minutes pass, before I can't take it anymore. “We're going in.” I hurry forward, my guards rushing to keep up.
Afet says, “Are you certain it's safe, Your Majesty?”
“Safe enough. We haven't heard a sound since they went in.” Which could mean a lot of things.
Eldim opens his mouth like he wants to argue, but shuts it again without saying a word.
Smart man.
We move into the house, Afet going before me and Eldim after, along with the other guards. Plenty of my people are around the house, though. Two are stationed in the first room we enter. It's a big room, bare of furniture. The large window shows the outside, where three of the five moons shine bright.
“Send men to the neighbors,” I say. “I want to know if they've noticed any unusual activity here the last few days, and if they know the person or people that live here.”
“I'll go,” a guard I don't recognize says. Another joins, him and they leave.
It would be strange if nobody had a clue, with fifty men supposedly being here.
I move deeper into the house and find more of the same. Blank walls. Uncovered floors. No furniture. It's like no one has ever lived here—or if they have, it's been a long time.
Footsteps thud down the hall. I pull out my weapons, though it's unlikely to be the enemy, with so many guards about.
Wilric comes into view. He says nothing about my being in the house. “No one's here. There's evidence that Nash might have been here, though.”
“What evidence?”
He grimaces. “I'm not sure you should see it.”
“Show me.” My tone holds no room for not following orders.
With a nod, he leads me past an unused kitchen, down some stairs, and into a basement that has several guards with torches. Flickering in the torchlight in the corner are splashes of crimson.
Blood.
Nash's most likely. And chunks of brown hair the same color as his. That can’t be good.
A set of heavy chains hang from the wall, unlocked. And on the opposite wall, a small barred window to the outside.
Where is he? Why didn't they leave his body behind? And where are the fifty men that were supposed to be here?
I brace myself against a wall as I stare at the stains on the dirt floor. This shouldn’t have happened.
There's a patter of feet coming down the stairs. It's the guard who went to speak with the neighbors.
“What news do you have?” I ask.
He bows. “They knew something was going on, but thought the neighbors were having lots of parties. Lots of guests. There's been a lot of movement, but they didn't see anyone leave.”
“Then where are they?” Better yet, where is Nash?