I wasn’t thinking about Malessa and the Atlantian who’d gained access to the castle. I wasn’t haunted by the image of Agnes holding her husband’s limp hand or what had happened in the Red Pearl with Hawke. I wasn’t even thinking about the upcoming Ascension and what Vikter had said. In the Queen’s Garden, I was simply…present instead of being caught up in the past or the future full of what-ifs.
I wasn’t sure why the gardens were called what they were. As far as I knew, it had been a very long time since the Queen had been to Masadonia, but I guessed the Duke and Duchess had named it after her as some sort of homage.
Never once while I lived with the Queen had I seen her step foot in the lush gardens of the palace.
I glanced over at Rylan. Normally, the only threat he may face was an unexpected rain shower, but tonight, he was more alert than I’d ever seen him in the garden. His gaze continuously scanned the numerous pathways. I used to think these trips bored him, but never once had he complained. Vikter, on the other hand, would’ve grumbled about literally anything else we could’ve been doing.
Come to think of it, Rylan might actually enjoy these outings, and not just because he wasn’t standing in the hall outside my room.
A cool wind whipped through the garden, stirring the many leaves and lifting the edge of my veil. I wished I could remove the headdress. It was transparent enough for me to see, but it did make traveling at dusk and beyond in low-lit places a bit difficult.
I made my way past a large water fountain that featured a marble and limestone statue of a veiled Maiden. Water poured endlessly from the pitcher she held, the sound reminding me of the rolling waves, crashing in and out of the coves of the Stroud Sea. Many coins shimmered under the water, a token to the gods in hopes that whatever the wisher wanted would be granted.
I neared the outer most parts, which fed into a small but thick outcropping of jacaranda trees that camouflaged the inner walls that kept Castle Teerman separated from the rest of the city. The trees were tall, reaching over fifty feet, and in Masadonia, bold, lavender-colored, trumpet-shaped flowers blossomed all year round. Only during the coldest months, when snow threatened, did the leaves fall, blanketing the ground in a sea of purple. They were breathtaking, but I appreciated them not just for their beauty but also for what they provided.
The jacaranda trees hid the crumbling section of the wall that Vikter and I often used to leave the grounds unseen in order to access Wisher’s Grove.
I stopped in front of the mass of intertwined vines that crawled up and over interlocking wooden trellises as wide as the jacaranda trees were tall. Glancing up at the rapidly darkening sky, I then fixed my gaze ahead.
Rylan came to stand behind me. “We made it in time.”
The corners of my lips tilted up before my grin faded. “We did tonight.”
Only a few moments passed, and then the sun conceded defeat to the moon. The last rays of sunlight pulled away from the vines. Hundreds of buds scattered over the vines trembled and then slowly peeled open, revealing lush petals the shade of a starless midnight.
Night-blooming roses.
Closing my eyes, I inhaled the faintly sweet aroma. They were at their most fragrant upon opening and then again at dawn.
“They are quite beautiful,” Rylan commented. “They remind me—” His words ended in a strangled grunt.
Eyes flying open, I spun around, and a scream of horror knotted in my throat as Rylan staggered backward, an arrow protruding from his chest. A look of disbelief marked his features as he lifted his chin.
“Run,” he gasped, blood trickling from the corner of his lips. “Run.”
Chapter 7
“Rylan!” I rushed to his side, throwing an arm around him as his legs crumpled. His weight was too much, and when he fell, I went down with him, my knees cracking as they hit the pathway. The impact didn’t register as I pressed my hands around Rylan’s wound, trying to stanch the flow of blood. I opened my senses to him, expecting to feel pain. “Rylan—”
Whatever words I was about to say died on my tongue, tasting of ash.
I…I felt nothing, and that wasn’t right. He’d have to be in so much pain, and I could help that. I could take his pain, but I felt nothing, and when I looked at his face, I didn’t want to see what I saw. His eyes were open, gaze fixed yet unseeing on the sky above. I shook my head, but under my hands, his chest didn’t move.
“No,” I whispered, blood turning to ice and slush. “Rylan!”
There was no answer, no response. Underneath him, a pool of blood spread across the walkway, seeping into the symbols etched into the stone. A circle with an arrow piercing the center. Infinity. Power. The Royal Crest. I pressed down on his chest, my trembling hands soaked with blood, refusing to believe—
A footstep echoed like thunder behind me.
I twisted at the waist. A man stood a few feet from me, a bow at his side. A hooded cloak shielded his face.
“You’re going to do as I say, Maiden,” the man spoke in a voice that sounded like churning gravel. “And then, no one will be hurt.”
“No one?” I gasped.
“Well, no one else will be hurt,” he amended.
I stared up at the man, and…and Rylan’s chest still didn’t move under my palms. In the back of my mind, I knew it would never rise again. He’d been dead before he even hit the ground. He was gone.
Pain, so sharp and so real, cut through me. Something hot hit my veins and poured into my chest, filling up the empty space. My hands stopped trembling. The grip of panic and shock lessened, replaced by rage.
“Stand,” he ordered.
I rose carefully, aware of how my gown, tacky with Rylan’s blood, stuck to the knees of my thin leggings underneath. My heart slowed as my hand slipped into the slit along the gown’s side. Was this the same person who’d killed Malessa? If so, he was an Atlantian, and I’d have to be quick if I had any hope.
“We’re going to walk out of here,” he said. “You’re not going to make a sound, and you’re not going to give me any trouble, are you, Maiden?”
My fingers closed around the smooth, cool handle of the dagger. I shook my head no.
“Good.” He took a step toward me. “I don’t want to have to hurt you, but if you give me any reason, I will not hesitate.”
I remained completely still, the heat of my fury building in me, brimming to the surface. Rylan had died because of me. That was his duty as my personal guard, but he was dead because this man thought he could take me. Malessa had possibly been assaulted and then murdered, and for what?
If he was an Atlantian or a Descenter, he wouldn’t use me for ransom. I’d be used to send a message, just like the three Ascended who had been kidnapped from Three Rivers. They were returned in pieces.
At the moment, I didn’t care what the man’s agenda was. All that mattered was that he’d killed Rylan, who found the night-blooming roses just as beautiful as I did. And he might’ve been the one to kill Malessa, leaving her body on display in such a careless, disrespectful way.
“This is good,” he cajoled. “You’re behaving. That’s smart of you. Keep being smart, and this will be painless for you.” He reached for me—