Heading for the door, Segreti crouched low to the side of it and took hold of the handle. He opened it and slipped inside, then locked it behind him. Ezra gasped and jumped from the love seat, his book falling to one side.
“Segreti? What are you doing here? How did you escape?”
Segreti ran to him and pulled him into an embrace. He inhaled Ezra’s scent. “It’s a long story, and we have no time. The Soldati are looking for me.” Gori had alluded to the fact someone was listening. He had to be careful. “I needed to see you, to see your beautiful face once more and taste your sweet lips. Forgive me for the harsh words I said while in that damnable cell. I thought I’d never see you again.” And he might not after this.
“I’m sorry as well, my love.” Ezra met Segreti’s gaze, his eyes intense. They flashed white before he bowed his head slightly, his eyes never leaving Segreti’s. “This is a dangerous game we play. Know that I forgive your deceit, for I know your heart.”
He knows, and he forgives me.
Segreti replied by kissing Ezra soundly, his heart all but ready to burst. “Come with me away from here.”
Ezra appeared uncertain. “Leave my king and my prince?”
“You will see them again one day. Khalon has his Saugur. You needn’t be tied to your duty. You’re more than the Eye.” He cupped Ezra’s cheek. “We have a chance to be free and happy. I love you.”
“And I love you. Yes. I’ll go with you.”
“Quickly, then.” Segreti took hold of Ezra’s hand and hurried to the door. He opened it and jerked back as the Eye darted past, disappearing through the trees.
“We must hurry!” Ezra said, breaking into a run with Segreti. “There’s no telling what it will do.”
“The south gardens,” Segreti said. “I’ve friends waiting to get us to safety.”
They ran for the gardens, the moonlight casting an ethereal glow across the lush greenery and hundreds of colorful flowers. It was almost time. Coming to a halt, Ezra turned to him, puzzled.
“Why are you stopping?”
“We’re here,” Segreti called out.
Vestri, Gori, and Lazzari stepped from the shadows and approached.
“I don’t understand,” Ezra murmured, his gaze going to the three Orso and then Segreti. “What is this?”
“What this is,” Gori explained, his eyes filled with darkness, “is that we’re taking your kingdom. When you wake, your king and your prince will be dead. Your world will be no more.”
Ezra whirled to face Segreti. “What have you done?”
“Forgive me, my love.” Segreti struck Ezra with the hilt of his sword, catching him as he crumpled to the ground. He lifted his gaze to Gori. “It’s time.”
Chapter Ten
Ezra stirred, his head throbbing. Blasted hell, that hurt more than he’d anticipated. The scent of freshly cut grass and flowers filled his senses, but there was something else. A putrid, rancid odor that made him want to vomit. Slowly he opened his eyes and stared at the night sky, confused by the black clouds. Terror gripped him. Those weren’t black clouds, but an ocean of demons blanketing the sky, waiting.
“What the fuck? You traitorous son of a bitch! Where’s Ezra?”
Ezra rolled onto his side. Riley stood before Segreti. It had begun. Ezra pushed himself to his feet, running toward them just as Khalon emerged from the castle, Rayner, Adira, and the Soldati close behind.
“Segreti, no!”
Distracted by Khalon’s shout, Riley hesitated just long enough for Segreti to plunge the sword into Riley’s side. An agonized wail tore from Khalon, and a small army of Orso emerged from the garden, charging toward Rayner, Adira, and the Soldati while Khalon sped for Riley, only to be intercepted by Segreti.
“You cowardly traitor!”
Ezra gasped as the Eye appeared at his side and his vision came to fruition. Segreti swung his sword, slicing through Khalon’s jerkin, blood splattering Segreti. The demons above them screeched and hissed in triumph. The gardens became both graveyard and battlefield as Soldati fought a small army of Orso that had emerged from the trees while demons began to descend. Ezra shifted into his tiger form and joined the battle. He roared, the light from his Soldati soul incinerating the demons it touched.
“The Soldati king is dead,” Segreti bellowed, standing with sword in hand as Vestri, Gori, and Lazzari encircled him. “Can your men be trusted?”
“They have been helping since the beginning,” Gori confirmed.
“Are there any more?” Segreti asked, his gaze sweeping the Orso fighting the Soldati. “I wish to know how many I’ll be forced to share the spoils with.”
“The queen’s advisor and his personal guards are the only ones absent. He’s the one who gave us the Soldati Tiger’s Eye,” Vestri said. “He awaits word from us on our victory so he and his Orso can dethrone the queen.”
“Good to know.”
At the familiar voice, everyone turned, their eyes about to pop from their skulls and their jaws slack as Khalon stood. The demons screeched and froze, their empty eye sockets on Khalon and then Riley, who pushed himself to his feet. Ezra quickly shifted back to human form.
“What the hell is going on?” Vestri demanded, whirling to face Segreti. “It was a trap.”
Riley lifted his so-called bloody hand and licked a finger. “I’ve seen enough movies to know how to fake a good murder. Anyway, doesn’t matter. Point is, you’re done.”
An army of Soldati in tiger and human forms emerged from the trees, launching into battle with the now shifted Orso, their roars filling the night air. The demons above Ezra howled and dispersed, but not before dozens were disintegrated by the Soldati’s light. Segreti fought several Orso who’d remained in human form while Ezra summoned his powers. He thrust a hand to the side, sending an Orso who’d charged Segreti soaring against a tree. The wind howled, and Ezra hurried to his king’s side. As his brethren fought the Orso, Ezra kept his king safe, the Eye funneling its power into him, sparks of white light bursting through him as he made quick work of anyone who would dare to harm Khalon.
Vestri, Gori, and Lazzari made a feeble attempt to escape, but it was Gori who removed a small crossbow from behind his back and aimed it at Segreti’s back while Segreti fought one of the traitors.
How dare he attempt to kill Ezra’s mate.
With a fierce roar, Ezra threw his arms out, the power of the Eye exploding through him. The blast thrust Gori off his feet, slamming him into a tree with such force the tree splintered. Gori dropped the weapon and gasped for breath, blood on the corners of his mouth as Ezra held a hand out, pinning Gori to the tree. As Ezra approached, a gasp escaped him, and bile rose in his throat.
Gori’s soul… Ezra had seen that murky glow before.
“You.” White flashed before Ezra’s eyes, and rage filled him. When he spoke, it was with the voice of the Eye. “You were in his cell that day with Pavoni, taking your pound of flesh. You reveled in his suffering.”
Gori’s lips curled in a vile grin. “And I loved every moment of it. Remember my face, healer. For I was the one who whispered the idea of your beloved’s fate in Pavoni’s ear.”