Chapters (46)
- Title Page
- Copyright
- Dedication
- One
- Two
- Three
- Four
- Five
- Six
- Seven
- Eight
- Nine
- Ten
- Eleven
- Twelve
- Thirteen
- Fourteen
- Fifteen
- Sixteen
- Seventeen
- Eighteen
- Nineteen
- Twenty
- Twenty-one
- Twenty-two
- Twenty-three
- Twenty-four
- Twenty-five
- Twenty-six
- Twenty-seven
- Twenty-eight
- Twenty-nine
- Thirty
- Thirty-one
- Thirty-two
- Thirty-three
- Thirty-four
- Thirty-five
- Thirty-six
- Thirty-seven
- Thirty-eight
- Thirty-nine
- Forty
- Epilogue
- Acknowledgments
- About the Author
“You want us to protect them?”
“They’re under threat.”
Tristam hesitated. “We don’t house commoners in the Palace.”
Would he refuse her? She’d already said too much, and there was no way to take it back. “Please.” It cost her to beg, and she couldn’t look him in the eye. “I give you my word I’ll answer your questions after that.”
She kept her eyes on the ground. Tristam said nothing, and Kyra was aware of the guards watching them. Somehow she’d stumbled into a pit she couldn’t escape. She just regretted dragging Flick, Bella, Idalee, and Lettie with her.
When the knight finally spoke, he was uncertain, as if surprised at his own words. “Perhaps we can make an exception. I’ll speak with Malikel.”
Twenty-two
T W E N T Y - T W O
Kyra could smell the fear emanating from the man’s pores. She breathed deeply and smiled in pleasure. Her knife was balanced against his throat, and she felt the tension in his muscles as he stood frozen against the wall. Assassins surrounded them, watching.
She was about to make her move when the assassins dissolved into mist. The fog dropped and condensed, taking the shape of huge beasts. Giant demon cats, licking their lips in anticipation, tails snaking back and forth, eyes fixed on her victim.
“What do you want from me?” she asked.
One of the cats spoke. “We’re proud of you, daughter. This is your kill. We won’t interfere.”
If it was blood they wanted, she would give it to them. In one smooth movement, her knife traced a line across her victim’s throat. The man rolled his eyes and sank to the ground, and she dismissed his weakness with disdain. Grasping her knife, she raised it high so she could plunge it into him one more time….
Suddenly, she was awake. James and the others faded, but the knife was still there, hovering above her body and aimed at her chest. Reflexively, she brought up her arm as it came down. The weapon cut a painful trail across her forearm and glanced off to the side. She kicked up hard. Her assailant doubled over and stumbled back. Kyra recognized the red-and-white livery of a Red Shield.
She struggled to regain her bearings. The last thing she remembered was falling asleep in her cell after the funeral. And now a guard was trying to kill her.
Why?
As her mind struggled to catch up, her body attempted a more defensive position. Kyra pushed herself to her feet, but standing so quickly made her vision cloud over. She braced against the wall for another attack, resigned for the worst. But instead, she heard the clang of her cell door. Her attacker’s footsteps faded. By the time her vision cleared, she was alone.