I sat by my father’s side, but I was only partially listening to what they were saying. My mind was still on Matthew. I held on to the fact he never had given away his location in any of our correspondence. Maybe that would be our saving grace. Or maybe he could feel that strange bond, too?
“Thanks to an anonymous source, we believe your daughter’s abductor is still alive and well. Although, we aren’t sure where he is at the moment. Don’t worry though, we’ll be sure we find him and that justice is served.” Shit. My heart sped up. I looked up to find Orion grinning down at me. There was something twisted about his face. I wanted to slap that damn grin off of it. See how much he was smiling then. I could feel the power stirring under my skin, begging to be let out, but I pushed it back down. My father nodded his head, mulling over what Orion had said. He seemed pleased with this information, which only made my heart sink even more.
I had tried to talk to him about Matthew. I tried to tell him I was fine, that he hadn’t harmed me, nor had he intended to. In much nicer words, he told me the same thing that Damien had told me and thought that I was under some sort of dark compulsion. No amount of explanations would be accepted, and he refused to see the honesty in my words. I’d even told him I would submit myself for investigation, to let his healers search my mind for any of the compulsion that he thought I was under. I heard the same thing every single time; it wasn’t necessary and that he trusted me implicitly. Clearly, he didn’t.
“I want him found.Now.” He rested a hand on my arm, attempting to comfort me. I was far from comforted, though. My stomach churned at the thought of Matthew’s capture. The only thought that came close to putting my mind at ease was the fact that I would throw myself between him and whatever hell my father had planned for him. “He’ll never hurt you, Eva.”
“Father, please. I’m fine. Everything was okay in the end.” I was grasping at anything I could to put them off of the hunt. “None of this is necessary…” But a loud explosion shook the palace walls, cutting me off. Everyone in the room stilled, waiting for any clue of what the hell just happened. I think we already knew though, and I hoped to the gods that I was wrong. Within seconds, the screams and shouts had rung through the halls. I raced out of the room and down the corridor. I barely recognized my name being shouted somewhere behind me, but I didn’t stop until I reached a balcony. I looked out and saw that the wall surrounding the city had been hit. Smoke plumed in enormous clouds, and I heard the screams coming from those that were in close radius. My heart dropped as I took in the damage. The Horde was here.
Damien and Luka slid up next to me as I studied the scene. Suddenly, a large group of soldiers stormed over the wall below. I barely had enough time to turn around and scream that we were under attack before the second explosion hit the palace directly and the ground shook beneath my feet.
23
EVA
Our bodies collapsed on the ground as the palace shook beneath our feet. The hit came way too close to where we had been standing only moments before. I could hear the whizzing of arrows as they barreled toward us. I looked around, realizing that we were way too exposed.
“Eva!” Damien screamed out my name, and I glanced over in time to see him crawling around the corner. He held out his hand toward me. “Keep low but come to me!” I kept my head down, scrambling across the broken floor. looking back just as an arrow landed where my body would have been.
“What the hell is going on?” I asked. My head was pounding. I reached my fingers up, and they came away covered with blood. Luka and Damien glanced at each other before looking back at me. “The Horde is here,” they said in unison.
Shit. I already knew that, but to have it confirmed was another thing altogether. My whole body tensed, knowing in that moment that I had already decided I would die before I let any harm come to those I loved. Memories of the night my mother died flashed into my mind. Helplessness had taken hold of me. I was so damn scared, but I wouldn’t let that fear win. I would come out on top, or I would die trying.
Damien moved closer to me, looking at my head. I didn’t jerk away at his touch like I would have done earlier, because I needed his help with healing if I had any chance of fighting. “We received word that their troops were headed in this direction, but we thought they might rush toward Angoria again. Apparently,” his face went grim, “they had other plans.”
“Your head should be fine,” he hissed, his thumb tracing over my cheek. For a moment, it was like everything was normal, that nothing bad had happened between us, and he was the same man that I always knew and adored. But the moment was over as quickly as it began, as he pulled me to my feet.
“Right, we need to get to the armory,” he nodded to Luka. “You need to find your father and get somewhere safe,” he nodded to me.
I rolled my eyes.Gods, not this again. “Take care of what you need to take care of. I’ll make sure my father’s safe.” I would not fight him on this because we all needed to be unified in order to fight against The Horde, but I wouldn’t be hiding in a tower while everyone else fought around me.
I took off at a run back down the corridor toward the council room and pushed through the pounding of my head. Soldiers and guards flittered in and out of the room, getting orders. I noticed my father standing at the back with Orion, going over battle plans and maps of the city. I tried to steady my breathing as I took in the sight. Terror was palpable in the air, and it was trying to take ahold of me.
I made my way over to his side and slipped my hand in his, giving it a small squeeze. He was such a phenomenal ruler that I didn’t know how I was going to fill his shoes when he stepped down. I knew he was taking the attack personally, and it was yet another painful reminder of what was lost the last time Helia was attacked head on.
He led me over to the side and pulled me in for a hug. The comforting smell of home washed over me, and I gripped him tighter. I fought back tears, knowing how much he was hurting. “I need you to find your sister. You know she’s not much of a fighter and I…”He couldn’t bear to lose anyone else. He didn’t need to finish his sentence for me to understand. I only nodded.
“I’ll find her. Don’t worry, Father,” I squeezed his hand once more before leaving the council room. I headed down to the kitchens first. The corridors were in an uproar as people scrambled about looking for places to hide or rushing out to join the fight.
As I reached the kitchens, I shouted for Erina, but she wasn’t there. The cook told me they saw her heading to the medical wing to assist with injured soldiers. I thanked him hastily as I ran back up to the medical wing, fighting again against the crowds of people as I went. None of our enemies seemed to have made it past the initial explosion point at the gates.
At least we were being granted that small mercy.
The medical wing was packed already and my stomach churned as I took in all the victims. The battle hadn’t even been raging that long and most of the beds had been taken. Healers ran from patient to patient. The groans from the injured were loud enough to make my skin crawl. I felt powerless as I looked around at all the poor souls that had heroically fought to protect their home.
At the back of the room, I saw Erina assisting with a broken leg. I watched her from a distance as she worked. She was positively gifted with helping people, something I’ve never been good at. There was a calming aura around her, and everyone in her vicinity seemed to be affected by it. She finished with her patient, dutifully looking around for the next. She stopped when she spotted me, slowly making her way over.
“What are you doing here? Are you injured?” She asked as she looked me over. I was touched by the look of hurt in her eyes for just a moment until she realized I was indeed safe.
I waved her off, shaking my head. “No. No, I’m fine. Father asked me to come find you. He wants to make sure that you’re safe, Erina. You need to come with me.” I grabbed her hand to drag her away, but she jerked it back.
“I’m not leaving. I can be of use here, they need me.”
I didn’t need to look around the room to know she was right. Everyone who could help should contribute, but I couldn’t disobey a direct order from our father, let alone the fact that he was our king. This was so much bigger than any of us, and he needed to know that we were safe in order to do what he needed to do to protect his people.
“I’m sorry Erina, but you need to come with me, please. Father needs us, and you can assist in the council room.” She exhaled sharply and rolled her eyes.
“What areyougoing to do? Will you stay behind as well, while everyone else fights our battles for us? You’re the one who got us into this mess! You went and got yourself kidnapped, and Damien had to risk his life to get you back. You weren’t even grateful!” Her voice raises with every declaration. “You don’t deserve him or his loyalty.” I reeled back as if she had slapped me. Hell, she might as well have. She’d never raised her voice before, let alone to me. The corridor we were standing in fell silent despite the fight raging on around us. I could feel the anxiety rising. Heat rushed to my skin, ready to fire.
