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Grabbing up his knife and fork, Drayce dug into the food, moaning happily at the blending of egg, cheese, and meat in his mouth. It was a damn good burrito, and the strawberries were exquisite.
Melita’s surprised laugh drew his attention. Drayce lifted his eyes to find them all staring at him.
“What?” he demanded around another mouthful of food.
“At least your appetite hasn’t changed,” Melita laughed again.
Drayce snorted. “He barely let me grab a cup of coffee this morning. I need to keep my strength up.”
Tomas chuckled softly, and the last of the tension seemed to be broken. They ate quietly for a few minutes, and Drayce found himself enjoying the companionable silence more than he expected. He was looking forward to joining Rayne and Caelan to find out what the queen said, but this was nice too. Almost like the old days.
“It happened suddenly,” Tomas began. His voice was low and rough, as if some part of him were reliving the memory. “The day of the attack, I was contacted briefly by Hagen Sigurd. He confided in me that she was meeting with an emissary from New Rosanthe in secret. I wasn’t to tell anyone of the meeting, but the guards were to be placed on high alert until he told me otherwise.
“I doubled and tripled the guards where I could without it being obvious. I figured the most critical attack points were her, him, and the ministry.” He paused and licked his lips. Tomas had started to lift a forkful of eggs to his mouth but stopped, resting the fork on his plate. “I was in the middle of contacting the head of the navy to increase the guard on the harbor. I guessed that was how they were entering the capital, and then there was the explosion.”
“It was like Thia was being torn in half. The thunder of it. The shaking of the ground,” Melita murmured. “I had been heading up to his tower. To protect him. I saw this beam of light slice through the center tower like a knife through butter. Windows exploded in all the towers, and I was thrown backward.”
“I was in the lower floors, still trying to get the guard in position,” Tomas explained. “I didn’t see it. Just the falling concrete, steel, and glass that hit the ground, crushing hundreds in their panic. I got a quick call from the head of the navy. The weapon…it was hidden in one of the ships disguised as a trading shipment from Ilon. They were fighting it. The blast stopped, but it wasn’t over. I tried to get up to what remained of the top levels.”
Melita shook her head. “Everything had been blown away but the stone and two figures. An answering blast went out, and I thought it was from the stone at first, but I realized it was actually coming from a person. Her. She was fighting the Empire. In the light and smoke, I swear I thought I saw massive wings, but it had to be a trick of the smoke.” Melita shuddered. “The Empire fired another blast. When it stopped, there was only the stone. The two figures were gone.”
Drayce frowned down at his half-eaten burrito and put his fork aside. Melita had seen the death of Queen Amara and likely, her trusted bodyguard, Hagen. A coldness sank deep inside of Drayce’s bones, chilling his appetite and freezing his heart. It was worse than they’d feared.
There had been no meeting. No talks. Nothing. The Empire had just attacked and slaughtered hundreds, including their queen.
“I ran to find him, but he wasn’t in his rooms or the tower. It was hours later that we discovered that he’d been in the main tower.”
“It was chaotic. The fighting. The troops pouring out of the ship, flooding the harbor,” Tomas said, taking up the tale. “We fought as well as we could, but we weren’t prepared for the onslaught. We retreated into the neighborhoods to try to keep them corralled. The Empire didn’t follow. From what we were able to discern, their only interest is in the stone and the harbor.”
“The city?” Eno inquired, speaking for the first time in a bit.
“Split. The royal corridor belongs to the Empire, and they aren’t budging unless we get more help. The rest of the city is in our hands, though not openly.” Tomas swore softly under his breath and took a bite of his food. “Our numbers were sharply reduced prior to the attack. She’d sent many of our forces to Ilon and the border. I don’t know what was happening. I was hoping to get an update soon from an army commander I’m friends with, but…” he finished with a shrug. There hadn’t been time before their world fell apart.
“Our forces have gone underground,” Melita said. “We hold our ground and attack weak points, stealing ground and weapons where we can, but there’s no removing them from the stone or the harbor.”
