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Then he and the woman with a power I can’t even begin to understand shove past me and out the door. Bea scrambles for my dress and hands it to me quickly. “May I speak freely?” she asks.
“Sure. You already undressed me against my will.” I sniffle, trying like hell not to cry in front of this woman. But with the lump steadily growing in my throat and the burn each time I try to breathe, that effort will be futile.
She secures the dress and turns me to face her. “He would have killed me had I not, and I have a family to think about.”
Her words are a reminder of my earlier thought about her being a prisoner here. If it came down to saving my pride or her family, I certainly would have chosen her family, as well. “Fine. Speak.”
“Do you know what that key opens?”
“What key?”
Her eyes narrow. “I may look young, but I am nearly seven-thousand-one-hundred-and-fifty years old. I saw you. I’m honestly surprised no one else did. Then again, I assume no one else believes you to be capable of much—certainly not deceit.”
Yet, she didn’t out me. “If you saw me steal the key, why didn’t you tell them? You obviously enjoy obeying them.”
She doesn’t answer. Instead, she turns to me. “We need to move. Now.”
“Where are we going?”
“To open that lock.” She grips my hand and pulls me toward the door. “I no sooner want you to marry Taranus than I wish for him to be king. And you are certainly not meant to be his.”
“What the hell are you talking about?”
We creep into the hall. “Behave normally, Ember, or you will surely draw attention to us.”
I do as she says even as I am hammered with a million questions I want to ask. At the top of them: why the hell is she helping me? She doesn’t know me, and less than two minutes ago, she was more than loyal to the bastard she’s now rebelling against.
We stop in front of my room, and she quickly opens the door and ushers me inside. “What are you doing? I need to get down—”
“Give it to me.” Holding out her hand, she stares at me expectantly.
“No. Why would I do that?”
“Because out of the two of us, I am the only one who can move through this castle without being seen. I can get down and rescue him, and no one will be the wiser.”
“You can’t expect me to trust you. Not after what just happened.” I cling to the key like it’s my lifeline. Hell, it kind of is.
Her expression hardens. “Getting naked in front of Taranus is a hell of a lot less painful than what most of us have had to endure since he took over this castle,” she snaps. “Either you give me that key, or I am taking it and leaving you here to suffer the consequences of whatever Taranus has in store for you. Especially, once he discovers what you’ve done.”
I consider her threat, not at all under the illusion that she wouldn’t follow through. Truth is, she could have told them the moment she saw me steal the key. I can’t see any reason why she would have hidden it from them, only to return it now.
“Fine.” I hold out my hand, and she snatches the large golden key before I can argue.
“Remain in this room. If they come to collect you, find a way to stall.”
“Okay.”
She slips out through the door, and I quickly click the lock in place then turn toward the fresh wedding dress on my bed. More than likely to replace the blood-stained one I’m wearing now.
“Please come back,” I whisper as the adrenaline from the past thirty minutes wears off, and I collapse to the floor as my body shakes uncontrollably. Hot tears stream down my cheeks as I tuck my knees up to my chest.
If Bea doesn’t come back, I will have just handed over my only chance at surviving this nightmare.
And if she does? I’m not entirely sure what will come next, but I do know one thing. My fight has only just begun.
