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Ruby refrained from ripping her hand from his grasp. Bile stung her throat at his touch. Revulsion filled her, festering like a putrid wound. She longed to be away from him but remained mindful of the guests watching them intently.
The members of the privy council sat along the far wall. Families of some of the most prominent houses in the kingdom sat throughout the hall. Their curiosity brought them to see the long-lost prince who had been resurrected from the flames. But Ruby knew they came to see the shame Crispin brought upon his name and his queen.
Keeping her pride clutched tightly to her heart, Ruby acknowledged those in attendance and sat in the vacant chair beside Francis.
He lifted his goblet and raised it high. “To Eleanor, queen of Meradin.”
The guests lifted their goblets high in salute and cheered in agreement.
Ruby’s face heated at the toast. They knew nothing. Ignorant and self-indulgent, they came only to ensure their place in Francis’s kingdom, betraying their loyalty to Crispin. She was a pawn, a tool used to further their purpose and provide something lovely to gaze upon. Her hands clenched in her skirts, even as she demurely dipped her head in humility when they toasted in honor of her.
Francis resumed his seat beside her, but his focus remained on the man to his left, not on her. He seemed as disinterested in her presence as she in his. The knowledge suited her. She detested any interaction with him.
Ruby sipped her wine and took in the scene before her. Many of those in attendance she had met at the feast the night before she was taken. Dread settled through her. How many of them stood beside Crispin when they realized she had been taken by force? She could trust none of them, and it left a bitter taste in her mouth knowing how truly alone she was.
A servant appeared beside her. “More wine, your highness?”
Ruby pushed her goblet toward the servant and swallowed the hopelessness rising from the pit of her stomach. The soft brush of breath against her ear made her blood chill.
“Postern gate. Now,” the servant whispered in her ear, and just as quick as it appeared, their presence receded.
Ruby glanced at the woman who retreated. From this angle, she could not see her face, but a growing sense of dread filled her heart.
Waiting a few moments, Ruby pondered the words whispered in haste. Was this her opportunity to escape? A trap? A test of obedience? She bit her lip and tapped her fingers on the goblet. The woman seemed in earnest. Ruby cursed her lack of attention. She should not take direction from an unknown person. In a den of liars and traitors, she could trust no one.
Curiosity fluttered in her chest. She should obey. But if Francis caught her, he would punish Crispin and Henry. How much more punishment could they possibly endure? She could not live with the knowledge her actions caused them harm or even brought their deaths.
Ruby pushed the goblet aside and rose to her feet. “I beg your pardon, your majesty. I crave your indulgence, it seems I am still not fully recovered.”
Francis regarded her for a silent moment before rising to his feet and taking her hand in his. “Of course, my dear.” His eyes glinted in warning even though his words were silken and sweet like honey.
She slipped from the table and wiped her hand on her dress, wishing she could scrub the skin where he touched her. The two guards fell into step behind her as she wove back through the corridors toward her chamber. How could she slip away from their watchful eye?
When she reached her room, Ruby graced them with a smile and closed the door behind her. Finally alone, she took a deep breath. She struggled with her garments, cursing the laces along the dress and wishing she had summoned Mina to help her disrobe.
After some time wrangling herself from the confines of the dress, Ruby breathed a sigh of relief when it lay in a heap on the floor. She retrieved her hose and tunic from the wardrobe. Whatever lay before her, she wished to be prepared. If she were risking her life and the lives of those she loved, then she needed to give herself the best advantage possible.
Ruby prayed it was not a trap, but she could no longer remain passive beside Francis and pretend. Death would be preferable to being subjected to living with such a fiend.
She pulled on her leather boots and fastened her belt around her waist. The familiar garments lent her a sense of empowerment. If only she had her dagger and bow. Perhaps she could locate a weapon later, first, she had a meeting at the postern gate.
Ruby cracked the door, unsure of how she could slip past her guards. Outside her room, the two guards lay slumped against the wall. She swung the door wide and stared in disbelief at the slumbering guards.
They made no movement when she stepped around them. Their sleep was most unnatural. Then she noticed the empty flask beside them. Perhaps they had been drugged.The servant.The wine. Had she slipped a sleeping drought into the wine and offered it to them?
It mattered not. This was her opportunity to slip away unnoticed. Elation drove her to action. With hurried steps, she raced down the staircase leading into the kitchens. With her hood up, Ruby slipped through the servants, hoping none would take notice of her.
When she reached the door leading to the rear of the castle and the postern gate, relief filled her. She was close. So close. Outside, a torch flickered near the gate portcullis and the small arched door.
Keeping to the shadows, Ruby edged along the wall and made her way toward the postern gate. She prayed whatever or whoever waited for her there offered her escape. While she did not know the exact location of the keep where Francis held Crispin and Henry, she could form a plan only if she broke free from Francis’s hold. When he discovered her absence, he would send a messenger. Then she could follow them.
A hooded figure waited near the gate. Ruby paused behind a crate, praying it was the person she was meant to meet and not a guard. She crouched lower when a shrill whistle pierced the darkness.
The guard standing by the gate took off at a run, disappearing around the corner. Ruby seized her opportunity and dashed toward freedom. She unlocked the gate and slipped through.
The moment she stepped from the secure fortress, her heart took flight. She was free. Free. Now she could go to them. But where would they go after? She did not know and did not care. All that mattered was saving Crispin and Henry. Then they could do as Marian and Guy had done. They could run away and start over somewhere else. Ruby would rather be happy and an outlaw than a prisoner and a queen.
Determined, Ruby fixed her hood and raced along the wall toward the forest. She collided with something warm and solid. A hand clamped over her mouth, stifling her scream. Panic gripped her with iron jaws as the assailant dragged her into the yawning darkness.
