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“And why’s that?”
I couldn’t seem to look away from him. “Because we are supposed to complete our missions or die trying. So my return would mean I was a traitor or a coward.”
It wasn’t true. The members would be disappointed, but Nala, Priestess Opaline, and Master Briggs would welcome me back. They’d help me heal from my injuries and start a plan for another attempt on Araki’s life. But it was better if Araki thoughtI had no reason to attempt to escape. Araki clucked his tongue and shook his head slowly, still never moving his eyes from me. Even though we weren’t touching, I could feel the power emanating from him. If I could just reach out and brush my fingers against his… the briefest of touches would allow me to siphon off enough magic to escape this place. Although, if there was a proximity bonding between us, that might just kill me.
“No. You aren’t just another assassin,” Araki said slowly. “The Nightshade wouldn’t send someone after me unless they were highly trained. And you can steal magic. Such a gift is rare. Valuable. You are worth too much to them to so easily kill or abandon.”
“You don’t know anything about the Nightshade!” I snapped.
A confident smirk stretched his lips. “I think I do. I think I know more about your coven than you do.”
I bared my teeth at him. Damn his arrogance! How could he possibly know anything about them? The Nightshade was dedicated to preserving magic, removing evil forces, and protecting the balance of the world. All he did was steal and slaughter. “Even if they truly moved on, you would know where they may have gone. They’d reach out to you. You know the coven. You know other places they may be hiding.”
“And I will never give them up!”
Araki nodded sharply. “We’ll see. For now, I will give you time to think and rest. But remember, I’m not a man of infinite patience. Only I know how to break the Union spell.” He strode for the doorway, then halted and gave me that predatory grin once more. “I can also remove it and execute you whenever I wish.”
And with that, he was gone, leaving me alone in my thoughts.
The Missing Duchess
Araki
I laced my fingers together as a wave of pain washed over me. Deep breaths, even and calm, until it passed. After hourly healing treatments for the past day, my injury started to heal. It wasn’t going as well as I’d hoped, but that wasn’t my healers' fault. The venom from the beast prevented my flesh from stitching back together quickly. In truth, I was meant to still be on bed rest. Perhaps if I slept more, I would heal faster. I had even the perfect excuse for Reilyn to return to my chambers. Since my return, everyone I had spoken to made subtle remarks indicating they thought I had holed myself up with her. Klaus was right.
Unfortunately, sleep wasn’t an option right now. Though my body was weary, I had missed enough of the affairs in my kingdom in the five days I’d been missing. A king had duties, and those duties couldn’t wait. Duties such as protecting my citizens from nefarious enemies. Not only to protect them from being kidnapped or killed but also to protect them from being drawn in and corrupted. My enemies were getting bolder, and I didn’t like it. I wasn’t completely certain if the Nightshade was responsible for the disappearing of the people or if another cunning enemy was responsible. There had to be some way to get through to Reilyn. She was my only lead. I’d been secretly hunting the Nightshade since I came to the throne. My spies either turned up false leads… or turned up dead.
I needed to turn her against them. She was key to bringing them down. But how did I undo years’ worth of indoctrination when I didn’t know how long she had been intheir clutches? With a frustrated sigh, I pushed from my desk. I straightened and walked to the window. The movement pulled at my wound, but I could still breathe evenly. Good. With the magic knit through the fibre of my being, I should be able to continue healing rapidly. Then, once I was back to my full strength, I could bring all my might down on the Nightshade only if I knew where they were hiding. Flattery wouldn’t work with Reilyn. Nor bribery. She seemed to truly believe the Nightshade’s course. Perhaps Klaus was right. Maybe it had been my mistake to reveal my plans regarding the Nightshade to her. She would never take my word, not when we were enemies, but knowing I wanted to destroy it would put her even further on the defensive. I braced my fist against the window, pressing my forehead to it. The extensive grounds below me were expertly cared for. Truth be told, it gave me no comfort. It was all to show off my wealth rather than have real use.
Real use.
I had a use for Reilyn, but I was well aware that wasn’t the only reason I moved her to the suite. Other reasons I wasn’t going to dwell on. I hadn’t become the King by allowing my inconsequential emotions to get the best of me. Reilyn was no different from any other assassin to me. At least, she shouldn’t be.
A knock came on the door, and I turned. “Enter.”
Klaus stepped inside and closed the door behind him. “How are you feeling?”
“Better,” I replied, unwilling to admit I still felt weak. I pushed thoughts of Reilyn aside. “Report.”
Klaus cleared his throat, the softness of his concern as a friend disappearing into the militant professionalism of him,the general of the Halafarin army. “Duchess Katherina is still missing. She disappeared while on her way to visit her family. Carriage, horses, servants. All disappeared without a trace.”
I returned to my desk and sat down. “Did you investigate the scene?”
“I did this morning.”
I frowned. “You said she went missing three days ago.”
“She did. At the time, I was too busy trying to find you,” Klaus looked at me pointedly. “There has been plenty of time for the evidence to be obscured. But I didn’t find any indication that the Nightshade took her. No magical signatures, no blood. Nothing.”
“You won’t have found anything after three days, no. A teleportation spell doesn’t leave a signature that lasts that long.”
Klaus shook his head. “She had a party of a dozen servants and two dozen soldiers. Could the Nightshade really transport such a group? Even if they moved quickly, they couldn’t have taken them all. One would have gotten away.”
I laced my fingers together, pondering the question. “Who else could it be? These disappearances never have evidence of the Nightshade. It’s only weeks, months later, that we learn that they were in the area.”
“It could be regular bandits,” Klaus said doubtfully.
“Then why not a ransom demand? A duchess would be worth a great deal. Even if she were killed in the attack, they would demand payment for her corpse.”
