“In here,” I whispered. We reached the main living quarters for the higher-ranking officers of the guard. Even though I lived in the Outlands ninety-nine percent of the time, I still had private quarters in the palace because of my royal lineage. It wasn’t the suite of rooms I’d grown up in, but it was far more luxurious than what most of the guards had. Even so, I rarely used it. Hanging around the palace when I was the prodigal son returned was never easy or fun for me. I avoided the palace as much as I could.
At any rate, it still felt good to be back home.
This entrance was rarely used, and we had plenty of privacy as we walked down the hall to a single doorway. Unlocking the door, we hurried inside before shoving it closed behind us. I switched the lights on, illuminating the expanse of a good-sized living room. The place included my bedroom to the right and an oversized bathroom right next to it. It was meant for the first lieutenant but I, being a prince, was still entitled to better living quarters than an ordinary legionnaire, in spite of my partial banishment.
I would’ve been fine with a regular cot like those used by the many soldiers in my army, but who was I to argue with my father, the ruling Alpha of the MarkTier pack? It was pointless and would only bring me more pain than I’d already been dealt. I’d do it all over again regardless of the consequences. My actions had not only estranged me from my father, they had also saved my brother, Etan, the heir to the throne. His life had been endangered, and the decisions I made to save Etan had kept him safe. That was all that had mattered to me at the time.
“Wow, nice digs!” Lily dropped her bag and rubbed her shoulder before she headed through to the bedroom and took a good hard look at the bathroom. She seemed amused yet happy with the accommodations. It pleased her, to say the least. If we ever did get married, we’d be spending a lot more time here.
If we ever did.
She didn’t know anything about that.
“Yeah, it’s pretty comfortable, but I don’t live here most of the time.”
“Still, it’s yours, right? No one else gets this place when you’re not here?”
“No. It’s all mine. I wouldn’t mind living with the other soldiers, two to a room in modest cots, but my father wouldn’t hear of it. Even though he banished me from the main royal housing area and removed me from all things having to do with imperial politics, he wouldn’t ever consider letting his son live in ‘squalor.’ That’s how he thinks the soldiers live.”
“He’s definitely got a skewed view of things.”
“You could say that. Hence, why I’m the only soldier living like a prince here.”
Lily smiled as she stared out the windows overlooking the training grounds. Dozens of soldiers marched about doing everything from mucking the horse stables to working out to training new soldiers. It was an impressive inside view of the workings of a massive army and I could have sat there and watched that well-oiled machine all day. It was an admirable accomplishment to run a kingdom so massive that it required such resources.
Lily sat on one of the sofas, rubbing her fingers across its soft surface. She looked like she wanted to ask me something but couldn’t find a way to word it.
“Everything okay?” I asked.
She nodded and sank back into the satin pillows. “Yeah. I was just wondering something. What happened to get you banished from the palace? You’re a prince. I know better than anyone that you’d have to do something pretty bad to get kicked out like that.”
Scratching the stubble on my chin, I realized I hadn’t told her what had gotten me in this predicament. I headed toward her and slid down onto the seat next to her. It was about time to confess it all. She’d told me why she’d been banished, and now it was my turn.
“Well,” I sighed, closing my eyes as the memories rushed past. “My older brother Etan and I were very close. We did everything together. We’re only about ten months apart so you can guess that we were practically twins.”
“Whoa… that is pretty close! My sister Rafaela and I are two years apart.” She cleared her throat, looking guilty for interrupting me. “Please, go on.”
“One day, Etan wanted to check out the Outlands. I didn’t want to, but as brothers go, he could be quite convincing.”
Lily listened intently, her dark eyes glistening in the light shining in through the windows. They looked dreamy, like she was picturing the details of my story in her head. I wanted to kiss her. No one had ever listened to me so intently.
“Once we made it into the city, there was a place called the Pit. It’s where people go to bet on street fighters and either make or lose fortunes. Well, Etan wanted to fight in the Pit. I begged him not to; some of the fighters will fight to the death, even though the rules are to fight until one is down for more than ten seconds. There are some fighters who fight dirty and don’t stop until the opponent is near death or dead. I couldn’t risk my brother’s life for this petty crap. Still, he wanted to fight, so what could I do? He’s the first born, and as usual, did pretty much what he wanted.
“Once we were there, he signed himself up for a fight—under a fake name, of course—regardless of my protests. I stayed close to help him out or intervene if I could. But in the Pit, intervening would only bring the fighter certain death. I had to be careful.
“When it was Etan’s turn to fight, he had the unfortunate luck to be paired with one of the champions, a beast of a man who I knew Etan probably couldn’t subdue. I was practically having a panic attack at the thought of him dying on my watch.
“When it came down to the end, I knew we had no way out. I absolutely refused to watch my brother die in front of me. I sent a message to my father to help us. I have to hand it to Etan, he held his own for several rounds, but right before the final blow that would have certainly ended his life, the royal guard swooped into the place and snatched us right out.
“You’d think that would have been the end of it, but rules are rules, even in the Outlands. The pitmaster approached the court with a demand for my brother’s life. He had a right to it. We’d intervened in the fight and stolen a warrior that was rightfully his. You see, once a fight is interrupted, the fighter becomes the property of the curator per contracts signed prior to the fight.
“My father was furious, blamed me for leading Etan to the Pit! I couldn’t believe it, but I let him think it. My brother was to be Alpha one day and didn’t need to be fighting in any pits for his life. I volunteered to take his place in exchange for fighting for my freedom. It was the only deal the pitmaster accepted.”
Lily’s mouth stood agape as she heard the last part. Horror crossed her lovely face.
“What? Your father gave you to the pitmaster? Just like that?”
“Yes.”
“How did you get out?”
“I was contracted for one hundred fights. I had to win all of them to receive my freedom from the Pit. Gladiator style.”
Lily eyed my chest. I knew she’d seen the scars, the damage caused from my time in the Pit. Now she knew why.
“How long did it take you to make it through that many fights?”
“Five years. I had to recover from the bad ones, which took months sometimes. I won each one and was released back to my father’s custody. That was when he made me first lieutenant of the Outlands Army, a branch of the MarkTier Battalion. I was effectively banished, but since I was a soldier, I had to have quarters on the palace grounds. There was no returning to my royal house, where my family resides, so here I am.”
Her face morphed from horror to sadness to a fiery anger. I wondered what she thought as we sat in silence. Finally, she broke through it with her solemn voice. “So Etan left you hanging? All this time? Was he not punished?”
“I’m sure my father had him punished, one way or another.”
“But what about restitution? He owes you. How can he continue on knowing the debt you paid on his behalf?”
I shrugged. “It doesn’t matter. He’s still in line to be Alpha, and that’s where h
e should be.”
“You’re not a cast-off. If anyone deserves the throne, it’s you.”
“I’m second in line. I will never rule or be anything more than what I am now. That’s just the way things have always been. You of all people should know how little a second-born is worth.”
I jumped to my feet, feeling disturbed from her pointing out the obvious. I knew why she was upset for I had felt such things lying in the darkness, sleeping on the ground when I was enslaved to the Pit. I’d let those feelings run their course and had no interest in digging them up. It was all water under the bridge.
“Ephrem?”
“Yes?”
I heard her approach from behind until her arms slid around my stomach and hugged me tight.
“I’m sorry. I know what you mean. I can’t imagine having to go through so much for your brother, but I understand why you did it. You love him, and I would’ve done the same for my sister. Please don’t be mad. I don’t want any bad blood between us. You’re all I have out here, and I want us to be okay.”
“We’re okay. It’s all over and done. Nothing to worry about.”
“Good.” She leaned against my back, and the warmth of her body made mine spark with energy. I placed my arms over hers and let her melt into me. I could have stayed like that forever. She had to have felt the same as me, right? This wasn’t imagined or a manifestation of my innermost desires, it had to be real.
I had to find out how she felt about me.
Turning around, I pulled her into my arms. She let me and pressed her slender body into my chest. Every breath I took filled me with her essence, and I couldn’t resist her anymore. I reached for her face, stroking her cheek gently. She peered up at me with hooded eyes and lips parted. She didn’t make a move to escape. In fact, she raised her face closer to mine, urging me onward.
I gave in and kissed her soft, supple lips, wanting to devour her, to feed the constant hunger of desire which had plagued me for the past week. I’d waited years to kiss those lips. How many nights did I lay wide awake in the Pit and in my lonely apartment dreaming of her and wondering if she knew of my promise to her? Our betrothal had been unceremoniously discarded by our families, but I’d held onto it for dear life through the years of fighting, pain and suffering.
We’d both been discarded by the ones who thought we were nothing but a nuisance. Unwanted offspring. Yet here we were, still willing to sacrifice it all for our families. It had to mean something. All those old prophecies about forbidden love a la Romeo and Juliet; feuding families and unending war. It was all coming to fruition whether we fought it or not.
I didn’t want to fight it. I took her love with open arms, embracing her spirit that was stronger than anyone could have dreamed. She was mine and I was hers. That was all that mattered.
I took her to my bed. I was grateful for this private place at this moment as I took her as mine and made love to her, kissing her, caressing and taking her over and over until we were both spent and lost in each other’s bodies, tangled together forever. I loved every second of it, and as the daylight faded, I wanted nothing but more time to spend with her.
But time wasn’t on our side. The encroaching night brought with it the need to get to work and find the talisman before it was too late for both of us.
“We have to go,” Lily whispered. She’d been having the same thought.
“Okay,” I said, rising. “Let’s finish this.”
Chapter Thirteen
Rafaela
I waited until sundown to sneak out of the ArcKnight palace. It wasn’t the safest time to go trotting about, but I had to get to my sister, and the cloak of night was what I needed. My spies had told me she had made her way to the MarkTier palace. I had to get to her before she was discovered and they killed her. I couldn’t tell Gil; he’d never let me go. Instead, I had my spies find me a way into the palace, and I had decided to go with my best guards to retrieve her myself.
Why the hell she went there was a mystery to me. I knew she was hunting the one who had stolen her talisman, but to go to that palace was suicide. I couldn’t let her die. My mother had entrusted me with her safety long ago. I had sworn I’d keep her safe. If only I’d been there when she’d been unceremoniously tossed out of our stronghold by Gil. I’d never forgive him for that.
Making our way through the city via underground tunnels was not ideal. It was dark and smelled of a thousand years of mold and stink. I was more than grateful to approach the main ducts into the MarkTier palace grounds. Exiting onto the streets of the pack’s kingdom, I noticed that the place was not unlike the ArcKnight stronghold. I almost thought we were back home and had walked in circles, but this place wasn’t quite the same. I followed behind my first lieutenant, Alec, who had protested my presence. But, like my sister, I was a well-trained fighter and insisted I go with his team. How could I be queen when I couldn’t even protect my own sister?
“Where to?” I asked Alec. He motioned toward the west and then to the mid-section of the circular palace grounds.
“The palace is in the middle of the city. There we’ll be taking more tunnels into the servant’s quarters. Then, we’re on our own finding Princess Lilliana.”
I nodded, scanning the horizon and palace towers. I placed my fingers over my Ardent talisman. I could feel its connection to my blood nearby. She was close. I hoped we could get to her before any of us were discovered. If not, there was going to be a hell to pay.
“We’ll leave most of the guard on the outskirts of the royal house. There’s too many of us to go unnoticed.”
“What if something happens?”
Alec bore his eyes into me as though to drive home the seriousness of the situation. He was a good fifteen years older than me and was much like an older brother. He advised me on things but still took orders from me, even though Gil was our leader. I was eternally grateful he’d chosen to listen to me on most subjects. I suspected that he was secretly in love with me and loathed Gil, but I was in no position to ever ask him. It could endanger us both.
“Then it’s up to you and me. We’ll have to fight our way back out. You understand why I didn’t want you to come in the first place, right?” The look in his dark eyes gave me the chills, but I nodded, straightening my shoulders as I returned his stare.
“Of course I understand. I’d be here no matter what. This is my sister’s life we’re talking about.”
Alec shook his head, mumbling something about royals being too hardheaded to truly understand as he stepped away to speak with the other guards. He rolled his neck and pulled his hood over his head. If it were up to him, I wouldn’t be there. I didn’t care. I’d be there for Lily if it cost me my life. Blood is thicker than obligations.
“Here.” Alec returned, holding out a sheath. Staring back at him in surprise, I realized it was a dagger of some sort.
“A knife?” I asked. He nodded and urged me to take it. When I did, I undid the clasp and slid the blade out. It shined like moonlight across my face. “Where did you get this?”
“It was your father’s. He entrusted me with it. He wanted me to give it to you when you were ready. I think this is as good a time as any.”
I turned the blade in my hands. It felt warm, alive. It was simple yet elegant, with a black handle carved with runes. Leather straps were twined around it for extra grip. The blade itself had etchings in the metal that matched the talisman around my neck. It was luminescent and emanated a soft glow. It was beautiful and hummed energetically under my skin. I loved it immediately.
“Thank you. I didn’t know my father even owned anything like this. I mean, he had his choice of weaponry, but this… it’s different. You know what I’m saying?”
Alec nodded, a satisfying grin making him look younger in the torchlight. He turned away, glaring down the passageway.
“There’s a lot about your father that you didn’t know. It’s really a shame he died before you and your sister got to know him better. He was a brilliant
man. A good friend and mentor.” Alec was facing away from me now, but I could tell he was lost in his thoughts.
“I wish I could’ve had more time with him,” I whispered, clutching the dagger to my chest. “Thank you, Alec. I’ll treasure it always.”
“It’s for your protection. Keep it on you always. It will keep you safe.” He motioned toward two of our guards who were returning from scouting the tunnels ahead. They motioned that we could continue, and Alec turned back toward me, his hardened soldier’s expression back on as if nothing had occurred between us moments before. “It’s time to go, Ella.”
He abstained from using my royal title, instead calling me by my childhood nickname in case we were being spied on. The MarkTier guard would throw a party if they knew they’d captured a rival royal in their midst. I’d never hear the end of it until they put me to death.
“Yes. Let’s go.”
Chapter Fourteen
Lilliana
“There.” I pointed out to the crowd from our crouched position atop the roofs of the marketplace. It was dark and hard to distinguish one person from the next, but I’d know that silhouette anywhere. I’d grown up with that face, and the bitter seeds of betrayal burned away the last bits of any love I’d felt for that woman.
Elise.
Ephrem looked in the direction I was pointing. Her long black hair was so dark, it appeared a deep blue rather than just black. Her eyes were clear cerulean with lips crimson to compliment them. She was the picture of Snow White come to life. I wouldn’t have missed her in a crowd no matter how hard she tried to blend in. If I didn’t know any better, I would’ve thought she was a princess, especially with the handsome male companion hovering ever so close to her. A couple like that had to be royalty.
“Shit,” Ephrem cursed and pulled his eyes away from the couple. His sudden change in demeanor made my stomach drop. As I glanced between him and the handsome man next to Elise, I felt my face pale with realization.