“Airs? You just threatened to kill me!”
“Did I make my point?” he asked. She rolled her eyes and motioned for him to continue. “My father is besotted with Queen Jana. I’ve tried discussing my concerns with him—that she is here for Emperion and nothing more. My father, however, mistakenly believes she loves him. I told him that Soma attempted to kill me, but since I have no proof, he refuses to believe his stepchild would do something so reckless.” He smiled ruefully, and the irony wasn’t lost on her. “Despite my father’s actions, he loves me and wants me on the throne one day—not Jana’s offspring. That night I brought you before him was the first time I’ve seen him question Jana. It gives me hope that he’ll come to his senses. However, there is a war on the horizon, and I fear there will be another assassination attempt on my life…and on my father’s life, as well.”
She shivered, unable to imagine what would happen if Jana controlled the Russek Army. There would be no stopping her.
“As heir to the throne, there is little I can do without inciting a civil war,” he continued, tiptoeing around the line of treason. Even though he hated Jana, and for good reason, there was nothing he could do as the prince. Only the king had the power to dethrone her.
“Why seek my help?” Allyssa carefully asked, curling her legs up under her on the chair. The room suddenly seemed too quiet. Too intimate. Too warm.
He rubbed his tired face. “I’ve been searching for the right…opportunity. When I learned you underwent multiple interrogations without revealing the information Jana sought, a plan began to form. It wasn’t until I saw you fight my men that I knew you would be perfect for what I have in mind.”
When Kerdan didn’t extrapolate, she said, “What is it you think I can help you with?”
The lines in his face sharpened as he leaned forward, resting his elbows on his thighs. “I want you to kill the queen, her mother, and her children. In return, I will get you out of Russek.”
His words rang in her ears. A pure and simple negotiation. Luckily, her parents were master negotiators, and she’d learned a thing or two through the years. She couldn’t appear too eager, and she had to hold her ground. Folding her hands on her lap, she tilted her head to the side and replied, “How can I trust you? What if I kill them and you turn around and murder me in return to place the blame on me so you can keep your hands clean of treason?”
He smiled and leaned back, crossing his legs. His fingers drummed lightly on the arm of the chair. “Their deaths need to appear to be an accident. No one can ever know—or suspect—otherwise.”
While she liked his offer, it wasn’t enough. “I want to stop the war.”
“Once the queen is dead, my father will be stricken with grief. There is a high likelihood I can convince him to give up his quest to conquer Emperion.”
“That’s not good enough.”
He frowned. “What about on your end?”
“What do you mean?”
“You must promise me that you will stop the war on your end as well. I won’t have your father storming into my kingdom and killing everyone as retribution for your kidnapping.”
“And if I guarantee to stop the war on my end?”
“Then I will do the same. No matter the cost.”
She wanted to scream with joy. He was offering a way out of Russek and to stop the bloody war. There was only one item to clarify. “And Odar?”
Kerdan sat there for a moment before saying, “I thought he lied to you? Said he was Jarvik when he was really Prince Odar?”
Her face warmed, and she fidgeted with her hands. “He did.”
“I’m sorry,” Kerdan said. “I didn’t mean to pry.”
Allyssa removed her hair ribbon and unbraided her hair, allowing it to cascade down around her shoulders. “Your point?”
He blinked two times before replying, “Even though he lied to you, you trust him?”
“Implicitly.”
“Fine,” he whispered. “He can help. In exchange, I’ll see you both safely out of Russek and ensure we don’t attack Emperion or Fren. I give you my word.”
“And I will kill the queen and her wretched family.” She would gladly finish what her mother should have done twenty years ago. And she would revel in their deaths. “I also give you my word.”
Chapter Seventeen
Allyssa lay on the couch covered in a plethora of fur blankets trying, and failing, to fall asleep. Thoughts of killing Jana, Eliza, Shelene, and Soma consumed her. Kerdan had said they would make it appear to be an accident. While she wouldn’t be murdering them in cold blood, she would still be responsible for their deaths. One of her first conversations with the assassin came back to her. He said she was like him—a killer. That even if she didn’t actually do the physical killing, giving the order was the same thing. And he’d told her that one day, when she contemplated killing, she would remember that conversation. She truly hated Soma.
She rolled over, fluffing the pillow below her head. It was well past midnight, and Kerdan hadn’t returned yet. Could he be working at this late hour? Perhaps he was out with his friends. Although, she didn’t envision him as the sort of man who had a lot of friends. Maybe he was with a woman. That thought didn’t bode well with her. Regardless of where he was and what he was doing, not knowing made her realize how little she knew about the prince.
The wind howled outside. She had forgotten to close the curtains. Thick clouds dotted the sky; a yellow moon semi-visible cast odd, elongated shadows in the room. Burrowing under the blankets, she wished Kerdan would return soon and get a fire going in the hearth. If it wasn’t so bloody cold, she would do it herself. If she knew how to start one.
The light from the moon shifted, and something to her left moved. She remained perfectly still, eyes wide. Watching. Waiting. Keeping her breathing slow, she pretended to be asleep. And then she saw a ripple in the shadows of the room. Soma slunk along the wall, moving closer and closer to her. Panic flooded her. When Kerdan had left, he’d locked the doors and told her not to let anyone in. How had the assassin managed to gain entrance?
Her heart beat wildly. If only she had a weapon of some sort. To survive this attack, she needed the element of surprise on her side. She kept still, wanting the assassin to believe she was asleep and vulnerable.
Soma crouched next to her, a slow smile of triumph spreading across his face. She freed her left arm, reached out, and latched onto his wrist, squeezing in just the right place. He dropped his dagger, cursing. Allyssa tried to sit up, but he jumped on top of her, smothering her with the weight of his body.