She did as he instructed and focused on his brown eyes, normally so fierce and confident, now wild with uncertainty.
“I’m sorry. There’s no easy way to do this. How about—” He plucked the wood out of her arm before she realized what he was doing. Pain seared down her arm, making her cry out. Clutching the blanket beneath her body, she tried to work through it by taking steady breaths. Blood ran like water from the open wound, making her dizzy.
Odar ripped off a piece of the blanket and wrapped it around her arm, tying it off. “This should slow the bleeding. You will need stitches though.”
Kerdan released Eliza’s lifeless body, and it tumbled to the ground. “I can’t believe she would be so bold as to orchestrate your kidnapping,” he said as he came over to the bed. “Did she intend to kill you?” Allyssa nodded. “Did she say anything of importance to you? Any hint at her plans?”
Eliza had said a great many things, but only one worth mentioning. Unfortunately, she wasn’t sure how Kerdan would take the news. Best to come out and just say it. “She told me that your father killed your mother.”
Kerdan’s body went unnaturally still. “What?” His voice had an edge of hostility to it.
“I’m sorry,” she whispered, wondering if he believed her.
“My father?” He abruptly sat on the edge of the bed, his face contorted in confusion. “It’s not possible. He loved my mother.”
“We need to get out of here,” Odar said. “Someone is bound to find us if we stay here much longer, and Allyssa’s wounds need tended to.”
Kerdan withdrew his dagger. “You’re right.” He stood, his mask of calm back on. He went over to Eliza’s body and slid the dagger over her throat as if he’d done it a thousand times before. “Let’s go.”
Odar scooped Allyssa up and hurried out of the bedchamber, Kerdan at his heels.
Chapter Twenty-Two
Out in the hallway, six sentries lay crumbled on the floor, their throats slit and blood pooling around their heads. Allyssa averted her eyes, burying her face against Odar’s neck. She breathed in the smell of him, unable to believe she’d just escaped death.
“Do you want me to carry her?” Kerdan asked as he came alongside Odar.
“No. I have her.”
Her body started shaking from shock and the wet blood coating her shirt.
“Hurry,” Kerdan said. They went along dark hallway after hallway, not encountering anyone. “In here.” He opened a door and ushered them inside an empty bedchamber lit only by moonlight. Odar laid her on the bed while Kerdan pushed a large piece of furniture in front of the door.
“Don’t light any candles,” Kerdan said. “We need to act quickly. It won’t take long until the bodies are discovered. We have an hour at most.”
“I’m leaving with Allyssa,” Odar said. “We’re going to Fren.”
“Not yet,” Kerdan replied. “We have a deal.”
Odar spun and grabbed Kerdan’s tunic, slamming him against the wall. “She almost died!” His body emanated lethal rage. “We’re leaving—I don’t care what you say.”
Kerdan raised his hands in surrender. “You need to calm down and listen to me.”
“You don’t tell me what to do.” Odar released him and came to Allyssa’s side, inspecting her arm. The bleeding had finally subsided. Going over to the dresser, he pulled open the drawers, rummaging inside them, looking for something.
Ignoring him, Kerdan asked, “Can you walk?”
“I’m not sure.” She scooted to the edge of the bed and swung her legs over the side, hissing in pain.
When Kerdan moved to help her, Odar swiftly stepped in front of him and took hold of her elbows. She stood on wobbly legs, her side stinging, tears in her eyes.
“Your ribs are probably broken,” Odar mumbled as he helped her sit back down. Taking a tunic he’d found in the dresser, he ripped it into strips.
Kerdan turned away, his hands balling into fists.
“What are you going to do about your father?” she asked him. When Kerdan faced her, his eyes held pure desperation, making her heart ache for him. No one should be in his position, forced to confront the reality of what his father did to his mother. It was inhumane.
“I’m going to do what must be done.”
Her blood ran cold. “Which is what, exactly?” There was nothing he could do to fix the past, to make what the king did okay. And if he confronted him, what would the king do to protect his secret?
“I’m going to kill him and take the throne.”
Odar froze mid-strip. Allyssa placed her hand on Odar’s arm so he wouldn’t interfere.
“Is that what you want?” she asked.
“No.” Kerdan rubbed his temple. “But I must avenge my mother’s death and protect Russek.” He went over to the window, staring outside.
Odar tenderly lifted Allyssa’s shirt up under her armpits and began wrapping the strips of fabric around her torso. When he finished, he tied off the end and lowered her shirt. Carefully pulling her arm away from her side, he wrapped a strip of fabric around her wound. When he finished, he said, “We’re leaving.”
“After we kill the royal family,” she insisted. Kerdan’s plans changed nothing.
Odar took both her hands, holding them tight. “The queen’s mother is dead. If that isn’t enough incentive, please realize we need to get out of Russek before the king is murdered and this kingdom is thrown into chaos.”
She could not leave with Jana and her children still alive and able to challenge Kerdan for the throne. “We have to stop the war. I’m going to finish this once and for all.”
Odar leaned forward, placing his forehead against hers. “Are you sure?” She nodded. “You’re severely injured and need a healer.”
“I can do it.” She needed to ensure that Soma and Jana died. That neither could threaten her again. That she could sleep peacefully without them terrorizing her.
“What if Kerdan doesn’t let us leave?” Odar whispered.
“He will.”
Odar stood and faced Kerdan. “While we’re slaughtering your family, what will you be doing?”
Kerdan turned around, leaning against the window ledge. “I’m going to make sure the servants are occupied so the passageways are clear for you. Then I’m going after my father. He left four hours ago with a company of soldiers headed for the Emperion border.”
“And when you catch up to him?”
“I’ll kill him.” It could have been a trick of the light, but Allyssa could have sworn there were tears in Kerdan’s eyes.
“Let’s say Allyssa and I go through with our end of the deal, how will the people of Russek take the news that the entire royal family—except for you—has been murdered?”
A good question and one she hadn’t considered.
“I’m going to use one of Soma’s poisons on the king. I intend to take a small dose of it as well since I’ve already taken the antidote. I will be sick for a few days but will live,” Kerdan replied.