But it didn’t matter what their orders were. Everett and Delysia could be in danger on the other side of the bridge, so I was getting across one way or another.
My hands clasped my knife hilts, and I strode into the light.
The two guards snapped to attention, lifting their spears as they eyed me suspiciously.
“Let me pass,” I said, my chin held high.
They both laughed. “No,” said one. “Get gone before we make you.”
“I am Princess Emilia Torvaine, and youwilllet me pass,” I commanded, my voice carrying over the thunderous waterfall.
They froze. A flicker of uncertainty rose in their eyes.
“You’re bluffing,” one spat. “The princesses never leave the palace. Especially not looking like a street urchin.”
I stepped further into the light, angling my face for them to catch any trace of Father’s features that lingered in mine.
“Would you care to wager your lives on that?” I said in the deadly soft voice Renwell liked to use.
One of them paled while the other turned bright red with anger. “You dare threaten us?”
Gods damn it, I didn’t have time for this. I ripped two knives from my brace. “I’ll do much more than that if you don’t let me pass.” I flipped the knives over, catching them by their tips. “Last chance.”
The pale one nudged the other. “Let her through.”
Snarling under his breath, the angry one finally stepped aside, and I stalked past them. I didn’t stow my knives until I was halfway across the bridge.
The water pounded below me as the moon and stars shone above. Yet it reminded me of being on the Temple roof at sunset... with Aiden.
I had no idea what awaited me in the palace. But if I fell tonight, I was taking him with me.
Chapter 44
Aiden
Boom!
The lock on the door exploded into a smoking black hole, and the door shivered and rocked on its hinges.
One door down. One to go.
I slung the bow around my shoulders and slid an arrow into my pocket.
Carrying a torch, I stepped into Renwell’s office, tracking blood and mud on his dark rug. All it held was a desk, a chair, and a candelabra with blackened stubs. No paintings, no ornaments. I stuck the torch in a bracket.
Nikella appeared in the doorway. “The rest of the Wolves are dead. No sign of more from beyond the gate yet.” She eyed the fractured door. “I see the sap worked.”
“Very well,” I said, striding to the door laid into the opposite wall. Renwell hadn’t even bothered to hide it. Probably assumed no one would ever make it this far. “You could search his desk.” I gestured behind me.
She shook her head. “He wouldn’t keep anything useful there. Especially if he knew we might be infiltrating. I’ll stand guard outside the door.” She laid her hand across her heart. “May the gods go with you, Aiden.”
“And may they bring me back,” I said with a grim smile.
She turned and closed the battered door as far as it would go.
I tried the other door’s handle, but it was locked. I filled the keyhole with sap once more and lit another arrow. I backed away as far as I could, making sure Nikella kept the other door shut. Then I fired again and faced the wall as a second explosion shook the room. Bits of dust and rock rained over my head.
Gods damn it, Librius, I hope your last bomb doesn’t bring down the whole Den.
