I stole a glance at the door to the antechamber. The suitors and attendants would return at any moment. Keeping my distance from the stranger, I focused on the underside of the chariots and froze. What I had mistaken for wheel spokes were spears covered in gold paint. And hiding beneath the false chariots were soldiers.Hundredsof soldiers. I backed away from the window, heart beating wildly. How many men were hidden beneath the carriages? Worse, how many soldiers had Bharata unwittingly admitted? The neighboring kings could have snuck in half their militias through the open gates. I scanned the chariots. My father’s army easily outnumbered them, but the suitors had the advantage of surprise.
I wheeled around. “Did you plan this attack?”
“No.”
Grabbing a sharp pin from my hair, I held it toward him like a blade.
“Then why won’t you tell me your name?”
He bowed. “I’m the Raja of Akaran. But you may call me Amar.”
Akaran? I had never heard of such a place and I had extensively studied the geography of Bharata’s surrounding kingdoms. Before I could say anything, Amar snatched the pin from my hand.
“You may threaten me later. For now, your concern should be the men outside. They know of your father’s plan for a siege and they’ve come prepared.”
My lips parted. “But how did you know—”
“My own spies informed me.”
“Does the Raja know?” I thought of Gauri playing in her room, completely unaware of danger.
“Yes.”
A flurry of questions rose to my mind. “But—?”
“I sent my messenger to alert him.”
“I have to get to the harem. My sister isn’t safe.”
Picking up the ends of my sari,I turned toward the door, but then a rumble shuddered through the kingdom. The chariots had overturned. I could picture the soldiers beneath the wheels—unfurling from those crouched positions like nightmares made flesh. Thunderous footfall pounded the earth, gates creaked open and screaming ripped through the air.
“I have to go,” I said, my voice rising. “I have to warn them.”
Amar grabbed my arm.
“It’s too late for that,” he said. “They’re already fighting.”
I paused, straining to hear anything other than blood rushing in my ears. Distantly, I heard iron against iron, the sound of clashing shields, and the roar of screams pitted against each other. Outside the window, the chariots lay overturned, split open like hollow shells.
“There’s no time,” he said, releasing his grip on my arm. “The Raja himself asked me to deliver you from this.”
“He did?”
Amar nodded. Outside, the sounds of fighting grew closer and the parapets of the harem gleamed impassively.
“The women will be fine. Those generals only want one war. They won’t attack your sisters. If they do, they’ll have to answer to the kingdoms of their betrothed. As we speak, soldiers are guarding the harem.” His voice cut through my thoughts. “Who will guard you if you stay behind?”
I had no answer, stunned by what was happening outside the window.
“We must go,” he insisted.
If I stayed, I would die anyway. But if I went, at least I could live…
A flutter of hope beat soft wings in my chest. How long had I wanted to escape these walls? And now, on the brink of drowning that hope with poison, it washere. The past seventeen years could have been breath held solely for this moment. Something caught inside me, as sharp as a wound. I almost didn’t recognize the feeling—it wasrelief. Incandescent and glittering relief. Giddiness swept through me, leaving my hands trembling.
“Well?” pressed Amar. “Are we going or not?”
We?I looked him over. The garland of red carnations hung limply around his neck. He held out his hand like a casual invitation, indifferent to the tumult outside the chambers. How could I trust him? What if he sold me to the enemies? He had no reason to protect me… unless I meant something to him.
