“His daughter isn’t being held anywhere,” I say. “She’s dead.”
My words drop like a rock.
“Oh,” says Ford.
I look back at Lochlan. “But that’s a good idea. It would also motivate him to sail to Fairde to rescue her—especially if we said Rian was hiding her.”
Ford is glaring at me. “And how is thisnotleading an assault on our king?”
I glare right back at him. “Because you’re going to send him awarning of exactly when and where this ‘rescue’ is taking place, and you’re going to tell him that Prince Corrick of Kandala handed him his primary rival on a silver platter, and I expect restitution in the form of a return journey to my home country.”
Ford turns this around in his head, and I’m sure he sees all the same places this can go wrong that I do. This plan is full of holes that I’m going to need to fill in later, but it’s more than we had an hour ago.
“What if Crane doesn’t believe you?” he says.
“Then I’m no worse off than I am right now.” I glance around the table. “And you’re all still alive.”
“You’re going to need to return here,” Ford says. “If he believes you, this will take some arranging. I can’t snap my fingers and instantly receive a response from our king. How will you convince Crane that you need to comeback?”
That almost throws me. It’s a good question, and my thoughts are spinning.
But then I have a solution, and once the idea comes to me, it’s so obvious that it shouldn’t have taken me any time at all.
“Don’t worry.” For the first time in what feels like weeks, I smile. “I have an idea.”
I was right. Crane’s people jump us before we get far. We’re dragged into an alley and shoved up against a wall.
I find myself glaring at Lina and Mouse. Lina’s got her hands on her hips like she’s the leader of this little pack, while Mouse stands off to the side like a wounded-yet-trained bear, waiting for orders.
Two of the men are pinning me against a brick wall, but Linadraws a dagger and puts it right against my throat. I feel the bite of the blade and then a trickle of blood, but she doesn’t press any harder, and I refuse to flinch.
“I knew you’d fail,” she says. “Give me one good reason I shouldn’t kill you right now.”
“The fact that you’ll never forget that I could have killed you with my bare hands, but you need two people to hold me down while you do it with a knife.”
She growls in rage, then spits right in my face.
“Well, that’s horrific,” I say, clenching my eyes closed. “I might have preferred the knife.”
“I can do it with my bare hands,” she says. Then she punches me right in the stomach.
My eyes are still closed, so I take the hit fully. It knocks the wind out of me. The only thing holding me upright is the grip these men have on my arms.
“If you beat him to death,” Lochlan says, “then Crane won’t get his daughter back.”
She punches me again and I see stars. I’m choking on air.
“Fine,” says Lochlan. He sounds bored. “I’ll tell Crane it was your fault.”
“Lina,” says Mouse worriedly. “Lina.”
“They’re lying.”
I fight for air and barely succeed. “We’re not,” I gasp. “That’s—that’s why—”
“That’s why we couldn’t kill Ford Cheeke,” Lochlan finishes for me. “He knows where Redstone is hiding Bella.”
Lina has her fist drawn back, ready for another punch, but Mouse catches her arm. She’s breathing hard and spitting mad, but Mouse isn’t looking at her, he’s looking at me.
