“There it is,” I mumbled.
He glared at me, trying to frighten me. I didn’t react. I just stared back.
How in the name of the Spine was it possible to both love and hate that man? Because I did. I loved him and hated him. And for the past few days, I also wanted to kick him. Hard.
“So we’re just going to stand here?” Bel snapped.
“Absolutely,” Odom said.
“Can we… can we try to figure out what Niniane would do?” I asked. “Odom, Aiko, you know the land and the vampires. What would she do with a prisoner as valuable as Gwen?”
“Hide her,” Odom said.
Aiko nodded. “Definitely. Her goal isn’t to kill her. It’s to kill the king. She’ll come after Dorian, too, and anyone else who might be a threat to her, personally. If she could, she’d go after all the mated and paired men.”
“She believes that all men are like Savion,” I whispered.
“Gwen is bait,” Belshazzar said.
“She is,” I said. “Do you see that it was unwise for you to rush the chasm?”
“Don’t chide me, girl,” he snapped.
Rilen took a step forward, and I held him off with a wave of my hand. I didn’t need these men playing knights in shining armor.
“I wasn’t chiding you, highness. I was pointing out the flaw in a plan thought of in the heat of the moment. We’re dealing with someone who is absolutely insane. There’s no rhyme or reason to her thinking, even if she does appear to be in control of her faculties. Savion was the same. He appeared…normal. Sane.”
“I can assure you, after so many years of Blood Rites, he was not,” Odom said.
“I think that’s an understatement,” Dorian said.
I stared down the Chasm. “We’re not going that way,” I said.
“It’s the most direct way through,” Staviz said.
“Of course it is,” I said. “She’ll have guards on it. We also can’t use the south passage. She’ll have that guarded.”
“North?” Rilen asked.
“I don’t think that’ll work,” Odom said. “The campaign led there was successful, so she’ll have that watched.”
I looked at Aiko, who grimaced and shook his head. “Oh, no. No. Kimber, you can’t possibly…”
“She doesn’t know how you and I escaped,” I answered. “It’s the best way to go.”
“Wait, what are you talking about?” Belshazzar looked between Aiko and me.
“We have to go by boat,” I said.
Aiko groaned. “I hate boats.”
“Boat?” the king asked.
“A small vessel, nothing large,” I said to Staviz. “Something we can take out of Summer Landing.”
“South, mistress?” Staviz asked.
“We can dodge around the armies she might have there if we swing out to Summer Landing and head out around Southling Caye. We can sail up Niallan’s Spit, and that will drop us...”
