“Enough!” Prince Jacob’s booming voice cut through the chaos. Jacob stepped further forward, his own sword drawn, grip steady. Hunter spun around to face him. “Step away from them,” Jacob commanded, placing himself between Hunter and the wounded Gage. Drew, Bennett, and Harry led Shay up the steps to the balcony, out of harm’s way.
Hunter laughed, a wet, deranged sound. “The pretty prince wants to play? I killed a King, boy. Slit his throat right in front of his queen. Do you think I fear you?”
“I think,” Jacob said, his eyes flicking briefly to Shay, “that you have forgotten what men fight like when they have something to lose.”
Jacob struck first. It was a blur of motion, metal ringing against metal. The crowd gasped and surged back, giving them a wide berth.
It became immediately clear that this would not be an easy victory. Jacob was outmatched. Hunter kicked dirt into Jacob's eyes; he feinted low and struck high. He was stronger, heavier, and fueled by a frenzied delirium that made him ignore his own fatigue. Jacob parried a blow that would have taken his head off, the force of it jarring his arm all the way to the shoulder. He retreated, step by step, forcing Hunter to chase him.
“Is this the man who will protect her?” Hunter taunted, slashing Jacob’s thigh. A line of red bloomed on the Prince’s white trousers. “I protected the Queen for years! I did what needed to be done! You are nothing but a child playing dress-up!”
Hunter lunged. Jacob blocked, but Hunter’s weight bore down on him, locking their blades at the hilts. They stood nose to nose, grunting with exertion. “She will die,” Hunter hissed, his spit flying into Jacob’s face. “And I will bring her heart to the queen!”
With a roar, Hunter struck Jacob. The Prince stumbled back, dazed, blood pouring from his nose. He fell to one knee, his sword clattering a few feet away.
“Jacob!” Shay cried out from the balcony, the words cracking with terror.
Hunter loomed over the fallen Prince, raising his sword for the killing stroke. The sun glinted off the steel. Time seemed to slow. Dax and Silas rushed forward, but they were too far away.
Jacob looked up. Through the haze of pain, he saw Shay gripping the balcony rail, her face white with fear.Not today,Jacob thought.I just found her.
As Hunter brought the sword down, Jacob didn't try to block. He rolled forward, diving inside Hunter’s guard. He tackled the swordsman around the waist, driving him back with a desperate surge of adrenaline. They crashed to the ground, a tangle of limbs. Hunter dropped his sword, forced to resort to his fists, raining heavy blows onto Jacob’s ribs. Jacob took them, gritting his teeth, and scrambled for a loose dagger at Hunter’s own belt.
Hunter’s eyes were rabid. His hands found Jacob’s throat, squeezing, crushing the windpipe. Jacob’s vision was spotted with black. He couldn't breathe. The sounds of the courtyard faded.Shay.
With a final, explosive effort, Jacob ripped the dagger free. He didn't have the angle for the heart. He drove the blade upward, jamming it under Hunter’s ribs, into the soft vulnerability of the gut, and twisted.
Everyone froze. Hunter froze. His grip on Jacob’s throat slackened. His eyes went wide, the madness in them dimming into shock. Jacob shoved him off, gasping for air, coughing violently. He scrambled back, retrieved his sword, and stood over the assassin. Hunter curled on the stones, clutching his side, coughing blood. He looked up at Jacob, then past him, toward the East. Toward Liora. “She...” Hunter wheezed. “She will... never... love you...” He slumped forward, the light leaving his eyes.
The courtyard was silent, save for the ragged sound of Jacob’s breathing. He stood there, bruised, bleeding, his pristine white coat stained with blood and dirt, his face swelling—but victorious. He dropped his sword. He didn't look at the crowd. He turned immediately to the miners. “Gage,” he rasped, stumbling toward the wounded man.
Shay was already there. She had flown down the stairs, ignoring the danger, ignoring the blood. She fell to her knees beside Gage, her hands pressing over Drew’s on the wound in his side. “You idiot,” she sobbed, looking at Gage’s pale face. “You stupid, brave idiot.”
Gage managed a weak, bloody grin. “Told you,” he wheezed. “No knight errant. Just us.”
“Is he...?” Shay looked up at Dax, terrified.
Dax knelt, checking the wound with hands that still shook from the fight. “It missed the vitals,” Dax said. “He's lost some blood, but he's as stubborn as the mountain stone. He'll live.”
“Okay, you lot. Enough fussing. Bandage me up and let’s be done with it,” Gage ordered.
Shay turned and threw herself into Jacob's arms, her tears mingling with his sweat and blood. He held her tightly, his breathing ragged but his heart full.
She inhaled him—his scent, the sweat, the blood he shed for her. “I thought I lost you. When you had only just been found,” she cried.
“I wish I had found you sooner. Your mother, the queen, never allowed me through the gate, though I tried many times. I… I just…” Jacob paused, adrenaline subsiding, reality returning. “May I court you, properly?” Jacob asked softly, his voice full of reverence. “Even if it’s complicated?” he added as he looked at the six men.
His touch was innocent, his hands gentle as they cradled her face, but it aroused her more than any previous touch in her life. There was purity in his affection, honesty in his desire, and the knowledge that she had genuine romantic love for him made every contact electric. She had longed for him for so many years, dreamed of this moment, and now it was real.
“Yes,” she whispered, her voice filled with wonder. “Please.” But then she pulled back, her hands resting on his chest, her eyes darting to the six battered, bloody men who stood in a protective ring around them.
Gage was wiping blood from his lip; Bennett was watching her with terrified hope. “But you must know,” Shay said, trembling but firm, “I am not the girl in the stable anymore. I have been loved by these men. They are part of me now. I cannot walk away from them.”
The courtyard went silent. The miners held their breath, waiting for the Prince to recoil, to demand she choose. Jacob looked at the six men. He saw the way Gage watched the perimeter, the way Harry was ready to catch her if she fell, the way their hands lingered on their weapons, ready to kill for her.He looked back at Shay and saw the fierce loyalty burning in her eyes.
Jacob was silent for a long moment. He looked at the men again—really looked this time—at their bruises, their blood, the way they never took their eyes off her. “I won’t pretend I understand this yet,” he said finally. Shay’s heart stuttered. “But I know one thing,” he went on. “You didn’t survive by accident. And I won’t insult you by asking you to erase your past. What doyouwant?”
She took a deep breath, afraid her next words would condemn her. “I had a dream of just you, once, but I have a new dream now. I want them with me. And I want you with me.”
