Page 60 of A Legacy of the Light

I nod and he draws his weapon, giving me his back. I grip the belt that held his sword tightly in my sweaty palms and Alaister pulls the door open.

He rushes out into the ballroom and the echo of our hurried footsteps sound like thunderclaps in the silence.

The heavy wooden doors are suddenly thrown open, their hinges groaning under the effort, and a scream slips from my throat as Alaister stops along the edge of the ballroom.

“Shit. They’ve breached the palace grounds,” Alaister growls and grips his sword in two hands.

The courtyard is in chaos, Seelie in dark armor and haunting black masks fight with the palace guards. The rebels are outnumbered and fight three to one, but shadows swirl and coil around their feet, blocking and attacking those around them.

I squeeze my eyes shut tight when I see a silver-clad guard fall and a rebel hold their sword high, ready to end his life.

“Al!”

The familiarity of the voice that calls from my right sends a wave of relief running through me.

Reyne joins us and pries my hands from Alaister’s belt, holding it firmly in hers while she grips a small sword with the other.

She’s dressed in the silver armor the guards normally wear, but hers is lighter, and cut perfectly for her body. A dagger is sheathed on her thigh, and a large sword is strapped down her back in addition to the sword she carries. Her long red hair is braided and wrapped into a bun on the top of her head.

“We need to get Elsie to her rooms,” Reyne says.

A handful of rebels make a break for it towards the open wooden doors, stumbling in before they spot us. When they do, they rush in our direction and I take a few steps backward.

Alaister advances on them without hesitation and I gasp as he meets the group of four rebels head on. Reyne’s grip tightens on my hand as we watch Alaister be outmatched.

When he’s brought down by them, Reyne pushes me into an alcove under one of the sconces. “Wait here, don’t move until I come get you.”

“Wh-what?” I ask.

Reyne runs to help Alaister before I even finish my question.

I wrap my arms around my mid-section, making myself as small as possible as I watch Reyne down and kill a rebel, that had put Alaister on his back, between one blink and the next. There’s no hesitation in her strikes, and I see the full force of her power and skill. She helps Alaister to his feet and they stand back-to-back.

Reyne is facing off against two rebels, and Alaister has a nasty slice along his cheek as he faces off against the other. It doesn’t take long for Reyne to disarm one Seelie and, as she aims her blade low, I close my eyes again. I’ve seen one Seelie die, that’s enough for me.

My breathing hitches as the sounds of battle and the screams of pain make my heart feel like it’s going to beat right out of my chest.

The fighting in the ballroom quietens and footsteps approach me on light feet. Anxiety and fear rip through me. Please don’t be a rebel, I chant as they get closer and closer.

I snap my eyes open and find Reyne before me, panting and splattered with blood. She reaches her hand toward me. “Come on, Elsie. We need to move before anymore Dorche get inside the palace.”

I slip my trembling hand in hers and she starts to pull me in the direction of the hall of chambers.

Beyond the doors, a tall, broad figure skirting around the edges of the fighting catches my attention and I pull Reyne to a stop. Their armor seems different, not as dark as the rebels who are slowly losing their fight, and they aren’t engaging with anyone who approaches them, just knocking them out cold.

“What is it?” Reyne asks me.

As if sensing my eyes on them, the rebel snaps their gaze to me and terror tiptoes down my spine. Long dark hair, tied in a low ponytail, and eyes that appear black, glare back at me. His head tilts to the side as he watches me staring at him.

“Elsie, come on,” she urges, and pulls me along.

Alaister hurries to shut the heavy wooden doors and the connection held between me and the rebel is snapped when the doors close and Alaister slides a bolt across them, sealing us inside the palace.

He comes to my other side as we reach the hall of chambers and we run through the halls.

“What’s going on, Alaister?” one of the guards posted by the doors to the royal quarters asks.

“Dorche have breached the city. They’re in the courtyard. Remain in post,” he commands, ushering me through the door.