Flames of Auriel (A Caeles Adventure Book 1) (12 page)

She tried to jerk away from him as she tried to cling to her nurse’s form, “Garrett! I can’t just leave her here!”

Garrett jerked her out of the carriage and grabbed her shoulders, “She’s gone, Zo. There is nothing you can do for her now.” When she tried to protest, he shook her. “Do you think she would want you to risk your life for hers?”

Eyes still full of tears, Zoe shook her head.

“Good. We have to keep moving.”

The men who had attacked them had given up on long distance attacks and were now coming at them on foot. Zoe’s eyes darted frantically from one guard to the next, each of them fighting for their lives. The sound of metal clashing together resonated in each of her steps as she followed quickly behind Garrett’s retreating figure.

Garrett paused as his sword clashed with that of one of the attackers. He felt Zoe turn her back to his to keep an eye out for any assaults on his rear. He slashed at his assailant and called out behind him as he turned to thrust his sword into another foe.

“Zoe, stay on me!”

When she did not answer, he turned his head toward where she had been. He was shocked to find her in the depths of a fight with two different men. It had been a year since he had seen her really in action. He cursed to himself as he realized she had been holding back on him.

He stood in awe at the grace and speed of her movements. Her fiery hair flew free of its confines as the dress she wore whipped around her legs as she fought her attackers. Garrett struggled to close his mouth at her movements. Even the way she disarmed them with nothing but a dagger would have even the strongest of men quivering at her feet.

Zoe looked like a warrior goddess as a swift stab to one of the men’s necks caused his blood to spew out over her dress. Another man came up behind her and Garrett stepped forward to help, but stopped midway when she kicked a leg out toward the assailant. The man cried out as the heel of her shoe nailed the man in the chest. Zoe took that opportunity to retrieve her knife from the first assailant’s neck and threw it point first at the stunned attacker. When no one else attacked the princess scanned the area to find her missing friend.

The bodyguard waved his arms at her until she looked his way. “Over here!” He gestured for her to follow him into the surrounding woods. “This way.”

Zoe grabbed the ever hindering skirts into her hands and ran after him. She cursed when her skirt seemed to catch on every branch they came across. When she could no longer hear their pursuers, she stopped to lean against a tree.

Garrett doubled back to her, “What are you doing? We have to keep going.”

“I am well aware of that, but I can’t go anywhere with this monstrosity weighing me down.” She gripped her skirt about mid-thigh, slashing through it with her sullied dagger, revealing her long legs.

He forced his eyes away from her legs and listened for oncoming footsteps. There was no sound for a few moments, but then the pounding of boots could be heard throughout the woods. Garrett grabbed her hand to lead her deeper into the trees.

“We have to keep moving.”

They maneuvered between the trees and hoped the dark woods would dissuade their tail from following them. Eventually, Zoe caught sight of a nook underneath a tree’s roots. She pulled Garrett in its direction as the echoing footsteps increased its pace. She tightened her grip on his hand as she ran and dropped to her knees, the momentum of it caused them to slide into the waiting darkness.

When they landed, Garrett turned to her, “What do you think –” She covered his mouth with a hand. She pointed up with the other hand then placed a finger at her mouth. Garrett’s eyes widened at the sound of the yells coming from above.

The men stopped above the tree. There were some muffled voices before one spoke out above the rest. His voice filled with a whine as he talked to the others.

“They went this way.”

Another disputed the first, “If they went this way, they would be here. Let’s go back. She’s as good as dead in this forest, no one gets out of here alive. It’s filled with gypsies and dark magic. We are lucky we haven’t encountered any ourselves.”

They heard a thud and then a grunt from the previous man. They could only assume the leader had hit him when a rough voice spoke out. “Don’t be such a coward. Armanel hired us to do a job and we are going to do it. Anybody else want to turn back?” Silence answered him, “Good. Now this way.”

Zoe lowered her hand at their retreating footsteps and glanced back to Garrett. He could feel the horror and disbelief in her eyes at hearing her uncle’s name because it was in his eyes as well. Why would Prince Armanel want her dead?

After what seemed like hours, they finally decided to emerge from their hiding spot. Zoe pushed off of Garrett’s cupped hands and grasped one of the roots to pull herself out. She turned and offered a hand down to Garrett. She planted her feet into the ground and used it as leverage to pull him out.

When he landed firmly on the ground next to her, she looked down at him. Her brows furrowed at the look of fear on his face and saw that his eyes were trained on something behind her. At that moment, she felt a blade tap her shoulder.

Now sensing the movement behind her, she slowly moved her body around to face the culprit. Zoe and Garrett were now surrounded by a dozen or more fierce looking men. Their ragged clothing made them look nothing like the ones that had been pursuing them.

Zoe forced her face to show amusement instead of the fear she felt. It would not do to let them know they had bested them. If she knew one thing about nomads it was that they are never exactly as they seemed.

“You must be the cut throats and gypsies.”

“I had her, Bryce. She feels something for me. I know it.”

The prince slammed his cup down on the table. He had been wallowing over their last encounter for the last few hours now. He regretted not being able to say a proper goodbye to her earlier that morning. He had looked for hours, but was unable to find her anywhere. Thinking she was avoiding him after yesterday’s quarrel, he resigned to wait at the gates for her to make an appearance.

His friend chuckled next to him, “I don’t think I have ever seen her so embarrassed in my life! Who knew your warrior princess was such a little pervert?”

Asher let out a short laugh at his friend’s query. If Asher had known Zoe was so easily won over by a kiss or a small caress he would have come on to her years ago. He could not stop thinking of her since she left. The way her breath would hitch whenever he touched her, the feel of her skin under his hands. It made him wish he had never let her out of his sight.

“Maybe I should go after her?” He gestured his hand in the air, “You know a grand gesture and all that. Women like those right?”

Bryce took a drink from his own cup, “Yes, women like those, but Zoe? She’s no ordinary woman.”

“Then what should I do?”

Bryce opened his mouth to answer, but before he could get a word out a messenger approached the table. The messenger boy, who could not have been older than thirteen, stood before the prince and held out a letter to him. Asher thanked the boy and turned the letter over in his hands. He frowned at the boy’s Aurelian garbs and then further when he saw the sigil of Auriel that sealed the envelope.

“What’s this?” The lad waited next to the prince as he pulled open the letter and started to read it over, his brows scrunched together as he got to the end. Asher’s eyes jerked to the boy, his alarm clear on his face. “How long ago was this letter sent?”

The boy furrowed his brows as he calculated the date. “About a fortnight, your highness.”

“Did you know of King Brom’s death?”

Bryce made a startled noise next to him at the news, but Asher just waved him quiet. He wanted to hear what the boy had to say about it.

The messenger boy solemn nod of his head, “It was not too long before I was sent to you with this note.” The boy leaned into whisper to the prince. “They say that it was a Camelian assassin.”

Asher’s brows shot up at the boy’s confession. “Camelian? Are you sure?”

The lad shrugged, not really looking the prince in the eyes. “That’s what the official announcement says.”

“But you don’t believe it?”

“I’m just a messenger, your highness. What do I know?”

Asher leaned forward, propping himself up on his leg and beckoned the boy forward. “Well, I would like to know your theory.”

The boy searched around the kitchen, afraid to be overheard by the wrong person. When he was satisfied that he would not be overheard, he leaned back toward the prince and whispered as if what he had to say was forbidden.

“I don’t know if you know this, but it’s not exactly easy to get in and out of the castle, you know? There’s all those mountains surrounding us on top of the fact that we don’t just let anyone in. Suspicious by nature, you see. So if it was a Camelian assassin, he couldn’t just get in without detection from our guards. He would have had to have help, don’t you think?”

Bryce finally put in his thoughts on the subject. “And you think someone let him in?”

The boy looked to Bryce and shrugged. “There’s no other way he’d have gotten in.”

Asher stroked his chin. He did not like how this was all starting to sound. If there was a conspiracy happening in Aurelius then Zoe would need to know about it. Fast.

“Who do
you
think it was?”

“The prince of course.” The boy’s voice was matter a fact about his accusation.

“Prince Armanel?” Bryce called out next him.

“Well, he has declared himself the rightful heir now, since the princess has not returned yet. If she returns that is.”

“What do you mean?” Asher’s eyes had grown worried at the thought of his betrothed.

The boy shook his head, “The poor princess isn’t going to make it past the border if her uncle has anything to say about it.”

Bryce looked to Asher in confusion, “But Zoe just left a few hours ago. How can he just declare himself the heir when she is still alive? Unless…”

Asher stood up from the table, “Unless the lad here is right.” He pulled out a few coins to give to the boy and gestured toward the kitchen. “Have yourself something to eat and a good rest. You did well in telling us your suspicions.”

The boy greedily pocketed the money and turned toward the cook to claim his meal. Before he left he paused and turned back toward the prince. “You will save her right, your highness? I’ve always liked the princess. She was always real kind to the staff, unlike Prince Armanel.”

Asher looked down at the younger boy and smiled. “I won’t let anything happen to your princess. Now hurry over to the cook, she doesn’t like to be kept waiting.”

As the smiling boy skipped away Asher exchanged a look with his friend. They hoped they had be able to keep his promise. He motioned for Bryce to follow him and headed for the door. “Guess I’m going to get my grand gesture after all.”

***

Queen Marie had been inconsolable at the news of her dear friend’s sudden death. She had practically shoved them out the palace gates when Asher had expressed his concern for Zoe’s safety. She demanded they find her and bring her back at once. If anyone was unsafe under Prince Armanel’s rule it was Zoe.

Asher had never met the man before, but the tales of Armanel’s callousness had even him fearing to ever meet him. He could not blame the late King Brom for sending his brother out on mission after mission in hopes of keeping him busy enough to dissuade him from causing destruction in the kingdom. Armanel rarely came back to Aurelius. There were rumors that he was in Camel so often that he preferred the desert now over his own home.

With all the stories around Armanel it would not be hard to convince anyone that he might have had a hand in his brother’s death. If he could do that to his own brother there is no telling what he would do to his niece. Asher could only hope he got there in time.

Asher held his hand up to the soldiers trailing behind him and pulled his own horse to a halt on the road. All the hope he had been bottling up quickly diminished at the destruction splayed out before him. Fallen Aurelian soldiers littered the ground, their lifeless bodies decorated the forest around the demolished wooden carriage.

Asher dismounted and ran up to the side of the carriage. He wrenched open the door, his eyes hunted for any sign of his beloved. His grey eyes fell on Alice’s cold body, the arrow in her was the only object destroying her peaceful form. Asher was saddened at the loss of Zoe’s cherished nursemaid and regretted that he had never gotten the chance to apologize.

“She’s not here, Ash.”

The prince let out a sigh of relief that Zoe’s body was not in the wreckage. He moved out of the carriage looking around him. He did not know what he would have done if he had found her there.

He watched Bryce’s crouched form over a fallen mercenary, “And by the looks of it, these were Camelian mercenaries.” He held up the tan-colored cloth tucked into one of the deceased’s waist.

“Then where is she?” He took the cloth from his friend and turned it over in his hand. The sigil of Camael embroidered on the cloth glared back at him like an ugly beacon of death.

Asher looked up from the cloth when one of the men called out to him, “Over here!” He ran over to him, Asher’s eyes searched where he was pointing into the woods. “It looks like some of them went that way.”

“Then we follow.” He frowned at the thought of his princess is the Dark Forest, he almost hoped she had died here in the road with her nurse. The forest was no place for a princess, even one as tough as she was. The forest was infested with gypsies and criminals hiding from polite society. They had tried to clear them out, but the trees were too dense and the hiding holes that scattered the forest made it impossible to get them all. Asher could not bear to see the thought of Zoe never coming back out of those woods.

Bryce caught up to his retreating figure and placed a hand on his shoulder. “Asher, you can’t be serious? No one comes out of those woods alive.”

“I have to try.” Asher shrugged the hand off and continued toward the broken path. His men followed close behind him, their wary eyes searched the trees surrounding them.

The footprints were scattered about the forest floor with no sense of rhyme or reason. Each shadow in the trees caught at the edges of Asher’s eyes and beaconed him into its cold embrace. The forest around them had a way of sneaking up on you, pulling your darkest thoughts to the forefront of your mind. Asher shook his head to clear it, his own despair threatening to consume him.

“Over here!” Asher turned his head toward the sound of one of his guard’s voices.

He rushed to the base of the tree the soldier was studying. The man in question moved away from the tree to let him see what he was looking at. There on the ground was the lower half of Zoe’s green dress from this morning. The edges of it were covered in dirt and grime, but the part that made his heart clench was blood stains spread out across the material.

“I’m so sorry, Ash.” Bryce voice whispered by his ear.

Asher jerked his eyes from the material in his hand to look at his friend. The pain in his eyes radiated out before he could stop it. He balled up the material in his hand and threw it to the ground.

“This means nothing. She could still be out there. She could be hurt and alone.” Asher turned toward the forest and his footsteps hastened as he spoke. “We have to find her.”

Bryce ran to catch up with his prince, his heart clenched at Asher’s words. Ever since King Terryn had passed his friend had not been good with loss. He knew his prince was not going to give up so easily, even when it seemed like it was a lost cause.

“Ash, we need to go back. You don’t know these woods.” He grabbed Asher’s shoulder and pulled him to a stop. “If she is alive and that is a big if, she can fight better than any of us. She will find her way back to you if it is the Dark One’s will.”

Asher frowned at the ground, his voice barely made a sound. “But what if she needs me?”

“We need you more. Your mother needs you. She doesn’t have anyone but you, Asher. Do you really want to leave her all alone?” Bryce held back a sigh of relief when Asher turned back toward the way they came.

Asher called back out to his friend. “I will find her.”

“If anyone can, you will.” Bryce shook his head at his friend as he moved to catch back up with him. It did not take them long to get back to the road; they had not gone too far into the forest.             

The saddened prince motioned to his men to gather the dead. He felt his eyes burn as he picked up one of the gowns that had fallen out of Zoe’s trunks. He pressed it to his face and breathed in the lingering scent of his princess.

He stood there for what seemed like an hour just breathing in the smell of her as he tried to commit it to memory. He finally gazed up from the gown when Bryce placed a hand on his arm. Bryce looked at him, his eyes filled with concern.

“We should go, Ash. Your mother will want to know.”

Asher let himself be lead over to the horses. He could not help but wonder how the angels could be so cruel. Just when he had found out he loved for her and the possibility of having that love returned, they ripped it all away.

“She can’t be gone, Bryce. She’s too damn stubborn to go down without a fight.” Asher mounted his horse and turned it back toward the palace.

Bryce brought his horse up next to his and patted his arm in reassurance. “Well, if anyone could get out of that forest it’s her.”

Asher cast a lingering look upon the wreckage. King Brom’s unexpected death and now an attack on their returning princess did not make him believe for one second that any of it was a coincidence. The Camel colors could only mean Armanel was working with them or he was trying to pin it on them. Asher knew one thing for certain, Armanel better pray for Auriel to have mercy on his soul because he would certainly show him none.

***

“P…Prince…Armanel?” He flinched at the royal’s cold gaze fell upon him.

“That’s king now, Richard.” Armanel returned his eyes to the plate before him. “I hope you have good news to bring me?”

Richard wrung his hands and approached the king’s side. “Yes…of…of course, your majesty. My apologies.”

Armanel threw his fork down with a sigh, “By Auriel, Richard would you spit it out already. You know how I hate your stuttering.”

Richard’s face drained of color at Armanel’s criticism. “Sorry, your majesty.” He cleared the lump in his throat and forced his back to straighten. “We have just gotten word back from the men. They said it is done.”

Armanel held out his hands, “That’s it? I paid them good money for this job and that’s all they told you? ‘It is done?’” He drew a hand threw his dark hair and laughed. “Well, that’s what I get for hiring a bunch of mercenaries. Never were the talkative type.” He took a drink of wine, his eyes on the shaking man, “They wore Camelian colors like I asked?”