Missing Royal (19 page)

“Thank you.” I wish I had more, but information is just as important.

“There is a young woman, one of Mendina’s spies. But something’s off. I do not believe she wants to help Mendina. She is the best of the best, never misses her target.” She undoes the top part of her dress just enough to show me the scar on her shoulder.

“She hit me but I know she intentionally missed a kill spot. It was almost as if she didn’t have control of her actions. Tears were streaming down her face. She couldn’t stop herself from shooting but at the last second she aimed at my shoulder rather than my heart. She made sure I was still alive and able to survive before disappearing. She apologized.”

“What did she say?” I ask. I need to know who this girl is.

“I don’t know. She spoke another language. I just know she was scared and not working by her own will. One word she said did stand out to me. She said a word, pointing to herself. I’m pretty sure she was telling me her name was Krea.”

I try not to look excited. “And then what happened?”

“She ran off. I haven’t been outside since that day. This was a month ago. I wanted to find her at first, find out who she was. But I was never able to learn more about her.” She glances at her father. I understand exactly what happened.

With the threat of death so near, she’s been locked up for protection.

“Thank you. This information is most helpful. You are right—her name is Krea. And she believes she’s Mendina’s daughter. She is, in fact, under a spell of some kind, and it appears Mendina has been using her to kill off any living heirs, even if their thrones have been destroyed,” I say. Javiar, believing he was Mendina’s son, did things he didn’t want to. If Krea is in those same situations, it makes sense she wouldn’t want to do what she is being forced to do.

“Who is she, though? And why would she think she’s Mendina’s daughter?”

“Her name is Krea Elizalde, daughter to Danica and Kajetan. Mendina kidnapped her as a toddler in an act of revenge toward her sister, Danica, for stealing the man she loved. Mendina believes that the throne which will one day be mine in truth belongs to her.”

“So where do you go from here?” Amber asks.

“I must find and rescue Krea. She is one of the many missing royals.”

“And if Mendina commands her to kill you?” Amber looks worried. I wish her father wasn’t here just long enough for me to speak to Amber freely.

“I have to save her before she follows through with the task. And because our numbers are dwindling and hope is running out, I must leave. Thank you for the information.” I curtsy before turning back to the ladder. Valentino will be panicking at my sudden disappearance.

A much larger hand lands on my shoulder.

“You’re not going alone.” I turn back to see Nicklaus’ father. He is strong still. I would not have asked him to fight, but from the looks of it he can handle his own. I could cry with joy right now.

“Thank you,” I whisper.

“I will pack my belongings and meet you at sunrise tomorrow at the edge of the town,” he says with surety.

“Thank you,” I say again before scrambling back up the ladder.

Valentino grumbles when I wake him. “Where were you?” He says more clearly. I want to explain but Jareth promised to meet us at the edge of the forest when the sun rose and the sun is rising. I already packed our things.

“I found Amber. And though she isn’t coming with us, we aren’t leaving alone.” I say as I throw clean clothes at him.

I changed into a dress, removing my filthy pants. With a few days’ ride to Umare, I should survive in a dress. And with any luck, we’ll find a river where I can rinse my pants, and the sun will shine so they dry.

As promised, Jareth and his horse stand at the edge of the town, waiting just as the sun reaches its peak. Exhausted, I allow both men to take the lead. I stick close by but stay behind them.

They talk as if they are long-lost friends—everything from which stance is the best in a fight to who has a better sword. I shake my head and laugh. At least we aren’t traveling in silence.

Breaking the calming chatter, Valentino shouts my name, voice filled with panic. “Shanice.” He falls back and grabs my arm. I follow his gaze. Before us on the path, and coming our way is one princess we’ve yet to reach. In one swift swoop, all three of us dismount and lower ourselves amongst the bushes. The horses race between the trees, staying hidden. She is hunting us for the very witch that just about killed us.

I feel for her more than any of the others. Does she know she’s royalty? She must, if she believes herself to be Mendina’s daughter.

“We need to gain her trust, Valentino. I cannot let her slip away.” I move closer, as silently as possible. I have one shot left at not dying today. I approach her quietly, and yet she still turns toward me. Her face is covered with the hood of her cloak, but I know well it is her.

“I will kill you. I never miss my mark,” she threatens.

I hunker down in the bushes. “What if I told you I know the truth, and I can help you?” It’s a brave move speaking but I have to try and save her. Valentino comes up beside me.

“It doesn’t matter what you know. No one can help me. I am her servant until she frees me. Her will is the only I can do,” she states. She doesn’t sound happy but it sounds more like Mendina has programmed her words. She has complete control over Krea. It’s evident in the way her voice struggles with every word as she fights it. She moves the same way, fighting every step but unable to overcome it.

“Listen, Krea. I can save you but you have to trust me. Shoot the arrow at a tree and I will save you.” I close my eyes, wishing, hoping that she does not release that arrow.

“This arrow must hit its mark or I die this night, Princess. It is no ordinary arrow.” She almost stops speaking, but for that split second, I heard Krea speaking and not Mendina.

“This is for you. It’s poisoned.” Her voice sounds like a robot. “She wishes to kill you slowly. Please don’t let me see you.” She cries, her voice breaking. I keep moving further and further away.

“Krea, I promise you will be freed if it’s the last thing I do.” I would have been safe had I not made that promise, but I moved back too far. At the sound of snapping twigs, without hesitation, she spins around and fires.

The arrow sails true, aiming right for me. I feel like a deer in the headlights, my heart has stopped, I can’t breathe, can’t move. Valentino jumps from the bushes beside me and shoves me aside, allowing the arrow to plant firmly in his shoulder. He gasps and falls to the ground with a thud. I wish he had allowed the arrow to hit me.

“Shanice!” Krea yells, not daring to come closer. “You must save him! Mendina will use every ounce of energy left in him for herself. It will kill him slowly, painfully, and in a more torturous way than one might think possible.” She rips the mask from her face. “I am so sorry.” Tears rush down her cheeks, but she can’t stay. Like a deer running from its hunter, she runs into the forest.

I whistle, begging Star to come. Tears pour down my own cheeks. Valentino has lost consciousness, blood running down his chest and side from his shoulder, and I can’t do anything to stop it. I can’t remove the arrow without hurting him further.

Star comes, as does Knight. Jareth jumps from the bushes and rushes to me as well. “Shanice, he will not survive with that amount of blood loss.” He grabs a blanket from the saddle and kneels beside me, pressing the cloth to Valentino’s shoulder. “We need to get him somewhere safe.”

“We need Nastasia. She’s our closest bet.” I try to stand, but cannot bear Valentino’s weight on my own. I look to Jareth. “Please help me—I can’t carry him.”

“Shanice, be strong. You will be faster on your own.” Jareth helps me lift Valentino into Star’s saddle. I would lay him across her back but I fear the arrow would be pushed in farther and hurt him more.

“Go! I will take care of his horse, return to Umare, and inform the king what has happened,” Jareth says.

“Thank you.” I don’t have time to say any more. I sit behind Valentino, leaning him against me so he does not fall over or off.

“Star, run,” I command.

She listens, running straight for Garverdale. The minutes tick by—I’m sure there’s a trail of blood behind us. Poor Star’s coat of white fur is covered in red. I lower my head and allow her to tear through every mile between us and Nastasia.

As we approach, I call for her, screaming for her attention. The second we arrive at her door, she is there, waiting. “What happened?”

She looks as mortified as I feel. “Help me get him inside! Please!” Star lowers her body again, allowing me and Nastasia to carry him off and into the house.

“Get me water now,” Nastasia orders. We lay him on the couch. Nastasia begins working the arrow out of his shoulder. I’m grateful she sends me to fetch water—I can’t watch his body twist and turn in pain.

I bring in a bucket of fresh water from the well. Nastasia has the arrow removed, lying on the floor. I glare at it with all the hatred I feel toward Mendina right now.

“Hurry!” Nastasia orders, needing the water. I set the bucket beside her and place a hand on Valentino’s good shoulder.

“I have to destroy Mendina,” I whisper. Tears spill, falling onto Valentino’s cheek.

“I know, dear. But what happened?”

“You don’t understand. I have to go now. She’s out there using his energy as a boost for her power. Every minute she lives, he dies that much faster.”

She doesn’t reply to me right away. “Help me get his shirt off,” she commands. I do as she asks and then wait. Around the hole, his shoulder is purple and black as the poison spreads.

“Do you love him?” she asks, looking at me now that she has done all she can to stop the bleeding.

“With all my heart.”

"Why do you refuse to marry him? You make him think you love him, and then you break his heart. And now that he is dying, you're willing to risk all of our lives to save him."

"I never said I wouldn't marry him. I said I wouldn't marry him because I was told I had to—because it was dictated by someone else. I'm in love with him, Nastasia. I always have been. He's the one person I truly care about in this world. I'm not going to sit by and watch him die, waiting for a miracle when I know one isn't coming. I'm going to save him no matter the cost."

I don’t wait for her to protest. I storm outside and mount. I make sure my sword is still strapped to my side before taking off. It doesn’t matter that the sun will set soon. It doesn’t matter that I am hours away from Gowell, from her and in the end, could help her kill him faster.

I don’t care that I’m supposed to be building an army or that I don’t know enough magic. I can’t let him die. This ends tonight. The numbness begins to spread. All the pain from the past three days, all the torture, and the endless hours of climbing and running—it’s all gone. One thought takes over.

Kill Mendina. End her. She will not kill him, she can’t. I won’t let her. I can‘t lose him.

But Krea said it was to cause me endless torture. Only one thing could do that. Hurting Valentino.

I push Star faster and harder, putting all my anger into getting her to ride like the wind. What Fuentes did in one flight seems to take us forever on horseback. Gowell is much closer to Garverdale that Umare, and that’s good.

Mendina will not get away with this. She
can’t
get away with this. I can’t lose Valentino. I won’t. I knew I loved him, but with the thought of losing him, the pain is unbearable. I have nothing without him.

I hate having to take Star through the black forest but I don’t stop. I don’t have time to walk through it again. Mendina knows I’m coming. She’s expecting me—I can feel it.

Just as I approach the front gate to her lair, it opens—the door, the same way. She wanted me to come. My heart skips a beat, stuttering as I walk into a trap. I should’ve stayed away from Gowell.

“I’m so glad you came, dear Princess. I’ve waited a long time for this.” She smiles wickedly, and I admit, she isn’t what I expected. Dark brown hair flows behind her, curling in the wind created by the magic flowing around her. Her eyes are the equivalent of sapphires. Her dark crimson dress moves with her, the color mocking my pain.

The room we stand in is spacious, and mostly empty. A throne at the end of the room, sitting before large stained glass windows depicting a forest. The floor is a mosaic but from where I stand I can’t tell if it makes a full picture, or is just colorful.

“This ends, Mendina. You have had your fun, exacted your revenge. And now it’s over.” I hold out my hands, building all the energy I can. Never before have I needed more, and now it feels as though I am drained. Perhaps I used too much in getting Valentino to safety. But it doesn’t mean I won’t try.

“That’s where you’re wrong. I’ve only begun. Watching you suffer as I slowly kill the love of your life is only the cherry on top. You will suffer that of a thousand deaths before I end you and take your crown from the cold grip of your mother.” Her eyes flash red. She sneers and slowly gathers her magic just as I am doing.

“I don’t understand why you hate me so much when I don’t even know you. But you won’t succeed—not if I kill you first.” I let every ounce of power I have left shoot at her.

She laughs menacingly. “Did you really think you could come all this way, angry, filled with hate, and still overpower me? Oh, no, Shanice. No one is stronger than me. Not even you … ” She flicks her wrist, and in one simple movement has the air sucked from my lungs, my body dangling inches above the ground. Everything goes in and out of view. She’s killing him, torturing me, and she’s safe behind a wall of magic I wish I could have broken through already.

Despite my lack of power, I try to muster more, forcing the little left in me to fight back, to force her magic apart. “You won’t win, you coward. You will never win.” I spit.

“Now, now, dear, you shouldn’t have done that. I was just about to let you live.” Where my power couldn’t penetrate hers fully, now I can’t at all. Every bit of magic she has readily in her hands hits me all at once, knocking me to the ground, stealing my breath, making my vision blurry.

All her built-up power, energy stolen from the man I came to save, hits me full force before I have a chance to move. My body falls limply the ground. “He would’ve lived longer, you know. Now he may just die before you can return to him.” She laughs before all fades to black.

I awake, tears filling my eyes. I’m surrounded by forest, Star at my side. Not only did I fail to hurt Mendina, but I risked Valentino’s life. I don’t know if he lives still or if all hope is lost. And as if all hope wasn’t
already
lost, I find myself lost in the forest.