Iย knew I should have killed this man when I had the chance.
If I were alone, Iโdย ght. Iโd run. I have a dagger and my treble hook. I could bury the weapon in Lochlanโs belly and escape into the woods, then be over the wall in the blink of an eye.
But Iโm not alone. At my side, Tessaโs breathing is quick and shallow, and sheโs shi๎ed closer to me.
It seems unfair that fate would put her in my arms at last and then deliver this fool to our door.
I glance at the crossbow and then back up at Lochlanโs face. โYou said you didnโt have a problem with me.โ
โI donโt have a problem with some bleeding heart named Wes. I do have a slight issue with the Kingโs Justice, Prince Corrick.โ
โSo do I,โ I say easily.
He snorts, then glances between me and Tessa. โI knew Iโd heard your voice before. It took me a bit, but that dagger was just too fancy. No way that didnโt come out of the palace.โ His expression darkens. โTricking your people into thinking someone was helping them? Youโre even more disgusting than I thought.โ
I ignore him and look at the other men. โYou know me. You know us. Put down your weapons and walk away.โ
๎ขe men exchange glances. Lochlan knows who I am, but I can feel their uncertainty in the air.ย ๎ขeyโve known Wes and Tessa for years.ย ๎ขunder rolls overhead, and rain begins to spit between the trees.
Lochlan keeps the crossbow trained on my chest, but he looks at Tessa. โWho is he?โ
โHeโs Wes.โ Sheโs such a terrible liar. Her voice is breathy and afraid. โWeston Lark.โ
โTell the truth or Iโll shoot him.โ โHeโs Wes! I promise, heโs Wes!โ
โYouโre a liar, and you donโt matter.โ He turns the crossbow on her.
โNo!โ I shout. Without thought, I tackle him. Even though one of his arms is injured, heโs stronger than I expect. We roll in the wet underbrush, grappling for control, until I hear Tessa scream.
Itโs all the distraction Lochlan needs. He grabs the crossbow and bears down. โ๎ขeyโll kill her,โ he says. โNow tell the truth.โ
Rage colors my vision. I try to shove Lochlan o๏ฌย me, but now he has me pinned. Somewhere behind me, Tessa squeals, and I hear a punch land.
โFine!โ I shout. โIโm Prince Corrick,โ I grind out. โIโm the Kingโs Justice.โ โNo,โ gasps Tessa, and I wonder if theyโre choking her. But then she says,
โCorrick, no.โ
All the ways she said my name, and this time breaks my heart. โSurrender,โ says Lochlan, and in his eyes, I can see the promise of
everything theyโll do to her if I donโt.
I li๎ย my hands, and it costs me everything. โI surrender.โ
 |
Weโre forced to walk through the woods, heading east this time, which means weโre not going back to the village where weย rst met Lochlan. My hands have been bound, the ropes tied so tightly that myย ngers are already tingling no matter how much Iย ex against the bonds.ย ๎ขe point of a crossbow keeps jabbing me in the back, and I can tell itโs intentional. I grit my teeth against saying anything, because theyโve got Tessa walking somewhere behind me, and Lochlan already made it clear that if I donโt do what he says, theyโll take it out on her.
Heโs the one jabbing me with the crossbow.
Rain falls steadily through the trees now, turning the footing slick and challenging, especially in the dark. Especially with my hands tied. My pulse beats at a rapid clip, sending little spikes of anger and fear through my bloodstream. I pray for the night patrol toย nd us.
๎ขen again, maybe that would be worse. I donโt look like Prince Corrick right now, and I donโt know every single patrolman in Kandala.ย ๎ขey were
going to shoot that boy in the village. I have no doubt theyโd shoot me for daring to impersonate the kingโs brother.
And if they did believe me, being found among smugglers couldnโt be explained away.
I donโt know why Iโm even thinking like this. I know what men like Lochlan will do with me.
โYou canโt possibly think youโll be able to collect a ransom,โ I say. โHarristan will never yield to your demands.โ
โI donโt care about a ransom.โ He jabs me so hard that I stumble and nearly go down.
๎ขe rain intensiย es, beating down, making me shiver against my will. I try to listen for Tessa behind me, but the hiss of rain through the trees makes it impossible to hear anything thatโs not right next to me. I peer up at the sky through the trees, and itโs pitch-dark with clouds and rainfall. Sunrise is still hours away, but I rather doubt Iโll be climbing that rope back into my quarters.
I hope Quint returns to his rooms. I hope that he claims ignorance. I hope Harristan doesnโt grant this man one single request.
I hope they let Tessa go.ย I hope. I hope.
My father once said that hope can be powerful, but itโs worthless without action. If Lochlan doesnโt want money, what else could he want? A pardon? He has to know that would never work.
โTell me what you want,โ I grind out. โI want you to shut up.โ
โYouโll never get anything out of the king without my participation.โ
He punches me right between the shoulder blades, and this time I stumble freely, slamming face-ย rst into the mud so hard that it rattles my jaw. I roll to my side, but heโs already got the crossbow pointed down at me. โAll Iย wantย is for the Kingโs Justice to stop sentencing people to death.โ He glares at me. โGuess Iโll get what I wanted.โ
โCorrick!โ Tessa shouts worriedly from somewhere in the darkness behind him. โCorrick, are you all right?โ
I spit blood at the ground. โOh, Iโm doing splendidly, thank you.โ
Lochlan kicks me in the stomach. I donโt even see it coming, but that doesnโt help. His boot plows into my midsection, and Iโm suddenly choking
on nothing. Starsย ll in my vision. I donโt even realize that Lochlan has grabbed hold of my shirt until he slams me back against the ground. Iโm wheezing in the rain, blood on my tongue.
He holds me there, his eyes likeย re as he glares down at me. โI should just kill you right now,โ he says, his voice low and cruel.
โI should have killed you when you attacked the consul.โ I load my gaze with every ounce of brutal promise I can muster. โI should have killed you on the dais before the crowd. I should have killed you in the village an hour ago.โ
I expect him to step back and pull the trigger on his crossbow, or maybe kick me again, but he doesnโt. His eyes narrow. โWhy didnโt you?โ
Because I donโt want to be a killer.
I donโt say it. I donโt think I need to.
โHey,โ says a man behind him. โLochlan. What are we doing?โ
Lochlan lets go of the crossbow to hang at his side, then grabs my arm with his uninjured one. โGet up,โ he says. โWalk.โ
I get up. I walk.
Iโve lost my hat in the scu๏ฌe, and half my face is slicked with mud. Something must have broken the skin, because every drop of rain stings when it strikes my cheek.ย ๎ขe mask has twisted the tiniest bit, narrowing my
eld of vision by half an inch. Itโs enough to add another dose of misery when everything is awful.
โLet Tessa go,โ I say.
โI told you to shut up.โ
โYou must want something from Harristan,โ I say. โIf you let her go, I can intercede for youโโ
โ๎ขis is whatโs wrong with all of you in that sector,โ he sneers. โYou think everything is about money. You think everything is about what you can get.โ
โAgain,โ I say, โyouโre aย smuggler.โ
โBecause I had no choice. None of us have a choice if we want to survive.โ โAh, so you were raiding shipments out of the goodness of your heart.
Silver had nothing to do with it?โ
He jabs me in the back with his crossbow. โShut up,โ he growls.
โNo matter what you do to me,โ I say, โyouโve attacked too many runs. Youโve spooked the consuls. You attacked the sector.ย ๎ขeyโll stop supplying Moonย ower. Youโll have nothing.โ
โIโll have plenty. Weโllย allย have plenty.โ
๎ขereโs a note of certainty in his voice that gives me pause. Who is funding this? Who is distributing medicine and silver to such an extent that the people are so willing to risk their lives?
Or have people grown so desperate that they have no choice?
I consider the men at my back. None of these people are skilled strategists, not even Lochlan. If he were, heโd be planning to use me to force Harristan into something. Heโd be using Tessa to forceย me. I questioned Lochlan weeks ago, when he wasย rst captured, and even then, I didnโt get the sense that they were well organized.
I honestly donโt get it now.
๎ขat must mean heโs taking me to someone. Someone whoย isย planning this. Funding this.
Someone who will have a plan for how to use me. Even if itโs one of the consuls, theyโll know what to do with leverage.
๎ขe thought should be chilling, but instead, itโs somewhat stabilizing. โWho are the Benefactors?โ I say. โWhat have they promised you?โ
โNo one needs to pay me to do this.โ
I donโt believe that for a second. I try to think who might be behind all of this. Paying in silver and medicine wouldnโt be cheap. Few consuls would be able to manage it. Jonas was desperate for silver to build his precious bridge, so I canโt see him spending it to fund rebels. Leander Cra๎ย is the consul of Steel City, but heโs always been rather conservative politically, never taking a stand against Harristan. He doesnโt like the idea of unrest, especially because his manufacturing and steelworkers supply much of the entire country. He has the money, but . . . he simply doesnโt seem like the type. Truly, the only people with both the money and the resources to fund raids would be Allisander Sallister or Lissa Marpetta, and theyโve been a๎er me to stop the attacks.
Harristan and I have been watching two unlikely consuls work together for weeks, though.
Consuls who just asked for more funds. Roydan and Arella.
But . . . why? Hurting Allisander hurts us all. Surely they canโt hate himย soย much. Itโs not possible to hate him more than I do, and I manage to keep from destroying the entire countryโs medicinal supply because of it.
A whistle splits the night. Lanterns twinkle between the trees. I donโt know where we are, but weโre still in the Wilds.
โItโs Lochlan,โ my captor shouts. โWeโve brought you all a present.โ
He jabs me in the back, and I stumble forward, into a clearing strung with canvas tents and crudely built lean-tos.ย ๎ขere must be dozens, if not hundreds. People begin emerging into the rain, some with lanterns, some with nothing more than sticks or axes, shovels, and brooms.ย ๎ขeyโre dirty and tired, from what I can see, but no one is coughing. No one is sick.
Manyโmanyโare familiar.
โItโs Wes!โ calls a little girl named Abigale. โWes and Tessa!ย ๎ขeyโre not dead!โ
Her mother picks her up, shushing her.
More people begin to spill from the tents and shelters, until weโre surrounded.
No Roydan and Arella.
Weโve brought you all a present.
Tessa is shoved into place beside me, and I can hear her breathing shaking.
โAre you hurt?โ I say. โTessa, are you hurt?โ
Her eyes peer up at me from behind her mask, which is as sodden as her hair and clothes, but I see no injuries. โNo. No, Iโm not hurt.โ
Lochlan walks up to me and rips the mask o๏ฌย my head. It takes blood and a clump of hair with it. One of the other men pull the mask o๏ฌย Tessaโs head, but heโs not as rough about it.
โSorry, Miss Tessa,โ he says, and his voice is low and repentant. โItโs all right,โ she whispers, but sheโs wrong, because nothing is.
My heart is hammering in my chest. Lochlan is glaring at me, and nothing about his posture is repentant.
โTell me what you want,โ I say to him. He spits in my face.
I have a limit. I surge forward and slam my forehead into his.
He stumbles back. Someone grabs my arm. Tessa says, โCorrick, no!โ A gasp goes up from the crowd.
Lochlanย nds his footing, and he wastes no time. He strides forward and punches me right in the stomach.
My hands are still bound, and I take the hit fully. It brings me to my knees, but someoneโs got a grip on my arm, so I donโt go down. I canโt breathe.ย ๎ขe trees spin.
โPlease,โ Tessa is begging. โPlease stop this. Please.โ
โYou heard her,โ Lochlan yells to the crowd. โYou heard his name. You know who he is.โ
๎ขat gasp turns into a nervous murmur.
โHeโs been tricking you,โ Lochlan shouts. โHeโs been pretending to help you, while using your trust to execute more of you.โ
โNo,โ I rasp. โNo.โ โNo!โ cries Tessa.
Lochlan punches me again. I swear I hear a rib crack. I donโt realize Iโm falling until my face slams into the sodden leaves underfoot. I cough and taste blood.
โWhoโs lost someone to the night patrol?โ Lochlan shouts. โWhoโs lost someone to the Hold?โ
A few cries go up from the crowd. Lochlan kicks me in the shoulder.
I was so stupid. I was so sure this was part of some mastermindโs plan. I was sure theyโd want something from Harristan. From me.
๎ขey do, but itโs not something Iโm going to enjoy giving. โLet her go,โ I spit out. โPlease, Lochlan. She had no idea.โ
โShe had no idea!โ he cries. โDo any of you believe that? Do you believe sheโs innocent?ย ๎ขeyโve been working together for years.โ
โTo help!โ Tessa cries. โTo help!โ
โHeโs the Kingโs Justice,โ yells Lochlan. โYouโve all heard of the things heโs done, havenโt you? Done to people you love? To people you care about?โ
โYes!โ they cry in return.ย ๎ขe clearing seems brighter. Heโs got the crowd.
I close my eyes. Maybe this isย tting. Maybe this is what I deserve.
โYou know what heโs done,โ yells Lochlan. โSo letโs give him a dose of his own justice.โ
๎ขe crowd roars, and the pain begins.
