Iย knew revolution wouldย nd us. I didnโt expect it to be so soon.
I didnโt expect it to be from all sides.
Alarms blare in the sector, but I have no way of knowing if theyโve attacked anything more than the palace. A๎er Allisanderโs comments, I donโt even know if this attack is the work of rebels or consuls.
๎ขe hallways are full of smoke and darkness, but I can sense movement, and I can hear the shouts andย ghting. We have the advantage of invisibility, but so do they. I keep the wall at my back and head right, away from the noise. Iโve lost track of Rocco and the guards who were in the hallway, but Harristan and Quint are somewhere ahead of me. Tessa grips tight to my hand.
โ๎ขis guardโs got the kingโs mark,โ calls a man. โHe must be close.โ
I freeze. Tessaโsย ngers bite into my palm. I donโt dare say Harristanโs name.
๎ขe voices fall silent, and I know this is not a good sign.ย ๎ขeyโre hoping to use the darkness against us.ย ๎ขe smoke tickles my throat, and I try to breathe shallow breaths.
Harristan coughs.
โ๎ขere!โ shouts a man, and I hear theย swipย of a crossbow. It hits something, but I have no idea what. A man cries out ahead of me.
A rush in the darkness tells me an enemy has drawn close, and I leap forward to tackle them. An elbow drives into my ribs, and my earlier injuries scream at me. We crash to the ground, and I realize Iโm not going to be fast enough to do anything but die.
But then the body is jerked away from me, and I hear the unmistakable sound of a blade piercingย esh, followed by a body hitting theย oor beside
me. A man groans.ย ๎ขereโs a scu๏ฌe, and I roll just before a booted foot strikes my shoulder. Somethingโsomeoneโhits the wall with a sickening thud.
I brace my hands against the wall, waiting for a clue about what just happened.
โCorrick?โ Tessaโs voice cries out from the darkness. โCorrick.โ
A hand brushes my shoulder, and I jerk away. Itโs too much fast movement at once, and I have to brace a hand against theย oor. I inhale a lungful of smoke and cough.
โYour Highness?โ Rocco. His voice is closer, and I realize it was his blade that rescued me, his hand that found me in the darkness.
โIโm all right. Harristan?โ
He doesnโt answer, but he coughs again, hard.
โWe have to get out of the corridor,โ calls Quint, and his voice sounds more distant.
Iย nd my knees, then the wall again. โGet to my quarters,โ I call. My room is along the back wall of the palace, which hopefully hasnโt taken as many hits as the front half. I have ropes in my chest to go out the window, but I donโt want to shout that into the darkness.
Crawling through the smoke seems to take an hour, but no further voices cry out in the dark. But then my handย nds the familiar edge of a doorjamb, and we push through the doorway.
Atย rst Iโm not entirely sure itโs my quarters.ย ๎ขe lights here are as dead as they are in the rest of the palace, and while the smoke is nowhere near as dense as it was in the hallway, the room is still cloudy with a haze, even though aย re burns low in the hearth. But my stinging eyes begin to adjust, and I can make out my side table, my bed, the low chest along the wall.
I can make out Harristan, whoโs not still coughing, but I can hear his wheezing from here. Quint, whoโs got a hand braced against the wall.ย ๎ขe guards Rocco andย ๎ขorin, who are already dragging a chest of drawers in front of the door.
Tessa, whose eyes are full of questions I canโt answer. โWho?โ says Harristan between gasps.
โI donโt know,โ I say truthfully. I look at the guards. โCould you tell?โ โJust men,โ saysย ๎ขorin.
โWith crossbows,โ says Quint, and a strain in his voice forces me to look back over.ย ๎ขat hand braced against the wall is leaving a dark handprint, and his jacket is unbuttoned, showing a spreading stain near his waist.
โQuint!โ I say in alarm. I remember the sound of thatย rst arrow hitting something when Harristan coughed.
Quint waves me o๏ฌ. โIโll beย ne.โ
๎ขe doorknob rattles, andย ๎ขorin and Rocco exchange a glance, just before something heavy slams into the door.ย ๎ขe chest of drawers gives half an inch before they both brace against it.
Tessa looks at me. โCan we go out the window again?โ
I limp to the back wall and peer out into the darkness. In the distance, Stonehammerโs Arch is blazing against the night, but the palace grounds are pitch-dark.ย ๎ขe alarms in the sector are loud and relentless, and smokeย lls the air every way I turn.
๎ขe rope Tessa and I used to escape is still pooled on theย oor by the window, triple knotted around the ironwork along the sill.
Something heavy slams against the door again. Wood cracks, and the chest of drawers whines against theย oor. Rocco swears.
Tessa appears at my side. โCan you climb?โ
โYes,โ I say conย dently.ย ๎ขough . . . I probably canโt. Even if I can bear the weight of a rope around my boot, my shoulder will never be able to support my weight.ย ๎ขen again, Iโd rather free-fall out this window than take an arrow in the face, which seems like more of a certainty if we donโt get out of here.
My brother has crossed the room as well, and he coughs again as he peers out into the darkness with me, then inhales deeply of the night air.
โHarristan, do you remember how to climbโโ
โI taughtย you, Cory,โ he gasps. He takes hold of the rope.
โOne of us should goย rst, Your Majesty,โ calls Rocco. Wood splinters as the rebels slam into the door again.
โ๎ขen hurry,โ I say. I head for the chest of drawers and brace my shoulder against it. I donโt know how many men are on the other side, but it must be half a dozen. โGo,ย ๎ขorin.โ
โNo!โ calls Harristan.
โYouโre the king,โ I say. โGo. Get out.โ
๎ขorin disappears out the window, followed swi๎ly by my brother. Tessa and Quint are both beside the window.
โGo,โ I say to them. Another slam against the door. Flaming cloths are shoved through the opening this time, landing on the chest and catching almost immediately.
โNo,โ calls Quint. โCorrick, youโreโโ
โGo!โ I shout at him. My bad ankle keeps threatening to give out, and I have to readjust my shoulder against the chest. Flames feel close, and Iโm afraid to look to see how close. I grit my teeth against the pain and the heat. โGo now, Quint. Go, Tessa.โ
๎ขe rebels slam into the door again. More wood splinters.ย ๎ขe wall has caughtย re behind me. I can hear shouts.
Quint and Tessa go out the window.
I look over at Rocco, braced against the chest like I am. Sweat threads his hair and drips down his cheeks.
โRun, Your Highness,โ he says. โIโll buy you time.โ
โYou go,โ I gasp, trying to hold my grip as the chest begins to shi๎ย along theย oor. โGo a๎er them. Harristan will need another guard.โ
He gives me a withering look, but before he can say anything, I add, โ๎ขatโs an order, Rocco.โ
โI canโt leave you here.โ
โWell, I canโt run.โ I give a humorless laugh.ย ๎ขe chest slips another inch, and I choke on my breath. โAnd I canโt climb.โ Another inch, and I press my forehead against the chest.ย ๎ขe room isย lling with smoke, and I know I wonโt be able to hold this door much longer. โPlease, Rocco.โ
โVery well, Your Highness.โ
He lets go of the chest. It skids six inches, and I cry out. I had no idea he was holding so much weight. Men shout in victory on the other side of the door. Iโm not going to be able to hold this much longerโor itโs not going to matter, because theyโll be able to get through the space.
I should have told Rocco to leave me a weapon.
๎ขen again, maybe quicker is better.
An arm hooks under mine, pulling me away from the chest, li๎ing me to my feet, dragging me forward. I trip over myself for a few feet before I realize Rocco is supporting my weight, half carrying me across theย oor.
โI told you to go,โ I say.
โExecute me later.โ He takes hold of the rope. โCan you hold on to me?โ
๎ขe door explodes inward. Rocco doesnโt wait for an answer and swings us onto the rope, and for a terrifying moment, the world spins wildly, the
aming arch swirling through my vision.ย ๎ขe rope brushes myย ngers, and I grab hold with my strong hand, trying to support some of my own weight, but we still descend too quickly. Roccoโs legs hit the palace wall as he rappels downward.
I hear theย swipย before I recognize the sound, and in the darkness below, Tessa cries out. A man is in the window with a crossbow.
โRun!โ I cry. โTessa, run!โ She should have gone with Harristan. She shouldnโt be here.
๎ขe rope jerks, and Rocco swears. We bounce against the wall one more time.
๎ขen the rope gives altogether.
We hit the ground. It hurtsย spectacularly. I try to roll, as if that will somehow make it hurt less, but it doesnโt.
โCorrick.โ Tessaโs voice, low and desperate in my ear. โCorrick, you have to get up.โ
Swip. I feel the rush of an arrow near my head, but I canโt move. I hear a crossbow snap close by, and Iย inch, but I blink and realize itโsย ๎ขorin and Rocco, returningย re. Men above are arguing, shouting at each other about who cut the rope.
๎ขen Iโm li๎ed again. Someone has an arm under mine. My vision goes spotty,ย aring with light. Flames have erupted from dozens of windows along the back wall of the palace.ย ๎ขe alarms keep blaring, and I want to lie down right here. I donโt know who has me, but if itโs Rocco, Iโll have to stop hating him.
๎ขen I hear Harristanโs voice in my ear, rough and ragged. โRace you to the gate?โ
Itโs a taunt from when we were children. His voice is so low and close that I realize heโs the one holding me up. I blink at him. His face is smudged with soot, but his eyes are dark with concern. โYouโll win this time,โ I say.
โCome on, Cory,โ he says, and he takes a step forward, supporting my weight, gasping from the e๏ฌort. โLetโs make it a tie.โ
