Page 53 of To Steal the Sun

Several things reached her consciousness at once.

Charlotte and Henry were trapped against the wall, and Charlotte’s arms were raised in surrender. The two bears weren’t stopping, however. They advanced on the two smaller figures, their growls threatening.

Had they lost their minds? Or had the queen ordered that Charlotte was to be killed if found? Henry was likely to die attempting to protect her if so.

Fury ripped through Gwen. A growl she didn’t know she could produce thundered down the corridor, and she leaped forward, claws flashing.

She raked the rump of the bear on the left. He whined, falling sideways away from her. She leaped again, flying through the opening he had created and stopping just short of her friends’ astonished faces.

Spinning, she lowered her head, her ears pinned back as she growled a warning.

The other two bears responded in kind, but their eyes showed confusion. They had no idea who she was.

The uninjured one tried to lunge forward, and Gwen slashed at him, her movement so quick her eyes couldn’t follow. A trail of red down his arm was left in her wake. He pulled back, his gaze growing even more wary.

Gwen peeled her lips back and growled in satisfaction. The guards liked using their bear forms to terrorize the city, but they weren’t used to facing another bear.

“Don’t touch them!” she said in a low, threatening voice.

“Gwen!” Charlotte cried in recognition. “Oh, thank goodness.”

The two guards froze, exchanging looks. Their confusion had overtaken whatever bloodlust or order had driven them. Like the rest of the palace and city, they had no idea their princess turned into a bear at night just like them.

“Yes, that’s right,” she said, her words clear despite her gravelly bear voice. “I’m your princess, and I order you to stand down. Now!” She roared the last word, and they both fell back, looking terrified.

Gwen smiled, feeling a different kind of strength coursing through her. She was not only finished being a victim, she was finished being the pure princess who hid in her room and earned her supposed virtue through inaction. She was done cowering and hiding. No matter what her form, Queen Gwendolyn would stand in the breach for the weaker members of her kingdom every time it was needed.

“A…apologies,” the guard with the injured rump stammered, clearly not knowing what to do with her.

She wasn’t their queen, but they did think she was their queen’s daughter, and they knew she would soon sit on the throne. It was no surprise when they both turned tail and ran.

“Gwen!” Charlotte ran forward, tears in her eyes, and flung her arms around Gwen’s neck.

“Thank you, Your Highness,” Henry said more carefully. “You arrived at just the right moment.”

Gwen leaned into Charlotte’s hug for a moment, catching her breath.

“We should get moving,” she said. “I don’t know who those guards are going to report to, but word will get back to Celandine soon that we’re here.”

Henry grimaced. “We were hoping to keep my escape secret for longer.”

“Never mind that,” Charlotte said. “We need to take Gwen to Easton. He’s worried sick.”

“Easton?” Gwen’s eyes lit up. “You know where he is?”

Charlotte nodded. “The queen caught all the other rebels, but Easton and I had gone looking for you, so we weren’t there yet. I made him hide, and he promised he’d stay there.” She smiled brightly. “And now he’s about to be rewarded for his superhuman forbearance.”

“Wait, Celandine caught the others?” Gwen cried, dismayed. “All of them?”

Charlotte winced. “I’m afraid so. Even Emmett.”

“What?” Gwen stared at her, her mind racing. What was going to happen to the plan now?

“Come on,” Charlotte said. “I might need the two of you to help me find the way. I’m fairly sure I remember the place, but…” She smiled, the expression not quite reaching her eyes. “We can work out what to do once all four of us are together.”

CHARLOTTE

Thankfully, Gwen was able to lead the way to the section of the palace that contained the apartments of the count and his adult children. Once in that more familiar environment, Charlotte was confident in bypassing the dangerous apartment and leading the others straight to the storage cupboard.

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