Page 3 of Scourged

It wasn’t long before Delaynie’s door opened, and the two women strode into the hall.

Ciana’s eyes were hard and she wore a determined set to her brow. “I might know which courtyard.”

The silence in the hall was crushing and thick.

“Well?” Sebastian demanded, voice heavy with his impatience. “Which one?”

Ciana blinked. “One of the lower ones, by the stables. It has the best view of the stars. Mariah mentioned it last night, briefly. I think that’s where Andrian told her to meet.”

Sebastian’s stomach dropped. A part of him still refused to believe that Andrian—a man he’d known for most of his life, a man he truly considered a brother—had anything to do with this.

And yet …

And yet, that courtyard was closest to the stables. Closest to the palace exits. Closest to the easiest way to sneak in or out of the massive fortress.

Sebastian would know. They used to use the tunnel just below that courtyard all the time when they were young and stupid, used it to sneak away from their master-at-arms and into the market district for a night of idiotic frivolity.

Andrian used to use those tunnels, too.

Sebastian swallowed down the bile creeping up his throat. “Let’s go.”

They raced through the halls, winding down staircases and bursting through doors. They passed Quentin and Trefor on their way to the courtyard, who saw their urgent pace and fell into step behind them without a word.

The moment they emerged into the open air, with songbirds singing in the early dawn and the light of the rising sun filling the stone courtyard, all lingering hope fled Sebastian’s chest.

The courtyard was empty. Not a trace of Mariah or Andrian, or if a bonding had occurred there that night.

More footsteps rang out behind them, and Drystan and Feran hurried into the sunlight, followed closely by Matheo and Kalen. Sebastian turned to them all, chest heaving as he struggled to maintain his composure.

Struggled to fight back that rising tide of failure, mounting again around him. Inescapable, dauntless, and ruthless.

“Lock down the palace. Lock down the city. No one comes or goes through those gates without us knowing.” Sebastian met Drystan’s stare, knowing the golden-haired warrior would see it done.

A muscle twitched in Drystan’s jaw and he nodded before striding away, Feran and Matheo falling into step behind him.

Sebastian turned back to the courtyard, a dull buzzing filling his ears. He scanned the space, eyes snagging on something familiar.

There, concealed in the shadows, was that old trapdoor. With a shuddering breath, he stalked forward, knees threatening to buckle with each step. Lighter footsteps followed as Ciana moved with him, her beautiful golden features twisted and stricken.

Sebastian knelt beside the trapdoor. His fingers brushed across the floor, feeling for the expected signs of disuse—dust, dirt, rust.

That wasn’t what he found.

His fingers brushed against fresh cuts in the stone, the ground around it clean.

This door had been opened. Very recently.

The last bit of light in his chest he’d held onto so tightly slipped through his fingers, vanishing through that trapdoor and chasing after his missing queen. Betrayal took its place, sweeping up along with his failure.

After all, he’s the one who’d told her to trust Andrian, all those many weeks ago.

Sebastian turned to Ciana, meeting her wide-eyed stare with a blank one of his own.

“She’s gone,” he whispered. “Andrian, too. He—someone took her. She’s gone.”

Chapter 1

Six Weeks Later

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