Page 59 of Wings of Betrayal

Over the next week, Amaros barely lets me out of his sight, and when he does, he has other guards watching me, following my every move around the Kingdom.

I haven’t been allowed to see Harlum because he has apparently come down with some grave illness, and so his guards are limiting his visitors. I know Amaros is concerned that I’ll tell Harlum what he’s been up to. That’s the only reason I’m not allowed to visit him.

I am worried about Harlum’s safety. I know Amaros has plans to rule this Kingdom, with or without me. He cannot be trusted. The only guards I can trust right now, aside from Finlay, are Mikel and Nilo.

I make my way through the castle in search of one of them and eventually find Mikel speaking with a group of guards near the main entrance.

I scan my surroundings, and sure enough, I am being tailed by the same two creepy guards who have been following me this past week.

Mikel spots me and finishes his conversation before heading over to see me.

He pulls me in for a hug. “Zarla, I haven’t seen you for a while. How have you been?”

I side-eye the two guards who hover in the corridor behind me. They’re far enough away that they shouldn’t be able to hear me, but it’s still too risky.

“Yeah, it’s been a crazy few weeks with training the angels at the academy.”

He folds his arms across his broad chest. “And how is all that going? I heard you helped to pair up just about every single angel with their own Zelon. I must have you do the same for me sometime,” he says with a laugh.

“Yeah, absolutely. Let me know when you’re next free.”

He draws his brows together and scratches his chin. “Unfortunately, that may not be for some time. With Harlum being unwell and Amaros taking on more of his responsibilities, we’re rushed off our feet.”

What? Harlum has passed on his responsibilities as King to Amaros?

He raises his hands. “Hey, I was just as surprised as you, if I’m being honest. Sure, Amaros is a powerful male, but you would be the logical choice to take on such responsibilities as the King’s daughter.”

I swallow the lump in my throat. It’s difficult not being able to tell him the truth, but I have to be careful right now. If Amaros caught wind of me telling anyone about anything he’s been doing, it wouldn’t go down well.

“Is everything okay?” His gaze shifts to the two guards in the corridor and then back to me.

Clearly, he’s noticed they’re tailing me.

I nervously look around. “Yeah, I’m okay. Can’t really talk about it here.” I lower my voice and add, “I’m worried about Harlum. Please don’t leave him alone with anyone.”

He frowns. “Do you know something I don’t?”

I carefully glance over my shoulder and find the two guards watching me. “As I said, I can’t really talk here.”

He pulls me in for another hug and whispers in my ear, “I see those guards following you. Be careful. I’ll come find you sometime to talk more privately.”

He gives me a tight-lipped smile and then rejoins the group of guards he was with earlier. I head for the main entrance doors and spot Amaros leaning against the wall beside them with his arms folded over his chest, watching me.

I keep walking. As I pass him, he grabs hold of my arm and stops me. I glance around to find no one else has noticed.

He leans in close to my ear. “I’ve got many eyes on you. Don’t forget that.”

I grit my teeth, tug my arm free, and continue out the door. Releasing my wings, I then take to the skies and head toward the academy. I don’t need to look behind me to know the two guards are following me. Their wings flap loudly in the breeze.

The field outside the academy is a very different sight these days, with students and Zelons scattered about. I make my way into the arena and find the Master training several groups of angels. Judging by their sparring, they’ve improved vastly from the last time I visited.

The Master heads over to me.

“Quite something, isn’t it?” he says with his hands clasped behind his back as he looks out over the students.

It really is, and I’m no longer as concerned as I once was about an attack on the Kingdom. I can see we may actually have a decent chance of fighting one off.

“It’s great,” I say. “Does it make you want to change the way we train angels here in the future? To better prepare them for anything that may happen?”

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