Page 70 of The Uncrowned Prince

The key slid into the lock without protest, and the handle turned. Vaniell returned the key to his pocket, opened the door, and then was flung backwards as an immense weight hit him from the side, driving him to the ground with a grunt.

Every bit of air was driven from his lungs, and he struggled to draw breath as the weight on his chest grew heavier. Blinking into the darkness, for a moment he could see nothing, until… There, looming over him, something dark and monstrous, with two glowing eyes that narrowed with reptilian hatred.

It hissed with fury and pressed harder, but even as his eyes began to flutter closed, Vaniell found himself smiling as he wondered whether Karreya would stab him for dying without her permission.

CHAPTER18

Karreya awakened to the crackling of a fire, the sound of voices, and the hiss and roar of waves rushing across the sand.

A beach. How had she gotten to a beach?

“Are you ready?” The words were spoken in a low, resonant masculine voice.

“I don’t believe I will ever be ready.” This voice was female and unsteady, as if in the grip of some strong emotion. “And this isn’t exactly how I dreamed of this moment.”

“You’ve found her,” the male voice insisted. “More easily even than we expected. And now you have a chance to ask your questions.”

“I never imagined asking them while she was tied up,” the woman responded a little sarcastically. “Or in the company of so many witnesses.”

“Did you imagine asking them with her dagger in your heart? Because she seemed perfectly willing to kill you to defend herself.” The male voice seemed to soften after that. “I know this is not what you planned, but these other two are connected to her in some way. Aside from my own questions, it seems wise to determine what brought them together and what they may be plotting.”

“You’re right.” The woman sighed deeply. “I just don’t have to like it. Maybe you should go first?”

“If the wastrel prince wakes up now, I do not trust myself not to eat him first and ask questions later,” the male voice rumbled.

The wastrel prince…

They had Niell.

Karreya kept her breathing slow and steady, opened her eyes to mere slits, and took in her surroundings as much as she was able without moving.

She was indeed lying on the sand, with a small fire burning cheerfully about a half dozen paces away. Standing near its flames were two figures—a woman who appeared to be about Karreya’s size, and a man who was… not a human. His skin was silvery gray, and his ears came to points just visible between the white strands of his hair.

Two other figures lay unmoving on the sand nearby, one of which must be Niell. It seemed likely that the other was Senaya. Both still alive if the strangers spoke the truth, though it was no guarantee that they would continue to be so. Karreya had never heard that elves ate people, but this one seemed quite casual about that vile practice.

“He was only a boy, Kyrion. I don’t deny you your right to be angry, but we have to consider that Danric may be telling the truth about his brother.”

“I have considered it.” The male now sounded cool and detached. “And it is the only reason I have chosen to reserve judgment until I have spoken with him myself.”

Silence descended, and Karreya began to plot her course. There were only two visible enemies, but one of them must be a mage with some sort of monster bound to protect them—the monster that had attacked her in the first place. Such a beast could be a problem, but these two should be simple enough to incapacitate.

“I believe our third prisoner is awake.”

Oddly, it was not the elf who spoke, but the human, who should not have been able to tell.

As there was no longer any point in feigning sleep, Karreya rose to her feet, noting as she did so that her cloak and her daggers were missing. Not that she needed them, but from the feel of her boots, they’d even found the stilettos, which meant they’d known to look there.

Perhaps these opponents were more skilled than she’d originally anticipated.

“I’m afraid I must ask exactly how you are connected to your two companions,” the woman said, “but I’m guessing you won’t tell me of your own free will.”

She faced Karreya, and firelight revealed her to be of a similar age—perhaps mid-twenties—with long reddish hair gathered into a braid. She was not clothed after the fashions of Iria, but rather wore loose trousers tucked into laced boots, and a long sleeveless vest over a white shirt.

And her face…

Her face was blurred, almost as if there were another face just beneath it. Much like Senaya when she used her magic, but less distinct.

“What do you want?” Karreya asked abruptly.

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