Page 103 of Red Captive

“Of course they can. There’s a bounty on his head,” Natalia says as she comes to stand with us.

“But he turned himself in. He went there on his own steam.”

Roscoe shrugs. “It doesn’t matter. They clearly don’t believe his intentions were good. They don’t believe him, period. He’s rotting behind bars.”

“I’m going to the palace,” I tell them. “I’m going to explain what happened. I’m going to set the record straight. I’ll come clean about everything. All of it. They’ll have to let him go.”

“Nope, that’s not going to happen,” Roscoe says. “Steel tasked me with your safety, and I can’t let him down.”

“What about Steel? Are we just going to leave him there? Are we going to sit around and do nothing?”

Roscoe has this faraway look, like he’s thinking things through. He rubs his chin. “I don’t know what to do, exactly. Thisisn’t a regular situation. The palace is not the right place for you right now. There’s too much going on. You would be at risk.”

“Like what?” There is a desperate edge to my voice.

He gets this pinched look. “That Draiger who was found on our soil…”

“Yes?” I say when he doesn’t go on.

“The one they arrested and took into custody with the Red female?” Natalia asks.

“You said they’d used that tunnel that was supposed to be closed,” I add.

“That’s him.” He nods. “Well, he’s being beheaded this morning. Word is that he tried to kill the general. Quite frankly, I wish he’d succeeded,” Roscoe mutters. “So, you see, it’s a shitshow at the palace at the moment. No place for a human.”

“I’m going. You can’t stop me.” I start to walk to the door, but Natalia hooks an arm around my waist, locking me in place.

I try to get out of her grip, but she’s freaking strong. She’s a dragon shifter, after all. How the heck do I compete with these people?

I can’t!

“Let me go! Let me go right now!” I yell; my voice is gruff with anger and determination. “I have to go. They have to listen to me.”

“Actually, they don’t. They probably won’t,” Roscoe says.

“Steel is locked up because of me. They believe he kidnapped me and that he killed someone in cold blood. They’re not going to be so lenient this time. Ice isn’t going to save him. I wouldn’t be surprised if there were two beheadings this morning instead of just one. Think about it.”

Natalia lets me go so abruptly that I almost fall on my face. Roscoe reaches out and grabs me, letting me go as soon as I find my feet.

“Shit,” he says. His eyes cloud with thought. “The human has a point.”

“Yep, you do have a point,” Natalia groans. “I wish you were wrong, but you’re spot on. We should never have let him go in the first place. Steel was almost convicted of treason a few years ago, and now this. They won’t go lightly on him this time.”

I have to hold back tears. I can’t cry. I need to keep it together. I need to save Steel. I have to get Arctic, Frost…any of them to listen to me. “What are we waiting for?” I start toward the door.

Roscoe puts a hand on my shoulder.

“What now?” I snap.

“I’m going with you,” he says.

“Me, too,” Natalia adds.

Roscoe makes a noise like he’s thinking things through. “Come to think of it, Steel has made a lot of friends since coming to work at The Pit.”

“He sure has,” Natalia nods.

“A lot of fans, too,” he adds. “I’m going to put the word out. I think we should invite anyone who will come. We need to make some noise. We’ll head to the castle and demand that you be heard. Demand that Steel be released. He hasn’t done anything wrong.”

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