Page 98 of Shadows of Ruin

I gritted my teeth. “Unhand her.”

“You’re in no position to play hero,” Andras said as he pressed the knife into her side. A small pinprick of blood pooled at the tip of his blade.

The queen didn’t flinch, didn’t move. “Let them go, Andras. I will stay, if they can be free.”

“No.” Kalliah ran up beside me.

“He’s in her mind, Ian,”Raya’s voice whispered all around inside my head.“I can feel it even from here. He’s holding her in place, but she fights.”

“Ian,” she said, not a hint of fear in the way she said my name. The queen’s nose bled, starting small until a rivulet ran over her lip. The same way it had when she came to my cell. The sign of her internal struggle against Andras.

“Your Majesty.” I moved, forgetting the vines clawing atmy legs, as I saw her face. That look would haunt me for the rest of my life if it meant what I thought it did.

She was willing to die for us to get out. The pleading gaze wasn’t for me to save her.No.This look was a reminder of what I’d promised, what I’d vowed to do.

“You will finally be granted the death you deserve,” Andras said, loud enough so we all could hear. His focus shifted from us fully to the queen. “Slow, painful. Your magic will be mine, and I will rule this kingdom.”

Casimir lingered by Andras like a good lap dog, but the horror of what Andras had said hit me. He’d take her magic. Casimir would siphon it. If it worked as I had seen before though, it wouldn’t last. Why would he be happy about a short burst of the queen’s power?

Andras leaned into the queen, sniffing her hair before exhaling loudly. I strained against the vines, flipping my dagger downward to resume cutting through them as cautiously as I could. Careful not to raise suspicion, but I had to free myself while Andras remained distracted.

“How the people of Brookmere will falter when they hear of your treason,” he continued. “So broken and fragile, locked away in mourning. The only one who remained steadfast and strong for the kingdom being the loyal advisor. I’ll be the only logical choice as their new king.”

“They will never believe you,” Queen Roxana shouted as her body trembled, her inward fight physically showing more now.

Andras chuckled. “They already do. While you have been locked away in your ‘room,’ mourning the tragic loss of your husband, I have been the one soothing their fears. Providing the stability they crave, the power they deserve.”

This threat was real. Andras had passed the point of keeping the queen alive. He was truly going to kill her.

The wind whirled around us as thunder rumbled in thedistance. It was rare, so incredibly rare that the nature around us reacted to our lives here, but I would swear on the Fates it was happening now. Nature was not pleased at the scene before it.

“Andras, do not do this,” I screamed at him, almost free from the last vine holding me.

Casimir put his hands on two guards nearby, inhaling and grunting until both of them fell to the ground.

I made my move, running forward, but Casimir had already claimed the magic from both of the drained guards. Vines, roots, and thorns shot out in renewed power. Two vines wrapped around my arm, and thorns sliced at my face, but I fought, running forward still.

So did the others.

A guard kneeled before Andras, throwing his arms out, and suddenly, we were trapped. Kept away by some sort of shield. I brought my sword down against it.

The guard’s face strained, but the shield didn’t break.

Not yet.

“Help me,” I commanded the others.

“Any last words, Queen?” Andras asked.

Regret filled her eyes as she stared at me. I hesitated when I heard her voice.

“Tell Lana I love her. Tell her she was always my light. She will always be the light in the darkest of hours. Keep her steady on her path.”

“Pathetic.” Andras sneered as he slowly pushed the blade into the queen’s side. He shouted, a happy, awful sound as he twisted it hard.

“No!” I fought against the bindings around me, but Casimir’s power far exceeded mine after draining two earth Fae. I’d failed another woman in my life.

The queen screamed, but she still stared at me, swallowing her evident pain. “I love you too, my dear,” she rasped through haggard breaths. “Don’t lose hope.”

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