Page 34 of Vow of the Shadow King

Our firsttruekiss.

Not a kiss intended for my sister. Not a vicious attack driven by poison.

A kiss meant for me. Gentle. Tentative. So full of longing it had wrung my heart.

Oh, why does he not come?

A sudden burst of voices in the passage outside. I start, my eyes flaring open, and turn to the door. It remains shut fast, but I can hear voices clearly on the other side. Hael and another. Male. My heart leaps then sinks again. That isn’t Vor’s deep, reverberating tone. It’s higher, softer, sweeter.

Frowning, I step across the room to the chamber door and lean my ear close. With a gasp, I spring back. A sudden flash of feeling rippled right through the stone and struck me hard in the chest. For a moment, I stand with both hands pressed against my heart, half-believing I’ve been struck. But it was my gods-gift. Responding to some sharp and unexpected pain. Whose?

Gripping my crystal for support, I step forward again, take hold of the latch, and crack the door open an inch. Hael stands watch just outside. She’s speaking to a boy whom I immediately recognize.Yok,I believe his name is. The young escort Vor charged to watch over me and Lyria when we first arrived in the Under Realm. His face is animated with frustration, a sharp contrast to Hael’s stoic grimness. They growl at each other in troldish, deep in some argument and unaware of my scrutiny.

I bite my lip. Perhaps I should retreat, shut the door again. Give them privacy. Before I can decide, however, another wave of feeling bursts from Hael. It’s so sharp, I gasp.

Hael turns, sees me. Her eyes widen. “Princess. There’s nothing to concern you here. Go back inside.”

I push down the pain of her ire. Then, squaring my shoulders, I turn to the boy. He stares at me, mouth gaping. “What has happened?” I ask.

Yok blinks, swallows, and shoots Hael a swift glance. “Vor . . . That is, the king . . . He’s, um, he’s requested my sister join him. On a special mission. To find Prince Sul.”

At the mention of the king’s brother, another stab of emotion shoots out from Hael. She stifles it at once, but not fast enough. In that split second, she’s revealed the true state of her heart. “What’s happened to the prince?” I ask, still addressing myself to Yok.

“He’s missing,” the boy says. He turns to Hael and speaks in troldish again.

She shakes her head and growls, this time in my own language, “My duty is to the princess.” Her words are heavy with resentment. “Tell the king—”

“You tell him!” Yok barks. “I already tried. I told him I would go instead.”

“You?” Hael looks the boy up and down, her expression disdainful. “You’re not ready. He needs someone he can trust.”

“He can trust me,” the boy responds sulkily. “But he wants you.”

Hael’s mouth shuts fast. Then she growls through her teeth. “I cannot leave the princess.”

Yok utters a string of troldish. I don’t need an interpreter to guess what he’s saying. Hastily, I step forward and touch Hael’s arm, resting my fingers on the leather bracer strapped to her forearm. “It’s all right.” I offer a small smile when she turns to me. “I’m sure this brave young guardsman will perform his duties admirably. I promise not to cause him too much trouble while you’re away.”

Hael opens her mouth to protest, but I can feel her desperation. Even with a barrier of leather between my fingers and her arm, her emotions are so strong, so tumultuous.

“Go on,” I urge gently. “Find the missing prince. And . . . and bring Vor back safely.”

Her eyes flash to meet mine. Wary, hopeful, frightened. With an effort, she draws her feelings in check, locking them down fast. Only then does she turn to Yok, a stream of troldish falling from her tongue. It all sounds so harsh, so heavy. I can almost see the boy’s shoulders bow under their weight. When she’s through, however, she turns to me and says, “Stay safe, Princess. I will return soon.” With that, she strides down the passage. When she reaches the turn at the end, she breaks into a run and vanishes from sight.

Thus, I find myself alone with my new young bodyguard. I look at him. He gapes back at me. “What was your name again?” I ask, though I remember well enough.

“Yok,” he answers. “Guardsman Yok.”

I nod. “You fought bravely to protect Lady Lyria and myself from . . . from . . . what were those creatures called?”

“Woggha.”Yok clears his throat. “Cave devils.”

Memory of the hideous monsters flashes through my mind. Those eyeless, bone-plated faces. The gray, sagging skin. The huge, stone-piercing claws. The Under Realm is full of beauty, but there are horrors lurking in its shadows. Still . . . I remember what it felt like to connect to that beast. Just for a moment, when I stood gripping a largeurzulcrystal, facing down that leering maw. I’d touched the mind trapped inside the madness. A mind lost to savagery and bloodlust. A mind sunk in despair.

I shiver, the fine hairs on my arms prickling. Pulling my mind back to the present moment, I offer the young man a cool smile. “You have proven your courage and loyalty already, Guardsman Yok. I believe you and I shall get along well.”

“It is my honor to serve you, Princess.”

“Excellent. So long as we understand one another.” With that, I turn on heel and reenter my room, leaving the door open behind me. When Yok reaches out to shut it, I call over my shoulder, “I will inform you when I require privacy.”

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