Page 38 of Beguiled
Even as she struggled against me, I pinned her arms to her side. After experiencing her fighting skills firsthand and watching her train, I anticipated her elbow jab and the ensuing flip. I blocked her and twisted her arm behind her back to subdue her. Of course, I didn’t twist hard, just enough to keep her from moving.
“Release me at once,” she hissed.
“You cannot run off by yourself,” I whispered from behind her. “You will rush right into the queen’s hands, which is exactly what she wants. And if she captures you, how will you rescue Ruby then?”
Pearl held herself rigid for another moment before she sagged into me. She pressed her hands against her veil and mouth but couldn’t muffle her cry of despair. I cupped my hand over hers to aid in stifling the sound. I wrapped my other arm around her and leaned in so my mouth brushed against her ear. “Shh... we’ll figure out what to do. I promise.”
Even as I spoke, my mind scrambled to come up with a viable plan, one that would keep Pearl out of the queen’s clutches. If the woman had attempted to kill her daughter once before, what was to keep her from trying again?
My gut churned at the prospect. I didn’t want Pearl to get anywhere near Queen Margery. And yet, I couldn’t stop her from helping Ruby. She’d go whether or not I wanted her to.
Ultimately, we needed to gain access to Ruby without putting either of us in jeopardy. Perhaps wielding my royalty as a weapon was the only way. I would have to go with Pearl and lend her my protection as her husband and as a prince of Scania.
But doing so would mean having to leave the Isle of Outcasts and my Testing. Could I really withdraw from the challenge and forfeit my chance at becoming king? After all, the reason I’d married Pearl was so I wouldn’t have to stop and go home in disgrace.
Shaking my head with mounting frustration, I glanced around the ash pit as if I could somehow find the answers there. But the desolate place contained nothing but the rotting mounds of garbage along with the incinerating ovens and the ash heaps next to them.
Would my hopes and dreams turn to ashes? Or could I continue my Testing somehow? Was it possible that, if I left with Pearl and helped recover Ruby, I could return to the island afterward? The rules stated that if we princes needed to leave our locations for any reason, we could go back and finish to the best of our ability.
“I shall travel with you,” I whispered. “And when we get there, I’ll negotiate for Ruby’s release.”
“She will never hand Ruby over to you. Not if she wants me.”
I recognized the truth in Pearl’s words, which stirred my fear. “Then the question we must answer is, why does she want you back?”
“To attempt to kill me again?”
“But why did she try to kill you the first time? And why would she want to do so again?”
“She believes I am plotting treason, perhaps even amassing followers who will rise up and lead a revolt against her.”
During one of our many conversations, we’d discussed Warwick’s increasing poverty as a result of the gemstone mine not producing as many precious jewels in recent years. And we’d also talked about the queen’s yearly custom of sacrificing a maiden to a berserker—a madman—by the name of Grendel and how the people resented the choosing process. It was easy to see why the people might want to revolt.
Nevertheless, in all my analyzing, I still hadn’t been able to understand why Queen Margery had tried to eliminate Pearl. Even if the queen despised Pearl’s blemish or felt threatened by revolt, why not simply lock her up?
Plotting murder didn’t make sense, and this charge of treason was even more far-fetched. The queen didn’t truly believe her daughters, especially Ruby, who was just a child, could conspire against her. I could only puzzle over the queen’s real motives for wanting Pearl to return.
A rat scurried past our feet, and Pearl hugged her arms over mine. “I shall not allow you to give up your Testing to accompany me. You must remain here—”
“And I shall not allow you to fight this battle against the queen alone.”
“Mikkel, please. You must finish your Testing and become the great king you were destined to be.”
I was grateful for her desire to see me succeed. But I could never count myself a great king if I consented to her wish to fend for herself while I pursued selfish gain. “Perhaps after we have Ruby, you can take her to Scania and wait for me there while I go back to the island and finish my Testing.”
She hesitated. “This is too risky. I cannot ask this of you—”
“You’re not asking.” I tried to infuse my voice with princely authority so she would accept my decision. “I’m your husband now, and we shall face the queen together.”
Two forms slinked into view a short distance away, Gregor and Irontooth. I grabbed the edict with the information about Pearl and crumpled it. I couldn’t trust anyone else with keeping Pearl safe.
“Speak of this to no one,” I whispered. “We shall finish our mission here in Fife. And once the women are safely returned to the island, we shall sneak away.”
“Very well.”
I released my hold of her, though I was loathe to do so. “Promise you will wait for me?”
She nodded almost imperceptibly.
