Page 100 of MidKnight
Quinn tromped into view and waved.
Duchess Malia leaned and peered around him. “Declan?”
Quinn tilted his head. Then he shook it side to side for Malia. As he did, he mind-spoke to all of us.She’s awfully interested in Declan. Her thoughts are completely focused on seeing him.
Declan? Why would she be thinking about him?I wondered.
Connor says he feels desperation coming from her. Need,Quinn responded.Stay out of sight. I don’t trust her.
Of course, we don’t trust her. We don’t trust anyone. Someone just blew up the castl—
Countess Malia interrupted my thought by stepping closer to Declan, who looked highly uncomfortable as me. His hands fidgeted with my dress.
“Your Majesty, please, shouldn’t we go back and make sure no one’s hurt?” Malia crooned.
“No one would be hurt if you’d sarding just told us there was a bomb!” Declan snarled.
“I didn’t know where it was! I was just told to take a walk!” Malia replied.
And then, she did something unprecedented. She grabbed Declan—me—by the wrist and yanked forward.
Ryan unsheathed his sword, but Malia brandished a glowing orange vial.
“Don’t!” she screamed. “Don’t or I’ll have to kill the queen!” She pressed the vial against Declan’s throat.
She might as well have been pressing that vial against my own. My pulse sped. My chest constricted painfully around my heart. Fear chained me, linked me to Declan. Every tiny breath he took, the shadow of a shiver in his fingertips, I felt it as if it were mine.
“I need Declan. I’m taking the queen as ransom. I’ll come back in three hours. You have Declan for me then or—honestly, I don’t know what they’ll do,” she finished on a whisper.
My eyes moved past Declan to Malia. Tears streamed down her face as she held him. Clearly, she was being coerced. But I didn’t care. She had threatened my knight. Her fate was a tomb. A cold, lonely trip to the earth.
I can hit her with peace,I told Quinn.Give Ryan time to get to her.
NO!Quinn shouted, shocking me.
What?My feet ignored him even as I asked the question. I took a step out from the tree I was hidden behind. But someone grabbed my arm and stopped me from walking forward. I turned to see Cerena crouching behind the tree. I peeked at her from inside my cloak. She shook her head at me and leaned close. “Let her go,” she whispered.
My eyes widened, screaming ‘what’ and ‘you’re a sarding idiot’ simultaneously.
I turned back to the scene at hand and I saw Donaloo behind Malia, gesturing at Quinn, holding out his hands in a ‘stop’ motion.
Why the sarding hell do we want to put Declan in danger?
Because if we follow her, she can lead us right to them, Dove,Quinn responded gravely.
But then Dec will be in the middle of them! The very person she wants! How the hell will we get him out?
Quinn didn’t answer me. Because there was no good answer.
Malia kept one arm around Declan’s neck, the orange vial tilted precariously as she whistled.
Seconds later, three winged bears dropped from the sky. This time, none of them were Fuzzy. They were Isla’s.
That shite Raslen queen,I raged.I’ll smite her and obliterate her country—
Calm, Dove,Quinn said.We have to keep our thoughts clear. For Declan.
I wanted to smash him in the mouth. I wanted to hit everyone. It felt like I could go through an entire nation, hitting every single person until their face splashed into the mud. And that still might not be enough to quell my rage.
