Page 65 of Sword of Desire
“He’s out.”
“Good work. Have him taken to the dungeon. I’m going after my wife. When I get back, I’ll deal with Prince Ackley of Marsden.”
Ackley heard Lyle rush from the room. He silently cursed since Lyle still had Sword of Rage. He swore the next time they met he would get his sword back.
As Lady Mayle spoke to someone in the hallway, Ackley felt a person grab his ankles and drag him from the room. He continued to pretend to be unconscious, not wanting to fight several guards at once. A few minutes later, someone grabbed his arms, lifting him off the floor. He felt his body being carried down a flight of steps. Metal clanged, and then Ackley was set down on a rough stone floor.
It smelled of hay and fecal matter. Ackley assumed he was in the dungeon.
Lady Mayle thanked the men for their help, then it sounded like everyone left.
Ackley wanted to confront Harley’s mother and ask why she chose Lyle’s side instead of her daughter’s. However, he didn’t have precious time to waste. Peeling one eye open, he glanced at the corridor. Not seeing anyone, he opened his other eye and sat up. After a few minutes, all remained quiet. He withdrew the key Harley had given him and unlocked the cell door. Since he’d already been down in the dungeon when he rescued Rikter, he knew the way out. Pocketing the key, he exited the cell and made his way to the secret passageways.
When he entered the main portion of the castle again, he headed to the side entrance closest to the stables. He needed a horse. Opening the door, he peeked outside and saw a flurry of activity going on. In the chaos, Ackley could easily blend in.
He stepped outside and headed toward the stables. On his way, he noticed all the tents had been taken down. Men were lining up, getting ready to march out. Lyle and a few of his captains rode on horseback, organizing everyone. They had to be going after Harley.
Ackley hesitated a moment. He could blend in with this army and march with them. Then he could make sure Harley was okay.No, he chided himself. He trusted Harley and her plan. Ackley needed to check on his army. He had no idea if what Lyle said was true.
He wondered where Lyle would have diverted the Marsden army to and why. That was when it hit him. Lyle had looked surprised that Harley had gone to Losger—because that’s where Lyle wanted everyone to end up. Lyle had purposefully fed Harley false information to get Owen to Losger where Lyle could set a trap and have him killed. Lyle must have a portion of the Melenia army already in place there. Then, if the Marsden army arrived and this Melenia army here showed up behind them, they’d be trapped, completely boxed in, ensuring a brutal battle to the end.
Which meant Lyle had somehow diverted Ackley’s army to Losger.
Ackley had to get there before Lyle did so he could warn his men.
He sprinted to the stables and cursed.
Not a single horse was left.
Harley
Harley exited the room, leaving her captains behind to work out the details of her plan. Her hands started shaking, and beads of sweat covered her forehead. She couldn’t believe she just did that. Now she was not only the queen of Melenia, but the commander of the entire army as well. While her men had seemed hesitant at first, the more she spoke to them, the more comfortable they appeared.
Outside the room, two men waited for her. “Are you my guards?” she asked.
“We are,” the one on the right answered. “That is, if you wish to have guards,” he added quickly.
“Both of you, with me.” While she didn’t want an audience for what she was about to do, she couldn’t be alone with Lord Silas. She entered the room where he was being kept. When the guard watching him went to leave, she insisted he stay along with her two guards. The three men spread out in the room, giving her space to speak with Silas. Like the other room, this one had a missing wall, leaving the room exposed to the elements.
“Why are you treating me so disrespectfully?” he asked. “I’ve done nothing but support you your entire life. I educated you, took care of you.”
And he’d lied to her. She couldn’t trust him. As she stood before him, she tried to get her thoughts in order.
“What do you hope to accomplish?” Lord Silas asked. He stood near a cluster of stones that had caved in from the missing exterior wall.
She gazed out of the castle, looking at the cliff in the distance. This castle used to house the royal family hundreds of years ago, long before the newer one had been built. “I want what’s best for Melenia.”
“We all do,” he replied.
“Good.” She faced him again, wondering how she’d ever thought him a frail, feeble man. All his coughing, walking hunched over, and fits that rendered him bedridden had been a lie. “Tell me how you came to be the commander here.”
The corners of his lips curled up, and his eyes shone with shrewd intelligence. “King Lyle needed a commander after his father was brutally murdered. The position naturally fell to me.”
Mulling over his words, she tried figuring out what he left unsaid. “You’re not a military man, you’re the leader of Penlar, and you’re elderly. Being appointed as the commander makes no sense.”
“To you.”
Folding her arms, she started tapping her foot, trying to work through this. It had never made sense that her parents married her off to Lyle. Even if Commander Beck came to Silas demanding a union between their children, her father didn’t have to agree. If Beck threatened to expose her true parentage, Silas could have gone straight to the king and gotten his help. Realization dawned on her. “You’re involved with Beck and Lyle.” It was the only reason that made sense, and it explained why Penlar had been the only major city unharmed.
