Page 13 of The Fractured Prophecy

As if sensing my thoughts, Torvo took a large step backward, taking the princess with him. “Rivven has every reason to be upset, Princess. He has been tortured for weeks.”

That confirmed my timeline suspicions.

“He’s a prisoner. He tried to kill Father.”

“Your sister loves him,” Torvo answered, and I couldn’t stop myself from wincing again. Why would he speak of her in present tense? He’d seen her disappear the same as I had. Had the princess created a new illusion? Would it be the same, or just a new being with the face that haunted my every moment, both awake and asleep?

“And she wanted to kill Father as well,” Leuruna said, staring at me like I was a Cravenbeast in a carnival—something held down so wealthy people could gawk at it.

“Because he’s evil,” I said, pressing as close as I could to the opening.

She swallowed but didn’t cower this time. “He is. I know he is.”

This, I was not expecting. But it didn’t mean she’d earned my trust. I clenched my fists at my sides. “Yet you erased Nyah, the one you call sister, before she could end his rule. It is your fault I am here, Princess.” I used the term Torvo seemed to dote on her with as a jab by fueling it with as much cynicism as I could muster. I had no other weapon than my words.

“I warned her not to do it.” The words rushed out of her in a desperate flood. “My mother warned me we had to wait until my father had all the kingdom’s stones. I couldn’t let Nyah do it or much worse would have happened.”

“Are you here to stare or to release me?” I questioned, tired of this. What could her mother possibly have known? How much worse could things possibly get?

“I plan to get you out,” Torvo confirmed. Judging by the way the princess’s jaw dropped, I assumed he hadn’t shared that information with his betrothed.

“Then open the door. Or take off the damn collar they have on me. It’s nullifying my magic.”

“Wait,” Leuruna said, and it took all my strength not to growl again. “Father will know if we let you out. He’ll put it together because the guard knows we are on a stroll unaccompanied. He’ll punish you, Torvo. Not just me. You cannot do this.”

“It is not right to leave him here, Rune. He is our friend.”

“Perhaps yours and Nyah’s, but I have no reason to trust him.”

And there it was. She’d shown her hand. She only cared for certain people. Perhaps not as cold as her father, but selective enough. She did deserve my blade or my fire when I again had access to either. Perhaps both.

“I won’t let you,” she argued, eyes glowing with light. She was small, but we both knew the kind of power she possessed. Nyah had used both elemental and illusion magic Rune had hidden in her during our time together, and if that was just a sample of what this woman held, the gods certainly had a wry sense of humor. I could almost hear my friend Galan’s voice in my mind. “If you want out of this place, then you need to play to her sensibilities.”

But I wasn’t like him. I preferred the hard truth of steel. Still, if I had any hope of murdering the king, I needed to act.

“She’s right,” I said finally, stepping back from the window and only tilting slightly before recovering. “We have to play this smart.”

The muscle in Torvo’s jaw worked overtime as he set down the princess. But before we could speak, the sound of running echoed through the halls. My eyes felt as wide as his as we stared at each other.

Then he turned as Leuruna shot past him into the hall to intercept whoever was coming. The sounds stopped abruptly.

“Your Majesty,” Rufus grumbled. “What are you doing down here alone? Where is your betrothed?”

“I’m right here,” Torvo answered. But it didn’t come from the man in front of me. It came from the hall beyond. “What business do you have running around like that? You frightened the princess.”

She’d conjured an illusion of him. And we knew from experience it was sure to be lifelike. Torvo opened his mouth to say something, but I raised a finger to my lips and shook my head, waiting.

“You shouldn’t be down here without permission. This is a vile place for the princess. We don’t want her exposed to prisoners.”

“As the princess, she will do as she pleases, and she wanted to see for herself that the man who jeopardized her and her father was no longer a threat.”

When Rufus appeared around the corner with three men flanking him, my heart nearly stopped. Instinctively, I tried to call my fire but ended up throwing my hands to my throat to stifle the sudden shock from the blasted collar. They stared straight at Torvo then my cell. Instead of attacking him, the guards exchanged looks and went back out into the hall.

Had she hidden us with more illusion magic?

“He was unconscious the whole time,” the fake Torvo said.

“Quite boring,” Leuruna added. “Take me back to my rooms now, Torvo. Rufus, get used to seeing more of me around the castle. After all, it will be under my rule eventually.”