Fires of War (War and Deceit #4) - Erin O'Kane Page 0,114

unwell prince, they draw their weapons, pointing them towards us.

“Prince Jacob!” one in the middle calls, visibly distressed, and I get the impression these could be his personal guards. Brandishing his sword, he goes to move forward, and reacting instinctively, I bare my teeth, throwing my arm in front of Jacob.

“Stay back!” Jacob orders, the command of a prince ringing out, despite the exhaustion lining his face. The guard freezes, frowning, but does as ordered as Jacob puts his hand on my shoulder. I glance back at him, and he shakes his head slightly. After a tense couple of seconds, I lower my arm, smoothing out my expression.

Jacob turns his attention back to the wall of guards blocking our path. “I’m fine, she’s helping me. Let us pass,” he instructs in a clear, smooth voice as I wrap my arm around his waist once more.

The guards look between themselves, clearly torn, eyeing up me and the magician on their beloved prince’s other side. They want to trust their prince, but I get the feeling they’re following orders. Why else would they be stationed here when there was no one guarding the door previously? The king wanted us to be caught in case things didn’t go his way. What he didn’t count on was that Jacob is well liked amongst the guards.

“But, Your Highness,” the lead guard starts, only to stop when Jacob arches an eyebrow at him. Instead of snapping to attention like I expected, the guard sighs and glances at the others. They all share looks until, one by one, they lower their weapons and the leader of the group steps aside, allowing us to pass.

We hurry by, not waiting for them to change their minds, but as we pass them, I meet the hard gaze of the lead guard. “Thank you.” The statement is simple but honest and seems to take him by surprise, but I don’t have time to see what he does next as we round the dais and are suddenly in full view of everyone in the room.

“Clarissa!” several voices call in unison, and my bonds throb with relief as my mates hurry to my side, their eyes wide as they barrage me with questions, all talking over one another. Grayson seems torn as he speaks to the prince, realising he is in need of his attention, but he’s obviously fighting the pull of the bond if the worried glances he keeps throwing me are anything to go by. Naril is standing close by but watching the ballroom around us, and I’m acutely aware of the silence that’s fallen over the room.

The onslaught of questions keeps coming and I can’t focus. A sudden wave of urgency comes over me, and I know we need to leave. Grabbing the shirt of the male who’s closest, Vaeril’s, I shake him. “Stop!” I cry, and finally the four of them stop talking. “We need to leave now,” I explain in a hurry, and they seem to realise the seriousness of the situation, snapping into action. Nodding their heads, they split up and go to the groups we had prearranged for our escape plan.

Given Vaeril’s and my history with Arhaven, there was no way we were going to come back here without having an escape plan already in place. While none of us liked the idea of being split up, they were all trained in some form of combat, so it made sense for them to each lead one of the groups. Tor would organise the tribesmen, Grayson the mages, and Eldrin the elves. I would be staying with Vaeril. While we would all be escaping together, we thought it best to have units within based on speciality in case we got separated.

“I’m sorry, Alina,” Vaeril whispers, lowering his forehead to mine, and I realise my hands are still twisted in the fabric of his shirt. “We will get out of here, I promise.”

My chest tightens as I remember the first time we escaped this castle together. Sighing, I close my eyes as he pushes his affirmation and calm down the bond. “Don’t make promises you can’t keep.”

He pulls away, and I open my eyes as he lifts my chin, his gaze intense as if daring me to challenge him, the corner of his mouth turned up in a semblance of a smile. “I never do.”

All of this must have happened in less than a couple of minutes. Naril, Jacob, and Samson are still at my side when Tor