she chose the right one. As she went along, she carefully counted the offshoots until she reached the fifth one. Then she turned, leading everyone down the narrow corridor that came to an abrupt dead end.
Reid stopped, then twisted to her right, knowing the door was somewhere in front of her. Not wanting to accidentally push it open, she leaned away from it. Gytha remained next to her, their shoulders brushing.
The king should be asleep in his bed. The soldiers, along with Dexter, Gordon, Ackley, and Owen, were supposed to enter the castle five minutes after Reid and her group had. She’d expected them to be outside the king’s suite by now, about to storm in. The soldiers and Dexter’s revolutionaries would go first. Once the king was subdued, Gordon and Ackley would enter, confirming it was safe before Dexter and Owen went in. Then, one of the soldiers would fetch the duchesses.
Reid and her group were there in case something went wrong. They could prevent the king from escaping in the event he’d discovered the passageways, or they could guide soldiers out of the king’s room if the king managed to get reinforcements, blocking Dexter’s men inside.
But, if everything went according to plan, Ackley would knock on the wall giving the all-clear signal, allowing them to exit the passageways. They would join Dexter in the bedchamber, allowing Reid to use her ring to strip Eldon of his title and pass it to Dexter.
So what was taking so long? No noises came from within the king’s suite. She was sure they’d be able to hear voices or the clashing of steel. Something. Anything.
Gytha shifted beside her, letting out an irritated sigh.
Grabbing Gytha’s hand, Reid squeezed it as panic wormed its way in. Something was wrong. She was sure of it. Too much time had passed.
Unversed in battle strategy, what to do if the plan went awry eluded her. Her gut told her to abort the mission. However, she wanted a second opinion. Leaning closer to Gytha, she whispered in the warrior woman’s ear, asking her opinion on the matter.
A moment later, Gytha replied, “Retreat.”
Reid wove her way to the end of their human chain, then led the way to the first floor. Fear took hold, and her hands began shaking. Had any harm come to Dexter? What about Ackley and Gordon? Needing to find out the state of things, she stopped at what should be a sitting room near the front of the palace. Pressing her ear against the door, she listened. Not hearing anything, she pried the door open. Moonlight spilled into the room, providing enough light to see. She exited the passageways and paused, listening. Not hearing any commotion coming from within, she rushed over to the window, peering outside.
Several of the soldiers had gathered near the front door, facing it. Reid angled her head, trying to see what they were looking at.
Her knees almost gave out when she saw Eldon on the front steps, Commander Beck at his side. How had Beck managed to escape? He’d been tied up with two soldiers watching over him.
Gytha peered outside, then cursed.
“What do you want us to do?” one of the soldiers accompanying Reid asked.
About to turn to address the soldier, something caught her eye. The front door opened, and soldiers donning Melenia battle gear shoved Dexter, Gordon, Owen, and Duke Ellington out of the palace, forcing them to their knees. Reid started shaking.
“Come,” Gytha said. “We must act quickly before it’s too late.”
Reid had no idea what her father was doing here. Unable to even consider that at the moment, she scanned the area, searching for the duchesses, Harlan, or Ackley. Not seeing them anywhere, she prayed they were safely hiding somewhere.
“Eldon is going to kill them,” Gytha snapped. “We must stop him.”
“If you can get out there,” Reid said as she sprinted alongside Gytha, exiting the sitting room “can you kill Eldon?”
“Yes.”
Fear took hold of Reid as she ran toward the front of the palace. What if someone stopped them? What if Eldon killed everyone before Gytha could get there? What if they failed?
Movement came from the right, and Reid glanced that way. Skidding to a halt, her mouth dropped open as Colbert, Markis, and Ackley exited the library.
Reid didn’t even know what question to ask first.
“The six of you,” Ackley barked, indicating the soldiers, “go to the back room of the library and guard the duchesses.”
The soldiers did as instructed.
“Let’s go,” Colbert said, leading the way to