Kingdom of Sea and Stone (Crown of Coral and Pearl #2) - Mara Rutherford Page 0,110

have loved that boy.

But I could find nothing but disdain for this man.

“I’m sorry,” I said, as I turned to leave.

The guards at the door drew their swords.

I turned back to Ceren, more weary than surprised. I was tired of fighting, of giving this man chance after chance to do the right thing. I should have realized long ago that he never would. “Don’t do this.”

“You’ve given me no choice, Nor.”

Tears spilled free of my lashes as the memories of all the horrible things Ceren had done washed over me. Threatening me, bleeding me, killing Lady Melina, cutting off my family’s water, imprisoning the Varenians. It had been foolish to hope there was some scrap of compassion left in Ceren.

But he had been foolish to underestimate me again.

I reached out to the guards with my mind, following the warm tether of our heartbeats. It was the strangest sensation, but I knew that we were all linked through this bloody web. How was Ceren wielding hundreds of these strings daily? It must be taking everything he had not to go mad.

I had no idea if it would work, but I was out of options. Hesitantly, I sent out my first command.

Stop him.

The guards turned their swords on Ceren. His wide eyes went straight past them to me.

“Goodbye, Ceren,” I said. And then I ran.

30

I clutched the bloodstone in my fist, still reeling from the fact that the guards had followed my command. I knew that the bloodstone wasn’t working on me as Ceren had hoped. Otherwise, I would never have been able to walk away from him. Lady Hyacinth had been right: whatever powers Ceren had were in my blood, too. Not only that—the guards had defied a direct order from Ceren and obeyed me instead.

But as I ran, I could feel my control over the men I’d left behind slipping. I didn’t know if it was the lack of proximity or that I was too panicked to focus my thoughts, but soon I heard Ceren behind me, his boots ringing out on the stone floors. Even if I could command the people guarding the exits, I wasn’t going to leave without my father, and Ceren knew it.

“Nor,” Ceren called, his voice bouncing off the stone walls around me. “You’re trapped, silly bird.”

I hadn’t made it far before I was knocked off my feet by a tremor that seemed to shake the entire mountain. I landed hard on my hip and rolled onto my back, the wind knocked out of me. Talia’s assault on New Castle had begun, and any hope I had that she would take precautions to prevent casualties was gone. Talia didn’t want New Castle at the end of all of this; she wanted Ceren dead.

I pushed shakily to my feet and stumbled through the great hall toward the massive doors leading to the stairs down from New Castle. There were more men posted there, and I saw the bloodstones flare to life as I neared, but whatever command Ceren had given wasn’t working. They stayed where they were as I passed them and shoved my way through the small door.

I found myself on the very same platform where Lady Melina had died and Talin had given up the throne to save me. The wind was always strong this high up, and it whipped through my hair and skirts icily. I ran to the edge and looked down at the field that stretched from here to the main road leading to Old Castle.

A battle unlike anything I’d ever seen raged below me. Massive cannons fired at the mountain itself, and I gripped the railing to keep from falling again.

Ceren’s soldiers were lined up on the field, easily identified by their black armor, but they didn’t move. Feebly, I tried reaching out through the web to find their minds, but there were too many of them. I turned around suddenly, realizing that I had no idea where Ceren had gone.

Talia’s army was advancing toward New Castle, the cavalry riding out first. I couldn’t spot Talin from this distance, but knowing him, he was out in front of his troops. What must he be thinking, knowing that I was inside? Was he planning some foolish rescue, or had he decided his mother’s cause was more important than one life?

My eyes darted to the stone steps leading down the mountain. I could leave right now and rescue Father later. At least then Ceren wouldn’t be able to use me to get