Ruined - Amy Tintera Page 0,17
was one of them, and he gave Em a wide-eyed look that was either approval or confusion.
“Cas! Cas!” the queen screeched as she flew past Em. Cas was on his knees, his hand to his shoulder. His gray coat hid most of the blood, but a small pool had collected on the floor as it dripped down his arm. He’d gone pale.
Hands wrapped around Em’s arms, holding tighter when she tried to jerk away.
“We need to take you to safety, Your Highness,” a guard said, pulling on her arms. Two others closed in around her.
She glanced over her shoulder at Cas as they dragged her away, but people swarmed around the prince, hiding him from view.
Please don’t die, she prayed. Not yet.
The guards delivered her to her room, closing and locking the door behind them. All three stood stiffly in front of the door, hands clasped behind their backs.
Pain shot through the hand she’d used to punch the man, but she ignored it. “I want to go see if Cas is all right.”
The tallest guard shook his head. “I’m sorry, Your Highness. Procedure dictates that we keep you here until they’ve made sure the castle is safe.”
“Does this happen often?” she asked, surprised. She’d been under the impression that Lera was the safest of the four kingdoms. They’d beaten everyone else down to make sure of it.
“We have procedures outlined for all possible situations,” the guard said.
That wasn’t an answer, which was interesting.
“Do you know who that was?” she asked. “Why did he want to kill Cas?”
“I’m sorry, Your Highness, I wouldn’t know. He’ll be questioned soon.”
Em walked to her bed, hopping onto the mattress as she frowned in thought. She didn’t know who would want to kill the prince. Well, besides her.
Long minutes ticked by, and Em moved from the bed to the window, and back again. It was at least an hour before the door finally opened.
Jovita stood on the other side of the door. Em jumped up from the bed and rushed to her.
“Is he alive?” Em asked.
“He’s fine,” Jovita said. “It’s just his shoulder.”
Em breathed a sigh of relief, which was echoed by all three guards.
“He’d like to see you,” Jovita said, placing her back against the open door and beckoning at Em with two fingers.
He surely didn’t want to continue with the wedding night after getting stabbed, did he? Em swallowed as she walked out the door and started down the hallway with Jovita and two guards. Maybe his wounds weren’t very serious after all. There had been a lot of blood, but Em had suffered injuries that bled profusely but hadn’t slowed her down.
“We should have a discussion soon about what to do in case of an emergency,” Jovita said. “We have a meeting spot in case the castle is taken or unsafe.”
“Where is that?” Em asked.
“Fort Victorra, in the Southern Mountains. Do you know it?”
“I do. It’s near the Vallos border.”
“Good. I’ll give you a map later, just in case. All members of the royal family get one.”
Five guards were outside Cas’s rooms. Jovita led Em past them and through a dark office full of books. The door to Cas’s bedroom was ajar, light streaming out through the crack.
“You should rest, Cas,” the queen said from the other side of the door.
“I will, Mother.” Then, in a softer voice: “I’m fine.”
Jovita knocked and pushed the door open. The room was even bigger than Em’s, with an impressive dresser and ornate mirror on one side of the room, and two big plushy chairs on the other, in front of a massive window currently obscured by deep-blue curtains. Cas lay on the big bed in the center of the room, shirtless, with a white bandage covering his left shoulder. He was still pale, but he smiled as she walked into the room.
The queen turned, and Em found herself crushed against the woman. She held Em so tightly it was difficult to breathe.
“Thank you,” the queen whispered.
Em resisted the urge to roll her eyes as she extracted herself from the queen’s embrace. The king stood next to his wife, his face full of gratitude. Em quickly crossed her arms over her chest so he wouldn’t get any ideas about hugging her too.
“May we have a minute?” Cas asked.
The queen wiped at her cheeks. “We’ll be right outside.”
The king put a hand on Em’s shoulder as he passed her.
“We owe you a debt of gratitude,” he said softly.
Em tried not to appear too pleased. She couldn’t have