Page 92 of Decoy

He finally lifted his gaze with a glare. “But before I could act for the sake of my family, you received the prophecy that exposed my intentions. You immediately sent Princess Evelyn away, a decision I should have expected when the prophecy explicitly warned you to distrust those closest to you. I refused to allow your actions ruin everything, so I sent several assassins after her and worked with the decoy in an effort to deflect your suspicions from me until I received word the princess was dead…which never came.

“I continued going along with your plan for the decoy to investigate, planted a few red herrings to thwart her—including the tip about a member of royalty being the threat; when she got close to suspecting me, I even went so far as to hire an assassin to take her out. Her death would provide me added insurance as nobody would suspect me if the decoy died since I was one of the only people who knew she wasn’t the true princess. When she survived that attempt, I knew it was only a matter of time before she caught me…leading me to send her back to the dungeon. If she hadn’t escaped…” He clenched his fists. “The princess is equally to blame. If she hadn’t found those records, I wouldn’t have had to resort to such extremes.”

Heavy silence choked the room before it was punctuated by the king’s heavy sigh. “I wish you’d told me of your troubles. I could have helped both you and your son as a token of my gratitude for your years of faithful service…but my hands are tied now that you’ve committed treason.”

He motioned for Guard Silas to take Sir Rupert away. As he did so, I couldn’t resist smirking when our gazes met as he passed. “You assigned me to uncover the threat after the princess’s life. It would appear I succeeded.” I jabbed my finger into his chest.

He scowled but seemed too defeated to offer his usual biting retort. I watched the poetic justice unfold as the man who’d continuously demeaned me as a prisoner was led to the dungeon under the same sentence I’d been under…which would lead to the very outcome that his capture allowed me to finally escape.

He’d be executed in my place…and with his sentence, I’d finally be free.

CHAPTER26

The golden sphere glistened beneath the light cast by the floating candles filling the royal treasury, a shimmery glow that illuminated it like a beacon. The magical artifact that had been my family’s heirloom for generations seemed different than the symbol of my imaginings that would allow me to finally restore all that had been lost when the world around me shattered. After so long, it was finally within reach…yet strangely I didn’t feel the triumph one might expect after accomplishing a sought-after goal.

Princess Evelyn murmured a charm and the protective shield guarding it melted away, causing the shadows filling the corners of the chamber to give an uneasy quiver. The princess carefully removed it from the pedestal that had been its home ever since it’d been confiscated from my family’s estate and held it aloft, allowing Luke and I to better see the jewels embedding the metal that weren’t even near a close representation of the object’s true worth.

“Are you sure you don’t wish for another reward? I want to offer more as an expression of our gratitude for your services to the crown than restoring an object that once belonged to your family.”

The familiar habitual resentment at that injustice flared, but the flames were dimmer, as my acquaintance with the royal family had cooled my anger. “Pursuing the Time Sphere is what led to my arrest, which only shows how important it is to me.” Even if the attempt in essence had been a threat to Estoria’s magic.

I expected a look akin to mocking, but only empathy touched her expression. “My parents explained the circumstances of your sentence. Infiltrating the royal treasury alone isn’t punishable by death, but the situation was far more serious than a simple attempted break-in.”

“The Time Sphere has been in my family for generations and rightfully belongs to us.” A declaration backed by the fact that only my bloodline could access its powers. “While I understand I was condemned for attempting to steal magic now under Estoria’s authority, I had no intention of using it, as I’m sure my brother—”

My throat closed around his name. Years after his hanging and it still pained me to speak of his death, especially to a member of the authority who’d condemned him.

“I remember his case, as well as that of your parents. My family agonized over the arrest and subsequent sentencing, but in the end the evidence was too overwhelming to ignore.”

Kindness filled her touch that brushed my arm, but I didn’t want her sympathy; I wanted my family back. “Whatevidence? There was nothing—”

“A charm is placed on every enchanted object not under the royal family’s direct protection,” she explained. “We confiscated the Time Sphere upon receiving notice that your parents intended to use it as a tool to usurp our family, a crime punishable by death.”

Horror seized my breath.Treason?The revelation overwhelmed me in icy waves of disbelief. “There must be some mistake. They would never commit—” Disbelief seized the remainder of my words. Luke rested a comforting hand against the base of my back.

Confusion furrowed the princess’s brow, but it didn’t mar the empathy in her countenance and lingering touch. “The protective charm ensuring each holder of the enchanted objects entrusted to their care is indisputable. As guardians of our kingdom’s magic, we were forced to interfere the moment we realized such great power was about to be abused. If it brings some reassurance that we didn’t make a mistake, your parents did confess that they were intending to use its power to alter the line of succession.”

Mere words weren’t enough to shift years of clinging to the idea that my family had been dealt a great injustice. “No, they would never admit to a crime they were framed for. They told me before they went to prison that the king and queen stole the artifact to increase their power so none of the noble families could rise up against them.”

She solemnly shook her head. “We have clear indication they tried to use the artifact to unbind the monarchy’s authority in order to free up the throne for someone whom they could garner favor to earn back the magic that they’d lost several generations back. Their Majesties recognized you and your brother’s innocence, so only your parents were condemned. Your brother was only arrested when he acted on his own…as were you when you later followed. The risk of allowing either of you to go free was too high when there was no evidence you didn’t share your fallen family’s treasonous goal of usurpation.”

Protests burned my tongue, only staved off by the memories of my parents’ frequently voiced longings for the power that had once filled our ancient line, evidence of the validity of the princess’s explanation I’d do anything to ignore. At the time I’d been too young to think much about their complaints, but now I could see it as a potential motive for the crime they’d been condemned for.

Icy shock from these whirling revelations consumed me; I was only kept grounded by Luke’s presence, my anchor midst this sudden storm.

My desperation to find any other explanation than her horrible words compelled me to revisit the memories that had haunted me all of these years in an attempt to piece them together to see if it fit with this horrific claim that the tragedy that had befallen my family hadn’t been some grave injustice but wholly deserved. The more I studied them, the more I realized the extent which I’d allowed my pain to blind me to the truth.

If not for fate’s intervention, my stubborn determination to avoid the truth would have also led me to my own death, sealing my family’s tragedy with my blood. Surely they wouldn’t have wanted that for me, nor would they want me to live bearing the burden brought by their mistakes. Luke had helped me better see this with how valiantly he fought for my life, which helped me pursue it with just as much fervor…for in him I finally had something to fight for.

“I’m so sorry to bring you so much pain.” The princess’s tone was gentle, as if she feared I might break. “After Sir Rupert’s arrest, I scoured all the documents detailing your family’s history so I could know you better. I could show you that record within the forbidden tomes if it’d help bring you closure.”

These unexpected revelations had left me too weary to face them any longer. “Why are you going to such lengths to help me?”

She offered a timid smile. “Despite our differing circumstances, our similarities connect us so that I consider you a friend. You saved my life, for which I’ll be forever grateful.”

Friends?For a moment the word rendered me speechless. “I’ve done nothing worthy of your gratitude. My motives have been purely selfish, driven by a need to restore all I’d lost.” The tears I’d fought to keep back burned my eyes.

“I experienced similar feelings after being told I was a decoy,” she said. “Emotions that compelled me to take drastic action to prove myself. Though arduous, in the end that path made me who I am today. With your pardon comes the same freedom to decide your own future, one free from the constraints of your past. Where has your path led you and where will it bring you moving forward?”

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