Page 134 of Her Soul for a Crown
“He won’t,” she promised, sliding the Bone Blade from her sari. Its song sank into her bones, her heart, her soul. The rightness of her vow resonated deep. “I will protect you. No one will die by his hand again.”
Saffron flickered in Calu’s eyes, as if the song now sank into his shadow and lifted the fear from his soul. He glanced at the one remaining pyre and those fleeing for their lives. He sighed. “All right.”
Anula squeezed his hand tight. “Thank you.”
He rolled his shoulders and cracked his neck. “I can only unwind those whom I can see.”
“That’s all we need.” Anula counted at least fifty men. Could he manage that many at once? Anula knocked the thought away, choosing to have faith in him instead.
“Be not afraid of your own power,” Kama whispered.
Sohon added, “Ratti would be proud.”
Calu’s shoulders fell. The tension, too. With relief, he closed his eyes and deepened his breath. In and out, slow and steady. A breeze chilled the air, the soldiers took note and stilled, and for a moment, a hush fell over the courtyard.
Then the Polonnaruwan soldiers’ eyes clouded over. Lips curled back, they turned on one another, feral as jungle cats. Sword met sword, spear met chest, teeth met flesh, and the courtiers were completely forgotten.
“Now!” Anula sprinted, the Yakkas and Bithul on her heels.
Soldiers fell around them. They swarmed out of houses and buildings and the concubine estate, only to be cut down by their own men. Anula plucked a bloodied sword from dead hands as she reached the final pyre, arced it back, and swung hard, cutting the rope. The Yakkas snuffed out the flames, creating a safe escape.
“Bless you,” a woman cried, gripping Anula’s hand as she helped her off the wood. “Bless you, my raejina consort.”
“Where do we go?” a man asked. “Everything is destroyed.”
“More soldiers will come!” Another panicked.
Bithul gathered what remained of his loyal guards, checking each of the ten to ensure they weren’t fatally harmed. The last man, the one he’d trained with, was bloodied and beaten, but held out Bithul’s cane, as if he’d fought solely for it. “Sir. What do we do?”
Taking it, Bithul clutched Shahan’s hand. Then he lifted his gaze, and his men’s eyes followed. “Anula?”
Thirty people faced her. Sweat-soaked and dirty, with none of her usual armor in place, Anula was exposed. No longer the raejina Auntie Nirma had cultivated, they saw her, the person she chose to be, with no crown and no title. What if they didn’t want her?
She took a steadying breath. She was no usurper; they should have a choice. Stepping into the Pleasure Gardens, she said, “Wesave one more and find shelter, together.”
Without waiting to see the choice everyone made, Anula walked into the Pleasure Gardens. The Yakkas flanked her, as the night darkened the grounds and the smoke from the pyres choked what little light the stars gave off. Her heart pounded. It was one thing to choose to follow a woman, a concubine, a wife; it was an entirely different thing to follow her into a dark unknown. They would have to trust her, believe in her, have faith in her. It wasn’t until the turn for the cave entrance that she dared glance over her shoulder. Bithul and his guards, and thirty courtiers, were close behind.
She picked up her pace, gratefulness swelling, and without thinking, she whispered a prayer. One of thanks as much as hope.
She turned a corner—and slammed into a tree. “Ouch!”
“Anula?” a voice squeaked, and instead of the face of a tree, she saw Premala. The girl wrapped her in a tight hug. “Thank the Heavens.”
“Premala, what are you doing?”
“Stay away from her!” Sohon stepped forward, wrenching them apart.
“W—wait!” Premala said. “The Yak—Reeri sent me.”
“What? Where is he?” Anula demanded.
Premala wrung her hands. “In trouble. Do you have the relic?”
“Do you honestly believe I’d tell you if I did? Do I look like a—”
“Oh, shut your mouth for once!” Premala’s voice rose above the smoke. It did not shake. “If you want to save Reeri, and the Heavens and Earth, and everyone else, bring the relic and come with me.”
Anula snorted. “Are you telling me what to do, after nearly getting me killed?”
