Page 30 of #Resort Love
“What happened?” I asked gruffly, stepping past the gates, letting them shut behind me.
“Amara believes that she should be allowed to join our mission tonight,” Orin said, putting his hand up to silence Amara before she could even say a word.
“No,” I growled, walking past them both.
“But if you would just?—”
I stopped short, my eyes rolling when Amara ran into my back. Facing her, I blew out a quick breath when I noticed her rubbing her nose. “My answer is no, Amara. You couldn’t even follow my orders tostayin the camp. If I can’t trust you with that, I cannot trust you in a potentially dangerous mission.”
“But—” The pitch of her voice rose into a whine, her pleading eyes wide.
“Enough, Amara. My answer is no. I’ll be putting you in Bryony’s charge while we are gone. Understood?”
Tears welled up in her eyes as she looked to the ground. Sniffing, she whispered out afinebefore running off through the camp.
Orin stepped up beside me, exasperation brightening the gold in his eyes. “She’s going to be the death of us one day,” he lamented.
“Let’s just hope it will be later rather than sooner,” I laughed quietly.
Clapping him on the shoulder, Orin trailed behind me as we made our way into the estate to the chamber we commandeered as our strategy room. Viv already stood at the round table, along with the other members that would be joining today’s mission. There would be twelve of us total thatsneaking into Lord Lowell’s grounds tonight to help Lady Lowell and her son escape his lunacy.
For too many years, this male had taken to killing his servants and past wives, hiding their bodies throughout the realm. Lady Lowell feared her time was coming to an end at the Thanlyl estate, not to mention the constant letters sent by Lord Astaroth requesting us to help her. Viv finally convinced me to get her out, saying her visions from Edris showed Lady Lowell would be useful to the rebellion’s future. Not that the bastard of a god would give us anything concrete enough to effectively form a plan.
Moving into the room, I came up beside Viv, helping her fill her pack. “Everyone ready?” I asked, eyeing the rest of the rebels.
“As ready as we can be,” she muttered. “What did Samian need?”
“To tell me that his charge is now in Nemos.”
Viv slid her eyes to mine, her lips thinning. “So, Edris’ vision was true then?” I nodded, handing her a canteen of water. “I guess this means war is right around the corner. We’ll need to inform the leaders, let them prepare the villages and cities.”
“We will,” I murmured. “Once we return, we will.” I held Viv’s stare a moment longer before turning to the rest of the rebels. “Remember, this mission is to get in and get out. Once we have Lady Lowell and her son, do not dawdle. Meet back at the post and return with your group. Only three of our group can transfer us back to camp, so stay as close as you can to your team. Is everyone ready?” The room broke out in agreements, the rebels splitting up into their pairs, transferring one at a time to the Thanlyl estate, starting with my team.
Viv’s magic swirled around me, Orin, and Halyn; the world whirled by before finally snapping in place under a large oaktree. My stomach churned, queasiness crawling up my throat, but I swallowed back the bile and focused on our surroundings. Landing at the edge of the courtyard, hidden by bushes and smaller trees, I watched as each group arrived, moving into their positions. I was just about to look back at the estate when short brown hair caught my eye.
I cursed, catching the attention of Amara as she positioned herself between two rebels in the furthest group. She cringed, giving me a weak wave.
“I guess we jinxed ourselves,” Orin sighed, his hand rubbing the back of his neck.
“Try to keep an eye on her if you can,” I growled. Viv snorted, and I threw a glare her way, though she ignored it.
We stayed in our positions until the moon shone high in the sky, the silver beams casting a soft glow around the trees. Rolling the stiffness from my shoulders, I froze when movement along the front of the estate made the hair on my neck stand on alert. Signaling to the group, I heard a sharp gasp to my right. Before I could look at Viv, Lady Lowell ran out of the estate, her son in her arms, with a wild, frantic look on her face and guards hot on her trail.
I swore as I counted the guards pursuing them, more than what was originally expected. I hesitated, weighing our options between fighting the thirty guards chasing her or retreating to camp. Viv hissed out my name, snapping me out of my wavering. Stepping out of my position, I commanded my team to move.
The rebels lurched forward while I rushed to Amara, catching her by the arm. “I told you to stay at the camp,” I hissed. “Stand by that tree and do. Not. Move. If I catch you out there, I will lock you up and throw away the key. Do you understand?”
Amara nodded her head, her eyes wide and filled with fear. Pushing her toward the tree, I followed the rest of the rebels, slipping my sword free from its sheath. Lady Lowell yelled out as a guard yanked her by her long, fiery hair. Another guard held her son, grunting as the kid fought like a hellcat to get to his mother.
The guard turned, raising his fist to strike the boy, and I lunged. Raising my sword, I swiped it across his back. Blood gushed, and the guard cried out, dropping the boy and falling to his knees.
Snatching the boy into my arms, I passed him to a rebel, commanding him to run toward the trees before I turned toward Lady Lowell. The guard still held her by the hair, dragging her back to the estate.
Chaos and the cries of my soldiers enveloped the courtyard as I fought my way through, cutting down guard after guard, ignoring the hot blood spraying across my face. The guard was edging toward the doors of the estate, and I roared. Calling my magic to me, I let the pressure around me build until the air was so thick I could hardly breathe. Releasing my hold on my power, lightning rained down on the guards around me, burning their flesh in an instant.
Panting, I searched the grounds for Lady Lowell, my feet moving toward the sound of her screams. I spotted them just as I turned the corner of the estate, the guard pulling Lady Lowell up to her feet when Viv flickered into sight behind the male. The guard didn’t even have a chance to react before her sword lodged into his back. The guard’s eyes widened, his mouth gaping as he looked down at the silver, blood-coated blade sticking out of his chest.
Viv pulled the sword back, letting the guard fall to theground. She grabbed Lady Lowell, her eyes clashing to mine and nodded.
