Page 53 of The Fae Kings' Bargain

A tinge of fear coated Ria’s tongue, but she ignored it. She would not be abused again. “Could you light the tunnel a little? I think the difference in light is bothering my head.”

Frowning, Tes peered at her for a moment before reluctantly releasing her waist. “Fine. But don’t you dare move.”

As her captor stepped reluctantly into the doorway, Ria broke the few remaining strands of the frayed rope with as little movement as she could manage. Then she waited. A moment later, Tes glanced toward Ria, nodded as though satisfied, and turned back toward the tunnel to begin her magic.

The world tilted and swirled slightly as Ria rushed into action, but desperation steadied her enough that she managed not to fall when she shoved against Tes. Caught off-guard, the other woman flew into the tunnel with enough force to smack against the opposite wall before tumbling to the ground. It was difficult to tell in the thin light if she’d caught herself with her hands or landed more roughly, but Ria wasn’t going to check.

Instead, she used her magic to grab the fabric and twist. It required little thought to narrow and snarl the skirts until walking would be nearly impossible. Although she had to grip the edge of the door to keep herself from toppling next to Tes on the floor, Ria managed the job before her captor did more than let out a moan.

Ria’s body trembled, and she had to fight back a surge of sickness. But within moments, she’d managed to close the narrow door with a decisive thud. Slowly, she turned to face the room. In the dimming glow of Tes’s mage light, Ria could make out a door on the far end of the cluttered room.

Now she just had to reach it.

* * *

The healer had barely completedhis work before Mehl was on his feet. “Well?” he asked Toren.

Fear and fury tightened his husband’s expression, but Toren said nothing, merely gesturing for the healer to leave without a word. Only when the door closed did he hurry toward Mehl. “The secret tunnels. That has to be where they’ve gone.”

Mehl’s blood chilled at the thought. If that were the case, Ria’s abductor would have a significant head start, possibly enough to be out of the city. He exchanged one worried glance with Toren before they strode as one toward the fireplace.

With shaking hands, his husband pressed the correct pattern into the stone wall beside the mantel, but he didn’t rush through after the panel swung open. A change, that. Mehl gave him a grateful smile as he moved around his husband to take the lead. Toren followed, closing the door behind him. Complete darkness enclosed them, but a hint of Toren’s magic sparked a thin line of light above, so pale it barely shifted the tunnel to gray.

Mehl drew his sword, but he didn’t move forward. Which direction should they go?

“I ordered Macoe to begin in the throne room and head toward the branching point,”Toren sent.“Let’s go up before we descend to meet him.”

Mehl started walking at once.“Besides Sir Macoe, who else knows of the secret passages?”

“No one outside of the royal family,”Toren replied grimly.

Truth be told, Mehl hadn’t even been aware that the head of the guard knew. With each person entrusted with the secret, the risk increased.“You’re certain he hasn’t betrayed us?”

“If you’d been king when Sir Macoe undertook the oathing ceremony, you would have no doubt of his loyalty.”Toren went silent as they climbed a narrow staircase.“More than words are bound in that vow. Despite the increased security the ceremony provides, it is not something I would have required myself.”

It must have involved either Sir Macoe’s inherent magic or his very soul. Possibly both. The ancient founders of this land had been harsher than most realized—thanhehad realized before becoming king. What appeared to be tradition or changeable law was sometimes an immutable rule, made so by the magic underpinning the kingdom.

Such as the heir-challenge that Prince Ber planned to exploit.

And no one was more bound to obey than the high king. It was a sad reality, being chained into such power while unable to change it. Toren’s strength was such that he could barely contain the force of his own energy, and yet he’d never been capable of shifting any of the Iron Laws, so-called by the royals for their poisonous immobility.

They were as endless as these blasted tunnels.

Surely, they were near the end of the upper passages, which only stretched to the end of this floor. Mehl’s grip tightened on his sword. This was taking too long, and it might be fruitless, besides. If the spy had detailed knowledge of the escape tunnels, she could have taken Ria through one of the connected rooms. Otherwise, she probably would have fled below, not lingered up here.

Mehl was about to suggest that they turn back early when a pale lump huddled ahead caught his eye. Was it a person? He dropped into a crouch and eased forward, ready to confront any kind of trap. But the closer he got, the less the sight made sense. The tangled fabric made such an odd shape that any person inside would have to be mangled.

“Ria’s magic is strong in the air,”Toren sent.

Shutting out the surge of emotion those words brought, Mehl edged closer to the unusual lump.“Can you increase the light? Slowly? Or will that risk your control?”

Toren didn’t answer, but the glow intensified—as did the force of his husband’s magic. But Mehl couldn’t worry about the latter. His focus was for the mass of cloth taking on ever-greater detail. It didn’t take long to discern that it was just cloth, either.

The discarded fabric might have once been a servant’s dress. The color was right. But it was twisted together until he couldn’t imagine how anyone had ever worn it. A dark splotch marred one maybe-sleeve. Blood or mud? Either way, the person inside was gone. He looked up, searching the tunnel for the wearer.

But the passage was empty all the way to the dead end.

Chapter25

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