Page 155 of Ashborne Forged

Grace was a bubbling pot. I had no doubt she’d be bouncing on her toes if we were face to face, and I could hardly wait to see it. But she wasn’t alone, so I had to take care. Thank God, her connection was far stronger than we’d enjoyed before. I didn’t know how our separation had helped her, but I was immensely grateful to hear her, even if our range was still shorter than we enjoyed with our dragons.

‘…I’m housed in the royal wing—the residential wing. We’re housed like family. I don’t understand it, but they greeted us personally and ushered us here.’

‘And he’s housed with you?’ I almost punched the wall of the secret passage as I slipped through the castle as silently and quickly as I could, following the link, and her guidance, to draw ever closer.

‘No, but he’s very close. Please, be careful. I’m sure he’s watching for anyone trying to help me—and probably has servants doing the same when we aren’t in chambers.’

‘He won’t see me coming.’

There was a pause, during which I climbed a set of stairs to the next level in the castle. She’d assured me that they would return to the rooms soon. I needed to intercept her in the quieter, residential wing. There were too many eyes where the nobles gathered. Too many chances for someone to recognize me, or catch sight of us.

‘Grace… dear god, it’s so good to hear your voice. I am so sorry—’

‘Hush. You’re here. I can’t… Voski, I’m…’ She trailed off as if afraid to speak and my heart clenched.

‘Has he hurt you? Touched you? I’ll kill him—’

‘No! No. I just… I don’t have words. I’ve been reaching for you every night. Trying to find you. Trying to find this. I’m so glad you’re here.’

I nodded and swallowed hard. ‘I won’t leave Fyrehold until I take you with me,’ I assured her. ‘We have a plan.’

‘Voski, I can’t just leave. If I disappear he’s going to make the king ruin my parents. They won’t survive it. And then he’ll hunt me down again. But, don’t worry, I have a plan.’

A burst of rage lit up my chest. I wanted to scream that her people shouldn’t receive an ounce of compassion after putting her in this position. But I could feel her fragility, her worry about angering me—which made me sick—and her deep-seated fear of the retribution of these men.

‘We have a plan to free you in a way that won’t impact them,’ I assured her. ‘Don’t worry. Don’t give any energy to that. Just hold onto the bond. I’m here, Grace. And I won’t leave the kingdom without you. I swear.’

Between her directions, and my knowledge of the castle, I was able to position myself in the walls of the corridor where she’d been housed. She was right. She’d been given rooms just two hallways away from the royals’ personal chambers. A breathless honor, though the implications were terrifying. But I couldn’t think straight enough to parse out what it could mean, and I wouldn’t until I’d touched her again.

My sneaky little mate faked lightheadedness, and was led out of the gathering downstairs, warning me that she’d be in the rooms within moments.

The doors on this floor all looked the same, which meant the image of her chamber position wasn’t entirely clear. So, I lay in wait in the walls. A passage ran the length of this hallway, though on the opposite side of the hallway from the rooms. Peepholes here and there allowed a view of the corridor, and if any stepped into the alcoves, I’d be able to hear even whispers.

Once I knew where she was, I would find the way in.

‘Have you checked the room for passages, or hiding spaces?’ I knew she’d grown familiar with the castle, just as I had, in her previous visit.

But she sighed in my head. ‘This room has none. I’m certain it’s intentional. Apparently, my father warned Breckon about my penchant for adventures. I’m sure he asked them to put me in a room with no escape. He places guards at the door each night and—’ There was something else there, something that pressed on her chest, but before I could ask, shadows moved at the end of the hallway. And then I caught my first glimpse of her in two weeks, and my heart soared and crashed in the same breath.

She was stunning in a deep, sea-blue gown that framed her cleavage and collarbones so perfectly I ached to run a finger along the seam, to touch the warm skin there. To taste it. To taste her. Her hair coiled elegantly at her nape and she walked with her chin high, beaming. Eyes sparkling.

Yet, at her side, that pig of a man, resplendent in full, formal dinner dress. Dressed like this it was easy to see, his middle had thickened somewhat with age, but he remained strong and upright in his posture. He was older than Donavyn, the gray speckling through, and thickening to wings at his temples.

But he was a sour, pompous ass, and at the sight of him my hands twitched to close on his throat.

“What a smile you offer this evening. To what do we owe this brightening?” he asked drolly.

Grace didn’t even look at him, her eyes scanning the wall near where I stood, because she could sense my presence, but not my precise location.

“I did as you asked—I gave them a blissfully happy bride-to-be. Isn’t that what you wanted?”

They stopped at the door halfway down the hallway, and I watched carefully as Breckon opened the door for her. Grace gave one, short glance over her shoulder, her eyes almost meeting mine in the peephole, but she grimaced at something Breckon muttered, then disappeared behind the door that he closed firmly, while no less than four guards, who’d followed in their wake, positioned themselves in the hallway. One either side of the door, and two a few feet ahead, blocking access to it by any but the servants.

One woman, a maid, appeared moments later and was allowed entry. But the men immediately closed ranks again the moment she disappeared inside.

Fuck. Fuck.

‘Grace…’