Page 89 of Knotted By the Triad

“King Zeyan has decreed that you be brought before him for investigation. If you cooperate, we'll deliver you to him alive. If you refuse, I've been given permission to execute whatever justice I see fit.”

The Prime Minister laughed. Actually laughed.

“You?” he sneered.

“Yes.”

His gaze moved from me to Daemin, then Zian.

“You're all just Triad scum. You're not noble.” His contempt filled every word. “I only married my daughter to you to get access to Triad resources. It doesn't make you my equal.”

Mei Lin made a broken sound behind him. I smiled.

“Then I have excellent news,” I told him.

His eyes narrowed.

“I've also received a decree annulling the marriage between Mei Lin and us.”

Mei Lin’s wail filled the air. I didn't look at her.

“We only have one wife,” I told him. “And that’s Zuri Bane.”

His face twisted. “Kill them! And send in more guards!”

The first guard lunged. I opened his throat before his second step landed. Blood sprayed across the table. The room erupted into chaos. Two men came for me at once. I caught the first blade against mine, twisted, and drove my sword beneath its owner's ribs.

He screamed as I ripped it free. The next swung for my neck. I ducked. His sword passed over my head. I drove mine through his stomach. Behind me, a man screamed. Daemin's blade sliced across his chest.

Another guard rushed Daemin from the side. Daemin caught the man's wrist, snapped it hard enough that bone broke through skin, then buried his sword through the man's throat. Zian kicked one attacker backward into the table.

Dishes shattered. The man barely regained his footing before Zian's blade cut across his stomach. His insides spilled onto the floor. Another came behind him. He turned. The man's sword descended.

Zian stepped inside the strike, caught the attacker's arm, and drove his own sword beneath the man's jaw. The blade came out through the top of his skull. He ripped it free. Another guard rushed forward with a roar. I blocked his first strike. Then his second. He raised his sword again. I cut through his forearm. His severed hand hit the table, still clutching the weapon.

He screamed. I shoved my sword through his chest and kicked him off the blade. Someone grabbed me from behind. I slammed my head backward into his face. Cartilage crunched. His grip loosened.

I turned and sliced across his throat. Hot blood sprayed my face. The man collapsed at my feet, choking on it. A chair shattered against the wall. Daemin drove one guard face-first onto the broken remains and stabbed him through the back.

Zian finished another with one clean cut across the throat. The last man looked around. Bodies covered the dining room. Blood soaked the rug. One of his companions was still twitching beneath the table.

He dropped his sword. “Wait...”

Daemin killed him before another word left his mouth. Silence fell. Heavy breathing. Soft sobbing from the corner. Blood dripped from my sword onto the floor. I wiped my blade across the robes of the nearest corpse and looked toward the head of the table. The Prime Minister wasn't there. Neither was Mei Lin.

“Where the fuck are they?” I roared.

Daemin turned. Zian scanned the room. The Prime Minister's wife stared at us from the corner, terrified. I could not let the PM get away. I couldn’t risk him going after Zuri. I turned and headed for the exit. That bastard was fleeing without his family. Coward.

“Kai!” Daemin shouted.

I was already through the door. I tore down the corridor, nearly knocking a servant aside as I reached the entrance. The front doors stood open. A carriage was pulling away. The Prime Minister pulled the carriage’s curtain closed.

“There he is!” I yelled when Daemin and Zian came outside behind me.

I ran after the carriage. The driver saw me. His whip cracked. The horses surged forward. I caught the back of the carriage before it gained enough speed to leave me behind. My boots dragged against the road for a second before I hauled myself onto the narrow platform. I ripped the door open. The Prime Minister spun toward me. I climbed inside as the carriage raced away.

“Find Mei Lin!” I shouted to Daemin and Zian. “Don't let her get away!”