Chapter 70

CHAPTER SEVENTY

Ryker

After sunset, I traveled to where I'd meet Ellery and waited for her to arrive through a portal. She emerged five minutes later.

She looked a lot better than a few weeks ago. She hadn't regained all her weight but had gained lean muscle from our training.

However, shadows still circled her eyes, and I suspected she wasn't sleeping well, even after all the work we were doing together and her labor at the manor. Her eyes still didn't shine as bright as they used to, but some of the sparkle had returned to them since her mother was freed.

"Did you see the notice about the taxes?" I asked.

She closed her portal before responding. "I did."

"Do you need more carisle to pay them?"

"No, we still have enough left for this round of taxes, but we'll probably need something soon. For now, we're getting by."

I could only imagine how much they'd scrimped and saved to make that money last this long, but I didn't ask about it. Ellery and her mother had a lot of pride; they would rely on me as little as possible, and I didn't blame them.

"Do you know any details about what will happen when they come to collect the taxes?" she asked.

"Ivan's going to run a dozen or more carriages through all the towns and all the homes and businesses on the outskirts of them. As the caravan progresses, it will collect his money before returning to the palace."

"How do you know that?"

I smiled bitterly. "I'm the son of the duke."

"You talked to your father about it?"

"I occasionally see him. It helps keep him off my back. I've been there more times than I would like this week, but it was necessary to learn what was happening with the taxes."

"You plan to go after the caravan."

"Don't you?"

She bit her lip as her eyes darted past me. "It sounds tempting and would be a strike against Ivan, but it's a big risk, Ryker."

That was the first time I'd heard her call him Ivan and not King Ivan; I was starting to rub off on her. I wasn't sure if that was good or bad.

"It is a big risk, but we always knew we'd have to start taking them," I said.

"We did. So, are we going to start training?"

"Not tonight."

"Why not?"

"We're going to plan for a robbery. Tucker and Ianto are expecting us."

"Ryker…."

"What?"

She hesitated before speaking again. "We have to devise a really good plan for this. If we don't, then we shouldn't do it. We'll be putting ourselves at risk if we don't."

"There's no need to worry about that."

"Why not?"

Because I'd never let anything happen to you.

The words were on the tip of my tongue, but I would never utter them. "Because I'm not a fool, Ellery. I've commanded troops on a battlefield and understand the importance of a solid plan when it comes to taking down the enemy."

My words were more clipped than I anticipated, but my inability to shake my feelings for this woman irritated me. I'd destroyed countless enemies but couldn't destroy what I felt for her.

"Enough of Tucker's followers have progressed in their training to the point where they can help. We also have your expertise as the Robber and mine as a general."

"Is that enough to successfully steal from the king?"

"Yes."

"And what if it's a trap? They're not after the Hooded Robber as much as they were before I retired, but this could be their way of trying to draw me out."

"We'll plan for that. We're plotting a rebellion and building an army for it. We need money for that, and it's time to do something more than train in the woods."

"Ryker—"

"You're either with me or you're not, Ellery."

She planted her hands on her hips. "I'm always with you; I'm just pointing out things to pay attention to."

"And we will take all of them into consideration. We won't proceed unless we're all comfortable with the plan and think it will succeed. We're not going to rush into this."

"Okay. Then let's see what we can come up with and if it has a chance of working."

"Good. Let's go meet with Tucker and Ianto."

I'd had reservations about bringing the giant in on this until we got to know him better, but we'd taken him to the encampment and revealed a lot of things to him. We might regret keeping him shut out when we could use him.

Besides, my gut told me to trust him, and so did Tucker. I started to open a portal, but her next words stopped me.

"Why didn't you let me sit beside Ianto last night?"