27. Zarios

Chapter twenty-seven

My meeting with Prator had finished twenty minutes ago, and there was no sign of Sorcha. I was worried. Had she been caught? I didn't think so. I would have heard it by now.

That meeting was hell. I pretended to be interested in the tax proposition his underling had brought forth months ago. I acted interested to give Sorcha time, asking questions I didn't care about and pretending to consider his underhanded bribe—though with the amount he offered, I couldn't help but wonder where he got it. Though Thvetharion did well, they didn't do that well, even with a greedy leader.

I was thinking of finding her myself when the door clicked open. I was on my feet in a second.

"Did you find anything?" I asked quickly.

Sorcha nodded, her eyes cast down.

"Did he do it?" I asked.

"Yes," she said, her face pinched, "but he had an accomplice."

"An accomplice? That would make sense. It's a big operation, and he's not the brightest. We'll find them eventually." Still, this did change things. If we just took Prator out, his accomplice would probably go into hiding, and I wanted to find them before that.

She swallowed hard, and I knew there was something else.

"What aren't you telling me?" I asked, dread clawing up my throat.

She looked me in my eyes. "You know I would never lie to you, right?"

"I do." And I meant it.

"Okay." She paused for another moment. "I found these letters in a fake bottom of a drawer. I sifted through them briefly, which is when I realized he was working with someone. I thought we would catch them later—until someone walked in."

She averted her gaze again. Someone I knew.

I clenched my knuckles. "Who was it?"

"Damyr," she said so quietly, I almost didn't hear it.

"No," I said quickly. "You must be mistaken."

She put her hand on my arm. "I'm so sorry, Zarios. I snuck into the closet and saw him myself. I'm sure you would recognize his handwriting."

She pulled out the letters. I snatched them from her—probably too abruptly—and looked through them.

I read all the words detailing the betrayal. Talking about where to attack and when. Outlining my downfall.

All written in my best friend's handwriting.

I dropped the letters, the parchment scattering below me. Sorcha took me in her arms, and I curled around her, letting her be my strength. Devastation didn't even cover the way I felt. It felt as if my heart was ripped from my chest, a betrayal I couldn't begin to understand.

All the things that had happened slowly started to make sense. His disappearance during the attack, the prisoner we found dead… He was the only one who saw what happened. Even when he'd first come back, I thought he'd seemed different. I thought he'd just gotten better, but it was obvious I was wrong.

I had no clue why he did what he did or how, but I would find out.

Soon.

I pulled away, feeling a slight dampness around my eyes I forced back. I would grieve the friend I thought I had later. Now, we needed a plan.

We went through the motions of the next few days. Prator didn't seem to suspect anything, and neither did Damyr. We attended the ball and pretended everything was fine, even though I was dying inside. Sorcha stayed by my side, giving me small squeezes and glances that told me she felt for me.

After a long discussion that first night, we decided to deal with it back in Ashmore. All Claraks were expected to attend the final mating ceremony, and there would be more room for error there. We weren't sure who else was in on it in Thvetharion, and we couldn't take chances. Though we didn't expect any outward attacks here, it would be too obvious.

To my surprise, Prator easily accepted Sorcha. I wasn't sure if it was to move their plan along and get us out or because he actually found her worthy, but either way, I didn't care. His judgment meant nothing to me.

Last night, I had her write a letter to her mothers, letting them know the situation and telling them to prepare for anything. The letters had no detail, but with his easy acceptance, it was plain to see they had something planned. We had to be ready.

Prator planned to follow our troupe back to the city. I agreed and insisted Damyr stay with Prator. Though he fought it at first, I convinced him they needed extra protection. While it might have been better to have him travel with us, I couldn't stand being so close to him for that long. My hand sat on my blade the entire way back. Luckily, it wasn't too far, and we made it with no issues.

At least in Ashmore, there was more security. Though I still wasn't aware of all the involvement, I knew there would be less than in Thvetharion.

When we arrived, Prator went to settle in, and I instructed Damyr to prepare the guards for the event tomorrow. I counted all of them out anyway, they worked too closely with Damyr to be trusted .

He did as requested, and I ordered Kiaza to find Naram, who'd arrived that morning, and meet us in my office in an hour.

We had time to kill, but I just wanted to lie down. I wanted to bury myself under the blankets and never come out.

"Hey," Sorcha said. I realized I was just staring at a wall. "Follow me."

I took her hand and allowed her to lead me away. She brought me to an abandoned training room. It was old, with outdated mats and weapons on the walls.

"What's this?" I asked.

She passed me a practice sword. "I thought you could use this."

I smiled at her. She took her position, and I matched her. She took the first swing, one I parried easily. We continued the back and forth. Neither of us went all out, just flexing our muscles and practicing a bit.

It got me out of my head, putting my focus on our match. Though we were going easy, I still wished to win.

She faked left and went low, and I almost missed it. I regained focus and struck the right. She easily blocked but was caught off balance by the quick movement.

I saw that as my chance and went for the left. However, this time, she planted her foot firmly and blocked. It was a risky move, and now, I was off balance.

She took advantage, safely sweeping my feet and knocking me over. She moved quickly, tackling me and drawing the fake sword to my throat. Her smile was triumphant.

"Told you I'd take you down," she said proudly.

I couldn't help it. I pulled her in, planting a firm kiss to her lips, and she let me, melting into me.

This woman was becoming my lifeline. One I couldn't go without.

When she pulled away, she asked, "Do you do that with all your sparring partners?"

I laughed for the first time in days. "I would think not. Naram sure wouldn't appreciate that."

She shrugged. "I don't know. He seemed very open-minded."

I rolled quickly, flipping her to her back, sitting over her on my hands. "Thank you," I said against her lips.

"Of course," she said, caressing my face with her hands. "Anything."

Stay.

I wanted to say it, but it didn't feel right. I needed my kingdom to be safe. Then, I would tell her how I felt. I couldn't be sure she would agree to stay, and though that scared the hell out of me, I couldn't miss the chance. After everything that happened, I couldn't just let her go, not without trying.

The fear of her rejection weighed so heavily, it threatened to crush me.

I brought my lips down to hers, trying to tell her without words, but she needed them, deserved them.

"We should probably go," I said, standing and offering her my hand.

She took it easily and held it the whole way to the meeting room .

When we arrived, Naram was there along with Kiaza. "What's happened?" he asked as we entered. "Did you find the culprit?"

I nodded, unable to speak.

"Who is it?"

I cleared my throat, and Sorcha squeezed my hand in comfort. "Prator is involved, which we expected, but…" I pulled the letters out of my bag.

Naram took them, his eyes roaming over each page. I sat down, letting him read. I could tell when he got to the part Damyr wrote, asking for a group to kill Naram. His face pinched with the same pain I felt. Sorcha took the seat next to mine, her eyes filled with empathy.

Kiaza looked over his shoulder, her eyes widening in realization.

"This can't be real," Naram said after a moment.

"I didn't want to believe it either," I said. "But there's hard evidence. He was also the only one unaccounted for during the attack, the only one who saw the prisoner die. It's him."

Naram stood, pacing the floor. "I don't understand. Why would he betray us? Betray you?"

I swallowed. "I have no idea." I gestured for Sorcha to pass me the book, and she did easily. I opened to the page. "The men that night were wearing this symbol." I passed it over to him, his eyes scanning the passage.

"What wrong has been done to him? If anything, we helped the poor bastard before he threw his entire life away."

He chucked the book against the wall so hard, it left a dent.

I stood, resting my hand on his shoulder. "Why?" he whispered.

"I don't know, but we're going to stop him. That's why I brought you in. We need a plan."

He clasped my hand. "Anything, brother."

We shared a moment of understanding. It used to be the three of us, but Damyr was no longer the friend we knew. There would be plenty of time to grieve, but now was time for action.

Sorcha spoke up. "They're probably planning something for tomorrow. Everyone's here, and it's the perfect opportunity to set out whatever goal they had."

I agreed. "I assume they're trying to take me down. Replace me, that's what it sounded like. There can be formal challenges to the Grand Clarak at any time, but it seems neither choose to go that route."

"Probably because they knew they couldn't win," Naram said.

I huffed. "That was my assumption as well, so they need to do something else. Their plans to start a war with other nations have failed thus far, so they had to change tactics. The notes end well before that, so I'm not sure what their next move is."

"Get you to give up by force," Sorcha said. Her eyes were wide, as if she'd figured it all out. "They're trying to target things you care about. Naram, your kingdom…me."

I realized where she was going. "You think they're going to use you as leverage? "

She shrugged. "It's the only thing they have left. If they can use me to get to you, they probably think you'd give up to get me back."

"I would," I said, holding her gaze. "They're right."

She swallowed hard.

"That's not an option," Naram cut in. "So if that's their plan, when would they do it?"

"I would guess tonight," I said. "Intended mates are supposed to spend the night before the final mating alone. It would give them enough time to get you somewhere else before anyone noticed."

"So we need to stop them before that," I said.

"No," Sorcha said.

"No?"

"This is our chance," she said, obviously on a roll. "Even if you arrest them now, whatever faction they have will still be out there. I'm sure they'll take me to whatever hideout they have, and we'll be able to flush them out all at once."

I shook my head. "No. We can't put you at risk."

"I won't be. You'll follow from a safe distance and surprise them, taking them all out."

"It's not a bad idea," Naram said unhelpfully. "I have some trustworthy men we can take, and I'm sure you have a few as well."

I did, and while the logic was sound, I couldn't risk it. I couldn't risk her. "No. It's too dangerous. There has to be another option."

"There's not." She stood, walking over to me. "This is what I came here for. To prove myself. To help save your people. We're running out of time, and this is our best option."

"You don't need to prove yourself to anyone," I said harshly, grabbing her shoulders. "You are an excellent fighter, with a brave heart and a fighting spirit. Anyone with a brain would be lucky to have you on their side. But I can't risk you. If something happened, I…" I didn't know what I would do.

Her eyes were wet but determined. "Then it's your job to not let anything happen to me. Though I can hold my own, I know you'll be there to have my back."

I looked to Naram, who kept his face neutral. I knew either decision I made, he would support me. We could come up with something else. But Sorcha was right, this was our best chance.

"Fine," I conceded. "We do it your way. I'll keep you safe."

She leaned into me. "I know."