The Pledge (The Pledge 1)

I tried to imag Jo g qo imag Jine what that must have been like for Max, and for Xander. To grow up without their father, knowing that their mother had abandoned them for a price. To live in this palace without their parents.

I looked up again, and this time I could feel the tears threatening to spill. My voice shook. “What of my parents, Zafir? What about Aron? Where do you think they are right now?”

“They’re here,” he stated flatly.

The scraping noise that came from the other side of the enormous carved canopy bed sounded like one heavy boulder sliding over the top of another. It wasn’t until Zafir left his post at the door and grabbed my arm, dragging me close, that I could see the opening in the wall itself. A hidden doorway.

I peered inside the hole and saw Xander’s wide smile. Claude stood by his side, no smile. And then I saw Max pushing past them both. He reached for me, hauling me close and kissing my hair, my cheeks, my lips.

“You’re safe?” he breathed against my forehead, and I nodded, self-conscious to have so many eyes on us.

I could scarcely believe he’d come for me.

“Hurry,” Xander urged. “I don’t know how much time we have before they realize we’re missing.”

“What is this place?” I asked, looking around at the narrow opening—a hidden hallway behind the walls of the castle—as Max was already pulling me along. Behind me, I heard that shrill grating sound once more as Zafir resealed the cavity.

“We used to play in these passageways when we were boys,” Max explained, and as the flame from Xander’s lamp flickered over their faces, I could see the grins that he and Max exchanged. “They run throughout the palace, connecting almost all of the rooms and running belowground. Xander and I would sneak into the cellars and hunt for treasure. There’s an entire chamber filled with artifacts dating back to your family’s reign.” More quietly, he added, “It’s where I found the locket.”

Xander led the way. His steps were sure, as if he could have negotiated his way without any light at all. Mine were less so, and I clung to Max, following his physical cues. When he moved, I moved. When he halted, I did as well.

Zafir remained at the rear, guarding our backs. And ahead of Max and me, Claude looked ready for attack.

“Where are we going?” I asked.

It was Xander who answered, as we turned and turned again, traversing a twisting maze of tunnels. “I was afraid Sabara might pull something like this, so I had Brooklynn gather some men to follow us. Of course, they didn’t have the luxury of a royal transport, but they should be here soon.”

“And then what?”

Max squeezed my hand. “Then we get your parents and your friend, and we get the hell out of here.”

Everything changed the moment we emerged from the narrow passages into a dungeonlike cellar. Oil-filled sconces lined the hallways, making everything just a little too clear as we found ourselves face-to-face with an armed contingent of at least twenty men, all dressed in bl Jo g q in bl Joodred—the color of the queen’s guard.

Xander reacted first, moving slowly as he placed his lamp at his feet. Max gradually drew me behind him, away from the others, until our backs were braced against the wall.

One of the queen’s men stepped forward from the rest. His uniform was decorated with the glittering gold stars and tassels of a commanding officer. His expression was formidable. “Stop where you are,” he ordered. “I want to see your hands.” And then he leveled his gaze on me. “All of you.”

I obeyed, lifting my hands in front of me, but Max pushed them back down again, refusing to surrender. “We’ve done nothing wrong,” he stated, his voice unwavering as he positioned himself to stand in front of me. “Back down now and no one will get hurt.” A meaningful glance was exchanged among all four of the men I traveled with. I seemed to be the only one who thought we were outnumbered.

There was a charged silence, a moment when twenty men in red stood like an impassive, imbreachable wall staring back at Max and Xander and Claude and Zafir. We had size on our side. They had sheer numbers.

“Xander! Watch out!” It was Max’s hoarse bellow that drew my attention as one of the queen’s guards broke away from the ranks and was advancing on his brother.

Xander moved like a blur, reaching for his ankle and whipping back up again with a knife that had been hidden in the side of his boot. He slashed a wide arc through the air, quickly and efficiently, and the guard fell to the ground, thrashing violently while his fingers tried in vain to seal the open wound at his throat.

Claude and Zafir were in the fray before my heart could beat again.

Max pressed me farther back, refusing to leave me even though I knew he longed to join them.

Three men assailed Claude at once, and just when I thought he’d drop beneath their weight, Claude’s fist crashed upward, striking one man’s jaw with a sickening crack. A second man dropped to his knees when Claude snapped his arm like it was no more substantial than a child’s. The third screamed when his nose was shattered.

Xander’s blade easily cut down two more guards, blood staining the floor all around them.

Zafir fought like nothing I’d ever seen before, using his feet just as agilely as he used his hands, lashing out in powerful, sweeping chest kicks. He incapacitated several men before they learned to watch out for the rib-crushing maneuver.

“Help them,” I whispered, but Max just turned to look at me over his shoulder, his brows raised.