The War of Two Queens (Blood and Ash 4)

That couldn’t happen. “How do we get him out of here?”

“You really want to risk this?” Kieran demanded. “With him?”

“How long does it take to recover from bloodlust?” I asked instead of answering. “How long before the person can become enough of themselves again?”

Kieran sucked in air, but no words came out. Looking away, he dragged his hand over his face.

“We don’t have a choice,” I said, softening my voice. “Malik knows that. I know that. You do, too. So, how do we get him out of here?”

Kieran’s hand fell to his side. “We’ll have to knock him out.”

My throat dried. “We have to hurt him?”

“It’s the only way.” Kieran shook his head. “And then hope he stays unconscious long enough.”

Heart hurting, I turned back to Casteel. He thrashed, reaching for me. I saw nothing of him in his face. His eyes. “I…I don’t know if I can do it without hurting him more. I’ve never used the essence for something like that, and I—”

“I can do it,” Malik said. “Kieran, I’m going to need you to distract him long enough for me to get behind him.”

Kieran gave a sharp nod and then made his move, stepping around me. A second later, Malik rushed under the chain. Casteel whipped around, but Malik was already behind him. He folded an arm around Casteel’s throat, clamping down on his windpipe with what I knew was likely one squeeze away from crushing that cartilage.

Casteel threw himself back, knocking Malik into the wall, but Malik held on, squeezing and squeezing as Casteel clawed at his arms, at the air—

I wanted to look away. I wanted to close my eyes and scream, but I forced myself to see this. To watch until Casteel’s movement became sluggish and blurred and he finally went limp in Malik’s arms.

It took minutes.

Minutes I knew would haunt me.

“Gods,” Malik grunted, gently laying Casteel down. He looked over his shoulder at the wall. “The chains? They’re in there pretty well.”

“Reaver?” I rasped. “Can you break them?”

The draken strode forward, kneeling near the wall. He looked over at us. “I would suggest leaving the chains on him until we know he’s calm.”

“No.” I stepped forward. “I want the chains off.”

“I want them off, too,” Kieran said. “But we’ll probably need them when he wakes up.”

“Yeah,” Malik agreed. “The last thing we need is for him to get away from us.”

I hated this. Hated all of it. “Can we get the shackles off his ankles and neck, at least?”

Malik nodded, looking down at his brother. “We can do that,” he said, his voice thick.

Reaver leaned down, his mouth opening as Kieran turned me away.

“Good gods,” I heard Malik rasp as silvery flames lit the dark walls. “You’re a fucking draken.” There was a beat of silence. “That’s why those knights were smoldering.”

Kieran’s gaze met mine as I heard a heavy chain fall, clanging off the stone. Silently, he lifted his hands to my cheeks. Another chain hit the floor. I flinched. Kieran swept his thumbs across my cheeks, wiping away tears. A third chain clattered, and Kieran’s eyes went beyond me. A few moments later, he nodded and let go. I turned to see Reaver carefully placing the bone chains still attached to the shackles on Casteel’s wrists on his too-still chest.

I looked down at my palm. The golden imprint shimmered faintly in the shadowy cell. He’s alive. I kept telling myself that. He’s alive.

Kieran went to Casteel’s side. “I’ll carry him.”

“No,” Malik bit out. “He’s my brother. And if you want him, you’re going to have to pry him from my dead fingers. I’m carrying him.”

Kieran looked as if he wished to do just that, but he relented. “Then where are we going?”

Malik strode forward. “To a friend’s.”

I followed him out of the cell, stopping long enough to place my hand on the stone. The essence roared through me as I brought the ceiling of the cell down.

No one would ever be kept there again.

We followed Malik through a winding maze of halls and tunnels until he turned into a narrow, cramped passageway that smelled of damp soil and sewage. I knew we were near ground level.

The opening ahead looked to be what remained of a brick wall. It had half collapsed, leaving an opening wide enough to squeeze through. I followed close behind Malik, my attention never straying far from Casteel. He hadn’t stirred once under Kieran’s cloak, which had been draped over him, hiding his body and the chains.

There was no time to stop and heal Casteel’s wound, something that cut at me with each step we took. But that kind of wound wouldn’t only take a few seconds to close, and we ran the risk of waking him during the process.

“What were you all planning to do when you found Cas?” Malik asked as I wiggled through the opening, the rough edges of the bricks snagging my cloak. “Fight your way out the main gates?”