The Key (12 page)

“Your proof?” Darmik asked, sick to his stomach. The smell
and thought of so much death at his father’s hands was overwhelming.

“Exactly
,” the king smiled. “I personally put each head and tattoo in its box, and labeled and stored them below the ground in this room. I have the immediate royal family consisting of King Revan, Queen Kayln, Prince Davan, Prince Jetan, and Princess Amer.” It sounded like he was showing off his sword collection, not a bunch of people he had killed.

Darmik found the names
written on the page. “But there are more than five boxes.”

Reaching for the book, King Barjon turned the page.
“I also have the extended family,” he revealed, excitement in his voice. “I had everyone remotely linked by blood killed. They were easy to identify with my records and with the knowledge of the tattoo.” King Barjon laughed, enjoying himself.

Darmik had always known his
father had proof, but seeing it solidified the fact that so many had been slaughtered for no real reason other than power. And by serving his father, Darmik was also now responsible for these deaths.

“
So it’s all here?” Darmik asked, swallowing his revulsion.

“Yes. It took me over a year to get all the extended family, but I did. Personally saw to it.”
There were small checkmarks in the book next to each name.

Flipping
through the pages, Darmik saw that each family was broken down in more detail, including birth dates, where they lived, and how members met and married.

If King Barjon had what he said in the boxes
and everything matched the book, then there was no possible way for an heir to be alive. Which meant Darmik had to verify the contents of each box against the records.

Rema

Rema didn’t want to leave the blankets hanging from the window, but there was no way to untie them from the ground. Hopefully, she would be gone by the time someone noticed. She sprinted along the side of the castle until the stables were in sight. The fastest way home was on a horse. Stealing, especially from a governor, was punishable by death. However, the risk was worth it—remaining locked up at Lord Filmar’s with the volatile prince didn’t seem like a better option.

A large garden separated the castle from the horse pasture.
Crouching low, Rema made her way alongside the bushes in the garden. When she reached the wood fence surrounding the pasture, she slid up against it. No one was about. A faint light came from the east end of the stables. She inched her way toward the open door, listening for voices. Everything remained quiet. Peering inside, the corridor between the stalls was empty.

There wasn’t much time until her absence was discovered. Biting her lip, Rema entered. Mo
vement came from her right, and she froze. A sleeping stable hand rolled onto his side on a pile of hay right next to the door. Once his breathing became rhythmic and heavy, Rema relaxed and made her way deeper into the barn.

The governor
had often bought horses from her farm so there were several that she recognized. One in particular, a gelding that was solid brown except for a patch of white on his face, was particularly fast. Rema had even named him Lightning. Using a soothing voice, she unlatched the door and entered his stall. He greeted her with a nudge to her ear, and she laughed.

Being cautious not to jingle any metal pieces,
Rema saddled the horse. Once he was ready, she tied her dress between her legs so she could ride like a man. Her hands shook, and she had to grip Lightning’s mane to steady herself. Sweat beaded on her forehead as she imagined soldiers storming in and arresting her.

Rema
needed to be off the governor’s land before anyone noticed she wasn’t in her room. She led the horse from its stall, hoping he remained calm and steady. A basket filled with carrots hung on the wall. Rema snatched a handful, feeding them to Lightning as they neared the exit. She extinguished the lantern, and then led Lightning past the sleeping stable hand.

O
utside, they kept close to the building. Her only hope was that the governor didn’t keep men posted at the back gate. She peered around the side of the barn to get a clear view of the exit. No one was standing guard. On top of the castle, there were three soldiers walking the perimeter of the roof. After watching their patrol route, Rema discovered she had a ten-second window to remain unseen. Mounting, she angled the horse just north of the gate.

She couldn’t waste any more time.
When the last guard turned the corner, she kicked Lightning’s side, and he raced forward to the wall. As soon as they reached it, Rema slid from the horse, pushing him against the stones, hoping they remained hidden. Her breath was ragged and her body numb from fear. When no shouts came, she leaned forward, watching the guards once again. When the last one went around the side of the tower on the rooftop, Rema pulled Lightning closer to the gate. Her breath came out in white puffs into the chilly night air. The next guard came into view, and she froze. Once he passed by, she slid the gate open, led Lightning through, and closed it again. Rema kept the horse against the wall, out of sight. Mounting, she looked to the rooftop for the last time. After the guards did another round, she urged Lightning forward, into the forest.

Using only the light from the moon, Rema made her way toward the front of the governor’s land, to the only road she was familiar with. Once she found the dirt path, she stayed next to it, hidden in the forest, until she was confident they’d traveled at least a mile. Needing to distance herself from the prince’s soldiers, Rema guided Lightning onto the road, pushing him into a full gallop.

Riding as fast as the horse cou
ld go in the dead of night, they traveled on the same trail her uncle used. The tall trees cast ghostly shadows on the dirt road, making it hard to see. An owl hooted, and Rema jumped.
Focus
, she scolded herself,
keep your eyes open
. There wasn’t much time, and falling from the horse or colliding with a tree wasn’t an option.

Rema did
n’t know the road well enough to be traveling so swiftly, but she had no choice. As soon as she was discovered missing, the soldiers would descend upon her like wolves chasing a fat rabbit. And if those soldiers were anything like the ones that captured her yesterday, she didn’t stand a chance.

The trees thinned
, and Rema came to a fork in the road. The path going left went into her village; the one on the right went to her house. She paused Lightning to listen. Crickets chirped. No sounds of pursuit. Nudging the horse, they headed home.

It was still dark
outside when Lightning skidded to a halt in front of Rema’s house. She had only been gone a little over a day, and yet, it felt much longer because so much had happened. Everything had changed. Dismounting, she ran inside and found her aunt and uncle asleep in the sitting room, dressed in the same clothes she had last seen them wearing.

The door banged shut
, and Uncle Kar jumped from his chair.

“Rema?”

“I’m home!” Rema started sobbing as she ran into her uncle’s open arms.

“Oh, honey. Are you all right? We were so worried when you didn’t come home last night.” His arms held
onto her shoulders and he took a step back to examine her.

Aunt Maya woke up. “What happened?” She came over and embraced Rema. “I was scared I’d never see you again.” Her voice broke as she started crying.

Rema knew they didn’t have much time.

“I escaped. Soldiers will be here any minute. We have to go to the safe cave.”

Aunt Maya and Uncle Kar looked at each other.

“It’s time,” Maya said.

Uncle Kar nodded. “Get your cloaks and boots as fast as possible.”

Rema ran to her room and put trousers on under her dress. Then she threw
on her heavy wool cloak and tied it. Grabbing her sturdiest boots, she laced them with fumbling hands.

When she went back to the sitting room, her aunt and uncle were
already there, ready to go.

“What happened at the governor’s?” Uncle Kar asked.

“Not now,” Rema pushed the back door open. “We can talk in the cave. Let’s go.”

They rushed out
side. Rema went toward the barn.

“No,” Kar said. “We can’t take the horses.”

“What!” Rema exclaimed. She had no intention of leaving Snow behind.

“They’ll be able to track us too easily. We have to
go on foot. Now move. There isn’t much time.” Uncle Kar looked to the barn, his eyes glassy. “We need to put as much distance between them and us as possible.”

Maya led the way to
ward the forest.

“But we can’t just leave them here,” Rema said, afraid for
the horses. “Who will feed them? What if we’re gone for a week? They’ll starve to death.”

Uncle Kar stopped.

“Keep moving,” Aunt Maya demanded.

Rema stood between them, torn.

“I’ll take care of it,” Uncle Kar said. “You two go on. I’ll meet you at the cave.”

“Kar,” Maya said, “Rema’s our priority. Now let’s go.”

“I know,” he responded. “But I can’t let the horses fend for themselves. I’ll go by Bren’s and ask him to look after the animals. His place is only a mile away, and if I run, it’ll only take me fifteen minutes.”

Aunt Maya
kissed Uncle Kar’s cheek. “Be careful,” she said. Then she grabbed Rema’s hand and headed into the dark forest, leaving Kar behind.

“Hopefully no one has discovered I’m gone yet,” Rema said.

“We need to prepare for the worst-case scenario. Assume they’ll be here any second. Keep moving.”

The sky
was turning gray. Within twenty minutes, they would no longer be shielded by the night.

“Should we run?” Rema asked.

“No. Just focus on not leaving a trail.”

After five minutes of silence, Aunt Maya spoke softly.
“Rema, what happened?”

Rema gave her aunt a condensed version of the dinner party, being locked in the bedchamber, and Prince Lennek’s proposal.

“Did he say why he wanted to marry you?” Aunt Maya asked.

“No. He said the reasons weren’t my concern.”

Aunt Maya’s breathing was strained. Rema hoped her aunt would make it to the cave.

“But did he say anything about your name?” Aunt Maya asked.

“No.”

“Anything you thought was crazy or absurd?”

“No. Why? What are you getting at?” Rema asked.
Aunt Maya never talked just to fill the silence. Everything she said had a purpose.

“We’ll talk about it at the cave. Keep moving.”

Now that the
y could see better with the rising sun, they moved faster.

A piercing scream echoed through the forest
, causing birds to leave the safety of the trees and fly into the air. Rema froze.

Aunt Maya turned to face her, tears filling her eyes. “
We have to go faster.”

“
Was that Uncle Kar?” Rema stammered.

Aunt Maya walked quietly over the dry leaf flooring of the forest. There was another scream, longer this time, ringing through the air.
It sounded like someone had yelled, “Run.”

“We can’t leave him!” Rema’s voice cracked.

Aunt Maya stopped, her entire body shaking. “We must stick to the plan. It’s what he would want us to do. We can’t go back.”

But they couldn’t possibly leave him behind. They had to help. Rema
turned and headed back the way they’d come.

“Rema, no!” Aunt Maya ran to catch up with her. “You can’t let the king get his hands on you.”

“Prince Lennek wants me, not the king. And I won’t sacrifice my uncle.”

Aunt Maya looked
stricken. Rema kept moving, and her aunt reluctantly joined her. Together, they ran to the edge of the forest, and then stopped, surveying the large, open field. The horse pasture was filled with soldiers. Through a part in the mob, Rema got a clear view of Uncle Kar on his knees, blood running down the side of his face. His shirt was torn open, and his chest was covered with blood. The soldiers’ swords were all drawn and pointed at him.

Rema reached for Aunt Maya’s hand
and squeezed it as they crouched down into the tall grass.

“We don’t stand a chance. I have to protect you. Let’s go.” Maya pulled Rema back toward the forest.

“No,” Rema said, letting go of her aunt’s hand. “I have to try.”

“You’re unarmed and only one person. You can’t fight twenty soldiers.”

A soldier shifted, blocking Rema’s view of Uncle Kar, but giving her a clear view of Prince Lennek. He stood next to Kar, his cape floating in the wind. Rema was about to rush forward when a loud metal bang came from inside the barn. It sounded like a bucket they used to feed the horses had fallen from the wall, crashing onto the ground.

Prince Lennek pointed toward the barn, and a soldier left the formation to investigate. It looked like Uncle Kar
was saying something, but Rema was too far away to hear what. Keeping low in the tall grass, Rema crawled forward while Maya followed behind her. When they were about fifty feet from the barn, the soldier exited, dragging someone behind him. Rema held still, trying to see who was in the soldier’s grip.

The soldier yelled, “I found this man inside the barn!” He dragged Bren toward the circle of soldiers. Bren struggled, his face bloody
. The soldier put his sword next to Bren’s neck.

Prince Lennek spun toward them.

Uncle Kar tried speaking, but a soldier stepped forward and backhanded him across the face.

“You will not speak, unless spoken to!” Prince Lennek sneered. “What’s this? Who is this man? Identify him.”

The soldier holding Bren shoved him inside the circle, forcing Bren to his knees. He lifted Bren’s arm and read his band. “This is Bren, eighteen years old, engaged to Rema.”