To Love a Thief (Steel Hawk) (17 page)

Ignoring the snub, the prince admired his bejeweled fingers. “Enough does not exist when you think of diamonds and gems.” He jabbed his hand forward. “The diamond, I believe, is mine.”

Leaving her father’s side, uncertainty marring her beautiful face, she held out her hand to the prince.

The prince snatched the diamond from her palm, his disjointed laughter circling the room. “Power is a wonderful thing. And this beauty…” He unwrapped the diamond and held it up between finger and thumb, “is exactly what I need.”

Rose cast a gaze around the overly ostentatious room. “Greed is insidious. Don’t you have enough already?”

The prince glanced up from his adulation of the glittering jewel. “You’re wrong. Greed equals power, and that is exactly what I have with this diamond.”

“What about Princess Mary?” Alex’s sudden comment usurped the debauched royal’s concentration.

“Ah, Valetta. You are a fool, blinded by loyalty. You should have done as I asked.”

“Demanded,” countered Alex, suddenly standing taller. “I’m not afraid of you.”

“You should be. I would have killed you if it was not for your daughter seeing reason.”

Something wasn’t right. Nathan distanced himself from the conversation. He heard footsteps. Lots of them.

Shit!

He readied his blade. Too late! A legion of guards charged into the room, circling Rose, Alex and himself.

Bloody hell!

“Ah, just in time. Guards, take them away.”

“What? You promised my father in exchange for the diamond.”

“You have your father.”

“But we are to leave. You promised freedom. We had a deal.”

“And you believed me?” He shook his head, laughing again. “Such foolish hope. Do you not understand what we have just been talking about, Miss Valetta? You said I am greedy. I am indeed, and power hungry.”

“I gave you the diamond in exchange for my father.”

“True, but you cannot leave. Not yet. I cannot afford any word of this to get out until I get back to Zarrenburg. The holder of the diamond is the ultimate ruler, and that is me. I have waited years for this moment. I will not let people like you stop me. It is mine.” The man’s eyes glazed over, almost as if he were in a trance. “Remove them.”

“You can’t do this.”

The prince’s eyes widened. “Really? I thought I already was.”

Rose lunged at the prince, but two guards grabbed her and hauled her back. She struggled to get free.

“Leave her alone, you bastards.” Nathan shot out a fist and caught one guard on the chin. The second he managed to lunge at with his blade, slicing the man’s arm.

A howl of pain echoed, and the guard fell back. Others grabbed at him, at Rose, while a third stood with a rifle pointed directly at Alex’s head.

The guard cocked the rifle, and the room fell silent as all struggle ceased.

“You bastard, I hope you rot in hell,” Rose spat at the royal.

The man didn’t blink but offered a thin-lipped half smile. “Most likely. However, I am not interested in the afterlife but the riches and rewards of the here and now.” He nodded to the head guard, who had Rose in a viselike grip. “Take them away.” Then he added something Nathan couldn’t understand. He looked at Rose, who offered a slight shake of her head. Alex’s expression blanched. It seemed he understood quite clearly what was being said.

The guard held out his hand. “Hand over your weapon.”

Nathan hesitated. Without it, they hadn’t a hope in hell against these goons.

A second rifle was cocked and aimed toward Rosie.

Shit!

Nathan handed over his blade.

The guard stood back, waiting for them to walk in front of him. “Get moving.”

Rose took the lead, her father at her side while Nathan made sure he kept close behind them.

They wandered through a maze of corridors and down some stairs. At the bottom, they headed along a narrow corridor, cell doors on either side. At the last one, the guard reached for the lit torch.

Nathan took his chance to whisper in Rosie’s ear, “Tell me you understood what the prince said.”

“Sorry, they spoke too fast for me.”

“Damn.”

“Alex?”

The guard prodded him with his rifle. “Stop talking.”

“I’m frightened. It’s dark. He’s…comforting me.”

The guard guffawed, the sound echoing off the dank walls of what Nathan presumed now were part of the underground dungeon. They stood outside a securely locked door.

“I can offer comfort. Lots of women like it.”

“Really?” Rose stepped toward the guard. “It really is cold and scary down here.”

“I could warm you up.”

A growl sounded low in Nathan’s chest. Bloody hell, what was she doing?

Her gaze dropped slightly. He followed it, spying the blade at the man’s side. Nathan forced himself not to react and tempered his expression, lowering his gaze so the guard would not witness the revulsion Nathan knew to be mirrored there.

Smiling up at the guard, Rosie leaned toward him and trailed her fingers down his uniformed chest. “You are rather a unique specimen. All those muscles.” She fluttered her eyelashes at him.

Nathan’s chest tightened. He wanted to pound his fist into the man’s cheesy smile.

“Trouble is, I got my orders.” The soldier lifted the keys to the lock.

“How about a kiss first?” Rose reached up and caressed the man’s cheek.

Bile charged up Nathan’s throat.
No more.

The distracted guard offered Nathan the moment he needed. His fist punched into the man’s gut, and then, with whipcord speed he followed it with a king hit. The guard crumpled to the ground.

Rosie stumbled backward. “What took you so long?”

“Me? You were the one lining up to kiss him.”

“Over my dead body. It was a way of distracting him, that’s all.”

“Looked pretty realistic to me.”

“Oh, shut up, Nathan. Just shut up. I wouldn’t…” Her horrified gaze lifted to his. “I wouldn’t have kissed him. I saw his blade and thought I could distract him. If you hadn’t been so bloody slow, I wouldn’t have had to get so damned close.” She swiped the back of her hand across her mouth. “Oh God, I feel sick.” She wrapped her arms across her middle and squeezed her eyes shut.

Nathan’s heart ached. He stepped up to her. “It’s okay, Rosie. You did the right thing. Thank you.”

Her eyes opened, tears glistening on the tips of her lashes.

Oh hell.

Rosie reached for her father, who’d slumped against the wall. “We’re nearly there, Papa.”

He raised tired eyes to her, and she kissed his cheek, hauling him up from the wall to lean against her.

She turned to Nathan. Tears glistened in her eyes, shining like diamonds. “Thank you.”

“Don’t thank me. We’re a team, remember? Besides, this was your plan.”

“My Rosie planned all this?”

“Most definitely.”

“The prince wanted the diamond. He has it.”

“Come on, Papa, let me help you.” Holding him to her, she helped him straighten.

“Are you up to running for your life, old friend?”

“As fast as my feet will let me. ’Tis good to see you. I often wondered where you had gotten to.”

“A long story, but one we have no time to chew over right now.”

“The diamond?” Alex looked to his daughter.

“You taught me well, Papa. The diamond is perfect, right down to the finer markings.”

Despite his injuries, Alex smiled. “You are a true craftsman, daughter.”

“Well instructed.”

* * * * *

Their progress proved slow, as they had to stop every few yards for her father to catch his breath. From the sound of his wheezing, it seemed certain he’d suffered a broken rib, or at the very least, several were cracked.

“Go without me. It does not matter anymore.”

“You’re wrong, Alex. You matter more than you will ever know. Now, grab hold of my shoulders.” Nathan reached out for his old mentor’s hands.

Alex hesitated.

“Please, Papa, we need to keep moving.”

With jerky movements and his face contorted with pain, he grabbed hold of Nathan.

“Hold on.” Nathan bent over, lifting Alex bodily so that he carried him like a sack of potatoes. “Let’s go.”

But it was too late. They rounded a corner and came face-to-face with a guard. The man’s surprise gave them a second, but it wasn’t enough, and hope died in Rose’s chest. She should not have given the diamond to the prince, and then perhaps she would have had further bargaining power.

He nodded toward an archway to his left and beckoned. “Come with me.”

The sound of footsteps echoed from the right.

“Don’t dawdle, unless you want the guards to find you.”

“But you are—”

“Sent here to help you.”

Nathan let Alex slide down his back and then stepped forward. “By whom?”

“The Raven.”

“What? How does he know we’re here?”

The man smiled fleetingly. “He always makes it his business to know what’s going on. Now, are you coming, or do you fancy being fodder for that royal bugger upstairs?”

Rose shot Nathan a questioning glance. He shrugged in return. “We have no choice but to trust him.” Nathan levered her father up on his back once more. He gave the guard a curt nod. “Lead on.”

The Raven’s emissary led them through several long dark tunnels. Rose kept close to Nathan, her heart breaking every time she heard her father’s pain-filled groans. “Not long now, Papa.”

But not long in the dark seemed interminable. Unable to see a thing in front of her, she guided her way by sound, listening for Nathan’s footsteps.

Ankle-deep icy water lapped against their feet, the stench assaulting her nostrils. Repeatedly, she gagged. “Where are we?”

“The sewer runs from the castle and down to the river’s edge. It’s the only way you’ll get out without being detected.”

The sound of scurrying feet scratched against the brickwork.

Rats! Lots of them.

“I don’t think I can go any farther.”

Nathan reached out for her, his hand a reassuring caress in this hellhole. “Yes you can. You’ve come this far. You fooled Prince Randolph; you’ve found your father. Now you can get out. Come on, squirt.”

Hearing Nathan use her nickname enveloped her in a warm reassurance. He was right. She could do this. Stiffening her spine, she reached out to the brick walls on either side of her. The space was barely three feet wide and at times narrowed even more. How Nathan with his broad shoulders and height of more than six feet managed, she wasn’t sure, but if he could, so could she.

Using the walls as guidance, she trailed her fingers along the uneven brick, uncaring as the roughened surface gouged at her hands, tearing at her nails.

Their guide ahead came to a halt, and fear scurried through Rose’s veins. “What’s wrong? Why have you stopped?”

“Just taking a precaution.”

After a minute of enforced silence, though her heartbeat echoed loudly, the guard motioned them onward. “We’re nearly at the gate. If all is well, the gate has been left open.”

Nathan, still burdened by her father’s weight, asked, “And if not, what then?”

“Then we’re stuck and we have to go back.”

“We can’t go back. We have to get it open.” Rose elbowed her way past the guard and strode through the water, uncaring that rats squawked as she kicked through the swirling mire. The gate had to be open. It had to be.

She spied a ray of moonlight. “There it is. There.” She surged forward, desperate to reach the gate.

Please, God, let it be open.

She wrapped her bloodied fingers around the iron bars and shoved hard.

It didn’t move.

No! No! No!
It had to open. They could not go back. Going back meant death. Meant failure. She pushed at the gate, shoved hard, rattled the iron palings, and still nothing happened. The others arrived behind her, and she pivoted to face them. Tears of frustration streamed down her face, her fear rampaging. “It’s not opening.”

Slumped against the gate, she grazed her hands down its rough-hewn bars and into the surging waters. Her fingertips scraped across something. “It’s…” She yanked it above the waterline. “There’s a lock, Nathan! A lock.” Desperation charged through her, and she grabbed at the rusted bars and shook hard. The door rattled but did not open. “You’re meant to be open. Open, do you hear me?”

Hands rested on her shoulders. “It’s okay. It’s…”

Rose rounded on Nathan, shaking his hands from her shoulders. “No, it’s not. It’s bloody locked. We can’t get out, we’ll have to go back and then…” Her focus shifted to her father resting against the wall, fetid water soaked into his filth-covered clothing. “I’m sorry, Papa.” They had come so far, only to fail. Rose pushed way from the gate and went to him. “I tried.” She fell silent, her words engulfed by a hiccupped sob.

Her father trailed a hand over her head, just as he had done when she was a child. How she wished she could go back to those days. So simple.

Then she spied Nathan. Would she really go back to those days when Nathan was not around? Could she not have him in her life—especially after last night?

The simple answer was no, she could not.

Last night changed everything, and right here, now, in the sewer of hell when they might not survive and the next moment they could be captured and murdered by a power-hungry royal, something tugged fiercely at her heart.

She loved him. Loved him so much, but as swift as the delight of such revelation, it was followed by stark reality. What use was it to love Nathan Hawk? They were all likely to die this day. Loving him was futile.

Nathan clasped the lock in his left hand. “It’s basic. Easy.”

“What? What are you talking about?”

“My past is actually coming in handy. Have you got a hairpin?”

“A…”

“Don’t argue, Rosie, not now.”

Rose reached beneath her cap and tugged her braid loose. With it came the hairpin Nathan asked for. She passed it to him.

“Now hold that lantern a bit closer.”

The guard obeyed.

Nathan nodded. “Just a bit higher.”

Rose watched as Nathan inserted the hairpin into the rusted lock. He pushed it several times, his lips pursed, concentration intense. It was as if he were listening for something. Waiting.