The Lost Alliance (The Nihryst Book 3) Page 14

  “What happened?” Shane tried and failed to keep his tone calm. His hands turned to fists at his sides. If he hurt her again—

  “She blames herself,” Lee said, his soft tone full of anguish. “Brienne was talking about Ren and… I know she feels guilty, but nothing I do or say convinces her his death was on me.”

  With a brush of his hand on Shane’s back, Phillip squeezed past them. He disappeared up the steps without a word, and though Shane was sad for his sister, the fact that Phillip cared so much made his heart flutter. Stars, he loved that man.

  “I’m sorry,” Shane muttered. “I shouldn’t have jumped to conclusions.”

  Lee nodded in understanding. He scratched the back of his neck, an uncomfortable silence settling upon them. Shane let out a soft chuckle, realizing just how right Adalina and Phillip were. Lee was a good person; he’d shown that time and time again. Maybe Shane could back down a little.

  He clapped Lee on the shoulder. “Thank you for everything. Really, I appreciate all you’ve done for us—for her.”

  “I would do anything for her.” Lee’s eyes met the king’s, and something flickered there—determination mixed with his own guilt.

  Shane dropped his hand, an unsettling feeling tugging in his gut. “What did you do?”

  “What I had to.”

  The frantic message brought by the guard before they set sail rang through Shane’s mind. He’s gone. No one can find him. Shane stumbled back a step, shaking his head. He hadn’t been able to tell anyone, not even Phillip. It just seemed like something else to worry about once they returned. “You had no right—”

  “If it means protecting her, I would do it a thousand times over.” Lee straightened, steeling his spine, reminding Shane of the legendary warrior he was supposed to be. “You don’t know what’s coming. You have no idea what this war means. And I refuse to sit by and let anything more happen to her. Not when I can change it.”

  The prophecy. Whatever they’d seen that day in the village. For Lee to take such drastic measures… it had to have been bad.

  “There is a dagger,” Lee went on. “The dagger of Ddadwneud—of undoing. It will only be presented by the one deemed worthy by the stars. If it’s found, it will break the curse on me but at a cost I’m not willing to pay.”

  “What was the cost?” Shane’s heart hammered. He looked toward the stairs, to where his sister and husband disappeared. He knew the answer before the captain spoke.

  “Her life or yours,” Lee whispered. “Someone of your family line must still complete the sacrifice. I don’t understand why her sacrifice didn’t work, but with that dagger, it would. Its power can break through most magic—it can kill an immortal. And I won’t let that happen.”

  Shane’s eyes snapped back to his. “That is not your choice to make.”

  His words were barely audible. As angry as he was at the man, he also understood the desperation.

  Lee crossed his arms. “If she dies… you saw what happened last time. I lost control and killed my friend… I do not want to live in a world without her. If you died, she would never forgive herself. And as much as you’ve been a thorn in my side the past couple days, I’d never forgive myself either.”

  “It’s never going to work. We’re heading to a war where there will be no winners,” Shane said, inching toward the steps. “Even if by some miracle it did, what difference does it make? Do you even have that dagger?”

  “No, but I did at one point. I’ve been trying to remember for days what happened to it, and then I realized I gave it as a gift to a young woman in Ferda.” Lee gave him a pointed look. “A young woman who saw me for what I was.”

  Not wanting to hear anymore. Shane strode up the stairs toward the gloomy, spring day, but he paused, remembering Ada telling him what she’d discovered weeks ago.

  Behind him, Lee said, “A young woman with fiery red hair and enough willpower to change the course of her life so that her children might one day break this blasted curse.”

  Shane only hesitated another beat before walking out to the top deck. He couldn’t think about that right now. On top of everything else, it was too much to consider his mother had only married the king, had his children, so that they might fulfill this prophecy.

  He glanced around, looking for Adalina. When he didn’t see her near the bow, where she often sat, he headed toward the captain’s cabin. Sure enough, inside, she was wrapped in Phillip’s arms beside the large center table. His heart lurched at the sight.

  Shutting the door, he crossed the room. He put a hand on her back, and she turned into the embrace. He held her tight, whispering, “It’s not your fault.”

  “Yes, it is.” She shuddered in his arms, leaning her head against his shoulder. “All of it is.”

  “What are you talking about?” He gently pushed her far enough away to meet her eyes and brushed the tears from her cheeks.

  “Ren is dead because of me. King Samson, Queen Célest, and Lady Saundra are all dead because of me.” Another sob wracked through her body. “Our mother… if I hadn’t…”

  Realization dawned on him, and his heart disintegrated into a million pieces. He knew that guilt all too well. For over a decade, he believed their mother’s death was his fault—that if he’d just been able to get help quicker, she’d still be alive. At Adalina’s side, Phillip covered his mouth. He was the only person who knew Shane felt that way. Swallowing past the lump forming in his throat, Shane grabbed Adalina’s chin. “Look at me.”

  Tears lingered on her eyelashes, but her big blue eyes—the same as his—turned up.

  “This is not your fault,” he said, urging force into his tone. The voice he usually reserved for dealing with stubborn nobles and councilmen. “None of this is your fault, do you hear me?”

  She opened her mouth, but he shook his head.

  “No, Adalina. No excuses. You don’t get to take the blame for other people’s actions. You’re not paying for our ancestors’ cruelty with your own heart—with your life.”

  Her eyes widened.

  “I know.” His tone softened, and he released her chin to put a hand on either of her shoulders. “I know you want to find the dagger and pay the price, but you can’t. Not again. This isn’t only up to you.”

  She wrapped her arms around his torso, and he was reminded of when she was little and he’d held her through the nightmares and the storms. It was up to the two of them to make things right. Together, they could break the curse and save two kingdoms. But he would not let her sacrifice herself again. He didn’t care what it took; she’d live through this.

  “It’s you and me. Always,” he said, kissing the top of her head.

  “Wait, what are you talking about?” The concern in Phillip’s voice was tangible. When neither of them answered, he demanded, “What dagger? What price? I thought that was already taken care of.”

  Sniffing, Adalina pulled back. She wiped her face with the end of her sleeve but still kept quiet. Only the sound of Phillip’s rapid breathing filled the air. He shook his head repeatedly, looking from one royal sibling to the other. His family in all the ways that mattered. “No. I’m not losing either of you.”

  “Phillip,” Shane whispered, moving closer.

  “No!”

  Adalina was already there, hugging her new brother and oldest friend. Shane wrapped his arms around them both.

  “We’ll figure this out. I promise.” He didn’t dare voice the hope that Lee had things under control. “Besides, we don’t know where the dagger is.”

  “Someone tell me what dagger we’re talking about,” Phillip said.

  “Of undoing—Ddadwneud,” Adalina said, taking a small step back. “It can break through curses—immortality. With it, I can set things right. Lee had it but gave it away long ago, not knowing what it was. We have no idea where it is. He doesn’t even remember where or when he gave it away.”

  So, Lee hadn’t told her the truth. Shane kept his face neutral and slid his hand int
o Phillip’s. A knock sounded on the door, and they all turned to look as it opened a fraction.

  Brienne peeked her head in. “There’s a ship nearing with green and blue flags.”

  Detmaryan flags. Shane nodded and thanked her. “We’ll be right out.”

  The corner of Adalina’s mouth quirked up.

  “What?” he asked, confused at the sudden change in mood.

  “That’s how you knock before entering a room.”

  He rolled his eyes, but he was glad the atmosphere lightened a bit. Except Phillip still stood quiet and stoic at his side. Shane squeezed his hand. “It will be all right.”

  “Isn’t that my line?” he asked, mirroring Shane’s words from a day that now felt like a different lifetime. The day Shane acknowledged Phillip’s feelings and realized he had also fallen completely in love with his best friend. It reminded him of when Phillip took off after a magical flower to save Shane’s life as well. It seemed they were constantly reassuring one another, even when it seemed fruitless. Shane leaned over and kissed his jaw.

  “Do you have any idea how happy this makes me?” Adalina waved her hand to encompass the two of them and let out a laugh. “You two actually got married last night. That’s…”

  Her words trailed off, but he understood. Because he felt it too. This opportunity they had was incredible. Phillip stiffened though, and Shane realized they were about to face yet another challenge.

  With a deep breath, he turned to Phillip. “We don’t have to tell people yet. It can wait if you’re worried.”

  “I don’t want to hide, but…” Phillip looked down at their joined hands.

  Shane lifted them, understanding Phillip’s concern. They were heading to war and didn’t need anyone questioning their captain’s authority. He slowly pulled Phillip’s ring off, grabbed his other hand, and slid it onto a different finger. Then, he did the same with his own. “How about that? Until you’re ready.”

  Phillip’s lips brushed across his. “Thank you.”

  After kissing him one more time, Shane led his husband and sister out of the cabin. The crew had converged on deck, and there was indeed a large warship approaching. The three walked to where Lee and Brienne stood huddled near the rail.

  A plan had been forming for days in Shane’s mind. Only Phillip knew, but it was finally time to let them all in on it.

  His sister wouldn’t like it, but this was war. And he was the king.

  Chapter 22

  Adalina

  “I still don’t like it,” Ada said, braiding her hair back from her face.

  Shane didn’t look up from the map sprawled across a table in the captain’s quarters of the warship that had joined them. Three other ships had neared, and the commanders of each converged to meet with them and devise a more solid plan. A plan that involved sending Ada and the Nihryst up the eastern coast toward Senfyr while Shane went headfirst into the fray on one of the other ships.

  “You don’t have to like it.” Shane moved a couple blue figures, marking their approach. “But it’s what we’re doing.”

  Ada crossed her arms over her chest. He hadn’t used that commanding tone with her in years—not like that at least. He never pulled rank with her. The others around the room quieted. Phillip gave her a sympathetic look before pointing to the coast. “Do we know what to expect here? How close are they to the water?”

  “They’re not,” an older woman said from the other side of the table. “We sent a small crew to scout it out, and they were nearly hit with cannons from up in the hills, but there was no sign of the troops.”

  “They’re waiting for us.” Phillip swiped a hand down his face, his new ring becoming visible but not drawing attention as it would on another finger. He seemed to remember and lowered his hand as he began fidgeting with it. “Michel is smart. He knows that he can’t win if the battle is at sea, so he’s waiting for us to come to them.”

  “The forest,” Shane said, moving red, triangular pieces on the map away from the shore and to the fields just south of Shirewood Forest. “They likely set up camp near the tree line, giving them the advantage. They have control of the river, making it impossible to approach from another angle, and they know we won’t have a choice but to cross the plains.”

  “Which is why we need you,” Phillip turned to Ada and Lee, “to go up the coast of the eastern peninsula while their eyes are on us.”

  “I still don’t like it,” she mumbled. Though it made sense. It was their best option. “Why do you two have to go in the first wave? Shouldn’t you wait until it’s safer?”

  One of the commanders cleared their throat, shifting uncomfortably. Lee put a hand on her back, but it was Phillip who said, “Because I am the captain, and there is no such thing as safe in war.”

  She met his gaze and saw the anguish there. They were separating once more, and she hated it. But the other commanders were watching. She couldn’t undermine him in front of them. So, despite the sinking feeling in the pit of her stomach, Ada nodded. “What do you need us to do?”

  “You make it to Senfyr, storm the castle and ensure Michel isn’t there, then you make your way down to us, taking control of as many cannons as possible,” Phillip said.

  They went through the full plan one final time, Phillip explaining the ships’ need to stagger their way to the shore during the night. The original idea was to attack during the daytime, but with the cannons making it near impossible to reach the shore and with the enemy waiting farther north, they had to wait. They’d need to take longboats in, leaving them exposed, so they would wait for the darkness. This would also give Lee’s crew time to make it to Senfyr. Once the cannons were in their control, the ships would be able to draw closer to the hills, and the rest of their soldiers would join them on the beach. Without knowing exactly where the enemy was, Lee had requested the warships not attempt to take out the cannons themselves. He did not want to destroy his kingdom more than necessary, and Shane had agreed.

  “According to our spies, as of last week, the port was still open,” Phillip said as the four of them made their way back to the main deck. The commanders dispersed, heading to their own ships. More ships were spread out across the bay, and one of the smaller crews was set to relay the orders. “Because you’re taking a more ordinary vessel, we’re hopeful they will assume you’re merchants.”

  “And if they don’t?” Ada whipped around as they reached the small rowboat, waiting to lower them to the water.

  “Then, we fight,” Lee said. “We’re equipped for war. Not as much as a ship this size, but we could hold our own long enough to dock.”

  Ada looked at her brother. This was happening. They were really going to war. She felt sick again and took a deep breath through her nose. Shane pulled her into a hug. She didn’t know how to say goodbye. The thought of this being the last time she saw him and Phillip brought tears to her eyes, but she refused to let them fall. She could do this—she could keep the brave façade and secure the coast for them. If this was how she could help her people, she’d do it.

  “Stay safe,” Shane whispered against her hair.

  A soft laugh escaped, and she pulled back. “I’m immortal, remember? You stay safe. Detmarya needs their king, and I need my brother.” She turned to Phillip and lowered her voice. “Both of them.”

  Phillip wrapped his arms around her, holding her close. For a long moment, neither said anything. When she finally leaned away, she watched in awe as Shane and Lee gave each other a pat on the back.

  “Never thought I’d see the day,” Phillip whispered.

  She smiled. “Protect him?”

  “With my life.”

  That didn’t comfort her any, but she nodded and hugged them each one more time, telling them she loved them. Then, she and Lee were lowered in the small dinghy and rowed back to their ship. She kept quiet, listening to the soft lapping of the oars against the water. For once in his life, Lee didn’t speak.

  When the corner of her mouth tugged up,
he asked, “What?”

  “Nothing.” She shrugged. “I just didn’t know you were capable of going so long without talking. It’s so peaceful.”

  He nudged her with his foot, and she grinned at him, grateful they were in this together. They reached their ship, and in no time, the crew had them back on board. Lee told everyone the plan before heading to the wheel. Ada followed as the others went to work.

  “This isn’t going to be pretty,” Lee said once they stood side by side, watching as the crew released the sails. “War is… nothing can fully prepare you for what you’re going to see.”

  Ada placed a hand over his on one of the handles. She was terrified, but he was right; she didn’t know what to expect. He, on the other hand, had fought this exact war over a century ago. Only this time, his crew was mortal. They could all die except for Lee and Ada, and she could only imagine how much that weighed on him.

  “I’m sorry about earlier.” She looped her arm through his and rested her head on his shoulder.

  “Don’t ever apologize for that,” he said. “I just wish you didn’t feel such guilt. I know how badly it can eat away at someone… when they take all the blame for so many people’s fates.”

  It hit her then. He didn’t just feel guilty for Ren. It was his whole crew, the curse, everything.

  “Maybe the stars brought us together because, in the end, we understand each other.” She tilted his chin toward her. “Maybe they knew we would need each other to get through this.”

  He shifted to wrap his arm around her waist, and his lips brushed over hers. “I hate that all this has happened to you, but I am so happy to have you by my side.”

  Within a couple hours, they could make out the port and buildings beyond. It wasn’t until they docked that chaos rained down on them. When the first cannon hit the water near the ship, Ada hadn’t understood what had happened. The next one met its target mere seconds later.