Prisoner Princess (Belles & Bullets Book 5) Page 14

Wiggly must have declined as well, because Jared was heading to the door by himself. Julian's guilty pinch intensified. Before Jared left the pub, Julian got up and sprinted toward him.

  “I can't believe I'm passing on a moment with Cynthia Gardner for this,” Julian whispered to himself. When he glanced over his shoulder, the buxom redhead waved at him. A beautiful woman was expecting him to return, and for the first time in his life, he was going to leave her. “Ohh... Letitia, Letitia... what have you done to me?”

  “Captain!” Jared gasped when he saw Julian rushing toward him. “Did you change your mind? Are you coming?”

  “I'm afraid so, Jared.” Julian touched the hilt of his sword, making sure it was still there. “Go on, then. I forfeit my life to your mad plan. Lead me to my death!”

  Some time later, Julian and Jared were standing outside of St. Anthony's Church. Wiggly Joe was with them, but judging from the sour look on his face, he wasn't a willing participant. His captain had twisted his arm.

  “You know...” Julian addressed his malodorous companion. “Wiggly, you don't have to come if you don't want to.”

  “Good,” Wiggly replied. “Cuz I don't want to.”

  “Honestly... you don't have to be here.”

  “A'ight.” Wiggly took a step backward, away from the church. He had grown tired of following his captain into peril. “Can I go, then? Am I excused.”

  “Sure.” Julian glared at Wiggly, whose wonky eye swiveled wildly. “Because you needn't feel obligated to help.”

  “I don't feel obligated. Not really,” Wiggly said as he scratched his bum. “I'd like to keep drinking, if that's alright wit' you.”

  “Don't worry about Lettie. We'll save her. I'm sure we don't need your help.”

  “Yep. I'm sure you don't.”

  At some point, Julian had to realize his attempts to lure Wiggly Joe onto their team were a failure. With a wave of his hand, he grunted, “Fine. Go! Drink yourself into a stupor, Wiggly! See if I care!”

  Wiggly started to walk away. He didn't hesitate to abandon them, not even for a second. He never said a word, nor did he wish them well. A heavy sigh passed through Julian's lips. Somehow, he lost the respect of his crew at an alarmingly rapid rate. If he survived the rescue attempt, Julian would have to figure out why he failed to inspire any trace of loyalty from anyone.

  “I wish Jolly was here,” Julian muttered to himself. “Jolly wouldn't have left me. Jolly would have come.”

  Jared led the way into the church, and it was Jared who searched for the hidden panel. As Julian strolled in after him, he seemed more interested in looking at the broken stained glass windows.

  “What do you think this was?” Julian asked, pointing at the stained glass remains on a shattered pane. “Do you think it was an angel or a--”

  “Captain!” Jared interrupted. “You need to focus! Help me find this secret entrance of yours!”

  “Oh, alright...” Even though he wanted to save Lettie, Julian was in no hurry to rush to his death. “This seems so dangerous, though. So, so dangerous. Won't there be guards? I swear, if I end up getting killed, Jared Foster, I'm coming back to haunt you.” As he walked around the remnants of the old, gutted church, Julian's boot suddenly tapped a hollow part of the floor. “And... I think I've found it.”

  Jared ran toward him. “Did you?”

  “Unfortunately... yes. I was accidentally efficient.” Julian shoved the hidden panel aside and gazed into the gaping hole in the ground. “Uh... you go first, Jared.” Going first meant plunging into a massive cobweb, so Julian was glad when Jared accepted his role. As soon as Jared was on his feet, Julian lit a lantern and descended the rickety ladder.

  Both men were silent as they made their way down the abandoned tunnel. Julian tried to ignore the sound of chittering rats, as well as the snake skins that hinted at the existence of another vile resident. “I hate you, Jared,” Julian said as his boot accidentally landed in a pile of rat droppings. “I hate you. I actually hate you right now.”

  “Sorry.”

  “Cynthia Gardner...” Julian sighed the name. “I had her, you know. I could've had her. I could have been with her right now. But what am I doing instead? I'm doing this. And... good god, is that a human skull over there?”

  Jared followed his captain's pointing finger. “I think it might be.”

  “Well that's... deeply unsettling.”

  “I thought you'd been here before, Captain. With Prince Nico?”

  “I have... but it was a long time ago. It's been over a decade, I'm sure. Maybe it wasn't as creepy back then?” Under his breath, Julian added, “Or maybe I was a little bit braver?”

  At the tunnel's end, they reached a doorway that led directly to the dungeon. Jared could hardly believe his eyes. “Does Eversio know about this entrance?” he asked.

  “Obviously not, or they would have done something about it. Not many people know about it, I don't think.” Julian peered into one of the cells, but the prisoner inside was clearly a male—and he was asleep. “If word got out, there would be a daily prison break, I'm sure.”

  “Keep your eyes open. We need to find Lettie. Fast,” Jared said. “The sooner we find her, the sooner we can get out of here.”

  “You're not Lettie,” Julian pointed at a prisoner as he passed one of the cells. “You're not Lettie.” He thrust his finger at a confused-but-curious convict. “You're not Lettie... you're not Lettie...” He paused in front of one of the cells and sneered. The man wasn't wearing any breeches. “Oh, you're definitely not Lettie!”

  “Captain, can you please keep it down?” Jared begged him. “I haven't seen any guards yet, but if you keep making noise, someone is going to find us!”

  Julian not only ignored him, he decided to put his shenanigans to a song. While pointing at the prisoners he passed, he sang, “You're not Lettie, you've got gout. You're not Lettie, I've got no doubt. You're not Lettie, please don't pout. If you're not Lettie, you ain't gettin' out!”

  “Captaaaain,” Jared groaned. “You're making me wish I hadn't taken you with me.”

  “Nonsense, Jared. This jailbreak experience is immensely more enjoyable because of me, and you know it!” Julian truly believed he was enhancing Jared's entertainment, even though his young protege was rapidly shaking his head. “Captain Jordaaaan... oh Captain Jorrrrdaaaan! Where are you, my love?”

  Suddenly, Lettie rushed to the bars with a gasp. “Julian? Is that you? Oh my god, it is you! And... Jared?” She looked thoroughly perplexed. “Did you two come to break me out?”

  “That's the plan, dear,” Julian calmly replied. “Although... since neither of us is capable of picking locks, I think we're going to need a key, aren't we? Well, that's a damn shame.”

  “They keep the keys on the wall over there,” Lettie said, bowing her head in the direction they needed. “But be careful! There's a guard over there.”

  “Which means you have to be quiet, Captain!” Jared admonished the baron as he pushed him along the path. “Now that we've found her, we need to get the keys and get out of here fa--”

  The guard beside the keyring suddenly snored loudly. When Julian realized he was asleep, he looked delighted. “Knock him out, Jared!” Julian ordered his young cohort. “We don't want him waking up in the middle of our prison break, do we? Just bang him over the head, and then we're home free.”

  “Wow. You're so confident. I wouldn't say home free quite yet.” Jared slid his sword from its sheath and followed Julian's instruction. With the pommel of his sword, Jared knocked the slumbering guard over the head, putting an end to the possibility of getting caught by a waking guard. “Grab the keys, Captain!”

  “Got 'em!” Julian announced as he scooped the keyring from the wall. “Now, all that's left is... we...”

  Julian's voice trailed off when they heard the groan of an opening door. The sound of footsteps made him freeze. A tall, cloaked man was descending the stairs to the dungeon. When Julian realized who had arrived, he moane
d loudly. “Oh, we have the worst luck in all the world, I swear...”

  Thomas Harriot was heading in their direction, and it didn't take him long to notice them. He ripped both of his swords from their sheaths and charged down the stairs. With a squeal of terror, Julian raced to Lettie's cell and fumbled with the keys.

  “Hurry!” Lettie encouraged him. “Hurry hurry hurry!”

  “I'm trying!” Julian shoved a key into the lock and turned, but it wasn't a match. “I don't know which key I need! Do you know?”

  “No... oh god... I have no idea!” Lettie dragged her hands across her face as she stepped back from the bars. “Jared... Julian... look out!”

  It didn't take long for Harriot to catch up to them. When he did, he unleashed a flurry of sword strokes on the two intruders. Julian's sword was out of its sheath with only a second to spare. He managed to block Harriot's furious swings, but barely. Jared had always been a promising sword fighter, but he was nothing compared to the man in front of them. Harriot's swords swirled, lunged, and nearly lopped off Jared's head. They had no choice but to retreat. They sprinted down the cell-lined corridor, putting some distance between themselves and their masked attacker.

  “What do we do?” Julian hissed. Harriot didn't pursue them, which gave them time to conspire. “That man is a beast. I've fought him before. Even with the two of us, I'm not sure we can do this.”

  Harriot didn't budge. Like a lone stone sentinel, he stood in front of Lettie's cell, daring them to try anything.

  “We can work together, Captain!” Jared tried to encourage him. “I'll go for his legs. You stay behind me and look for an opening!”

  It was a decent enough plan, so Julian gave him a nod. As Jared rushed forward, he swung low, hoping to catch Harriot off guard. But Harriot easily blocked, and when his second sword struck Jared's, the young man lost his grip. Harriot kicked Jared's sword aside, and at the same time, he deflected an attack from Julian. While their swords were crossed, Harriot punched the side of Jared's head. When Jared fell into the bars, Harriot punched him again, knocking him out cold.

  Julian went in for a few desperate swings, but Harriot blocked each one, and his counterattack was nearly impossible to avoid. Harriot slashed so quickly, his sword looked like a flash of light. Julian hopped backward, narrowly dodging a cyclone of lightning fast strikes.

  Julian could have fled. He should have fled. But he couldn't—not while Lettie was watching him with hopeful eyes. Julian shuffled forward and swung again. When their blades clashed, Harriot's second sword drew blood. As Julian reeled backward from the pain of his cut arm, Harriot found the opening he needed. Three sword strokes later, Julian's sword was on the ground, and any chance of a successful rescue was lost.

  When it was over, Harriot seized Julian's shirt, threw him against the bars and tied his hands together. He didn't say a word, he just kept tying tightly. Roughly.

  “I'm sorry, Captain Jordan,” Julian whispered to Lettie as Harriot jostled him into a cell of his own. “I'm so sorry. I didn't mean to fail you.”

  Twenty Two

  The next day, Julian was feeling the sobering effects of his failure. Lettie was still imprisoned, he was a disappointment to Jared, and execution seemed likely. Eversio wouldn't take kindly to someone breaking into what was supposed to be a high security prison.

  Until recently, Julian never spent time in a cell. Now he seemed to be moving from one prison to another. Less than forty-eight hours after eluding Francis Doon, he found himself in another predicament. A worse predicament. There was no end to his hopelessness—until the lovely Loreina asked to see him. When a guard appeared to escort him to her room, the spark of life slowly returned to Julian's eyes.

  “Julian!” The former empress shrilled his name when he entered her room. “Julian... they just told me you've been arrested! Please tell me that isn't true!”

  Julian presented his wrists, which were bound by a pair of oversized handcuffs. “It's sad but true, Your Grace.”

  “And what did you do? You broke into a prison?” Loreina snorted loudly. “What were you thinking?”

  “I wasn't thinking, apparently.” Julian shrugged. “I was trying to save a friend, and I had no regard for the consequences.”

  “A friend? Who?”

  “Captain Letitia Rose Jordan.”

  “Ahh...” A hint of recognition flickered on Loreina's face. “I know of her. She's a very important prisoner right now. She's to play a part in President Gareth's upcoming negotiations with the Baltmoor Aerial Militia.”

  “That doesn't surprise me.”

  “Gareth will come down hard on you, you know. Your death sentence is practically assured! He'll want to discourage anyone from repeating your crime. Not only that, he despises the peerage. He'll hate you for being a baron.”

  “He sounds like a delightful man.” Julian boldly joined her on the bed. He desperately wanted freedom, and Queen Loreina was his only hope. It would be the most important seduction of his life. “So... Loreina... it's been a long time. I've missed you terribly.”

  “Ohhhh, Julian. Dear, sweet, Julian...” Loreina's manicured fingers glided along his bristled cheek. “Even as a prisoner, you can't stop flirting.”

  “Flirting is what I do best. And you're a very beautiful woman.” He dragged his lips along her neck and collarbone, leaving a trail of kisses. “You don't want to see me dead, do you?”

  “Of course not!” Her fingers drove through his chestnut brown locks. “I like you, Lord Featherstone. Genuinely. And I don't genuinely like a lot of people.”

  “I like you too,” Julian said. “And I want to be with you. But you have to help me first.”

  When his tongue found her cleavage, Loreina shoved his head away. “I see how it is. You want to use me. Unfortunately for you, it's not going to happen. I use people, Lord Featherstone. I don't let people use me.”

  “I'm not using you, dear!” Julian gasped, feigning offense. “I care about you. You're a gorgeous, smart, shrewd, lovely woman. We complement each other. But if I'm dead, we won't be able to explore our budding relationship.”

  Loreina shoved him again. “Right. You care about me so much, you didn't even visit me after the tournament!”

  “I was busy.”

  “Too busy for me?”

  “My airship was destroyed.” While it wasn't exactly a lie, Julian chose to omit the most unflattering details. “I adore you, my lady. You have to believe me!”

  Julian was as handsome as Loreina was lonely. Under normal circumstances, she would have been immune to his groveling, but she was starving for affection. “I want to help you, Julian. I do! Truly! But... Gareth Harriot frightens me. And believe me, I'm not easily frightened.”

  “Please?” Julian's mouth dove to her shoulder, which he generously kissed and licked.

  “No.”

  “But I'm desperate! Would you really let me die?”

  “Oh, sweetheart...” Loreina cradled his head to her shoulder, kissed his brow, and lovingly stroked his ear. “I hate to say it, but I have to let you die. I won't put myself at risk to save a man who barely cares for me!”

  Despite the coldness of her words, Julian stayed on her shoulder. “Why did you bring me here if you didn't want to help me?”

  “Because, dear...” When Loreina's lips landed on his forehead, Julian flinched. “If these are your final hours, I thought you might like to spend them in the arms of a woman.”

  Loreina assumed he wouldn't object, but when she started to unbuckle his belt, Julian leapt from the bed.

  “No. If you don't care about me enough to help me, I'm not going to be your toy.”

  Loreina's eyes burned with disappointment. She hadn't expected to be rejected by him a second time, especially when it was his last chance to enjoy a woman's company. “You disappoint me, Julian. Perhaps your reputation is not so well-deserved after all.”

  “Or maybe I have standards, Loreina,” Even Julian was surprised by the words coming
out of his mouth. “Maybe I want to matter. Maybe I don't want a woman who can say goodbye to me so easily.”

  Her eyes narrowed cruelly. “Well then... goodbye, Lord Featherstone.”

  “Goodbye, Your Grace.” Julian went to the door and waited for someone to escort him out. As he was dragged to the dungeon, he had to wonder—what was wrong with him? He chose a cold cell over Loreina's warm bed. For the second time in two days, his conscience was louder than his lust. He felt like a new man.

  When Julian was gone, Loreina stopped another servant in the hallway and demanded of them, “Bring me that other man, Callum Talwyn. I believe that's what his name is. I need to speak to him.” Satisfied, she returned to her bed and waited for her potential lover to arrive. There was something uniquely sinister about Callum's face, and he was almost certainly a sadist, but he intrigued her more than he frightened her.

  A few minutes later, Callum entered with a bow. Her body reacted to his wicked blue eyes and twisted grin. “You wanted to see me, Your Grace?”

  “Indeed. Come here, Callum.” Loreina moved to the edge of her bed and crossed her legs.

  He took a step closer—but not nearly close enough. “Is there something you require of me?”

  Loreina giggled at his question. It was surprisingly innocent of him. “Closer, Callum,” she entreated him. “Come closer. I won't be satisfied until you're standing right in front of me!”

  Callum finally understood what she wanted. He closed the distance between them, until their bodies were almost touching. “Is this close enough, Your Highness?”

  “Almost.” Loreina grabbed the lapel of his coat and dragged him into bed. Her fingers had been craving his curly black hair, so she wound her fingers through it. When Callum's mouth found hers, Loreina moaned and devoured him.

  At long last, she finally found a man who was willing to bed her without a second thought. As her tongue touched his, Loreina slithered on top of him.

  He was hers for the rest of the night.

  Twenty Three