Prisoner Princess (Belles & Bullets Book 5) Read online

  “Umm...” Kitt murmured. “Should I come back later?”

  “No! God, no! Bloody hell, why doesn't anyone ever knock anymore?” Doon grumbled. He grabbed Julian's collar, shoved him to the door, threw him out and slammed the door behind him. “I've had enough of that fool to last a lifetime!”

  “It looked like you were having an... intimate moment,” a wide-eyed Kitt observed. “Was he flirting with you?”

  “I certainly hope not!” Doon sat at the end of his bed and crossed his arms. In a rough voice, he asked, “Did you need something or are you here to bother me?” Within a matter of seconds, he was already failing at the first piece of Julian's advice: be likeable.

  “I tapped into Eversio's radio channel. I thought it was fascinating, so I wanted to share it with you, but if I'm bothering you...”

  Kitt started to retreat from the room, so Doon grabbed her arm and pulled her toward him. When she was standing close to him, his breath momentarily ceased. He couldn't remember the last time he kissed her, but it wasn't for lack of wanting her kisses. He nearly kissed her right then and there, but he didn't think it was the appropriate time—not while Kitt was scowling at him. “No. Stay. I want to hear it.”

  “Alright...” Kitt adjusted the radio's knobs and sat at the end of Doon's bed. A pair of slightly garbled voices filled the room.

  “And how would you respond to people who call Eversio a terrorist group, President Harriot? What would you say to the detractors who are calling Gareth Harriot a villain?”

  A much deeper voice replied, “They couldn't be more wrong. This country always needed a revolution, Chris. Every time there is a great change, sacrifices must be made. Unfortunately, the lives of the royal family were a necessary sacrifice. In the long run, what we've accomplished will be better for the people of Columbigo. We're giving them a voice.”

  The interviewer spoke again. “How would you compare this to the failed revolution of the last century?”

  “I wouldn't compare it at all,” Gareth Harriot rejected the thought. “My revolution succeeded after twenty years of careful planning. The war of 1775 was rushed. They were ill-prepared. They were--”

  Kitt started speaking before he finished, “So... is this a good thing or a bad thing for Columbigo?”

  “I couldn't say,” Doon said with a shrug. “As long as we're free to fly its skies, I couldn't care less if there's an ass on a throne.”

  “Well, that's all the time we have with President Harriot,” said the interviewer. “We'll return in a moment. For now, please listen to a brief message from today's sponsor.”

  An energetic voice suddenly chimed in. “Have a toothache? Is that throbbing mouth keeping you awake at night? You're not alone. Try Kwest Tooth Powder! Not only does Kwest clean your teeth, it immediately takes the pain away. Our fast-acting powder penetrates deep to alleviate even the worst tooth pain. When you've got Kwest, you've got the very best! Lada-dada-deedummmm.”

  “I thought you said this was fascinating,” Doon said with a snort.

  “Well, I thought it was.” Kitt's scowl returned, which was the last thing he wanted. Even after Julian Featherstone's lesson, he was hopeless.

  The original speaker's voice returned. “And we're back, ladies and gentleman. During the break, President Harriot asked me to mention something else. At ten o'clock tomorrow morning, there's going to be an event in the capital square. If Queen Lyneah doesn't show, her fiance, Tobias Robb, is to be executed. Nineteen-year-old Tobias Robb was charged with the murder of Noah Walsh, a high-ranking Eversio officer and son of--”

  “Tobias?” Kitt gasped as the color drained from her face. “Did I hear that correctly? Tobias and Lyneah are somehow wrapped up in this?”

  “That's what the man said.” Doon eyed the drawer where his cigarettes were stored. He was suddenly feeling like he needed one.

  “Executed?” Kitt's heart pumped wildly as the news sank in. “Doon, we have to go back to the capital! We have to stop it!”

  “But, Kitt, this really isn't our--”

  “We have to!” Kitt insisted. She squeezed and shook his arm. “I'm not asking you, Doon. I'm demanding it! We have to go back and help him! You liked Tobias, didn't you?”

  “Well... yes. But this isn't a matter of liking him, Kitt. This is beyond our capabilities. Even if we went at top speed, I doubt we'd reach the capital in time.”

  “But we have to try!”

  As soon as he saw the tears in Kitt's eyes, Doon knew his argument was done. Even if it was impossible to get back to the capital, for her sake, he had to make an effort. “Very well. We'll turn around. But you better start preparing yourself for the inevitable, Kitt.” With a weary sigh, Doon added, “We might not make it in time to save your friend.”

  Ten

  “I'm going to miss you, you know.” As Jackal bid farewell to his favorite prisoner ever, he leaned forward, indulging himself in a long sniff of Tobias' golden hair. “If it was entirely up to me, I wouldn't kill you at all. But it's not up to me. It's up to that ugly old man.” When Jackal's lips landed on his head, Tobias winced. “Ugly old men shouldn't be allowed to kill pretty young boys.”

  Tobias couldn't stop groaning. He'd been forced to endure Jackal's affections for the last three days. He was ready for it to be over, one way or another.

  “Whatever you do, don't tell Gareth Harriot I called him an ugly old man,” Jackal said. “If you did, I don't think it would end well for me. And you like Jackal, don't you? You wouldn't want to hurt Jackal, right? Because Jackal would never hurt you. Never. Never ever.” He dragged his tongue along Tobias' blanching cheek. “Oh, if only there was a way to save you...”

  A spark of life suddenly returned to Tobias' sullen face. “You can!” he exclaimed. “You can save me, Jackal! Help me out of here! If you let me out of the prison, no one would ever know it was you who saved me. I wouldn't tell anyone!”

  “Nah.” Jackal wrinkled his nose. “Even if I let you out, you'd have to escape the palace, and someone would catch up to you eventually. They'd just throw you back in here, and that would be useless. No.” Jackal combed a hand through Tobias' hair, making it even messier than it was before. “I'm afraid you have to die. Vee?” He turned to his companion, who recently returned from Bordeaux. She had been ordered to guard Eversio's dungeon until the hour of Tobias' execution.

  Vee glanced up from the sword she was polishing. “Yeah? What is it, Jackass?” It was her own special nickname for him. She thought it suited him much better than Jackal.

  “Will you oversee the execution today?” asked a pouting Jackal. “I don't wanna.”

  Vee put down the sword and picked up another. “Ehh... I might as well. It sounds more entertaining than anything I've got planned.”

  “Good good good. Good girl!” Jackal forced his shackled prisoner into Vee's willing hands. “It's at ten o'clock. Don't be late! Bye!”

  As Tobias watched him go, he could feel his lips slipping into a deeper frown. The execution was drawing near, and Jackal's odd obsession with him was probably his last hope. “Wait!” Tobey gasped. “Wait... Jackal... wait! Don't leave me here! Are you really going to let me die?”

  When Jackal reached the door, he turned around and blew a kiss at Tobey. Then he walked away without another word.

  “Well...” Vee tossed all swords aside and reached for her shotgun, which was ready and loaded. “I guess it's just you and me now, boy. And so begins your march to death. Are you ready?”

  Tobias shook his head. “Is anyone ever ready for something like this?”

  “Nah. Probably not.”

  Ten minutes before ten o'clock, Vee seized Tobey's arm and dragged him from the dungeon. When they reached the outside world, he squinted against the onslaught of sunlight, then he decided to keep his eyes closed. Tobias tried to imagine Lyneah's face. He treasured his time with her. His days with Lyneah were, without question, the very best days of his life, and he was grateful for them.

  Still, h
e wanted more time. Tobias had to wonder—what would Lyneah's life be like without him? How long would she cry? When would she heal? Who else would she love? By the time Vee dragged him onto the platform, his head was filled with depressing questions, and his heart was truly shattered.

  Vee greeted the executioner with a nod. With an ax in his hands, the tall, hooded executioner resembled the Grim Reaper. As soon as Tobias laid eyes on him, his body was rocked by a shudder.

  Vee kicked the backs of Tobias' knees, forcing him to the ground. She shoved his head onto the block, where a notch had been carved to cradle his neck. “Queen Lyneah!” Vee suddenly shouted to the crowd. “If you're out there, now's your last chance! If you don't step forward now, your fiance is a dead man.” Vee grabbed Tobias' hand and flattened it against the stage, crushing it beneath her boot. “I'll give you one minute. You have one minute to come to your senses. One minute to save him.” To Tobias, Vee whispered, “I think that's rather generous of me.”

  When Tobias glanced up at his eventual executioner, he caught the man licking his ax. Tobey groaned at the sickening sight. Obviously, the man couldn't wait to lop off his head.

  “Forty five seconds left!” Vee warned a muttering crowd—and she should have paid closer attention, because there was a good reason for their whispers and murmurs. She said to Tobias, “I'm sorry about this, young man. Just so you know, I take no pleasure in this. I don't like killing people, but if Eversio tells me it needs to be done, then I have to do it.”

  Kieran had to wait for the perfect opportunity, which unfortunately didn't come until the very last moment. There were four guards positioned around the stage—six, if Vee and the executioner were counted. He waited until one of the guards turned away from him, then he slipped out of the crowd. Quickly and quietly, Kieran crept up behind the guard and dragged a knife across his throat. The man fell, sputtering and gasping, but Kieran held his body aloft. He was going to use the guard's body as a shield against the gunfire that would inevitably follow.

  And he wasn't wrong. Two shots were immediately fired in Kieran's direction, but they were blocked by the slain man's body. Kieran flung his knife into a guard's chest, then he snapped his revolver from its holster and took aim at another, shooting the third guard in the head. Before the fourth and final guard could fire, Kieran switched targets and fired again. Within a matter of seconds, all guards were dropped.

  Screams rippled through the crowd, and most of the onlookers scattered. No one dared to come close to Kieran, who flattened himself against the side of the stage when he saw Vee aiming her shotgun. Her shot hit the wooden platform, which partially exploded in a storm of splinters.

  As Vee reloaded, Kieran dashed up the stairs and onto the stage. He drew his sword and swung at Vee, who didn't have time to reload, so she used her shotgun to block. He swung again. She blocked again. Vee tried to hit him with the butt of the shotgun, but Kieran was too fast for her. He leapt to the side before countering with a lunge. When his blade pierced her stomach, Vee dropped to her knees with a gasp. She tossed the unloaded shotgun aside, letting him know she was finished.

  Only the executioner stood in his way, and Kieran didn't give him a chance to act. He raised his revolver and fired again, hitting the center of the man's hooded head.

  “Kieran!” Tobias gasped. “Kieran, what are you doing here?”

  “Saving you, obviously.” Kieran scanned the crowd for more opposition as he cut Tobias free from his bonds. When he finished, he dragged Tobey to his feet and shoved him toward the stairs. “Move. We need to get out of here.”

  “Do you think I could get a weap--”

  “Move,” Kieran repeated more forcefully. “We don't know what else they might throw at us, so it's best to flee the area as quickly as possible.”

  Kieran clapped an arm on Tobias' shoulder and led him in the direction of the motocarriage, which was parked just outside the square. Ella was sitting in the driver's seat, and when she saw them approach, she tossed the keys at Kieran, who snatched them in midair. In the event that he was killed in action, he wanted Ella to be able to get back to Bordeaux on her own, so he had temporarily relinquished the keys to her.

  Kieran opened the carriage door and practically shoved Tobias inside. Lyneah, who had been shifting impatiently in her seat, gasped when she saw him. She wanted to be part of his rescue, but Kieran was adamant against it.

  As Lyneah's arms flew around Tobias, Kieran climbed into the motocarriage's front seat and started the engine. “Tobey!” Lyneah's face was buried against his neck, so her words were muffled against his skin. “I'm so sorry! I'm so so sorry!”

  “Why are you apologizing, sweetheart?” Tobias was wincing as he asked the question. She was hugging too tightly, and the gashes on his back were still quite fresh. He didn't want to discourage her from hugging him, and he didn't want to worry her, so he opted to keep his pain a secret.

  “I feel like I failed you!” Lyneah sniffled into his neck. “I should have stopped the torture. I should have stepped forward! I know you were telling me not to, but--”

  “Shh.” Tobey held a finger to her lips. “You don't have to apologize for that. I would have endured torture for days if I could spare you from a similar f-fate. For all we know, they might have killed you on the spot!”

  Lyneah leaned away from his finger. “Still... I should have done something. I let you get tortured. I could have stopped it, but I let it happen. I let it happen to save myself. How can I ever forgive myself for that? How can you ever forgive me?”

  Tobias was shaking his head. “Lyneah... it's not your fault. I don't blame you, and there's nothing to forgive. Besides, you weren't just saving yourself, you had an entire kingdom to think about. I'm glad you didn't give yourself up. I would have been mortified if you had!”

  Lyneah laid her cheek against his arm and quietly cried. Before she met Tobias, tears on her cheeks were a rarity. Now, every time they were separated or Tobey's life was in danger, she was a mess.

  Her tears confirmed what she already knew: she had never loved anyone as much as him.

  “I love you, Tobias...” Lyneah whispered into his shirt. “I love you, and I'm so incredibly sorry!”

  Tobias leaned a bit closer to the motocarriage's window, checking the scenery. Kieran was racing from the capital at top speed. No one was following them—at least, not yet.

  When he didn't respond, Lyneah's heart was crushed. What if he had fallen out of love with her? What if his feelings were irrevocably altered by her failure? What if he was forever changed by what he'd been forced to endure? Lyneah was nauseated by her thoughts. After a few seconds of silence, she had to ask, “Do you not love me anymore?”

  “Of course! Of course I love you, you silly girl!” Tobias said with a chuckle. As his tongue exasperatedly clicked, he wrapped an arm around her. “Don't you know I'll love you forever?”

  Eleven

  “I don't see why you have to lock me in my room, Mr. Harriot,” Isabella said as Tom closed the door. “It's not like I would ever leave. I don't have anywhere else to go! And even if I got out of the cottage, no one would be crazy enough to swim across that lake!”

  “This is more about keeping people out,” Harriot explained. “You're not a prisoner, Isabella... although I strongly discourage you from leaving this cottage. If someone recognized your face, it could only end badly for you.” Isabella's safety was important to him. He didn't know why, but it was.

  “Very well. Lock me up then, Warden Tom!” Isabella turned her back to him. “You might say I'm not a prisoner, but it certainly feels like I am!”

  Harriot heaved a weary sigh as he locked the door behind him. He wanted Isabella to like him again. She didn't have to be as smitten as she once was, but if she could tolerate him, it would have been a massive improvement. If not for him, she would have been dead. If not for him, her brother would have been dead. He had given her plenty of reasons to trust him, but it wasn't enough. As he rowed across the lake, he t
ried to think of a way to fix their ruined relationship. It wasn't as if he could evict Eversio and give her back her home. What did she expect of him?

  When Harriot reached the other side of the lake, he saw someone sitting on its muddy bank. Her pink hair gave her away. “Vee?” He shouted her name as he climbed from the boat.

  “Hey, Tommy...” Vee tried to get up to greet him, but she had lost a lot of blood, so she toppled to the ground.

  Seeing the slick red bloodstain on her shirt, Tom ran forward and scooped her into his arms. “Vee... what happened?”

  “I was stabbed,” a grimacing Vee replied. “As soon as I got back from Bordeaux, Jackass made me oversee an execution, but it didn't end well. Some asshole crashed it, and he killed everyone. Well... he killed everyone except for me.” She pointed at her wound. “Although I might be flying with the angels soon enough.”

  “Don't say that. You're not going to die.”

  Vee snorted at his words. “What an empty promise.”

  “You need a doctor.”

  “Hell no,” Vee protested. “No way. I hate doctors.”

  “Then you'll have to let me treat your wounds,” Harriot said as he carried her to his boat. “I should warn you, though... I'm terrible at stitching.” He gently laid her down, then he hopped back into the boat and grabbed his oars. As he rowed, Vee wiped the sweat from her brow and groaned. Tom was right: her wound required treatment, but if she had already waited this long, she could wait a few more minutes.

  “Damn you and your reclusive nature!” she cursed him. “Can't you live somewhere a little more sensible... somewhere that's not in the middle of nowhere?”

  “I like the middle of nowhere,” Tom told her with a smile. A few minutes later, when they reached the other side of the lake, he pulled the boat ashore and swept her into his arms. When they arrived at the cottage, he had to put her down to unlock the door. While Vee staggered to the sofa, Tom threw open the door to the princess' room and announced, “Isabella, we have a guest.”