Seize the Day

Chapter Twenty-Seven

Chapter Twenty-Seven

The wind blew—a strange, eerie sound—as if the planet itself were mourning the loss of the queen. Lightning flashed in the sky and thunder signaled the coming of a vicious rainstorm.

I crouched near Philippa’s body and set her limp hands on her stomach. I withdrew the pendant from my hair, dislodging the ashen blonde locks that Clarice pulled together so neatly. Two words resounded within my hollow mind:

Protect them.

Philippa told me to call upon the pendant to use the power within me. She told me to choose my destiny.

I didn’t know how I would do it, but if I had power in me, then I would do anything to save the ones I loved.

Loved. A word I hadn’t used in such a long time. But now, as I exited the garden and sidestepped the bodies of unconscious guards, I realized that the people I cared about were the very reason I was moving forward. Two months ago, that would have sounded comical to me. Foolish, even.

I moved with precision, my hand grasping Mother’s pendant tight in my palm. It grew warmer as I continued—and I knew it wasn’t from my body heat. Whenever it was near the king, the pendant had grown warm. When I saw the cloaked man, a voice told me strange things. It was warning me of the danger at hand. How could I have been such a fool to ignore what was in front of my eyes this entire time?

By ignoring the signs, Philippa had died and I had been unable to save her. Just like Fallon and Odelia.

But now it was different. I would not let anyone die. I made a promise.

And I was angry now.

                                                ————————

The storm outside the castle was ferocious, ripping at the skirt of my sleeveless crimson dress. I walked deliberately toward the stables. I knew I couldn’t defeat Kasib alone.

And there was only one creature that would be able to help me succeed.

I opened the door of the barn and entered the dim structure. The moon cast my body in a shadow that filled the walkway, creating a monstrous, haunting figure. The water horses whinnied and screeched in their stalls. They knew something was wrong.

I sucked in a breath. I didn’t know if this would work, but it was the only hope I had left. Otherwise, Kasib would kill Titus and Clarice. And all the other Royals, too. Just like Philippa.

I refused to let my gut-wrenching fear slow me down. “Natz!” I called to the cavernous room, causing the water horses near me to buck in their pens. “I need your help!”

Silence.

“Please, it’s Lannie Brackenbury! Helena’s daughter.” I paused for a long moment. The quiet was permeated only by the frightened noises of the horses and the raging wind outside. “The Harbinger.”

At that, immediate silence dominated the air. The wind stopped and the horses calmed. A relieved, shuddering sob escaped my lips.

“You finally figured it out, did you?”

Natz stood in the doorway of the stable, the moon casting him in a shadow that was far beyond his height. I approached the short man and knelt to meet his eyes. “I need you to help me. The castle is under attack by an Orandine.”

His grizzled face contorted with surprise. “So that’s what’s goin’ on out there.” The tomte’s brows crinkled. “How do you guess I’d be of any help?”