Read Online Salvation (The Captive Series Book 4) by Erica Stevens - Free Book Online
Authors: Erica Stevens
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fingers skimmed over the drawings causing them to rustle slightly. “If you split off from here you’ll be hidden within the forest until you reach the mountainside.”
“Are you sure the k ing doesn’t know about this tunnel?” Ashby inquired.
“I create d it as an escape route from that man in case it became necessary. No one knows about that tunnel, except for me,” Braith told him.
“Must have taken awhile,” William muttered.
Braith shrugged, his fingers and muscles clenched at the mere thought of the king. “You do what is necessary, no matter what the cost,” he added bitterly. “I’ll take twenty in with me when we first enter.”
“You can’t go into that palace so unprotected,” Gideon protested.
“If I take more than that it will be impossible to move them through undetected .”
“ The tunnel is our best advantage to get more men inside without being seen,” Gideon insisted.
“If they know we are inside they will make sure that they have Aria with them,” Braith growled.
“Braith…”
“No!” he barked. “No more arguments Gideon. This right here, this , is not a democracy! Not when it comes to her. I will go in there with only twenty. We will have one hour before others may follow, but I will have that hour to try and locate her first. When the others enter they can make their way to the main gate, but I will remain inside until I find her.”
“Can we take all of the troops through the tunnel?” Frank inquired.
“No, there’s not enough room to maneuver that many men through undetected. They would discover us and we would be trapped, pinned down by the king’s men if we try to move everyone inside the palace that way. It will be hard enough for the three hundred that enter behind us, but it will be doable.”
They uneasily shuffled around him. “It’s a solid plan,” Ashby finally agreed.
Braith listened as Daniel rolled the designs back up and tucked them into his shirt. “Of course it is.”
Braith normally would have felt some amusement over Daniel’s self assured response, but he was incapable of feeling such a thing right now. He rose to his feet and rolled his aching shoulders as he tried to ease some of the tension within them. “When will we be ready?”
“ Tomorrow, two days at the most. If we wait until nightfall there will be even less resistance,” Daniel answered hesitatingly.
Braith’s teeth clenched, his jaw throbbed from the pressure on it. Two days, it was far more time than he had expected. Two more days of Aria trapped in that palace, at the mercy of his father and brother. Taking down his father’s soldiers had assuaged some of his bloodlust and his craving for death, but it was coming back tenfold right now. It thrummed in his temples and pulsed through his body with every second that passed. “Two days it is,” he grated.
There was a collective exhalation of relief. He turned away from them and moved deeper into the woods. He had to get away from them. Rage was burning up his chest, surging up his throat, strangling him with its intensity. He moved through the trees that Aria loved so much, taking refuge in the forest that she cherished as he climbed the hill. He could almost feel her here, amongst them, laughing as she jumped from tree to tree and limb to limb.
He was thankful that most of their troops were still in the caves, he couldn’t deal with anyone else right now. Arriving at the top of the hill, he turned back toward the town and the palace. The shadows shifted and blurred before him but he could make out the silhouette of the king’s home. It wasn’t anger that tore through him now but a sense of loss so profound that it nearly drove him to his knees. He couldn’t think about what was being done to her, what she was going through because of him.
It had just been a simple mission, and he’d lost her. He’d let her down.
“Are you sure the k ing doesn’t know about this tunnel?” Ashby inquired.
“I create d it as an escape route from that man in case it became necessary. No one knows about that tunnel, except for me,” Braith told him.
“Must have taken awhile,” William muttered.
Braith shrugged, his fingers and muscles clenched at the mere thought of the king. “You do what is necessary, no matter what the cost,” he added bitterly. “I’ll take twenty in with me when we first enter.”
“You can’t go into that palace so unprotected,” Gideon protested.
“If I take more than that it will be impossible to move them through undetected .”
“ The tunnel is our best advantage to get more men inside without being seen,” Gideon insisted.
“If they know we are inside they will make sure that they have Aria with them,” Braith growled.
“Braith…”
“No!” he barked. “No more arguments Gideon. This right here, this , is not a democracy! Not when it comes to her. I will go in there with only twenty. We will have one hour before others may follow, but I will have that hour to try and locate her first. When the others enter they can make their way to the main gate, but I will remain inside until I find her.”
“Can we take all of the troops through the tunnel?” Frank inquired.
“No, there’s not enough room to maneuver that many men through undetected. They would discover us and we would be trapped, pinned down by the king’s men if we try to move everyone inside the palace that way. It will be hard enough for the three hundred that enter behind us, but it will be doable.”
They uneasily shuffled around him. “It’s a solid plan,” Ashby finally agreed.
Braith listened as Daniel rolled the designs back up and tucked them into his shirt. “Of course it is.”
Braith normally would have felt some amusement over Daniel’s self assured response, but he was incapable of feeling such a thing right now. He rose to his feet and rolled his aching shoulders as he tried to ease some of the tension within them. “When will we be ready?”
“ Tomorrow, two days at the most. If we wait until nightfall there will be even less resistance,” Daniel answered hesitatingly.
Braith’s teeth clenched, his jaw throbbed from the pressure on it. Two days, it was far more time than he had expected. Two more days of Aria trapped in that palace, at the mercy of his father and brother. Taking down his father’s soldiers had assuaged some of his bloodlust and his craving for death, but it was coming back tenfold right now. It thrummed in his temples and pulsed through his body with every second that passed. “Two days it is,” he grated.
There was a collective exhalation of relief. He turned away from them and moved deeper into the woods. He had to get away from them. Rage was burning up his chest, surging up his throat, strangling him with its intensity. He moved through the trees that Aria loved so much, taking refuge in the forest that she cherished as he climbed the hill. He could almost feel her here, amongst them, laughing as she jumped from tree to tree and limb to limb.
He was thankful that most of their troops were still in the caves, he couldn’t deal with anyone else right now. Arriving at the top of the hill, he turned back toward the town and the palace. The shadows shifted and blurred before him but he could make out the silhouette of the king’s home. It wasn’t anger that tore through him now but a sense of loss so profound that it nearly drove him to his knees. He couldn’t think about what was being done to her, what she was going through because of him.
It had just been a simple mission, and he’d lost her. He’d let her down.
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