Page 9 of The Twisted Throne
Or maybe she just didn’t bother tellingyou.
“Back down and thenwhat?” There was a hint of anger in his voice, though whether it was at her or the situation, Ahnna didn’t know. “There is a battle between my people and yours about to begin, if it hasn’t already. You thinkanyoneis going to notice us in the water before the sharks eat us?”
There wasn’t a chance in hell.
“I’ve followed your lead because you are Ithicanian,” he went on, his tone more aggravated than afraid. “But I’ll not follow blindly, so if you’ve a strategy, tell me what it is. Otherwise, we will do this my way.”
His tone annoyed her, but his point was fair.
Taking a deep breath to calm her racing heart, Ahnna considered the options.
They weren’t good.
William took hold of the bars and yanked. Over and over, and Ahnna fought the urge to tell him it wasn’t going to work and instead kept her mind on the problem.
There were other ways onto Northwatch, though it would require them swimming a fair distance, which was risky given the carnage in the water. And knowing that Mara had barred thistunnel, what were the chances she hadn’t done the same to every other route onto the island? The battle would be over and done by the time they made it to shore.
“Well?”
“I’m trying to think of a solution,” Ahnna growled. “Perhaps attempt the same rather than making so much noise.”
Ignoring her, William shifted in the water, his legs bumping hers as he braced his feet against the sides of the chamber. He grunted with effort, and she felt thick muscles bulge as he heaved against the solid steel.
It was a waste of effort, but Ahnna let him struggle while she thought.
If Mara had wanted the passage totally blocked, she’d have filled it with stone. There had to be a way past these bars.
A way only an Ithicanian would think to use.
Ahnna smiled.
“Would you mind lending your strength?” William snarled, his breath hot against her cheek in the blackness. “Or are you too busythinking?”
“Not every problem is solved with biceps, Your Highness.”
As he huffed out an irritated breath, Ahnna reached up and took hold of the bars, finding where they’d been set with mortar. There was no lock, and the steel was thick and strong.
Feeling along the walls of the tunnel, she found a narrow ledge, her fingers brushing against the smooth glass of three bottles Mara had left for any Ithicanian who found themselves in this predicament. Elation filled her. Taking a firm grip on the bottles, she lowered herself, running her thumbs over the markings on the glass to confirm what they contained. “I need you to hold me up. I need both hands to do this.”
“To do what?”
“I’m going to blow up the mortar holding the steel in place.”
She waited for the cowardice she’d been warned of to rear its head, but William only muttered, “Bloody Ithicanians and your explosives.” His hands fumbled at her waist, legs bracing against the rock as he lifted her.
His breath was hot against her breasts through the thin fabric of her shirt, his fingers digging into the muscles of her sides. Yet his arms were steady despite the effort it must have taken to hold her in the awkward position. He was a far cry from the weakling the spy reports had described.
Ahnna reached through the bars, but the angle wasn’t good for setting a charge. Given there’d be only one chance at this, she needed to set it up perfectly.
Clutching the bottles against her chest with one hand, Ahnna gripped the bars with her free hand and slung one leg over his shoulder, trying not to think about the fact that his face was now pressed between her legs. Easing around so that she was sitting squarely on his shoulders, she pulled free the wax sealing one of the bottles and set it carefully into position. Unstopping another, she created the longest fuse the space would allow, then set the jar next to the other.
With the last jar in her hand, she hesitated. “We’re only going to have maybe ten seconds to get out of range of the explosion. When I give you the word, I need you to drop. We’ll push ourselves down as fast as we can to get out of the way of the debris.”
“How do you know this won’t collapse the whole tunnel?”
She didn’t.
But her whole world was at stake above them. She refused to abandon them for fear of her own life. “The explosion won’t be that strong. Have a little faith,Your Highness.This is what we do. Ready?”
