“He’s going to blame himself for not pushing harder if something happens to Grandfather,”Cinaed said when we’d kicked everyone else out of the links.
The crown prince probably would, because good beings tried to save those they loved. It didn’t matter that Ailpein didn’t want or think he needed saving, his son wouldn’t forgive himself.“Let’s hope we get there before it’s too late.”
Despite my words, I expected the worst. Ailpein had been a fool, and fools were the easiest to dupe. Blackstone had played this hand too perfectly. We wouldn’t get there in time.
The hallway leading to the King’s private study was eerily quiet. There should have been guards or staff moving around if there was a meeting. I didn’t need to voice my concerns to Cinaed. The way he searched the area validated my assessment.
Something foul assailed my magical senses. I’d never fought a demon, been attacked by black magic, or stood over the edge of a klarion pit, but I was pretty certain I felt corruption. It tainted the air and saturated the stones.
Cinaed was a step ahead of me, his normally fluid movements taut with barely restrained urgency. He turned thecorner and came to a halt. The door to Ailpein’s study had been blasted open. We were too late.
“Cinaed,” I whispered, grabbing his arm to keep him from charging headlong into danger. “We should wait for the others.”
He glanced back at me, golden eyes fierce but shadowed with fear. “They’ve attacked my home!” Flame crackling in his words. “We don’t have time.”
“If they’re still in the office, they can’t get out without our seeing them,” I said, still grasping his arm. “There is nothing to gain by rushing headlong into the unknown. The others will be here in a few seconds.”
He hesitated, conflict written across his features. I was right, but that didn’t stop his need to do something immediately.Finally, he gave a terse nod. “You’re right.”
I pointed my mage stone at the ruined grand doors to the king’s private chambers. My white diamond sparkled with the energy I fed it, daring someone to come out and challenge me. Splinters of mahogany mixed with shards of crystal and stone littered the hallway floor. The fight must’ve been fierce to cause this level of destruction. Which begged a question. “How did this happen with no one sounding an alarm and rushing to investigate?”
Cinaed snorted. “Grandfather dampened the sound coming from this area. He wanted to make sure no one violated his private space.”
“Fool” was too kind a word for Ailpein. Father had warned him of the danger, but Ailpein had been so convinced of his superiority and invulnerability that he ignored common sense in favor of appearance. His stupidity threatened the safety of the entire world.
Otto and Bart arrived before I responded to Cinaed. With my brothers for backup, I led Cinaed into the office. The devastation that greeted us defied even my worst fears.
The room was in complete disarray. Furniture had been shattered, the tapestries were ripped and scorched, and a mage lay dead on the charred carpet, his green gem inches from his prone body. The most disturbing sight, however, was the royal guards.
Four phoenixes stood frozen in grotesque stillness. They’d been encased in faceted crystals that pulsed with a malevolent energy. Their faces were masks of shock and pain, capturing their last moments.
Someone had planned this attack meticulously. The guards were dead, but unable to regenerate until they were freed from their translucent prisons. It was a perfect plan for dealing with a foe you couldn’t kill outright.
Cinaed sucked in a sharp breath beside me. “This is truly dark magic.”
I’d never heard of such a spell, but it was a brilliant execution of how to incapacitate a phoenix. Cinaed stepped toward the nearest guard, but I quickly pulled him back.
“Don’t,” I said as gently as I could. “The spell might ensnare you too.”
“Is that possible?” He didn’t wait for an answer to shrink back.
“All things are possible.” I turned toward Bart and Otto. “It would be prudent to know what we’re facing before we test our theories.”
Bart examined one guard, bathing the crystal in purple light from his stone. He was engrossed in his examination when Prince Malachy, two of Cinaed’s siblings, and several guards entered the office.
“What in the gods happened?” Malachy asked.
Chapter Four
Cinaed:
Father’s voice cut through the oppressive silence of Grandfather’s ruined study.
The devastation around us told a story of violence and betrayal that twisted my stomach. Blackstone hadn’t just attacked Grandfather he’d corrupted our home with dark magic that made my skin crawl. The recent wrongness I’d felt had been a warning of this violation.
“Your Highness.” Roderick’s steady voice grounded me, pulling me back from the edge of rage. “The being who claimed to be Inquisitor General Hoffman was an imposter. We believe it was James Blackstone or one of his associates.”
Father’s face hardened as the implications sank in. His gaze swept over the crystallized guards, and I watched heat ripple through the air around him. The weight of command settled on his shoulders. He was the crown prince, and with the king missing, the fate of the four phoenixes trapped in a nightmare of dark magic fell to him.
