The Reckless Reign (Book 3, The Culled Crown Series)

Chapter 67

The south wing.
Oredison Palace, Gazda.
The Battle.

The palace was in utter disarray. We stuck mostly to the hidden passages and servants entrances, but as the destruction I'd caused grew, it became more and more difficult. Kai had suggested that Caine might be in the war room on the western side of the palace, so we headed in that direction.

The explosion I'd caused inside the library had completely torn apart one half of the palace. The blast had taken out chunks of wall and large pieces of the floor. It had completely collapsed the servant's stairwell and had disabled the lifts on that end. This left us with a choice: we either needed to backtrack and try to use a different servants' entrance, or we could try to use the regular stairs.

I leaned towards the second choice, since it wouldn't take as much time to get up the main stairwell as it would to backtrack through the passageways. By the time we'd reached the hypothetical second servants' passage way, we could already be where we needed to go.

Since I was allied with Darragh, I would most likely be fine if we ran into his troops—I was fairly well known by now. However, most of Darragh and Haniver's troops saw Kai as an enemy and they would treat him that way. The same could be said for me if we ran into Erydian army. Caine's soldiers probably wouldn't hurt Kai, but they'd shoot me without hesitation.

We were both equally at risk.

The fighting up ahead of us was louder than it had been in any other area, which I took as a good sign. We'd have to go one way or the other, but, when I turned to go towards the door and the main stairs, Kai balked. "Monroe—" he caught my wrist and pulled me back into the shadows of the passageway. "Slow down. Wait a second."

I tried to tug away from him but he held firm. "We're almost there," I argued.

"There could be soldiers—"

"Good goddess, Kai, stop trying to control me."

He let go of my wrist as if I'd burned him. "I'm not. I swear I'm not. I just—" He leaned around the corner, checking to make sure the hallway was empty. "If we go up the main stairs, we could risk—"

"It's two sets of stairs and one landing, Kai. We can risk that much. Two sets of stairs, one landing, and a hallway—and then we've got him."

"That isn't a plan, Monroe. He'll have soldiers and weapons we don't have. If he's in the war room, he won't be alone. He'll be heavily guarded and armed." He shook his head. "We can't go against Caine with only your knife."

"I have my ability too."

He lifted his gaze heavenward as if begging for patience. "Monroe—"

"Trust me."

Up until that moment, he'd followed me without question, giving me directions and letting me decide when we moved and when he waited. And I knew, just seeing how he was looking at me, that he would follow me no matter where I went. But I was putting him at risk too. This wasn't just my life. And he was right, he was unarmed and I held only a knife.

"I..." I swallowed and looked towards the fire blazing further down the hall. It cut us off from the majority of the fighting, but I would be able to move it aside for us when we were ready to head that way. Worry gnawed at my insides. "When Jax offered me a gun earlier, I didn't take it. We only had a certain amount of them and I wanted Nadia or someone to have it. I figured I wouldn't need it."

"You don't need it. I know you can protect yourself with just your ability. You've always been a force to be reckoned with. I, on the other hand, am not as intimidating without a weapon. And I think if we aren't careful, we'll end up in a situation with Caine."