The King's Queen

Chapter 43

The guard narrowed her eyes at him and the fury burned and sizzled in her glare. She slowly raised both her hands and the next poisonous words that spilled from her lips made my heart writhe in despair.

"Release the Nightshade gas."

*°*

Nightshade gas? My body went taut at those words. There was already enough Nightshade floating around in my system that made it so I could barely even move properly. Any more of it, and I didn't have to think much about what the worst-case scenario would be for me.

Then, there was the matter of the other Origins. Most of them were in no condition to fight and were probably recovering somewhere while the stronger ones faced the guards. I couldn't help but wonder if there was another Angeles among them-some fortunate survivor that Luca could call his family.

As if everyone else could somehow sense the impending danger, a deathly lull came over the compound. The sounds of fighting had mostly ceased. Again, I hoped that Ezra and the others were okay.

The guard stood tall, her shoulders squared back and rigid as her taunting grey eyes dug into Luca's, issuing a silent challenge. Behind us, the other guards continued to battle the rebellious flame that Luca still had control over. I inched along the wall, moving closer to him. I wasn't experienced in combat, but if it came down to it, I would stand beside him and fight.

Luca's near silver eyes contemplated her, his expression unamused. He didn't shrink back or cower away from her-and neither would I.

"You should have known better than to come here." Her lips parted to form a serpentine sneer. "You got lucky the first time. Escaping from the OA a second time will be impossible. This place will be your grave. We'll hang your bones over the gate as an example."

Her eyes flickered in my direction. She couldn't see me, but she could sense that I was close by. "I'll mount the girl's head on a spike myself," she continued her sickening provocation. "I'll do it while the Nightshade is fresh in her system, while she's still alive to feel every bit of it."

Luca remained motionless, his expression like granite as he assessed her. The silent, deadly danger that lurked in his eyes would have brought me to my knees if I was in her position. He could incinerate her in the blink of an eye if he chose to. But if he inhaled the Nightshade, that would render his abilities useless. We had to escape before the gas was ready-

The ground tremored slightly beneath my feet and a steady hissing came from the walls. Before I could blink, a massive gust of wind billowed from the small cannon-like structures that were built into the fortified walls. I had thought that they were canons, but my observation had been wrong. They were large air vents.

Some survival instinct sparked within me and I quickly pulled a deep breath into my lungs before the poisonous gas could get to me. Luca's voice was lethally quiet as he spoke. His eyes were shaded with disappointment as he swallowed hard. "I spare your life and the lives of your guards, yet you repay me with this. You Origens never change."

In a flash, he was over to me, strapping something solid, yet invisible to my face. A mask. It must have been made specifically to counteract Nightshade gas.

"So that's where she was hiding." The guard laughed. "A futile move to save your companion! You're both as good as dead once the gas hits you."

"The mask will only last for a minute... two minutes at best," Luca said. His eyes bore into mine and they were empty, resigned. "I swear I'll get you out of here before then."

"A fool's ambition." The guard barked another laugh. Her gaze switched to the burning building and the killing intent in her eyes grew more. "A Meryllian princess was in that building," she spoke, "and you set it ablaze. What I'll to do you will be far worse than anything you can imagine."