Bound to the Alpha King novel · Chapter 7 of 24

Chapter 7: The South Wall

I found Rorik in the corridor outside the undercroft with his coat half on.

He had felt my heart go off from three floors up.

"Tobren," I said.

"Where?"

"I don't know. He left this."

I held up the hawk feather with its grey thread.

Rorik's face went hard.

"The mews are on the south wall," he said. "Come."

We ran.

The south wall of Greywater was a narrow walk of frosted stone a hundred feet above the rocks.

There was a hawk loft at one end and a drop at the other.

Tobren stood in the middle of the walk with his back to us.

In his hand was a long thin knife with a black handle.

A hooded figure on the far parapet was already going over the edge on a rope.

"Tobren!" I shouted.

He turned.

His face was white and wet.

"He said the Fen could be free," he said. "He said all I had to do was wait for the king to come up alone."

"Who said?"

"I don't know his name. He had a grey cloak."

Boots rang on the stairs behind us.

Six of the guard came out onto the wall with their torches high and their swords drawn.

They saw my brother and the knife and the king.

"Take him," said somebody.

I stepped in front of Tobren and held out my hand.

"Give it to me," I said very softly.

"Hedda."

"Now."

He put the knife into my palm.

I turned and held it up to the torches, and I made my voice carry.

"This is mine," I said.

"I brought it from the Fen."

"My brother took it from my pouch to cut a bandage, and he's been sick with fever and fright since the oath."

"He doesn't know what he's holding."

The guards looked at each other.

It was a very bad lie.

Rorik looked at me with a face I couldn't read.

"Brack," he said at last, not taking his eyes off me.

"The healer says it's hers."

"I believe the healer."

"Take your men below."

"The boy goes back to his cot with two guards on the door."

"Majesty, the hooded figure," Brack began.

"Send riders down the rock. They'll find a rope and nothing else."

They went.

My legs stopped holding me up and I sat down on the wall.

← Chapter 6 · All chapters · Chapter 8 →

Want to keep talking to characters like these? Chat with AI romance characters: AI Boyfriend · AI Girlfriend · Dark Romance · Fantasy Romance · BL (Boys’ Love) · Billionaire Boyfriend · Mafia Boyfriend · Possessive Boyfriend · Hockey Boyfriend · Older Boyfriend · K-Drama Boyfriend · Anime Boyfriend · Vampire Boyfriend · Werewolf Boyfriend · Demon Boyfriend · Fae Romance · GL (Girls’ Love) · Anime Girlfriend · Goth & Alt Girlfriend · Gamer Girlfriend · Tsundere Girlfriend · Fantasy Girlfriend