Obsidian Ridge - Jess Lebow [50]
Without a word, he turned and headed back to the palace.
"My lord!" shouted Captain Kaden. "What do you want us to do with Whitman?"
The king waved his hand over his shoulder, not looking back. "Take him to the dungeon. I'm not through with him yet."
Chapter Fifteen
The king stormed into the audience chamber, his clothes still damp with sweat from sparring. A court clerk approached him as he made his way around the curved outer wall.
"King Korox, if I could just get a moment-"
The king waved him off. "No," he boomed.
The clerk bowed once then disappeared behind a column.
Reaching the far side and the statue of Ondeth Obarskyr, Korox pushed open the door to his private reading room. Though it was early morning, the room was still quite dark. The sun coming in from the high windows cast long shadows across the opposite wall. The reflection lit the chamber well enough that the king could see all the obstacles in his way.
Crossing to the far edge, the king looked into the darkened corner.
"Where is he?" he said under his breath. "I am here, my king."
Behind him, the Claw had materialized. It had always been disconcerting to Korox that the Claw seemingly appeared out of thin air, but now was not the time to discuss this little pet peeve.
"So, I don't need to tell you about the Matron's demand."
"No, you do not."
"And you are aware of the princess's predicament?"
The Claw nodded.
"We can speak freely here, away from other ears. What am I to do?"
The Claw took a deep breath, pausing-a very uncharacteristic moment of hesitation.
"This is not the time to withhold your thoughts," said the king. "I need your unfiltered council, so that I can make a quick decision about both the Matron and my daughter."
The Claw bowed his head. "My lord, there is something I must tell you…" Another moment of hesitation.
"Out with it, man," demanded the king. "Mariko is in the Cellar. For all we know she may already be dead, but if she is not-and I pray for the sake of Erlkazar she is still unharmed-then I need to move fast."
"I'll get her," volunteered the Claw.
The king nodded. "I thought you might. But then what do I do about the Matron?"
"My lord, I am your loyal servant. If you were to ask me to descend to the deepest levels of Hell and return with a devil in tow, I would do it without question. There is nothing too grand or too small, nothing I would withhold from you. But I cannot turn myself over to the Matron. Not now."
The king was puzzled. "Not now?"
"Because I am in love with your daughter, and I must get her back."
The king lowered his head. "I know."
It was the Claw's turn to be puzzled. "You know?"
"Mariko is not the only spy at my disposal."
"I see." The Claw stared at the ground, shifting his weight from foot to foot, looking rather uncomfortable.
"We do not have the time to have the conversation about what it means to court my daughter," said the king. "But I hope we will in the near future." He put his hand on the Claw's shoulder. "For now, let's just get her back."
The Claw nodded. "Yes, my lord."
The king crossed the room and slid open the drawer on a desk in the corner. Reaching inside, he retrieved a small box, a magic sigil inscribed on its surface. Placing his hand on top, he spoke the princess's name. "Mariko Morkann," and the lid to the box sprang open.
"This"-he lifted a small, flat disk, about twice the size of a typical gold coin, from the box; brightly colored triangles radiated out from the center, making it look like a child's toy-"is a portal that will take you to the Cellar. You will be able to activate it a second time to get back out, once you have found Mariko. But be careful when you use it. It can only be used once to get in and once to get out. It will not last very long. If you activate it and do not use it, you will be lost, trapped inside the Cellar." He offered it to the masked man.
The Claw took it. "I understand."
The king grabbed his assassin by the arm. "I have trusted you with the most important matters of my reign. Now I must trust you with my daughter's life.