Of Fire and Night - Kevin J. Anderson [203]
"What about the guards at the derelict?" Estarra asked. "And at Prince Daniel's quarters?"
"Those are not my men," McCammon said. "They are Hansa servants, through and through. You'll have to deal with them yourselves."
"We will," Peter said.
"Make it look good," McCammon said, then threw himself on the King, yelling. Instinctively, Peter fired the new twitcher, and the captain slumped beside his comrade on the cool, hard floor.
He and Estarra both looked at the two fallen guards. "Now I suppose we don't have any choice," Peter said.
"We never did. Let's go." She picked up McCammon's limp arms. "Help me drag these men inside where no one will see them." Working together, the King, the Queen, and the compy pulled the unconscious guards across the slick stone floor into the royal apartments.
Since OX knew the secret ways of the Whisper Palace better than any of them, the Teacher compy led the way. The Palace normally kept a quiet nighttime schedule with only a skeleton staff. Now, because of the alarms, many people ran through the dim halls. Fortunately, none of them paid attention to the King and Queen in their nondescript clothes.
At a brisk pace, OX rushed them through back corridors and service halls to Prince Daniel's plush apartments. As the compy hurried them toward the doorway, Peter saw that five royal guards remained in position to protect Daniel--more than had been assigned to watch over the King and Queen. Either Basil didn't trust Daniel, or he didn't dare risk his precious Prince.
Edgy because of the alarms, two of the guards stepped forward. The King knew from his training that personal demeanor was as much a part of recognition as any costume. He strutted forward to address the guards. "What is this? Do you not salute when you see your King?" Estarra, obviously pregnant, completed the picture.
The guards snapped to attention.
OX walked briskly up to them. "We must see the Prince."
"The Prince is asleep, and we have orders not to let him be disturbed."
"This is an emergency, Sergeant," Estarra said. "Your orders have changed."
"The hydrogues are attacking! We must speak to the Prince immediately."
Surprised and still suspicious, the guards looked at each other in confusion.
Unable to wait for their compliance, Peter raised the twitcher and blasted the front two guards. He spun to the third man as the first pair melted to the floor, but the stunner only sputtered. An empty charge pack already!
The remaining guards whipped out their sidearms. "That can't be the King!"
A thrumming shuddered through the air. "Oh yes it is," said Estarra. She tucked a twitcher back into her loose pocket as the last three guards spasmed and fell to the floor. She looked at Peter, smiling. "I took the other guard's weapon before we left him. I thought we might need an extra one."
He gave her a kiss that was not nearly long enough, then looked around. The corridors were empty. The doors to side rooms were closed. "Hurry! Daniel might have heard something. If he sees these guards, it will make everything more difficult."
"Prince Daniel is a heavy sleeper," OX pointed out. "I doubt he has the curiosity to investigate a noise in the night. Even these alarms."
Several doors in the hall were locked, but OX used his compy strength to break the latch on a storeroom filled with unmarked boxes. The layer of dust implied that the room might well have remained unopened since the reign of King Jack. By the time they had pulled all five guards inside and closed the door, both Peter and Estarra were panting and sweating.
"The lock no longer functions. We must be gone before the guards revive," OX said.
"Count on it," Estarra said.
Peter opened the door to the Prince's chambers and strode in with the Queen and OX behind him. "Daniel! Time to wake up. No time to waste."
Tousle-headed and confused, the young man was already pulling a robe around himself. "Why did you disturb me? And who are--" He rubbed his bleary eyes and