Burning Glass (Burning Glass, #1)(113)

A flare of panic seized me at the thought of returning to Valko, but it dwindled as I took in Yuri’s red-rimmed eyes, his aura crazed and violent and broken. “You know about Pia,” I said in realization, my shoulders falling as his nostrils flared with emotion and a vein engorged on his brow. “Oh, Yuri, I’m so sorry.”

His voice wavered. “Please tell me you pleaded for her life.”

“I did. I was too late.”

“Then this can also be your vengeance. If you truly loved Pia, you will help me.” He swallowed with determination and planted the pistol barrel on my breastbone.

I sucked in a sharp breath from the cool bite of metal. “It appears I don’t have a choice.”

“See it how you will.” He shrugged. “Let’s go.”

“This isn’t necessary,” I said, desperate for some means to persuade him. I was losing time to free Anton. “Do you know the peasants are marching?”

“The emperor will die at my hands, and no one else’s.”

My racing heartbeat slowed as I contemplated Yuri and considered a new strategy. “If I promise to help you, I’ll need a favor first.”

“What?” he growled.

“You said you have friends here. Guards. Are any loyal to you in the dungeons?”

His jaw ticked. “Some. Why?”

“Tosya isn’t the only one imprisoned. Anton is in the dungeons, as well. Valko plans to have them both executed in the morning.”

Yuri’s brows pinched together, then he shook his head. “It doesn’t matter. When Valko dies and the people storm the palace, they will be freed, anyway.”

“I need him.” I gripped Yuri’s arm, then flinched as the pistol bit harder into my skin. “I can’t chance anything going awry until he is released.” When Yuri didn’t budge, I added, “This revolution needs him. They need a leader. After all Anton has done, doesn’t he deserve to stand alongside his people?”

“I can’t.” Yuri dropped his gaze. “We have to find Valko now.”

“Please . . .” How could I reach him? “He is to me what Pia was to you. Please . . . help me.”

Yuri’s pistol hand shook harder. I felt our shared love for Pia intensify his struggle.

Tentatively, I touched his arm. He made a muffled noise of pain. “She would want you to help me,” I said, and I believed it wholeheartedly.

He cursed and lowered the gun, raking his hands through his hair. “Very well, Sonya. But quickly.”

The entrance to the dungeons wasn’t far away. As Yuri opened the door, he exposed a winding stone staircase. The cloying stench of refuse and rotting flesh assaulted me. I held my sleeve over my nose and rushed down as quietly as possible.

Yuri grabbed my arm when we reached the dungeons’ floor. “Stay here until I return,” he whispered before he strode off through a stone archway where the light of the sconced torches couldn’t reach him.

I tucked away into a corner. The walls dripped with condensation. A rat skittered across the stones. How much longer did we have before the peasants stormed the palace, before the chaos of raging battle came?

When I thought I might scream from impatience, Yuri finally returned. “The gods are with us.” He grinned. “The jail master is sleeping, and one of the guards stationed at Anton’s cell is my friend. He’s willing to distract his partner, pinch the keys, and give you five minutes to do your business.”

I exhaled with amazement. Perhaps the gods were real and lending their assistance. “That’s wonderful.”

Yuri’s grin slipped. “He is my friend, but he still wants some kind of payment for taking such a risk.” His gaze dropped to my sapphire necklace.

“Yes, of course.” I unclasped and handed it over without second thought.

He tucked it into his pocket. “Ready, then?”

I nodded. My heart beat wildly at the thought of seeing Anton—of freeing him.

“Keep close behind me. Be light on your toes. When I hide, you hide. Understand?” Only then did I notice Yuri had holstered his pistol and now held a gleaming knife. A smarter weapon, I realized. Gunfire would draw the attention of every guard in the dungeons, but one could stab a man silently. A hand at the mouth would even muffle his death cry. My stomach turned as I imagined it—imagined Yuri capable of such a thing. Even now his dark, unbalanced aura made me twitch and dig my nails into my palms.

We advanced into the dungeons. The corridors seemed a reflection of the mazelike hallways above as they twisted and branched without order. The torchlight was minimal, the sconces spread apart with long patches of blackness between them. Rodents’ tails occasionally slithered at my ankles, but I swallowed my fright and made myself keep walking. I awaited the moment Anton’s steadfast aura would take hold within me.

“We’re close.” Yuri’s beard scratched my ear as he turned around and whispered. “Wait here while I signal my friend.”

I leaned against the mildewing wall and counted my heartbeats, preparing for another unendurable wait. The growing panic of the residents in the palace started to infiltrate me. Their awareness of the danger and the coming people’s army chafed my skin with icy terror. I want the peasants to come, I reasoned with myself as I fought to push the other conflicting emotions away.