Ever After (Unfinished Fairy Tales #3)(94)
All I can think of Edward. I pull out my pocket watch with trembling hands. Half an hour until noon. If we hurry, we can reach Parliament before the bomb goes off. We can’t remove the bomb—there isn’t time to find an expert, but we can make the MPs evacuate. Hope they won’t look down on me and refuse to comply. Anyway, Edward will believe me. If he agrees to leave the building, the others will follow.
The streets are eerily quiet after the demonstration yesterday, which only adds to the tension. I grip the sides of the seat and pray that we can arrive on time. If there’s a traffic jam, I vow I’ll run all the way, no matter what it takes. Edward has to be safe. He’s got to be.
Liam sits across me, his head bowed. I decided to bring him, in case we run into Quinn or a member of the Union. He might be useful.
“Are we nearly there?” I shout. Just when I am thinking about which entrance I should use to enter the building, the ground shakes. I clutch the edge of the seat; so does Liam. The impact isn’t large enough to overturn the carriage, but still, I have an ice-cold instinct that the bomb is already set off.
NO! My heart feels like it’s going to leap out of my throat. I poke my head out of the window and in the distance, I could see the white dome of the parliament building. There’s smoke rising from the roof.
“Edward,” I breathe.
As the streets gradually fill with people who’ve emerged to see what happened, I decide I can’t wait any longer. I open the door, spring to the ground, and set off in a run. Footsteps pound behind me; Bertram and Liam catch up with me.
I whirl around, grab Liam’s arm, and yell at him. “Didn’t you say the bomb would go off at noon?”
His face is paper white, his lip trembles. “I don’t know…maybe Quinn changed the timing? I swear I had no idea.”
“Princess.” Bertram takes my elbow. “We need to find His Highness.”
I twist Liam’s arm until he yelps, and let him go. “You’d better pray that Edward is safe, because if he isn’t…you won’t want to know what I can do to you.”
I race to the building. I trip on my gown twice—my knees must be bruised—but I barely feel any pain. All I can think of is Edward. If anything happens to him…I don’t even want to think about it. I didn’t come back to have him cruelly taken away from me again.
I’m nearly there, when a child’s cry pierces the air. I pause for a second. One glance tells me that the child is all right, but nearby is a woman sitting on the ground, holding her head, which is bleeding. There’s a large piece of debris on her skirt. Looks like part of the building was blown off and landed on this unfortunate mother. A young woman appears with a roll of bandages; she tends to the mother and calms the child with amazing efficiency.
My anxiety turns into full-fledged fear. If someone outside the building is injured, then what about the people inside?
A strong hand lands on my shoulder. “He will be all right, Princess Kat,” Bertram says, with his usual simple-minded optimism. “He is a good man. Nothing bad will happen to those who do good.”
Normally, I’d laugh and tell him he’s spouting naive nonsense, but now I want to believe him. I make myself believe him. Edward has his faults, but he certainly is a good man. He has worked long hours to make Athelia a better place. Nothing will happen to him.
I turn to Liam. “Are there any more bombs I should be aware of?”
“Kat…you’re not planning to enter the building?”
“If anyone is seriously injured, time is vital. We’ve got to get everyone to safety as soon as possible.”
Someone staggers out of the building. Lord Ashford, looking like he took a shower in white dust, is clutching his arm.
“Lord Ashford!” I race to his side. “Are you all right? Is everyone all right?”
He grimaces. “A marble bust crashed on my arm, but other than that I’m fine. The others are coming out as well—those that didn’t have their legs stuck.”
With his other arm, he gestures to the building. The entrance is mostly blocked off, thanks to the bomb, but there’s a narrow opening so that the MPs can squeeze through on hands and knees.
“Did you see Edward?”
Ashford shakes his head. “He was on the podium when the explosion occurred. There were pillars in the way; I couldn’t get to him.”
My knees sway. Finally, I know what it’s like to swoon. I keep telling myself I’ve got to think of the next step, but my mind is wiped blank.
Bertram steadies me. “I’ll find him, Princess. Don’t you worry.”
His confidence infects me. “I’m going in there with you.” I find my voice. “If you can go in, then so can I. Don’t argue with me, Bertram, I’ll be careful. But I HAVE to find him.”
My voice breaks, and I fight back tears that threaten to spill. I just know I can’t stand here and wait. I have to go in, whatever they say.
Bertram grits his teeth and makes me promise I’ll stand behind him. He pulls away some rocks so he could squeeze through the entrance, and I crawl in after him.
It’s a mess inside Parliament. Pillars are lying across the floor, paintings and cabinets have crashed on the ground, tables and chairs are in disarray. Several members of the Parliament are moaning and groaning, but it looks like no one is seriously injured or unconscious. For this rare instance, I’m thankful that technology in Athelia isn’t significantly advanced, or that Quinn isn’t an expert in bombing.