To Love a Prince (Knights of Valor Book 1)(84)

“But I gotta see him,” a boy said.

“You need to return to the kitchens,” the guard said, “before I see you punished for disturbing the prince.”

“But she said...”

Eli jumped up and sprinted to the door. Pulling it open, he ignored the guards and turned his full attention on the boy. “What did she look like?”

“Reddish hair, funny clothes, and a gold dragon necklace. Like on these doors,” Andrew said.

“Take me to her. Now.”

The boy gave the guard an I-told-you-so look and ran back through the halls with Eli on his heels.

Andrew led the prince deep into the palace, and Eli felt like a lead ball filled his stomach as he realized where the boy was taking him.

Slowing before the wide doors, the prince swallowed the lump in his throat. He hadn’t been there since the day he’d buried his mother.

Not to any of Dracor’s temples.

Eli hadn’t attended religious services, paid his final respects at funerals, or celebrated weddings. Nothing had convinced him to acknowledge the power of a god that had let his mother die.

He heard Fredrick on the other side of the doors, but a biting cold burned Eli’s hand, forcing him to yank it back before he could grab the handle.

“I was wondering when you’d join us,” Fredrick said. “Please, come in.”

The cold dissipated long enough for Eli to pull open the door. The prince bottled his anger and entered, the door closing with a thud behind him.

Despite the destruction Fredrick had wrought, a sense of order pervaded the holy building. Little had changed since the day he’d said his final goodbye to his mother, and the thin layer of dust reminded him that his father preferred to attend services at the main temple.

Fredrick stood at the front of the aisle and spread his arms wide. “You decided to meet with me after all. How fortuitous.”

“Let’s go back to my offices and talk.”

“I think not,” Fredrick said. “The ambiance is so much better here. Easier to remember dead queens and deaf gods.”

“What do you want, Fredrick?”

“Want? I want nothing. Not anymore. But you do.”

Eli stilled as he regarded his cousin.

“A wife. An heir. The throne. So many things you want.”

“You trying to kill Auburn doesn’t get me any of them.”

“But it brought you and made you listen.”

“Why would I listen to you? You sent Premal to kill me.”

“I sent Rolland to bring you home quickly and safely. I worked behind the scenes to make sure you married Daniella and took the throne, but the sultan interfered. Then Premal acted foolishly, but Rashalee repaid him.”

“You betrayed me to Rashalee.”

“Betrayal? What do you know of betrayal?”

“More than I should.” Eli scanned the chapel. There were few places to hide, but he still couldn’t see Auburn.

Fredrick’s face crimsoned in his rage. “You know nothing of betrayal. I’m giving you what should have been mine. I worked, studied, did everything Dracor demanded. And when I stood before Him, He turned away from me.”

Auburn was somewhere in the temple. He had to keep Fredrick talking, focused on him rather than her. “Why help me?”

“It’s what Rashalee wills, and She rewards Her followers for doing Her will. You know Dracor doesn’t. It’s why you never asked for His blessing. Why you turned to Rashalee.”

Eli arched a brow.

“Come now, cousin. I’ve watched you walk away from Dracor as you went further down Rashalee’s path for over half your life.”

Eli didn’t want his cousin to be right, didn’t want to listen to his half-truths. He wanted to find Auburn and get her to safety.

“Ask yourself if you’d seek justice or vengeance if I killed Auburn right now.”

Eli’s fists clenched at his sides.

Fredrick laughed. “Exactly. You’re already Rashalee’s.”

“How can you follow the goddess of betrayal?”

“Her faithful use betrayal as a tactic, even among ourselves, but Rashalee is true to Her followers once they prove themselves.”

Eli eased forward several pews. “Had to cost you a lot to prove your loyalty.”

“Less than the decade I devoted to Dracor, and the rewards have been far richer. Money, power, women. Few know I’m one of the wealthiest men in Tamryn. Richer than you.”

“What did She demand for that?”

“Does it matter? I gave it.”

“I want to know what I can expect Her to demand of me.”

“Don’t listen to him,” Auburn said, her words reverberating through the temple. “He speaks lies and half-truths to deceive you.”

“Silence!” A bolt of darkness shot from Fredrick’s hand and slammed into the stone altar. The solid rock didn’t even shudder under the assault.

Eli still couldn’t see her, but Fredrick knew where she was, and his cousin possessed some kind of dark magic. It was even more imperative that Eli keep Fredrick focused on him. “It was your mother, wasn’t it? Rashalee forced you to kill your mother.”

Fredrick’s voice hitched. “Poisoned her.”

“You loved her.”