Chapter 21

Brokk and I had to hurry to catch up with Tuck and Jenna in the tunnel. We were all still a little bit exhausted from our fight with Kailen and the villagers.

“What should we do now?” Jenna asked.

“I think that we need to just lay low for a little while and recuperate.” Brokk said. “It will still be a few more hours before the merchants close up for the night. Once most of the city has gotten home and gone to bed, it will be much easier to sneak in.”

“He’s right.” Tuck agreed. “And if we do have to fight the Guard, it will be much easier if we are well rested.”

It really had not been that long since we started out, but after the fight we had just been through I could definitely use a bite to eat and some water. Luckily, Jenna kept her pack on her since she didn’t have a weapon strapped to her back. I was starting to think that a nap might not be so bad either.

We found a place that was tucked away, so hopefully we would not be disturbed. Jenna spread out her blanket so that we would not have to sit on the cold floor. I munched on a beef stick and swigged some water, while Tuck and Jenna curled up with each other beside me.

Brock sat with his back propped against the wall. I offered him some water and he took it, smiling.

“Where did you learn to fight that way?” He asked quietly. Trying not to disturb the others.

“Jenna and Tuck taught me.” I gestured toward them.

“You were pretty amazing back there. Thanks for getting that jerk off of me.” He was smiling again.

“No problem. Thanks for defending my honor.” I said with a giggle.

“It was the least that I could do.” He bowed his head at me.

“Callie, I am truly sorry about everything that has happened. I know that you do not wish to hear it, but I really did try to save your parents. I wish that I could have gotten to them faster.”

I stared at the floor to keep from meeting his eyes. I didn’t know if that was something that I could ever forgive him for. I know that he is not the one that killed them and I knew that he went back to try to stop it. However, he knew what Lilith planned to do and he did not try to stop it soon enough.

He also came for me when she asked him. He knew then what she wanted me for. He may not have known that she was going to lock me away like her prisoner, but he knew that her intentions were not good.

“Callie?” He said softly.

This time I looked at him.

“I should never have let my anger and resentment get the better of me. It was not until we were traveling through the tunnel to Petrona that I realized how much I care for you.”

“Well, thanks I guess. I really don’t know what else to say to you Brokk.”

“You don’t have to say anything. I just wanted you to know.” It was him that looked away this time.

“Brokk, let’s just get through the next few days. Then we can talk. Right now I think that we really need to focus on what we are about to do.”

“Okay.” He smiled. Then he pulled me to him. I laid my head on his chest as he continued to lean his back against the wall. I could hear the beating of his heart and feel the gentle rise and fall of his chest as he breathed. It was enough to lull anybody to sleep. Anybody but me, that is. I was to amped up to sleep.

In just a few short hours, we would be entering the city. I had no idea how everything was going to go down, but the one thing that I knew for sure was there was definitely going to be fight. A bad one.

Apparently, none of us could rest for very long. Our nerves had gotten the better of us, I guess. Jenna and Tuck started to stir, so Brokk and I got up too.

Once we found that we could not put it off any longer, we gathered ourselves together and prepared to enter the city. Most of the merchants and citizens would have already gone home and hopefully were asleep in their beds.

Brokk volunteered to go in first. He has been one of the Guard for years and was friends with many of them. If anyone were near, hopefully they would not think anything of him being there.

We waited just inside the doorway for him to return and give us the okay. I could not just stand still and wait, so I found myself pacing nervously.

“Calm down, Callie.” Jenna was mothering me as per her usual.

“I can’t. He has been gone too long. Something must have happened.” I said anxiously.

“He is probably just trying to find out where all the sentries are posted. He will be back soon.” Tuck said.

That really did not make me feel any better. Although Brokk was able to track me down on the surface and bring me back with no problem, I still did not think that he was much of a fighter. Kailen was able to overpower him far too easily for my liking.

A few minutes later, we heard some noise on the other side of the door. I rushed to open it but Tuck pulled me back.

“Shhh, just wait.” He whispered.

I stood completely still with my back against Tuck. He kept one hand on my shoulder, holding me in place. My heart was beating in a frenzy, I was so scared. I don’t know if it was the weird bond that I shared with Brokk or if it was something else, but I felt this strange desire to want to protect him.

I had no idea why I felt as if he could not take care of himself. He had managed to find me and bring me here, and no matter how hard I struggled and fought, he never even flinched. He was a trained guard and should be able to handle nearly anything, but I just could not stop myself from worrying.

There was a loud click and the door slowly started to open. I held my breath. A tall figure slid through the doorway and shut it back. He slowly began walking towards us, but something was not right. There was sort of a hitch to his walk that made him sway to one side as he moved. I wanted to run to him but Tuck only held me tighter,

“Callie…” I heard him say with difficulty. I broke free from Tuck’s gasp and ran to him.

It was definitely Brokk, and he had been hurt. Aside from his obvious limp, his clothes were dirty and disheveled. His face was swollen and scraped along his forehead and across his cheek.

“What happened?” I asked frantically as I pulled his arm around my shoulder and attempted to help support him as he walked. Tuck and Jenna helped me sit him down with his back propped against the wall. My hands flew about his face in an attempt to determine his injuries, but I was too afraid to actually touch him.

He reached up, grabbed one of my hands, pulled it to his heart, and held it there as his head fell forward.

“Brokk what’s wrong? Tell me what happened.” I pleaded. I was on the verge of tears.

“You do love me.” He said quietly. A small smile spread across his face.

“I am worried about you Brokk.” I shook my head back and forth, trying to clear my mind. Why would he say that? I was frightened and worried about him, but that didn’t mean that I loved him.

Jenna offered him some water and he drank heartily. After a while, he seemed to be recovering a bit. He began to tell us of how he entered the city, and hid as he canvassed the streets, making sure that the citizens were in there homes and safe. He came across an occasional guard on patrol and managed to remain unseen.

He made his way all the way up to the palace. There were guards at various locations surrounding it. He attempted to make his way to the back through the garden. It was there that he was caught off guard.

He had just climbed over the tall rock wall that surrounded the rear of the palace and the garden. He attempted to make his way to one of the rear doors close to the kitchen. The servants used this entrance throughout the day but he had hoped that they all would have gone home for the night.

Just as he made his way up onto the large marble patio, he felt a large hand grab hold of him and spin him around. He only got a brief look at the guard because in an instant he got a fist to his face and was stumbling backwards. He did not immediately recognize the guard and was sure that he should know everyone who worked within a close proximately to the palace.

The guard hit him a few more times and then held him with his hands behind his back. He brought Brokk into the stony basement under the palace and threw him into a cell. As Brokk tried to fight, another guard joined the first and they began kicking and beating him. After they finally left him, it was Bree who came to his rescue.

She had heard the guards talking about the man that they had just locked up and she could tell by their description that it must have been Brokk. She snuck away and stole the keys from a large hook near the basement door. She turned Brokk free and he eventually managed to make it his way back here.

“The queen must have brought in more men from another Fae colony.” Tuck said.

This was not good news. Our odds were already pretty bad, but now we had no idea what we faced. There could be hundreds more, and none of the new guards would know Brokk or remember my family.

I slumped to the floor in front of Brokk. He never released my hand. He just held his arm out toward me as I extended mine toward him. I gave his hand a gentle squeeze, but I did not look at him. Instead, I rested the side of my face on my bent knees.

“Maybe this was a mistake.” I said in a low voice. “Maybe we would be better off if we had just stayed back in the cavern. There is no way that we can overcome an Army of men that large.”

“Don’t give up, Callie.” Jenna said softly in her sweet little pixie voice. “There has to be a way. This is what you were born for. Your mother was the queen, Lilith is only a stand in. Now that Queen Faylinn is gone, you are the true queen. You cannot just spend the rest of your days hiding out in some cavern. The people of this city need you.”

“What can I do, Jenna? There are only four of us. We can’t even ask the people of Drake for help. They were willing to fight us just to keep us from getting to the city. They don’t want any part of something that might just cause another war for them.”

“Why not use your fairy magic?” Tuck asked. “I have never seen anyone as powerful as the two of you.” He gestured toward Jenna then looked back at me.

“The queen has fairy magic too.” I started to say.

“Not like yours.” I looked up to see Brokk looking intently at me. “You are a direct descendant of the royal blood line. No one else should have magic as strong as yours.”

I looked at Jenna, studying her hard. “Jenna does.” I stated.

She looked surprised. “No, not like yours Callie.”

“I have watched you train, Jenna. Your magic is every bit as strong as mine.”

“How can that be?” Brokk asked as he eyed Jenna.

“I don’t know what you are talking about.” She said defensively.

“Jenna, you do have an affinity for all of the elements.” Tuck said gently. “It is a very rare occurrence, but it is something that you should be proud of.”

“I’m sorry.” Jenna was shaking her head. “I just don’t understand how that could be. I mean, I know that I can use all of the elements, but I am nowhere near as powerful as Callie. You have seen her. You know how strong she is.”

“I also know how strong you are.” Tuck smiled as he wrapped an arm around her shoulder and pulled her to him.

Everyone was quiet for a while. I was willing to bet that we were all thinking about the same thing. If I was this powerful because of my bloodline, where did Jenna’s power come from?

That was a mystery that would have to be solved at another time, right now, we needed to prepare for a fight.

“Jenna, do you think that between the two of us we can do this?” I asked her.

“Yes, I think that we can handle it. We will need to stay together, we would be more lethal that way.”

“What will we be doing?” Brokk asked as he peered up to me with his gorgeous sapphire eyes. “We can not just sit here and do nothing.”

“We will fight until we have to use magic.” I said. “But I don’t think you are up to it Brokk. You still need to recuperate from your last run in with the Guard.”

“I am fine.” He said as he struggled to his feet. He winced a little but quickly straightened himself to prove that he was okay. “I will not let you go in there without me.”

“He’s right.” Tuck said. “We need all of the help we can get, even with the magic.”

I looked at Brokk. He was still a little bruised but he was pulling himself together pretty quickly. That still did nothing to stop my heart from skipping a beat each time that I saw him try to hide his pain. What other choice did I have? We did need him.

“Okay.” I said. “But we will all stick together. I don’t want any of you getting hurt because of me.”

“These people deserve a fair and kind ruler. This is for all of them. We can do this.” Jenna said. Her words revealing the excitement that was starting to build for the battle.

I nodded. “Let’s go.”