Dark Intent

Sam's urgent voice woke me.

“Leila, Judith is gone,” Sam said, his green eyes dark with worry as they stared down at me. I sat up, instantly alert.

“What happened?” I demanded, already reaching for my uniform and weapons.

“Cortez went to talk to her, he said they had some sort of argument last night, and he finally just opened her door when she didn’t answer, thinking she was still just mad at him. Her bed was empty, and it hadn’t been slept in all night. Some of her things were missing, and the weirdest part? He found her hair in a pile in the bathroom.”

Sam explained all this as we sprinted down the hall, me semi-hopping as I tugged my boots on. I threw him an incredulous look as I attempted to run and braid my hair at the same time. Sam shrugged. We didn’t say anything else until we reached Judith’s bedroom. Captain Terzian, Cortez, Mo, and the other Royal Guards; Jaxon, Torren, Kayto, Maralyn, Andre, and Balon; were already there. My eyes swept the room, taking in the still-made bed, the dress hastily discarded on the floor, and the drawers that were still open a crack. I strode to the bathroom and pushed open the door. Sure enough, there was a pile of fine silvery strands on the black tile floor, and a few spots of dark brown dye in the sink. I returned to the others.

“She left,” I declared flatly.

“That’s crazy,” Cortez said immediately. I glared at him.

“If the girl says the queen left, I’m inclined to believe her,” Captain Terzian said, his voice firm but gentle as he addressed the king. “It’s a fair conclusion to make from this scene, and Leila has good instincts. Besides that, she is the queen’s sister. She probably knows Her Highness better than anyone else in this room.”

“You included, Sire,” I said to Cortez, my voice sharper than I had really intended. Cortez didn’t argue, although he looked sullen. Shock, confusion, and anger coursed through me. Why would Judith do this? Why would she just leave me behind like this without even saying anything?

“We should check the garages,” I found myself saying. “That’s where she spent a lot of her time, plus Aaron is a good friend of hers. He’s the one most likely to know anything.”

“Moises, Torren, and Andre, come with me,” Captain Terzian said. “We’ll go to the garage and talk to the mechanic. Leila, you go with the others to the stables; ready the dragons. We’ll meet you there after we’ve questioned everyone at the garage.”

We obeyed him without hesitation. Cortez trailed after us, but none of us paid him much attention.

“Sam, can you put the saddles on Diollo, Vitalis, and Zafia?” I asked, referring to Torren, Mo, and Andre’s dragons. “I’ll saddle up the Captain’s dragon when I finish with Phaedra.” Phaedra was always the easiest to tack up because she was so slight and dainty. I had her ready to go in mere minutes, then I moved to Magnar; Captain Terzian’s giant red dragon. He shifted restlessly, watching me with his giant golden eyes.

“I sense trouble, little one,” he rumbled. Dragons rarely spoke aloud, but it was always awe-inspiring to hear their ageless, powerful voices.

“Perceptive as always, Magnar,” I whispered. He let me saddle him without fidgeting.

“Shouldn’t they be here by now-” Maralyn’s question was cut off when an explosion suddenly rocked the earth, making us stumble.

“The hell?” Balon shouted. I dashed out of the stables, looking around wildly. My heart caught sharply in my chest.

“The garage!” I shrieked. Smoke billowed through the air, thick and black, though tinted with an electrifying shade of green. Magical liquid fire. It fizzled out quickly, but its explosions were violent, and its flames were almost as hot as magma.

Magnar suddenly let loose with a terrible roar, barreling past me and charging out of the stables, taking the door right off its hinges. Fear seized me. As one, we all ran toward the site of the fire, the other dragons close behind us. It wasn’t the garage itself, we discovered. It was one of the parking bays.

Judith’s parking bay, to be exact. The walls and floor were scorched. There was no hunk of twisted metal inside, however. Judith’s car had already been long gone. I saw Mo, Aaron, and the other guards sprawled on the ground nearby. I knelt at Mo’s side, instructing Sam and the others to check on everyone else.

Mo coughed. There was a gash on his head, and his wrist was hanging at an awkward, ugly angle.

"Mo, what happened?” I asked, feeling Cortez standing behind me.

“The captain,” Mo croaked. His eyes were filled with horror and sorrow. “He-he’s dead, Leila.”

My heart stuttered and went dead inside me. “No,” I whispered.

“We came to talk to the mechanic, and he said he didn’t know anything. The captain asked to see the queen’s car, so he opened the door. Captain Terzian went inside, and the rest of us stood outside, asking the mechanic more questions. And then…” He trailed off, closing his eyes and taking a shuddering breath. I imagined his injuries hurt, but I had a distinct feeling that his internal wounds were much worse.

“He was inside when it happened,” he finally went on, opening his dark brown eyes and staring at me forlornly. “He’s gone.”

“No.” Cortez repeated my earlier sentiment, and I looked up to see his horror-stricken expression. Captain Terzian had been the leader of the Royal Guard for nearly twenty-five years, and had been a member for nearly a decade before that. I felt a lump form in my throat, making it hard to breathe. I couldn’t believe I’d never see his dark, leathery face again; never hear him bark another command or congratulate another new initiate. The old man had overseen my training, had believed fiercely in me. He had been my mentor for four years. And now those metallic gray eyes were closed forever. I felt something dark and mournful start to wail inside me, but I stifled it, rising to my feet.

The medics were coming to take away the injured. Some of Cortez’s advisors had already arrived on the scene, as well as other staff members, drawn by the smoke. I saw Magnar standing away from the others, roaring at the sky. A dragon and its rider are closely bonded; I knew the dragon would feel the pain of Captain Terzian’s passing more than anyone. Two medics appeared with a stretcher, lifting Mo gently onto it. He gave me a last pained look before they hustled away.

“I can’t believe it,” Sam murmured beside me. I reached for his hand. Word was traveling about what had happened, and I saw Ella the cook sobbing onto the master-at-arms’ shoulder. His head was lowered, and I could swear the tough old man was crying for his dead friend. He had been in service to the royal family just as long as Captain Terzian.

“This is truly horrible.” Raymon, one of Cortez’s advisors, was wringing his hands nervously and looking sick. “What an awful day.”

That’s an understatement, I thought.

“How is this even possible?” Cortez exclaimed. “Parking bays don’t just explode!”

“No, My Lord, they don’t,” I answered, finally finding my voice again and trying to force back my grief for the time-being. “And certainly not from liquid fire. Someone planted a bomb here, and triggered it.”

Shocked repulsion filled everyone’s eyes.

“This was where Judith kept her car parked when it wasn’t being worked on,” I went on stonily. “And, now that I think of it, this is the time of day that she usually collects her car for a morning ride.”

“You mean, it was meant for the queen?” Raymon asked, his eyes so wide I thought they would pop out of his head any second. I nodded slowly. “It must have had a timer; it was meant to detonate when Judith would be here. No one expected her to run off in the middle of the night.”

“Who would want her dead?” Cortez demanded, his eyes troubled.

“I don’t know,” I admitted.

“How do you know they didn’t just want her out of the castle?” Raymon asked.

“Because they planted a bomb in her parking spot,” I said, shooting him a mildly irritated look. “There’s no way they just wanted her to leave. This definitely would have killed her if she had been here. You don’t try to blow someone up if you just want them to leave quietly of their own volition. You blow them up when you want them dead.”

“She’s right,” Balon murmured, his eyes dark. “Whoever set this up wanted to murder Her Highness.”

“It’s likely they’ll try again,” I added. “Word will spread soon that the queen is missing and the Captain of the Royal Guard is dead. Judith is in a great deal of danger. Whoever’s out to kill her will be looking for her too; we have to make sure we find her first.”

“Do you think she knew someone wanted to murder her?” Cortez asked, face pinched with worry and brow wrinkled in confusion.

“Not likely,” I replied. “I don’t think this had anything to do with why she ran away.”

His dark eyes flickered away from mine, and I wondered what their fight had been about.

“Well we have to find her,” Balon declared.

“I hate to sound indelicate,” Raymon broke in. “But, we are in need of a new captain.” He winced when glares were turned on him. “I understand that Captain Terzian meant a great deal to all of you, but the Guard cannot be without a leader, especially in light of these circumstances.”

“They won’t be without a captain,” Cortez muttered, his expression suddenly looking clear.

“Sire?” Raymon looked puzzled. Cortez turned to me, staring hard into my eyes.

“They won’t be without a captain because I’m declaring you, Leila Embry, as the new Captain of the Royal Guard of Kopalnia.”

I blinked, positive I’d heard wrong. Raymon was gaping at the king with his mouth open, and my fellow guards were watching me with wide eyes.

“I-what?” I said, my throat dry and my heart thudding wildly.

“You’re it, Leila,” Cortez said. “Edric had a high opinion of you, and you’ve always excelled in your training. You’re captain now. Effective immediately.”

“I…yes, Your Grace,” I stammered. “It’s a great honor.” I bowed, my brain instantly making me go through the proper motions even though my stomach was in knots. I could barely process what he had just said.

“What is your first order of business, Captian?” Cortez asked me.

I half-turned, and addressed the master-at-arms, who was still standing with Ella, though her tears had finally stopped and now she was gaping at me the same as everyone else.

“Master Gregorio, would you please send word to Captain Terzian’s wife and inform her of-of her husband’s unfortunate demise.” I could barely get the words out. They tasted like ash in my mouth. He nodded. I turned back to Cortez, Sam, and the other Guards.

“The rest of you, prepare to go on a search for the queen.”

“How do you plan to find her?” Raymon asked. “You have no idea where to look.”

“I might,” Sam said slowly. “I know a place we can start anyway.”

“And I think my reckless sister may have overlooked one very important thing when she undertook this crazy endeavor,” I added. I let out a low whistle, and soon Cyrus was bounding toward me. The giant animal stopped at my side, his intelligent eyes watching me expectantly.

“Cyrus, we’re going to find Judith,” I told him. His ears perked, and I knew he understood.

“Balon, please go fetch Sam’s bike so that we can be on our way,” I instructed, feeling strange when he saluted me and followed my order.

* * * *

The junkyard was dusty and filled with twisted shells of cars and other things I couldn’t even identify. It was probably paradise for a metal magic user. Balon, Maralyn, Kayto, Jaxon, Sam, and I dismounted and strode toward the front door. Cortez climbed out of his own car, which he had driven behind Sam as he led the way. An old man looked up from his welding when we entered. He pushed his goggles up and appraised us with only mild interest.

“Sam, good to see you again, boy.”

Sam nodded. “Hello, Tommy.”

“Was Queen Judith here last night?” Cortez asked bluntly. Tommy arched a brow. “Who’s asking?”

“You know damn well who’s asking,” Cortez growled.

“Aye, that I do,” Tommy replied. He sounded highly unimpressed.

“Answer the question, old man,” I demanded, shoving past Cortez and staring Tommy down without blinking. “Was she here?”

Tommy’s calmly disdainful manner wavered when he saw me. Judith and I both had violet eyes and silvery hair. He had to know in an instant who I was. He sighed.

“She was here,” he finally admitted. “But I couldn’t tell you where she was going. She didn’t say, and I didn’t ask. I’m not even sure she knew. She just knew she was getting out of here. I imagine it had something to do with that shiner on her face.” His tone turned disgusted again and he flicked a look over my shoulder at Cortez.

“You hit her?” I shouted, whirling on Cortez. The mixture of chagrin and anger I saw in his eyes before he looked away from me was answer enough.

“You bastard!” I lunged at him, but Balon and Jaxon both held me back.

“Leila, it was a mistake,” Cortez said pleadingly.

“You’re damn right it was!” I yelled, struggling against the arms that held me. “How do you expect me to do my job and protect the two of you if you’re beating up your wife, and my stupid sister keeps running off?”

“I don’t beat her up,” Cortez snapped.

“Leila, focus now,” Sam said gently. He took my face in his hands, blocking my view of Cortez. “We need to find Judith. We can deal with all the rest later.”

I relaxed and ceased my struggles.

“You’re not off the hook, but I won’t kill you. Yet,” I told Cortez. He didn’t reply.

“How long ago?” I asked Tommy.

“Two, maybe three hours ago,” he said. “She’ll be long gone by now.”

“Not necessarily,” I said quietly. I handed him a small metal box with speaker set into it and a red button on the side. “If you see her or hear from her again, contact me right away.” I raised my hand when he looked like he might protest. “She’s in danger. Someone else will be looking for her too, and they don’t have her best interests at heart.”

Something in my voice or eyes must have made my concern clear, because Tommy nodded after a moment.

“Cyrus, you’re up.” The giant half wolf, half tiger creature rose to his feet and padded over to me. “Find Judith.” He cocked his head to the side for several seconds, seemingly searching for something. Then he threw his head back and emitted a noise somewhere between a tiger’s roar and a wolf’s howl. Then he darted out the door quick as a flash. We hurried after him, the Guards and I leaping gracefully onto our dragons’ backs, Sam climbing onto his motorcycle, and Cortez scrambling into his car. We tore off after Cyrus, the dragons flying low to the ground to keep him in sight. He led us straight toward the city of Tiris.

* * * *

“Excuse me,” I muttered, for what felt like the billionth time. Cyrus had been charging through the marketplace for the last half an hour, knocking over stands and people alike. We flew on the dragons just above him, nearly knocking a few things down ourselves. Sam was now riding with me, and Cortez was strolling briskly along after Cyrus. People complained, but only in hushed voices. They weren’t going to openly chastise the king or his Royal Guards. I didn’t bother asking anyone if they had seen the queen, even though there was a picture of her being broadcast on the giant screens that hovered over the city, offering a reward if anyone found her. It wasn’t the most flattering picture; I could only assume that Margaretta had chosen it; no doubt with input from Isabella. But I already knew Judith had changed her appearance, and had likely altered it even further, knowing we would have found her sheared tresses and hair dye in her room.

I knew Cyrus would find her though. Appearance mattered little when you had nose like his. He would track my wayward sister down no matter what she had done to herself. My frustration and hurt towards Judith was increasing every second. I just couldn’t believe she would take off like this. She didn’t even bother to find a way to tell me goodbye. A small part of me reasoned that if she hadn’t run away, she would surely be dead right now, but that didn’t stop me from being furious. My nerves felt taut and on edge, and my heart was tired. Pain, rage, and shock battered at my insides like a hurricane.

We eventually left the bustling market behind, and made our way into the seedier side of town. We passed bars and casinos, and not all the looks we received were merely curious. I shifted, flaunting my uniform and the sword at my side, and most greedy eyes averted themselves.

“What the hell was she doing in a place like this?” Balon muttered. I didn’t answer him. I was wondering the same thing. Suddenly Cyrus let out another snarl/howl, and shot off down the street. Cortez ran after him, and the dragons flapped their wings faster to keep up with the Caras. I scanned the people on the street as they gawked at our approach. I caught sight of a tall, slender girl standing in the doorway of a small building, her eyes wide. I studied her. Her hair was cropped into a spiky pixie cut and was a vibrant, deep violet color. Her eyes were large and golden-brown, and there were matching silver rings through her bottom lip. She was dressed in a tattered black leather jacket, with dark jeans tucked into black boots that came up almost to her knees and were covered in silver buckles.

And Cyrus was racing straight for her.

Realization dawned and I leapt deftly from Phaedra’s back, darting throught he crowd and pushing people out of my way. The girl seemed startled, and she pushed open the door, stumbling into the building and trying to close it before Cyrus reached her.

She wasn’t quick enough. He knocked her to the ground and enthusiastically licked her face. I ordered him away, then gripped her arm, pulling her to her feet. I stared hard at her face.

Contacts, piercings, new hair. I still knew who she was. I had grown up looking at that face every day; I had learned how to do make up by dolling up that face.

“Are you hurt?” I asked her. There was only a faint trace of the bruise Cortez had left on her cheek.

“W-who are you?” she stammered, failing miserably in the lie she was trying to live. My eyes hardened.

“Cut the bullshit, Judith,” I hissed. “I know it’s you. I can’t fucking believe you! What were you thinking? How could you just take off like that-”

“Captain, is it her?” Jaxon had caught up with me first, and I saw the others close behind him. I nodded. “Tell the others to wait for me for a moment. Tell Cortez to go back to the car right now.”

Judith stared after him with wide eyes. “Why did he just call you captain?”

“Because I am the captain,” I snapped. “Cortez appointed me to the position this morning.”

“Why?”

“Captain Terzian is dead,” I said flatly. She flinched back.

“How?” she gasped.

“We were looking for you. He was checking the garage, and someone planted a bomb inside your parking bay, timed to go off when you usually get the car for your morning ride. Terzian was inside, and-and he didn’t make it. Mo and Aaron and a few others were hurt, but no on else…died.” My gut twisted. “So Cortez made me the new captain.”

“Leila, are you all right?” Judith’s eyes were full of worry, but I didn’t want her stupid pity just then. I stepped back and looked up at the sign on the building instead of answering her. My mouth dropped open.

“An abortion clinic?” I said in a strangled whisper. Judith flushed, looking somewhere between ashamed and defensive.

“More things you kept from me,” I said acidly, glaring at her.

“Leila-”

“Don’t touch me!” I jerked away from her. Then I gestured for the others. Jaxon was apparently arguing with Cortez. Sam and Balon approached me.

“Take her with you, Balon,” I said, not looking at Judith. He gently took her arm and started to lead her away. She didn’t struggle, but she tried to catch my eye as she walked away. I pointedly ignored her.

“Cyrus, come.”

“Leila?” Sam asked softly. I shook my head. I just wanted to go home. Sam said nothing else, understanding as always when I needed silence. Cortez was still arguing with Jaxon, insisting that the wasn’t leaving without first speaking to his wife.

“With all due respect, Highness, I think you’ve talked enough for now.” I balled up my fist and punched Cortez in the head. His eyes rolled back as he sank to he ground, unconscious.

“Drive him back to the palace in the car when we get back to the city limit,” I told Jaxon. He nodded, throwing the king over the back of his dragon.

Then we lifted into the air and flew for home.