Аманда Хокинг - Torn

I tried to remember the way Loki had led me up here, but they had dimmed the lights, making it even harder for me to recognize my unfamiliar surroundings. As I recalled, we didn’t take that many turns. It should be fairly simple.

Assuming I did find the dungeon, I didn’t know what I’d do then. Maybe I could use persuasion on the guard. Or if it was another one of the hobgoblin Vittra, I could overpower him and get him to open the door.

I found the winding staircase. It only led down to the main floor, and I’d have to find the route to the dungeon yet, but I didn’t think it would be that hard.

When I reached the bottom of the steps, I heard voices. I froze, debating whether I should run or hide, before deciding that staying in the shadows would be the way to go. I hurried behind the staircase and crouched down, making myself as small as possible.

The voices got louder as they walked closer, and they appeared to be arguing about how to make the best squash. My heart pounded so loudly, I was certain they could hear it, and I held my breath. Moments later, I saw the feet of two hobgoblins walking past.

One of them appeared to be female, with long ratty hair in a braid down her back.

They really were unattractive creatures, but based on the way they talked, they seemed harmless. They sounded more human and normal than some of the Trylle I’d encountered in Förening.

I waited a few minutes until I was sure that the hobgoblins had disappeared down the hall before I even breathed. I figured I could take them, but I didn’t want to beat up random strangers. Besides that, they could make noise and alert everyone else in the palace, including Oren.

I stepped out from underneath the staircase and almost ran into Loki. He leaned casually against the stairs, his elbow resting on the railing, and his legs crossed at the ankles. I nearly screamed, but I caught myself, knowing that drawing further attention to a bad situation would only make things worse.

“Hello, Princess.” Loki grinned at me. “Couldn’t sleep?”

He and Ludlow had been calling me “Princess” from the beginning, and I thought they were taunting me about my standing with the Trylle. But I realized I was their Princess, too, and he was actually giving me some form of reverence.

Unfortunately, I knew that my title pulled no weight with him. Right now, I was a prisoner too.

“Yeah, I just… I needed something to eat,” I fumbled up an excuse.

“A likely story,” he said, and his expression became skeptical. “If only I could believe you.”

“I haven’t had anything to eat all day.” While that was actually the truth, my nerves had my stomach too racked to even think about eating.

“What do you plan to do?” Loki asked, ignoring my insistence about hunger.

“Even if you find the dungeon, how will you get them out?”

“I won’t, now. You’re gonna run and tell on me, aren’t you?” I studied his eyes, trying to get a read on him, but he looked as amused as he always did.

“Maybe.” He shrugged as if he hadn’t decided yet. “Let me hear your plan. It’s probably not even worth me telling anyone.”

“What makes you say that?” I asked.

“You seem like a self-saboteur,” he said. I opened my mouth to protest, and he laughed at my obvious indignation. “Don’t take it personally, Princess. It happens to the best of us.”

“I’m not going to stop until I get my friends out of here,” I told him firmly.

“Now that I believe.” He leaned in towards me. “This all goes so much easier when you’re honest.”

“Like I’m the one being devious,” I scoffed.

“I haven’t lied to you yet,” he said, sounding oddly serious.

“How do I break my friends out of the dungeon?” I asked him, testing his claim.

“Just because I don’t lie doesn’t mean I’ll answer you,” Loki smiled.

“Fine. I’ll find them myself.”

I felt confident he wouldn’t stop me, although I didn’t know why he wouldn’t. If Oren found out that he was even indulging my plans for escape, I’m sure it wouldn’t bode well for him.

When I brushed past him, walking down the corridor to where I thought the main hall was, he followed me. His pace matched mine easily, even though I tried to walk quickly.

“You think it’s this way, do you?” Loki asked, with a teasing lilt in his voice.

“Don’t try to confuse me. I know my directions. I don’t get lost,” I lied. I got lost a lot. “Isn’t that a Trylle affinity or something?”

“I don’t know. I’m not Trylle,” he replied. “And neither are you.”

“I’m half Trylle,” I said defensively.

Why was I defending it? I didn’t even want to be Trylle, or Vittra, or anything. Plain ordinary human had suited me just fine my whole life. Now that I found myself in this quagmire of ethnicity, I felt strangely protective of Trylle and Förening. Apparently, I cared more than I thought I did.

“You’re rather feisty for a Princess,” Loki remarked, watching me as I walked purposefully down the hallway.

“How many princesses have you met?” I countered.

“None.” He tilted his head thoughtfully. “But the King isn’t feisty at all.”

“I must get it from my mother then,” I said.

When we reached the main hall, I wanted to jump up and down, but it didn’t seem appropriate. Besides, I’d only found the doorway to the dungeon. I still had to actually rescue Matt and Rhys.

“Now what?” Loki asked, pausing in the center of the hall.

“I go down and get them.” I pointed the large doors leading down to the basement.

“No, I don’t very much care for that idea,” he shook his head.

“Of course you don’t. You don’t want me to get them out,” I said. My heart beat rapidly, and I wondered exactly how far Loki would let me take this.

“That’s not why. It just doesn’t seem very interesting.” He pushed up the sleeves of his sweater, revealing his tanned forearms. “In fact, I’m rather bored with the whole thing. Why don’t we do something else?”

“No, I’m getting them out,” I said.

“But you haven’t heard what I’d like to do instead.” His eyes gleamed, and I wasn’t sure that I wanted to know what he’d rather do. I didn’t think he would hurt me, but there was definitely something devious in his eyes.

“I thought you said you preferred your princesses unsoiled,” I attempted to tease him.

“But you’ve cleaned yourself up now, haven’t you?” His expression changed, and he looked at me in a way that made me feel funny.

Not bad, and not the same as when he made me pass out. It wasn’t a magic Vittra power or anything. It was just a look that made me feel sort of… fluttery inside.

Before I had time to analyze what I felt or what he meant, a loud banging at the main doors interrupted anything that might have happened. The hall had the doorway leading to the lower level, but it also had the massive doors leading outside, doors that dwarfed the ones on the King’s and Queen’s chambers.

The banging came again, making me jump, and Loki moved in front of me. Was he protecting me? Or hiding me?

The doors flew open, and joy surged over me.

Tove had blown the doors open with his abilities, and he stood on the other side of them, looking astonishingly bad ass. Tove had been a rather foxy and very powerful Trylle I’d known in Förening. His quirky, anti-social personality had endeared him to me, but he was also about the last person I’d expect to see here.

His abilities did allow him to move objects with his mind, though, so he was a very powerful ally to have.

Then I caught sight of who had with him. Duncan and Finn stood behind him, letting him throw open the doors while they waited to rush in. As soon as I saw Finn, my heart wanted to explode.