Chapter 26 Forced Cooperation
Elara's POV
Captain Reeves landed inside Drakon's room with his sword ready. More assassins crashed through other windows. Glass shattered everywhere.
Drakon roared and scales covered his arms instantly. "Get behind me!"
Five more men dropped into the room. They surrounded us with weapons drawn.
"Kill the Dragon King!" Reeves shouted.
Drakon transformed halfway. His hands became claws. He moved so fast I could barely see him, throwing assassins across the room.
But there were too many.
"Guards!" Drakon bellowed.
Still no one came.
Then Sir Marcus stepped through the door, calm as anything. He wasn't even holding a weapon.
"Hello, Elara," he said with that terrible smile. "Did you really think warning him would save anyone?"
"You knew!" My stomach dropped. "You knew I'd tell him!"
"Of course." Sir Marcus walked closer. "Why else would I give you that choice? I needed to see if you'd betray the queen. Now I know you will."
Drakon lunged at Sir Marcus, but three assassins blocked his path.
"Here's what happens now," Sir Marcus continued. "You call off the Dragon King, or we kill everyone in this castle, starting with your ice faerie friend."
"Faye?" My blood turned cold.
Sir Marcus pulled out a small mirror showing Faye tied up in a dark room with a knife at her throat.
"She's in the dungeon right now with my men," he explained. "One word from me, and they cut her throat."
"Don't listen to him!" Drakon shouted.
But I couldn't let Faye die. Not because of me.
"Stop!" I screamed. "Drakon, please stop fighting! They have Faye!"
Drakon glanced at the mirror. His face went pale.
"Now, here's the arrangement," Sir Marcus smiled. "You let us leave. All of us. If you follow, the faerie dies. Oh, and Elara comes with us."
"No!" Drakon moved toward me, but Reeves put a sword to my throat.
"Stay back, dragon," Reeves warned.
Sir Marcus grabbed my arm. "Walk slowly."
He dragged me backward. We moved quickly through the castle. Guards appeared, but assassins fought them off.
We reached a small room in the west tower. Sir Marcus shoved me inside and locked the door. Just the two of us.
"Sit," he commanded.
I sat on the floor, shaking.
"That was quite a performance," Sir Marcus said. "Telling the Dragon King everything. Very brave. Very stupid."
"Where's Faye?"
"My men have her. They'll keep her alive as long as you cooperate." He pulled out papers. "Now, let's talk about your new assignment."
"I won't help you."
"Yes, you will. Because now I have leverage over you AND the Dragon King." He crouched in front of me. "He'd do anything to protect you."
"What do you want?"
"Information. Lots of it." He handed me the papers. "Guard positions throughout the castle. Patrol schedules. Weak spots in the defenses. I need detailed maps."
"That would help you invade."
"Exactly. You have three days. After that, I need treasury information. How much gold, where it's kept, how it's protected."
"And if I refuse?"
"Then Faye dies. Then we go after your sister again. Then your mother." He counted on his fingers. "Queen Morgana wants this kingdom destroyed, and you're going to help."
My chest felt tight. "Why are you doing this?"
"Because I'm paid well. And because watching people like you suffer amuses me."
"You're evil."
"I'm practical." Sir Marcus stood and walked to the window. "The queen is quite displeased with your little warning tonight. She felt you needed a reminder of what's at stake."
My heart started pounding. "What did you do?"
"Nothing permanent. Yet." He turned back to me with cold eyes. "But she did send a message. To help you understand how serious this situation is."
He pulled a sealed letter from his jacket and tossed it at my feet.
With shaking hands, I picked it up and opened it. Inside was a note in Queen Morgana's handwriting:
Your sister cried for you tonight. She doesn't understand why you chose a dragon over your own blood. Perhaps this will remind you where your loyalty should lie.
Wrapped inside the note was a lock of golden blonde hair tied with a red ribbon.
Lily's hair.
But this time it wasn't just blood-stained. The ribbon itself was soaked crimson.
"No," I whispered. "What did she do to her?"
"A deeper cut this time," Sir Marcus said casually. "On her arm. The queen wanted to make sure you understood. Every time you disobey, your sister pays the price. Tonight's warning cost Lily quite a bit of blood."
I pressed the hair and ribbon to my chest, sobbing. "She's just a child!"
"Then stop acting like you have choices." Sir Marcus's voice turned hard. "You warned the Dragon King, so Lily bled. If you refuse to gather information, she'll bleed more. If you tell anyone about our arrangement, she'll lose a finger. Every act of defiance costs her."
"I hate you," I choked out through tears.
"I know." He walked to the door. "You'll be released in a few hours. When you leave, tell King Drakon that I escaped. That you don't know where I went. Act confused and scared. Then tomorrow, you start gathering information."
"How will I give it to you?"
"I'll find you. I have friends in this castle." He opened the door. "Oh, and you need to distract King Drakon. Make him focus on you instead of searching for me. Make him fall even more in love. Get close to him. Win his complete trust."
"That's cruel."
"That's strategy." Sir Marcus stepped into the hallway. "Choose carefully, Elara. Betray the Dragon King, or watch your sister die. Oh, and the queen sent proof of her seriousness."
He pointed at the blood-soaked ribbon in my hands, then closed the door and locked it.
I sat alone in darkness, holding Lily's hair and the crimson ribbon. Every path led to pain. Every choice hurt someone I loved.
Hours crawled by. I cried until no tears came. I held the ribbon and tried to think of a way out.
But there wasn't one.
Finally, guards broke down the door. They brought me straight to Drakon.
He held me tight. "Are you hurt?"
"I'm fine," I lied. "Sir Marcus escaped. I don't know where he went."
"We'll find him," Drakon said fiercely. "And we'll save Faye and your sister. I promise."
But I knew the truth. We couldn't save everyone.
"Drakon," I said quietly. "Can I ask you something? Something that might help me feel less scared?"
"Anything." His golden eyes were so warm, so trusting.
"Will you show me your true dragon form? I want to see all of you. The real you."
He looked surprised. "Are you sure?"
"I'm already frightened of everything else. At least let me see something beautiful."
Drakon smiled gently. "Come with me to the balcony."
As we walked, I felt the blood-soaked ribbon hidden in my pocket.
I was about to betray the man I loved.
I was about to help destroy his kingdom.
And there was nothing I could do to stop it.