Silent Kingdom Read Free Page B

information from someone.” My father rubbed his beard angrily. “She saw nothing of what happened.”
    “Are you sure?”
    “I’m certain of nothing at this point, Narek. I thought my wife and daughter were kept ignorant of my plans.” He spun on the captain. “Only you knew.”
    There was a pause before Narek replied. Not yet eighteen, he was young for a captain, but his face was as hard and impassive as a more seasoned soldier. His tight lips and black eyes betrayed no fear.
    “If I wanted to betray you, your daughter would be the last person I’d confide in, Your Majesty. I know you hold my abilities and my intelligence in higher esteem than that.”
    My father’s anger seemed to abate a little. He nodded, glancing down at the floor as he gave himself time to think. His voice came out quiet but steady. “She will have to be disposed of.”
    Narek frowned slightly. “She isn’t much for talking.”
    “She did not keep silent tonight. Any servants who overheard will have to be removed…any guards whom you do not trust with the truth.”
    “Allow me to manage it all, sire. But the question still remains, how to keep her silent. Disposing of her…she is only a child. And your child , the princess of Misroth, no less. There will be questions…” Narek was flustered, and I couldn’t remember ever hearing him sound that way. “It could leave a larger mess than the one we already have on our hands.”
    “I trust you with my kingship and my life, Narek. Her words could make the people question my rule, even if we tried to make her words out to be a wild claim of a half-wit. Let her punishment fit her crime,” his firm voice rang out, ricocheting off the walls, settling deep within my mind and my heart.
    Let her punishment fit her crime. Let her punishment fit her crime.
    The king stopped his pacing and spun to face his captain. If possible, his voice became even firmer, layered with emphasis. “Need I remind you of your allegiance? Or our agreement?”
    “No,” Narek murmured. He held a fist over his chest. “I will dispose of her.”
    As he backed out of the room, the vision faded and I found myself still in my bedchamber. I stared up at my ceiling, studying the carved designs of waves set in the wood molding. My own father was going to murder me, like he had murdered my uncle.
    Before the visions had appeared to me tonight, I had been content in my ignorance, resigned to the fact that my father would always be distant and stern, but never suspecting he was capable of such cruelty. Knowing the truth was bad enough, but giving it voice was about to kill me. I’d rather never speak again than have this new curse, I thought angrily.
    My heart jolted when I heard footsteps outside my chamber. I didn’t have much time. Narek was already on his way.
    Scrambling from my chair, I tiptoed next to my door and pressed myself against the wall, listening to the approaching steps. I told myself not to move, not to breathe. The door swung inward and the guard stared blankly ahead, scanning the room for a cowering girl. With a deep breath, I kicked him as hard as I could in the groin. Crying out in pain and surprise, he tried to grab me. But I was already moving, dashing past him, through the doorway, and down the hall. I swept down the hallway, my footsteps creaking and echoing on the wood floors so loudly I was sure my presence was being announced to every guard in the castle. Stern faces of past kings and queens stared down at me from old paintings and tapestries hanging from the walls and looked as if they were accusing me of treachery as well. Darting down different intersecting hallways, I put as much distance between the royal quarters and myself as I could, doing everything I could do confuse my pursuer. But I knew I was delaying the inevitable. I had to get out. And how would I ever manage to get past the king’s guard?
    Farther, farther. Turning into the conservatory, I collided with a lone servant, who