The Traitor A. Lombardo (best thriller novels to read TXT) 📖

longer trust him. He was even sure Rayna would hate him for abandoning her—again.

The next man to enter Kai’s cell took a different approach, asking him how he could murder his own father. The man wore a Diu captain’s uniform, but he had no sword on his hip. His seasoned gray hair and chiseled jawline held a controlled demeanor and reserved tone. Still, Kai kept his eyes on his hands. He could not face this man.

“Speak, boy. Why did you kill the king? I was hoping you could speak to me, or they will send in another to beat the answers out of you. Who helped you enter the king’s chambers? Where have you hidden Iver’s body?”

Kai’s silence infuriated the captain, but still Kai said nothing. The man’s questions danced around his head but made little sense. No tears fell; he was empty. Nothing felt right. How could he have failed? He had been so certain he could change his destiny, that he could change Iver’s fate and save them both. Was this punishment for challenging fate? How could this vision be any different than saving Drew or anyone else?

Nevertheless, every hour they sent in a man to beat or question him. Over time their words seemed jumbled and unreal. He felt numb and broken, inside and out. By the time a familiar face came into Kai’s cell, he could hardly see. His eyes were swollen, his ribs broken, his entire body ached, but he did not care. He wanted to lay down and die. He deserved to die.

“Sorry I did not come sooner,” he heard Cazier's voice echo across the stone cell. “The queen is distraught over the loss of Iver, but I know it is all show. She called the council together, demanding the guards walk us through what happened. Meanwhile, the Regent had the freedom to oversee your questioning, and this is the first time they let me through.” He paused, then asked, “What happened, Kai? All you had to do was stay in Katori or hide in my tower until we had our proof from Milnos.”

A warm tear rolled down his bruised cheek. “You wouldn’t understand,” Kai started, “I thought I could . . .” He coughed, and a sharp pain stabbed him in the side.

“Riome warned you not to return. Unless you give me something, I doubt I can help you, “Cazier pleaded, lowering his head to Kai. “Who helped you get back into the palace? Did you use the secret passageways, but more importantly, who was with you? Confide in me, and I may yet help you.”

Tears streaked through the dried blood around Kai’s puffy eyes, and he tasted it on his lips. He coughed blood, trying to speak. The look on Cazier’s face was utter disbelief. As Kai tried to lift his head from the stone floor, he felt dizziness take hold, and he blacked out.

♦ ♦ ♦

Kai lingered in and out of consciousness, waking occasionally to find himself alone and wallowing in a pool of his own blood. When he finally found the strength to sit up, he looked around his cell. Five-by-ten, dank, dark, moldy. Likely his final resting place. There were no windows, and the only light came from the hallway outside the iron bars. The small drain in the floor stunk of vomit and piss.

There he sat for two days with no food, only a bucket of filthy water. In the silence, his demons plagued his mind. Over and over, he saw the blade slide into his father’s chest, the blood spilling from the wound, Kai helpless to stop the flow. Tormented by what he had done, Kai begged for death, wondering why they had not strung him up the first day.

When Grand Duke Dante Carmelo appeared at his cell, Kai wept all over again. The reduced swelling on Kai’s face gave him a clear view of his old friend, but Dante’s eyes held no kindness.

“The evidence is irrefutable—you are a traitor. What in Alenga’s name did the Katori people do to you?” Dante asked, but he did not wait for an answer. “Clean him up. The council will have words with him before sentencing.”

The Grand Duke left with no other words.

The next man entered. Kai winced as the guard came close. “I would take my turn beating you, traitor, but they want you able to answer for your crime. Undress,” the guard ordered. “I will be back.”

Kai did as he instructed, stripping down to his undershorts. The man returned, hefting a large barrel of water. “Bathe.”

Thankful the beatings had stopped, Kai approached the open barrel. His father’s blood still stained his hands, embedded into the creases. There was no time to weep—he dipped them into the cold water and scrubbed his face and hands the best he could before washing his chest and emptying the remaining contents over his head. He tried to rinse away as much of the stench as he could.

The waiting guard handed him fresh clothes: a white shirt with black trousers. Everything stuck to his wet body. His broken spirit begged for more rest, but the guard shackled him and escorted him from his cell, forcing him up the steep, towering stairs. Each step was a struggle, every breath painful.

Joined by additional guards, they escorted Kai to the grand ballroom. He entered the center archway and was shocked by the number of people there. The guard at his back shoved him hard. The blow rippled through his ribs, causing him to stumble. Righting himself, he took in those in attendance.

On the dais, Queen Nola sat with Aaron to her right and Seth to her left. Seth’s red eyes and distraught expression hurt Kai the most. Dante and Cazier stood to the side, unwilling to look him in the eye. Sigry stood arms crossed near the windows, his face stern and unforgiving. He did not see Riome—not