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

She had.

“Did you believe anything I said?” Kai called out as he took Rayna by the hand and pulled her toward the path. They did not get far. Bitter winds whipped around them, ruffling their cloaks. “Stay close,” Kai whispered to Rayna.

Twelve armed men would not be an easy fight on his own, but he could not discount Rayna’s power. She was not as good in a fight as him, but she was fast, faster than these men. Weighing the options, Kai decided he only needed to give them an opening. Better to run and survive than fight and make a mistake.

Kai thought about what they had to work with. No weapons, only a pouch full of seeds and Rayna’s dagger. He took notice of the largest man in the group who took a position behind him.

“Do your seeds work in the snow?” he whispered to Rayna, squeezing her hand and nodding to the right.

She squeezed back. Kai saw her slide her hand into the pouch on her waist. A handful of seeds dropped in the snow, and Rayna closed her eyes for a moment. He felt her pull of power from the storm, and he saw her free hand swirl at her side. New plant life rippled beneath a blanket of snow. Kai saw the vines slither and grow, ready to do Rayna’s bidding.

Everyone paused. In an instant, Kai spun on his heels, catching his chosen man the throat, disarming him, and kicking the side of his knee at an odd angle. Using the butt of his newly acquired weapon, he struck a nearby man in the temple. The man dropped in the snow with a grunt.

Kai kicked the next man twice, once in the gut and then in the head. This was followed by a series of jabs and whacks with the butt of his sword, which dropped two more in the snow before they were able to land a punch. Dark green leaves popped up through the snow, climbing the legs of four men and yanking them to the ground.

Meanwhile, Rayna lurched at Helena with her dagger, pulling his aunt around like a shield with her blade near Helena’s throat. “Back off. Call them all off!” Rayna shouted. “I have little to lose, so back off.”

Kaeco shook his head. “How can I trust anyone who has a knife to my wife’s throat? Kai is not the boy I knew. How could you do this, any of this?”

Rayna pressed the blade into the veil against the skin, drawing blood. Kaeco grabbed a sword from one of his men and stepped forward.

“Kaeco, no!” Helena stayed him with her hand. “Let them go. I will be fine, but you must let them all go.”

Kaeco wavered, flexing his fingers around the sword.

Rayna said nothing, she only pressed the blade farther into Helena’s neck, causing her to flinch in pain. Finally, Kaeco retreated, pulling the remaining guards with him. “I will not forget this, Kai,” his uncle called. “You will pay for the blood you spilled today. You both will.”

Kai cringed at Rayna’s aggression. How had they become so desperate? He touched her arm. “Let’s go,” he whispered, then he called out, “Do not follow us, Uncle.”

Rayna released Helena, and then they took a few cautious steps backward before turning and running into the storm. Helena watched them go with tears in her eyes.

♦ ♦ ♦

The storm ebbed and flowed throughout the day, changing the visibility from complete whiteout to clear and back again. Now moonlight peeked through the clouds, highlighting the wintery landscape.

Kai and Rayna ran down a back road behind the Avar Estate, avoiding the groundskeeper's house, stables, and guardhouses. They moved quickly, but not too fast, keeping their distance from any of the servants or workers. Their goal was to reach the outskirts of town and the road to Diu without being discovered.

A speck of a rider crested the knoll along their chosen path, and Kai pulled Rayna from the road and down the embankment. Tiny snow flurries and the lack of trees offered zero coverage, leaving them exposed. When a second and third rider crested, Kai sank to his knees into the snowdrift. Time was not on their side. If they hoped to go unnoticed, they needed to decide what to do fast.

The three riders came closer, and Kai sank as deep as he could into the snow and leaned into the embankment in front of Rayna. The thundering horse hooves matched the pounding in his heart. He had no idea how much trouble they were in until their uniforms became visible. With the slightest bit of moonlight piercing the clouds, he noticed their midnight blue uniforms with a silver spear through a crescent moon—the symbol for Fort Pohaku. He held his breath as they came within fifty feet. The lead man stopped and gazed in all directions before turning and galloping back toward the waiting group at the top of the hill.

“Scouts,” he whispered as if it mattered at this distance. “There will be more men, many more.”

“I recognize their uniforms,” Rayna said. “Navy men from Fort Pohaku. Roark’s men are here. Your uncle must have sent them to search the estate grounds. Our clothing is too dark against the snow; those men will spot us if we run.”

Kai frowned. “I agree, our disguises are useless.”

Rayna rose again to look over the knoll. “The estate is behind us, but what is across those fields?” She pointed to over the road.

“Farms. Too flat and far to run. They will spot us long before we reach those trees.”

“Your snow wolf is mostly white. From a distance, you would be near impossible to see.” Rayna pulled opened her dark cloak, exposing her bright white blouse. “If I remove my cloak and you shield me from