Page 22 of The Broken Prince

Our eyes locked, and an entire conversation passed between us.

We needed to hurry back to HeartHolme…and send that letter.

SIX

HARLOW

I was dead asleep in my comfy bed when I felt the ground shake.

I jolted upright, and my eyes snapped open, my mind fully awake once it perceived danger. I gripped the edge of the bed as I breathed hard, the adrenaline flooding my blood instantaneous. I waited for it to repeat, but minutes passed, and nothing happened.

Did I dream it?

My breathing slowed as I moved to the edge of the bed, my feet touching the thick rug that was soft against my soles. My drapes were closed, but the morning sunlight still peeked through and stretched across the floor. The sound of singing birds was faint in the distance.

It seemed like it had never happened.

I moved to the windows and opened the curtains, expecting to see something besides the village and the fields ripe with berries and summer squash. But the grass was green, it was beautiful, and the world looked exactly the same.

But my heart hadn’t slowed, like it still expected danger.

I continued to breathe. Continued to stare. But the warning in my heart wouldn’t fade.

As my father had asked, I donned my uniform and armor, piecing together all the heavy plates to protect my arms and shoulders. I told myself if it wasn’t a dream, then it was an earthquake, the very reason the cliffs had formed in the first place, but I continued to don my clothing in a rush.

I grabbed my weapons and departed my bedroom, noticing that the guards who were supposed to be positioned in the hallway weren’t stationed where they should be. My throat was dry as I swallowed, and I headed down the hallway with my hand resting on the hilt of my sword—something I’d never done before.

The first thing I wanted to do was run to my father’s study, but then I remembered he wasn’t there.

I jogged down the hallway, took the stairs in a rush, and then made it to the entryway of the castle—which was also deserted. “Mother?” I raised my voice and felt it echo back at me.

I headed out the double doors and found her speaking with General Henry. She was dressed in her armor, and so was he. “Mother?” I moved right into their conversation. “What was that?”

She ignored me. “It was probably just an earthquake, but the fact that King Rolfe isn’t here is too much of a coincidence. Prepare for war. Prepare the cannons. Prepare the archers. Prepare for everything.”

General Henry nodded before he took off to fulfill his duty.

Mother turned on me.

“What’s going on—”

“I need you to send letters to the other kingdoms. Call for aid.” She said it so calmly, but her face was strained like a nightmare swirled inside her.

I remained rooted to the spot, paralyzed.

“Harlow, can you do that?”

“Yes—yes.”

Her eyes softened as she looked at me. “It was probably just an earthquake, but I prefer to be paranoid like your father. Please send those letters immediately. Then I want you to take Pyre into the sky and keep a lookout.”

“I’m not leaving you—”

“You aren’t. You’re providing aerial support.”

“Pyre can do that on his own.”

“Harlow—”