The Destroyer Book 4 by Michael-Scott Earle Page B

countless hours negotiating with her own people as well as the O’Baarni clan leaders. All I had was that brief second when I surprised her with knowledge of her daughter, that small flicker of emotion in her eyes and the assumption that parents must love their children, or at least, want the chance to love them and have the sentiment returned.
    I stood up again and walked toward the exit of the tent. My back was to the empress, but I doubted she would strike me down with so much at stake.
    “Kaiyer.” Her voice finally sounded behind me when I was halfway up the stairs. I turned and saw her amber eyes flash. We stared at each other for a few seconds before she spoke again.
    “Kannath and his warriors have to die. It will buy us more time before the clans find out.” I nodded at her words and pondered the morality of colluding with the empress of the Elven people to kill my own kind so that I could save a world of humans.
    “You will tell me of my daughter immediately upon your return,” she continued.
    “After your army has surrendered to Jessmei.”
    “You think disarming and surrendering will stop my conquest? We have magic. We hardly need swords. You are just one man.”
    “Earlier you said you never go back on your promises, but then you said you might have to make an adjustment to that statement to kill Nadea. Are you saying you will betray our agreement as soon as I tell you of your daughter?”
    “No.” She clenched her jaw. “But this puts me in a predicament. I’ve promised my own people freedom. This is now our world and I intend to lead my people to safety.”
    “So you are deciding between your people and your daughter. That is unfortunate.” I forced myself not to smile. One wrong word and I could destroy the progress made so far.
    “I will surrender. Then you tell me of my daughter and the Radicles. You will keep your word and negotiate with Jessmei on our behalf for our own territory.”
    “Agreed.” I sighed and felt hundreds of pounds of pressure lift from my shoulders.
    “My sister will shadow you to where Kannath’s men are holding the princess. Indicate when you want to attack and she will make her move.”
    The wind’s howl echoed through the courtyard of the keep and startled me into the present. The sun had set and I was now sitting in absolute darkness at the foot of the staircase. If Telaxthe had captured Nadea she would have discovered that she was her daughter. That leverage might be gone, but there was something else I could use. It would depend upon whether the empress cared for her daughter or simply wished to use Nadea as a weapon.
    The rest of my quest could wait until morning. I would have to forge my way west directly toward Nia’s capital to see if there was any trace of Nadea’s army. I could leave now, in the stillness of this dark night. But the idea of descending from the mountain keep and then crossing the endless valley did not appeal to me at the moment. There were enough pieces of broken furniture and leftover bedding for me to make a comfortable camp for the night. I had nothing to eat, but fasting was easy for one night, and there was plenty of food awaiting me in the village at the base of the mountain.
    “Kaiyer,” a voice called out to me, echoing across the hallways and up through the vastness of the tower that spiraled above me. The hair on the back of my neck stood and I shot to my feet. Silence fell and I tried to determine if the voice was real or imagined. Then I heard it call my name again.
    The voice was carried on the wind from the courtyard outside of the keep. It was a woman’s timbre, familiar, but unclear. I moved to the door of the tower and opened it cautiously before stepping out into the starlit night.
    I saw no one on the ledge of the wall and detected no movement outside. I listened for heartbeats or breathing, but the wind was masking any subtle noise and preventing me from using my sense of smell. The voice rang out a third time,