Rebel's Honor(57)

Both Axel and Tao shoved past Felix and bolted through the egg-shaped  archway into the darkness. Running hard, Tao led the way to where Lynx  had vanished. Axel pulled out his flashlight and, shining the light on  the black walls, turned full circle. He could see no place where she  could have disappeared. "Are you sure this is it?"

"Yes." Tao flung open the door to the shortcut out of the maze. It  opened into a deserted chamber. "We were about to step through, and  then-nothing." Panic laced Tao's words. "How is it possible? People  can't just vanish."

Jaw clenched, Axel gritted out, "I don't know. Let's split up. Start  searching." Without waiting for a reply, he jogged farther along the  passage, shouting Lynx's name.

"Message me if you find her." Tao set off in the opposite direction.

After hours of fruitless searching, not just by him, but dozens of  guardsmen finally called in to help, Axel returned to the place where  Lynx had disappeared.

In the dancing light of his torch, he saw a dark bundle lying in the  passage. Swearing with a mix of fear and hope, he broke into a run and  then dropped to his knees to investigate.

It was a woman.

How she had gotten there, he had no idea. Hand shaking, he brushed blond  hair away from her face. Lynx. Sighing with relief, flashlight gripped  in his mouth, he used one hand to stroke her face while his other probed  for her pulse. She was pale with a slow heartbeat but seemed otherwise  unharmed.                       
       
           



       

"Lynx," he called gently. "Wake up."

When she didn't stir, he put the flashlight on the floor and lifted her  head, resting it on his arm. Mouth gaping, her head lolled to one side,  so he lay her back down and placed both hands on her heart, ready to  start resuscitation.

"Axel? Is that you?" Her voice sounded tremulous, but relief flooded through him.

"Who else?" He picked up the flashlight, bathing himself in ghostly  white light so she could see him. "Must you be so dramatic, Princess?  Everyone else just gets lost in here. They don't fall over their feet  and faint."

Lynx struggled, so he helped her up, supporting her against his arm.  After a day of worry, it was so good to be holding her again. She looked  up at him, and he thrilled to spot color returning to her face.

"Is that what you think happened?" Lynx's voice sounded stronger, so he  allowed his clenched muscles to relax for the first time since his  father had woken him that morning.

To avoid hinting at his own troubles, Axel kept his voice light. "Tao  said you vanished. There one minute. Gone the next." Axel rested his  forehead against hers. "You had us worried, Lynxie. Care to tell me what  happened?"

"So Tao didn't lock me in the room?"

"What room?" Confused, Axel shined the light around the dark walls. He  wondered if she meant the chamber on the other side of the shortcut. But  then, how would she have gotten here? "This is a maze, not a series of  apartments."

"The one with the mirrors."

There were no mirrors in that room. Axel frowned, concerned again that  she had concussed herself when she had collapsed. He gently rubbed her  head, looking for bumps, but found nothing obvious. Even better, she  leaned into his kneading fingers.

"There are no mirrors in here, Lynx. The whole idea of this place is that it's dark, with narrow passages designed to confuse."

"Oh. Are there informas with Dreaded in here? I think they're called  holograms." She searched his face with her crystal-blue eyes.

"No, the labyrinth is horrible enough without them. Even my father  accepts that." He rocked her from side to side, like a child needing  comfort.

She didn't object.

"Or that's how it used to be." Axel couldn't stop the bitterness  bleeding into his voice. "But given how things have changed over the  last twenty-four hours, I could be wrong." When she didn't reply, he  said again, "Tell me what happened. Please."

"Axel Avanov saying please? Never thought I'd live to see that happen.  But it's been a very strange day." Lynx shifted, moving out of his  embrace.

He hated letting her go, but he didn't want to cause her further stress.

She sat back, studying him in the dim light, as if seeing him for the  first time. "You're wearing your uniform. What happened to the casuals?"

"Duty called."

"Oh. So, who is Chenaya invading? Norin?"

He gave her a rueful smile. "Lynxie, I hate to break this to you, but  Norin fell a few centuries ago. We've already had this discussion." When  she scowled at him, he added, "It's Lapis's turn. They've sided with  Treven against us, so I'm leading an invasion force there as soon as the  wedding celebrations are over."

Lynx looked mournful. "Lapis? That's sad. I used to love visiting the markets there."

He had no problem with the Lapis campaign. "That's what happens when you get in the way of Chenayan objectives."

"Avanov objectives," Lynx corrected.

He had more important concerns right now than arguing politics with  Lynx. He shrugged and changed the subject. "I'm leaving Stefan here to  watch over you while I'm gone. Please put your annoying hatred of all  things Chenayan aside and befriend him and Malika. They'll help you keep  out of trouble."

Lynx's face became a blank mask. "Mott saw us kissing. He must have had other cameras in my room."

"I know. My father woke me early this morning and told me he had put  them there last night. I'm sorry." He brushed her face with his hand.  "That's one of the reasons I wanted you to have breakfast with me, to  tell you. But stubborn as you are, you refused me. I hate it when you do  that."

"Refuse you?" Lynx smiled. "Get used to it." Then her face clouded. "How  am I supposed to live with all these cameras? How do I even dress,  knowing I'm being watched?"

Even in the low light, he saw her face pale and her body shiver. He took  her hand in his, holding it possessively. "It's very simple. Tell Lukan  you refuse to marry him, and I will protect you from both him and  Mott."                       
       
           



       

"Like last night?"

He should have seen that coming. He smiled self-deprecatingly.  "Definitely better than last night." Jokingly, he added, "There are no  cameras in my apartment."

She pulled her hand away, so he changed tack.

"Come on, Lynx, you and I are one of a kind. We belong together. As I've already said, you're totally-"

"Wasted on Lukan. You've told me all this, Axel." Lynx paused, her brow  creasing with a contemplative frown. "How well do you get on with Tao?"

Surprised, Axel replied, "Very. He's another person who'll make you a good friend."

"Could you imagine yourself sinking a hand axe into his head?"

The air oomphed out of Axel's lungs, but he willed strength into his  muscles to stop from crumpling before her. "How do you know about that?  What happened in the labyrinth?"

"Then it's true. You want to kill Tao. Why?"

"I don't want to kill Tao!" He grabbed her face with both hands, forcing  her to look at him. "The whole idea is ludicrous. It would be like  killing my sister, and I'd rather take a thousand quarrels than let  anything happen to her."

It was Lynx who now crumpled, leaning against him. "You admit you discussed the idea?"

"Yes." He looked at her expectantly. "How do you know about it?"

"I-I saw a . . . a"- Lynx winced, looking embarrassed-"a vision when I  vanished. It was all very unclear, but I got the impression you axed  Tao."

Axel hissed, shocked his father had shown such a hologram to Lynx.  Worse, he didn't like his part in it. "Thanks for your faith in my  integrity. It must have been a hologram, so don't let it upset you."

Lynx looked anything but convinced. "Tell me why you want to kill Tao."

Axel shined the flashlight up and down the passageway, ensuring they  were alone, then leaned in close, whispering, "That idiot Lukan attacked  Mott this morning, so now Mott commanded me to kill my cousin right  after the last wedding celebration."

Lynx's eyes grew to the size of the two full moons currently hanging over Cian.

"That's not all. Mott's now so paranoid, he thinks Tao plans to kill  him, too, even though that's crazy." Axel decided not to add that his  own life was also in jeopardy if he didn't murder his cousins. That  knowledge would put undue pressure on her, and he wanted her to choose  him because she wanted him, not because she felt compelled by threats.