When the ladies returned, the found the Count's men digging through chests of gold. A bribe from Catherine, Emilia presumed.
"It's not enough!" Count Vincent yelled, slamming a fist on the table. "You took my son from me and expect me to take gold in his place?"
"Fine." Catherine's gaze darkened. Emilia could see a plan brewing as she looked to Mary. "Take her virtue."
"Don't come near her." Emilia barked, revealing one of her daggers. Men came towards the Queen, Emilia fighting them off. Two got passed her and grabbed Mary, pinning her to the table.
Suddenly, Count Vincent's men began to drop to the floor. Dead.
"How?" He cried. "We ate the same food. Drank the same wine!" He looked over to the gold on the table.
"It pays to be prepared." Catherine said, as a sword was plunged into the Count's back. The owner was Francis. He and Emilia helped Mary up.
"I'm fine." Mary assured, making the two let her go.
The girls helped Kenna up from the ground who, in the fray, had been hit rather harshly in the face. She seemed in much worse shape than anyone else. Besides the dead men around them.
Ellyana emerged from the shadows, followed by the guards who had been imprisoned. Sam beside her, and Marque and Sebastian taking the rear. Marque broke away from the group and collected Emilia in his arms.
"She's hurt." Ellyana said, referring to Kenna. "Take her to Nostradamus." The ladies nodded and led Kenna to the physician.
"Are you alright?" Emilia asked Marque, lightly touching a bruise on his cheek.
"I'm fine." He assured. He tucked a strand of silvery hair behind her ear and kissed her head. "You seem to have handled the situation well."
"My duty is to protect the Queen." She told him, and turned to Ellyana. "This was your plan all along." She said. "Sam to release the princes and you to get the guards out."
"More or less." Ellyana confirmed.
"Why did you wait for so long?" Mary questioned. "Why not get them out in the beginning?"
"The Count had to be distracted." Sam answered. "It was the only chance we had."
"What we didn't take into account was our lovely queen handing Mary over." Ellyana spat.
"Relax," Catherine waved it off. "He wasn't going to hurt her. His men had already come in contact with the poison. He wouldn't have gotten the chance."
"I believe it is time to turn in." Francis said, glaring daggers at his mother. "It's been a long day for all of us." He offered his arm to Mary and walked her to her room.
...
In the courtyard below, Bash and Diane seemed to be having an argument. Ellyana watched as her friend stormed away from the window in the corridor.
"Well, Princess, you're just as horrid a fighter as I heard of."
She lifted her head. "I wonder why I miss you." His smirk only widened. "You know, I should've let you run the tunnels. Keep you away from the fight."
"And you wouldn't have had anyone to watch your back." Sam swept forward and pulled her close. "I missed you, too, menace."
A cough interrupted her before she could open her mouth. Elly pulled out of Sam's embrace merely halfway. "Bash," she greeted, unable to fight her grin. Her warrior was relaxed beside her, one arm around her waist loosely. She caught the flash of anger Bash tried to hide.
"I will find you later. We can go for a ride like old times, right, Princess?" Sam kissed her temple before moving off. She made a mental note to push him off his horse.
Bash stared at her. "I want to be mad, but seeing you alive is not helping."
"Should I have died, then?" She asked coldly.
"You almost did!" He exploded. He raked a hand through his hair. "The fact that you protected your friends was stupidly heroic. I'm glad many of the castle members lived through... whatever that truly was. But another queen's life is not worth yours, Your Highness."
"Say my title again, and I promise to show you exactly what I did to those Italians." Why was it so hard to acknowledge they were both safe?
A muscle jumped in his cheek. "What is that brute to you, Ellyana?"
"A very old friend," she answered instantly. "Not that it matters to someone who thinks only of French royalty. You can't honestly expect me to regret having Sam back in my life, Sebastian."
"I don't. I just never thought you would throw away everything because suddenly you had a fighting partner! Emilia told me what the two of you did, how far you went to save the castle. None of that is bad, I assure you. If only you were smarter about what this scheme of yours was. Sam knows who you are. He should also know, then, that diving headlong into the battle was the worst thing you could possibly do."
Ellyana smirked. "Are you jealous?"
"Hardly." He snapped. "You shouldn't be making these mistakes. You are an elite-"
"And you're an idiot." She reached up and kissed him. The fear and anger drained away. When she pulled back, he was speechless. She flashed a smile. "Better?"
"No." He touched his forehead to hers. Her golden eyes flashed. He sighed. "Give me some time with Sam. Then maybe I'll reconsider sharing you."
Laughing, she pecked his lips one more time. As she walked away, she called over her shoulder. "Good luck thinking I belong to either of you!" Hyperaware of his fake glare on her back.