Chapter 438:

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She didn’t answer immediately, and that frightened me more than anything else. My sister always had an answer. Even when everything was falling apart, Anatoria knew what to say and what expression to wear. But tonight, or rather this early morning, she looked as though she had run through half the palace to reach me.

“You need to leave,” she repeated.

I frowned. “Leave where?”

“Anywhere. It doesn’t matter. Just get out of Moonstone before sunrise.”

I stared at her. “Why?”

Her eyes met mine. “Kade has ordered your execution.”

I actually laughed. It wasn’t because I found it funny. My mind simply refused to accept what she had said. “My execution?”

“Yes.”

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“For what?”

Anatoria walked toward me. “Betraying Moonstone’s secrets.”

The laughter vanished from my face. “What betrayal?”

She stopped beside my bed. “The one they believe you planned.”

For several seconds, I couldn’t breathe. Then I shook my head. “No.”

“Victoria…”

“No.” I threw the blankets aside and stood. “I didn’t plan anything.”

“I know you didn’t.” Her answer came too quickly.

“Then why is Kade trying to execute me?”

“Because they have evidence.”

My stomach dropped. “What evidence?”

“Documents. Letters. Orders. Information that was leaked from the palace. Your name appears on them.”

I stared at her. “My name?”

She nodded.

I walked toward the window, trying to make sense of what she was telling me. The first pale light of morning was beginning to appear beyond the palace walls, but the sky looked strangely distant.

“Someone used my name.”

“Who?”

“I don’t know.” I turned around. “You came here to tell me I’m about to be executed, but you don’t know who framed me?”

“I came here because I found out before they could take you.”

“No.” I shook my head. “You came here because you want me to run.”

Her expression tightened. “Because running is the only way you’ll survive.”

“If I run, I look guilty.”

“They already think you’re guilty.”

“Exactly.” I stared at her. “If I disappear before the execution, what do you think Kade will believe? That I ran because I’m innocent?”

She didn’t answer.

“He’ll believe I escaped because I knew I was guilty.”

“Victoria, you don’t understand how serious this is.”

“I understand perfectly.” I moved closer to her. “What exactly is written on these documents?”

“Patrol movements. Council information. Details about Kade. Information about Nero. Things that could only have come from someone inside the palace.”

My heart hammered. “And my name is on all of them?”

“Your name appears beside several of them.”

I shook my head slowly. “I have never done this.”

Her eyes flickered. That tiny movement unsettled me.

“You’re my sister,” I whispered. “You’re supposed to be furious.”

“I am.”

“You don’t look furious.”

“Because I’m trying to keep you alive.”

“No.” I stepped closer. “You’re trying to get me out of here. And you’ve already prepared a way for me to escape.”

She hesitated. “I have a horse waiting beyond the eastern wall. There’s a servant passage that isn’t being watched yet. You’ll leave through there, cross the outer forest, and meet someone loyal to me. By the time the palace realizes you’re gone, you’ll already be outside Moonstone.”

“You arranged all of that? How long have you known?”

She looked away. “Since last night.”

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