The Last Strike (THE ROYALS Book 4), page 1
The Last Strike
Book Four of The Royals
Brooke Sivendra
Contents
1. Asher
2. Reed
3. Asher
4. King Luang
5. King Khalil
6. Asher
7. Abi
8. Asher
9. James
10. Asher
11. Asher
12. Abi
13. Asher
14. Abi
15. Asher
16. King Khalil
17. Asher
18. Abi
19. Asher
20. Khalil
21. Asher
22. Abi
23. Khalil
24. Asher
25. Asher
26. Abi
27. Asher
28. Abi
29. Asher
30. Abi
31. Asher
32. Khalil
33. Asher
34. Abi
35. Reed
36. Asher
37. Khalil
38. Asher
39. Abi
Epilogue
ALSO BY BROOKE SIVENDRA
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Asher
“We will attack the royal compound. Reed is in place,” Asher said, his voice shaking with rage. “It is time for Adani to fall.”
Fury lashed through Asher’s veins. He wouldn’t stand for this. The Adani King had known that attacking the Lithe Ruins would hit Asher hard, but he had underestimated just how hard. The Lithe Ruins were not only a holy site—they had also been Asher’s favorite place in the world. A place he went to seek solace, to soothe his soul.
King Khalil had made a huge mistake attacking Asher’s beloved ruins.
And now he would pay.
“I’ll issue the order,” Asher said.
“There is no turning back now,” King Luang, his new ally, said. He sighed. “I guess there was no turning back anyway, not after your press conference announcing war.”
“There is no turning back. If we give into them now, they will destroy the entire region. My kingdom, your kingdom, and every kingdom that stands in their way,” Asher said. He needed to move, to pace, but as he stood his legs felt that strange sense of heaviness yet weightlessness. He put a hand on the wall to steady himself.
“I know, Asher. That’s why I, and the other kingdoms, sat at the round table and agreed to fight with you. But war is ugly, and this will be a scathing mess. Prepare yourself for a long, hard journey. You’re going to need to support and uplift your people. If I can give you one piece of advice from someone who has ruled longer than you, and ruled during war, it is this: keep the morale of your people high. Stay connected to them and keep a visible presence, even when it’s hard. Your people will need to see you and know you remain strong and confident.”
King Luang reminded Asher of his late father. Asher’s heart ached for him, wishing he was here to guide him—to handle this for him. But he wasn’t, and Santina was now Asher’s responsibility.
“Thank you, Your Majesty,” Asher said.
King Luang gave a slight chuckle. “Please call me Luang—that’s what your father called me, because we were friends. Now we’re friends, Asher, and we’re going to need each other.”
“Thank you, Luang,” Asher said with a warm smile.
Asher wondered if it would be the last time he smiled for a while.
“Now, go issue the order. Let’s teach King Khalil a lesson in manners,” King Luang said with a hint of excitement. Asher knew he wasn’t excited for war, but the end of Adani would be a blessing to their region, even the world.
“Copy. I’ll keep you updated,” Asher said before ending the call.
He went to the bathroom, splashed some water on his face, and brushed his teeth. He pulled on a fresh white T-shirt and jeans. When he returned to the bedroom, Abi was awake—he’d no doubt woken her with his phone call.
“King Khalil attacked the Lithe Ruins. It’s started,” Asher said, the fury returning. During his conversation with King Luang, he’d momentarily felt calm, but now that was forgotten. Now he would use his anger to strengthen him.
Abi’s jaw fell open and she scrambled out of bed. “Wait for me. I’m coming with you,” she said as she reached for a sweater, pulling it over her head. He held out his hand for her and pulled her into his embrace.
“I love you,” Asher said, looking into her eyes. “Whatever happens from here on, know that I’ll protect you at all costs, Abi.”
“We’ll protect each other,” she said, looking up at him through her lashes.
He lost himself in her resolve for a moment. He nodded. “Always.”
Asher knocked on the bedroom door twice and security opened it. “To the command center, please,” Asher said.
As they walked through the hallways, accompanied by a full security team, it was not lost on Asher that he’d had to temporarily move into his future father-in-law’s house. He was the King of Santina, but he had no residence of his own after King Khalil’s men had destroyed his palace—and the second safest place in Santina was the Bennett’s family home. He almost laughed at the reality he’d found himself in, because if he didn’t, he might lose his mind.
Asher would rebuild. He and Abi would build a new palace, a new beginning for them and for Santina. But Asher couldn’t do that until he won the war he’d started. Once he took control of Adani, the oil funds would secure Santina’s future and fund building a new palace. Until then, he would need to stay on the good side of his future father-in-law.
As they turned the corner and entered the command center, Asher’s eyes landed on James Thomas, who was seated at a large dining table filled with monitors and various technical devices. Asher was not surprised to see William Bennett seated beside him.
“I’ve spoken with King Luang and we’re ready. Command Reed to proceed,” Asher said, standing beside James. He didn’t think he could sit for this; too much nervous energy was pumping through him.
“Reed?” James asked.
“Copy.” Reed’s voice came through the speaker system, echoing through the room.
“Proceed when you’re ready. Once you detonate, you’ll have two minutes to get inside. Make it count, but don’t rush. Watch your back,” James said, calm and encouraging.
Asher looked to James, wondering when he’d last slept. They’d been up all night the previous night—when the palace had been under attack—and then they’d spent the day in negotiations with the kingdom leaders. Yet he appeared wide awake and alert as he commanded Reed. When did the guy sleep?
“Copy. Moving into position one.”
Asher followed James’s gaze to the two screens directly in front of him. Two different windows of footage were displayed on one—Reed’s front and back cameras.
The other monitor displayed a map of the Adani palace grounds. King Khalil loved to invite the media into his palace, and his ego would now be his downfall. Samuel had been able to take the media photos published online and combine them with images not previously published—Asher didn’t ask where those photographs came from—to create what they thought was an almost perfect map of the grounds. It had been very helpful in formulating their plan.
As Reed ran along the east boundary of the palace wall, Asher’s worries began to bubble like a pot of water on the verge of boiling.
“Are you sure it’s a good idea to send him in without a team?” Asher asked.
He already had the blood of his soldiers on his soul. He didn’t need it to be smeared with Reed’s blood as well.
“A team will attract too much attention. Reed is there because he can move like a ghost. He can do this alone. A team would be destined to fail.” James looked to him. “You need to trust me on this.”
Asher nodded. He did trust James, but it seemed almost insane to send one guy in to take down an entire palace. Needless to say, this was an unusual plan. Initially, they’d planned to attack the palace in the same manner King Khalil had attacked—by sending in teams of men to destroy the palace and kill Asher. But Khalil had only partly succeeded, and Asher was determined to fully succeed.
“King Khalil used brute force, manpower,” James continued. “If Reed does this right, he’ll be in and out of the palace before they’ve even realized they had a visitor, and then we let nature take its course. You won’t win this war with brute strength, Asher—you don’t have the resources available, even with the other kingdoms’ aid. Strategy is your only option.”
James was right, and Asher knew it.
Still, the responsibility weighed on his shoulders like a kingdom of bricks. He thought of his father, wondering if he was looking down over Santina. Would he think this was a brilliant idea or a disastrous one? Because it could only go one way.
But his father wasn’t there. King Khalil had made sure of that—and he’d taken Noah before almost killing his mother.
Without declaring it, King Khalil had started a war. And now Asher would finish it.
“In position.”
“Copy. Detonate,” James commanded.
Asher held his breath as a round of roaring, crashing thunderclaps echoed through the speaker system.
“Go!” James said as Reed launched up, scaling the brick wall. Then, “Steady,” as Reed neared the top.
Another screen of footage flash
As they’d hoped, everyone on the grounds was running toward the explosion.
“Detonate!” James said.
Another explosion boomed, and then another.
Chaos followed. Men yelled and ran in all directions.
“Go!” James said and Reed seemed to pounce up on top of the wall and run toward the adjoining palace. He was conveniently dressed in an Adani soldier’s uniform—one unlucky soldier had been sacrificed upon Reed’s arrival. The soldier had been deemed a necessary sacrifice, and Asher would have to live with that. Better one Adani soldier than all of Santina, Asher had justified.
Asher’s eyes dropped to the numbers counting down in the bottom of the screen.
“One minute, twenty seconds,” James said, his mind clearly all too aware of the time as well.
Asher looked at the dot tracking on the screen, indicating Reed’s position. He was almost to the palace. Asher refused the urge to pace and instead homed in his focus.
“Detonate,” James said again and another explosion followed.
The camera footage bounced wildly as Reed ran, and Asher couldn’t get a clear picture of the grounds. But that was the fourth explosion and Asher prayed it would be enough of a distraction.
Reed needed three minutes inside the palace.
Three minutes to seal King Khalil’s fate.
Reed swore as the ground in front of him chipped away.
“Go! Go!” James said. “Keep running!”
Asher held his breath as bullets hit the wall, somehow missing Reed. Then his heart skipped a beat as Reed ran straight into a stained-glass window. His shoulder hit the window first, shattering it, and the camera tumbled along with his body. Then he pounced back onto his feet, crouching like a cat.
“Clear,” said a voice Asher recognized as Samuel’s. “Take the first right and then down the stairs to the Marble Hall. Go!”
Reed darted to the door and peered out. Asher exhaled a shaky breath when he saw the hallway was clear.
Reed sprinted forward, taking the first right and scaling down the stairs like he was flying. Asher wasn’t sure if he’d ever seen someone move so fast.
He came to a sudden halt at the bottom and pressed his back against the wall.
Two Adani soldiers ran past, their weapons raised.
If they’d turned around, they would’ve looked straight at Reed, but they kept running toward the latest explosion.
“Activate the drones, Samuel,” James said. “Give Reed some breathing room.”
“Copy. Activated.”
It sounded like background noise, but the sound of the explosions was unmistakable. James hadn’t wanted to send a team to their deaths, but that didn’t mean Reed didn’t have any support. Right now, hovering above the palace grounds, was a team of drones, firing and bombing everything in sight.
Asher prayed that would be enough to keep the soldiers occupied for a few more minutes.
In a situation like this, a minute seemed nothing more than a breath, but it also seemed like an eternity.
“Moving into position three,” Reed said as he checked the hallway and surged forward.
The Marble Hall came into view. It was named the Marble Hall for obvious reasons: the entire hall—the floors, walls and ceiling were made of marble and the hall was lined with marble columns and arches. It was the most ridiculous, ostentatious display of wealth Asher had ever seen. King Khalil should’ve used that money to feed his poor.
Asher chewed on his cheek.
It is time for you to fall, Khalil.
Reed sprinted through the Marble Hall.
“Veer right; there should be a door on the left. That’s your entry point,” Samuel said.
Asher’s stomach churned. Should be a door on the left.
They were confident it was there, but if any amendments had been made to the palace recently, there was a chance it was not. This entire plan hinged on this entry point.
Reed hurled around the corner and Asher’s eyes widened as he saw the wall. It was paneled. No door in sight.
“Look for the door, Reed,” James commanded. “It’s there.”
Asher didn’t know how he knew that, or if he actually did. But one thing was certain: there wasn’t a hint of doubt in his voice.
Reed ran his hands across the wall panels.
Asher’s eyes dropped to the clock. Thirty seconds remained. The drones could only hold the enemy’s attention for so long before the soldiers moved back in to secure the palace. Reed was running out of time.
“It’s flat. Nothing here,” Reed said.
James stared at the screen. “Keep looking. It’s there,” he said.
Twenty seconds.
Ten seconds.
Five seconds.
“Got it!” Reed said as he ran his fingers along what looked like an architrave.
James exhaled audibly.
The door opened and Reed disappeared into darkness. A moment later, Reed turned on a flashlight and Asher saw another set of stairs that led to a basement.
Asher’s foot tapped nervously on the floor. He couldn’t help it now.
Reed scaled the stairs and ran toward the water system. It was time for Khalil to get a taste of his own medicine.
“Preparing the syringe,” Reed said with labored breath.
“Use the clear pipe, not the gray one,” Samuel instructed.
Reed jammed the syringe into the pipe then connected it to a larger bottle from his kit.
Polonium.
King Khalil had wanted to poison Santina’s water supply with it, but in return, Asher was going to poison the Adani Palace and everyone in it—leaving no heirs to the Adani Kingdom.
“Complete,” Reed said as the lights turned on, fully illuminating him.
Asher choked on his breath. No!
“Take cover!” James said as Reed pulled the container away. Asher only saw it for a split second before Reed ran for cover, but there was no mistaking it: Reed had pulled the bottle, but the syringe hadn’t come with it.
“Leave it! Take cover!” James said, obviously noting the same thing. “If they see it, eliminate them. Otherwise, stay hidden. We still need to get you out.”
Asher’s eyes didn’t leave the footage as two Adani soldiers walked into view. They seemed to be scoping the basement, looking for something—or someone. They turned in a full circle, seeming to stop at the water system. They looked at it a moment and then raised their weapons as they moved around the system. As one soldier circled it, he pressed his back and heels against the system.
He stopped with his foot touching the syringe.
Asher couldn’t breathe. He put his hand on his chest, pressing against it like that would calm his rapid heart.
Asher was sure the soldier had seen it—or felt it—but then he stepped forward and motioned the other soldier to follow.
“There’s nothing down here,” he said as they moved toward the stairs.
Reed’s cameras didn’t move. Not an inch.
He didn’t take a breath.
Reed
His heart whooshed in his ears and he didn’t dare breathe. If they saw him now, there would be no escape. He was pressed between two storage containers and had nowhere to run. Reed looked to the syringe that the solider had unknowingly almost tripped on.
Big mistake, Reed.
He’d hastily grabbed the container, not realizing the syringe had stayed lodged in the pipe. One simple mistake could’ve ruined it all.
“Focus,” James said through his earpiece, like he could read Reed’s mind. “Finish the job.”
Reed drew a calming breath and listened for a moment.
Silence.
He slid out from between the storage containers and rushed to the water system. He reconnected the container and flushed it through the syringe. He looked over his shoulder at the stairs. He didn’t know how much time he had, but he didn’t think it was much.
