“Why?Does Amber still want Peyton?”
“She wants to know what happened.We all do.”
“You didn’t care this much when you were supposed to stand up for me.”
“What was there to stand for?Peyton had made his decision.”
She said it as if it had been simple, and maybe for her, it had been.Tyne’s heart had broken all over again when his mother had refused to do anything to help him, though.He hadn’t come home in decades for a reason, and he was starting to regret saying yes to Jarvis.
* * * *
MEYER DIDN’T HAVE MOSTof his memories, but of the ones he did have, he couldn’t remember ever feeling so uncomfortable.
He stood next to Tyne, looking from him to his mother.The two of them were about to start fighting, which Meyer should have expected.Tyne had told him that his mother had taken Amber’s side during the mess with Peyton, and it was clear she didn’t regret it.Hell, if Meyer had to guess, she’d do it again if she was presented with the same situation again.
On the one hand, he understood.If Peyton had made his decision, there wasn’t much she would have been able to do.On the other hand, though, Tyne was her son, but she didn’t seem to have any kind of empathy toward him.It made Meyer wonder if she had a shield.
She had to.She was the leader of the clan.She was a powerful mage, so she’d need a shield to protect her.Was that shield Tyne’s father?
Meyer glanced at the man.He stood back, not saying a thing.Meyer had no idea if he was a dragon, and he wasn’t about to ask or try to sniff him.In fact, he was planning to keep to himself and only answer questions he was directly asked while sticking by Tyne.
“You didn’t even try talking to him and Amber,” Tyne accused.
“I did talk to them.”
“You asked them if this was what they wanted.I don’t care what you did as clan leader, but as my mother, why didn’t you ever try to get them to change their minds?Why didn’t you talk to Amber?”
“There was no reason to.Peyton wasn’t going to change his mind.He’d already chosen Amber over you, so why delay the inevitable?”
Tyne shook his head.“I was never as important to you as the clan.Why did I think this situation would be any different?”
“What did you expect me to do?”
“I just told you,” Tyne snapped.“I expected support from mymother.Even if Peyton had ended up with Amber, anyway, I thought you’d be on my side.”
“I’m on the side of the clan.”
“That’s what I said.The clan is always going to come first.”
Tyne’s mother sniffed.“It looks like you got what you wanted, anyway.Peyton is back with you.Do you know how distraught Amber is?She wanted to be here tonight, but I knew it was going to end in tears and screaming.”
“I don’t care about Amber.”
“She’s your cousin.”
“She’s the woman who took my shield from me.She wasn’t even sorry.In fact, she was pretty smug about it the last time we talked.”
“She was in love.She didn’t want to risk losing Peyton.”
“Peyton had made his decision, so why was she afraid?”
“He went with you to face Carlyle, and look how that ended.”She glanced at Meyer, who wished he could be anywhere but there.He’d even choose to be in one of Carlyle’s cells if he could.
“We defeated Carlyle,” Tyne said.
“You didn’t defeat him.He’s back.”
“He is, and Iwillkill him this time.”
