The vines around her legs loosened but didn't fully retreat. Just enough to let her move if she chose. Behind Eliam, she could see her defenders—Ferria completely cocooned now except for her eyes, Halian's breathing increasingly labored, Sian making sounds of pain as ice spread deeper, Arion's face darkening as branches compressed his chest.
There was no choice, but then, there never had been.
Briar stood on shaking legs and walked to him. Each step felt like surrender, but what else could she do? Let them die for her foolishness?
She placed her hand in his.
His fingers closed around hers, and the mark sang with satisfaction. "Good girl," he murmured, and she hated how the praise made something flutter in her chest. "Now tell them what you promised."
This time, she didn't need compulsion. "My life for my sister's."
"Your life," he agreed softly. "Every breath, every heartbeat, every moment between now and eternity." His grip tightened. "Belongs to me."
The word seemed to echo through the sanctuary. Around them, the roots and branches began to loosen—not releasing their captives, but no longer activelyconstricting.
"Now," Eliam said, not looking away from Briar's face, "let's discuss what happens to those who interfere with what's mine."
"You said you'd let them go." Briar's voice was hoarse from crying.
"I said no such thing." His thumb traced over her knuckles, a mockery of gentleness. "You asked me to stop hurting them. I have. Whether they leave here breathing is another matter entirely."
"Please—"
"Shh." He pressed a finger to her lips, silencing her. "They live because you came willingly. They remain whole because you chose submission over defiance. But if they cross into my domain again, if they so much as whisper rebellion to those who might listen..."
He gestured, and the branches holding Arion shifted, bringing him lower until he was at eye level with Eliam. Arion's face was purple-red from constriction, but his eyes still burned with defiance.
"I'll make what happened here feel like a gentle caress," Eliam finished. "And I'll make her watch every moment. Do you understand me, brightling?"
Arion couldn't speak, but he managed a slight nod.
"Good." Another gesture, and all four captives dropped to the ground simultaneously. Ferria gasped as the roots released her, Halian coughed violently as the wood around his chest crumbled away, Sian collapsed into a puddle before slowly reforming, and Arion hit his knees, dragging in desperate breaths into his lungs.
"You have until I leave this sanctuary to disappear," Eliam said conversationally. "After that, you're prey in my forest. And unlike tonight, I won't be inclined toward mercy."
"Briar—" Arion started, voice rough.
"No." She didn't look at him. Couldn't. If she saw the defeat in his eyes, she might break entirely. "Just go. Please."
Eliam's hand moved from her fingers to her wrist, directly over the mark. "Wise advice. I'd take it."
Halian helped Ferria to her feet. She was shaking, whether from rage or fear Briar couldn't tell. Sian reformed enough to stand, though she remained translucent at the edges. They all looked at Arion, waiting.
"This isn't over," Arion said quietly.
Eliam smiled. "No. I don't suppose it is. But for tonight? It's finished." His grip on Briar's wrist tightened possessively. "Take your people and go. The next time we meet, I won't be so… accommodating."
They fled. Not with dignity, not with grace, but with the desperate speed of the defeated. Within moments, the sanctuary was empty except for Briar and Eliam.
And Thaine, who stepped out from whatever shadow he'd been occupying.
"Shall I ensure they leave the forest, my lord?"
"No need." Eliam turned, pulling Briar with him toward the gap in the wall. "They know what awaits if they linger. And we have more pressing matters to attend to."
He stepped through the breach, and Briar had no choice but to follow. The forest embraced them immediately, darkness pressing close. Behind them, she heard the sanctuary groan and crack as it collapsed in on itself.
"No evidence," Eliam said, answering her unspoken question. "No rallying point for other fools who might think to play hero."
