Jacob Compass
Ihad been doing so well. I hadn't killed Marcus, even if it was as simple as twitching my fingers and snapping his neck.
President Caine, though, was pushing my last fucking button. His threats were going to end today; I’d had my fill of putting up with his bullshit.
My flames pushed higher, the table under my palms starting to smoke, right before a hand wrapped around my right biceps. I cut off the flames in an instant, worried I might burn Justice. She was a supernatural, one born of a powerful fey land, but I wasn't sure she knew how to use her power to protect herself. At the base of who she was, she still acted like a human … something that wouldn’t change for many years. I’d seen it firsthand with Mischa, who was only just now thinking of herself as a shifter.
"He's not worth it," she said, not quietly.
Guns were trained on us all around the room, as the men who swore to protect their president with their lives stepped closer. With a snarl, I used wind to wrap around their weapons, stealing them out of their hands, all the while shaking my head at their stupidity. Humans never learned, thinking little pieces of metal were superior to my power.
"You're forbidden from using your hocus pocus magic on me," John Caine stuttered out. "Th— This is treason."
The absolute absurdity of his words, and the fact that the guns were now all slammed to the walls of this room, guards hurrying after them in a comical manner, had some of my annoyance easing.
"You. Don't. Control. Us!" Justice snapped.
She was pissed, and it reminded me of the first time I’d seen her. Outside of her astonishing beauty, the strength of her personality was absolutely mesmerizing.
President Caine was about to learn the hard way that pissing off the ruby princess never ended well. "Give us one good reason why we shouldn't walk out and never return?" she snarled, her distrust for him written across her face.
Her ruby eyes held the president in thrall for a few moments, and I wondered, not for the first time, if he’d chosen her initially because she was stunning in a way no human could be.
He’d had no idea what her beauty hid inside.
"Before you leave, I request that you visit a war zone," the president finally choked out. "I want to show you what we're up against and implore that you reconsider joining forces with the American government to combine our power and skills and end this war for once."
Justice regarded him for a beat, and I let her have the floor, my power fading away to nothing again. "You say the right things,” she finally said, shaking her head, “and it's no surprise you're the president, but I don't trust you. It's as simple as that."
I didn't disagree.
He nodded. "That's fair enough. I haven’t given you any reason to trust me. But I think you've proven more than once that if you don't like what you see or learn, you can just overpower us and leave. We are taking a huge risk in trusting you, and all I’m asking for is a little of that faith returned."
The dragon stirred in my chest, and it wasn't a lazy movement. Neither of us were happy with this situation. The president needed to remember that he wanted us here, not the other way around. We had asked the humans for nothing; we didn't need them. But we did need this situation to be over.
"We’ll go with you to this war zone, but after that, we return home," I said, crossing my arms, settling the dragon by taking back control of the conversation.
President Caine nodded. "Yes, that is acceptable. The plane will leave in two hours. Pack some clothing and toiletries—we’ll be gone for a few days."
Justice swung her head toward me and I knew without even having to ask what she was thinking: that was too easy. Something else was going on.
The president spun on his heel and left in the same eerie silence that he'd arrived in. In my experience, if a leader required that level of reverence in their presence, then they were egomaniacs. People weren't silent around us in Stratford—we welcomed an open forum in dealing with any situations and complaints that arose. We demanded respect but didn’t incite fear.
Somewhere along the way, humans had forgotten that the leaders were there for their people, not the other way around.
I retook my seat, hoping that Justice would finish her food before we left, but she just pushed the plate further away. I wasn't the sort of supe to question a woman’s decisions about what she did or didn’t eat, but I'd be a liar if a part of me wasn't dying to reach over and feed her. Justice was picking at her meals like she was human, and supernaturals needed more sustenance than that.
There I went again, acting like a damned shifter with a need to feed his mate.
Not that Justice was my mate … orwhatever.
Before I could delve any deeper into that, Justice stood and straightened her uniform. "I'm going to head to my room and pack a bag," she said, her voice unnaturally tight.
I was on my feet in an instant, hand wrapping around her forearm to hold her in place. "What's wrong?" I asked, leaning in close. We were being closely observed, some of the faces fearful, others furious, especially those men whose guns I’d stolen.
Her lips flattened and she sucked in a deep breath before letting it out slowly. "I just ... I really hate war. I'm not sure I can handle whatever he’s about to show us."
I nodded, gentling my hold but not releasing her. Even better, she wasn't trying to pull away, which was progress for us. "This won't be the first war I've seen or been part of, but it never gets easier. Bottom line, we’re here because we chose to be, and if this ends up being too much for either of us, then we'll leave. Treaty be damned."
