“No one disobeys grandfather, Milo,” Bria replied. Her tone was gentle, understanding, but also exhausted. “And if he’d fought back, Cosmo would have punished Warren and the rest of them in front of her. He knew it. Believe me when I say my grandfather’s chosen Heir knew his cruelty better than anyone.”
“This cannot stand. A man like Cosmo cannot be allowed to rule.”
Her brow furrowed and when she spoke again, it was as if she’d thought of it herself before and truly wanted to know if I had an answer.
“Who can stop him?”
Chapter Eight
Olympia
It took half the night to convince the roommate, who I discovered was named Harrison, not to go straight to the Bexleys and warn them of the danger they were in which I’d been intentionally vague about. And, since I’d already spent the other half of the night trying to find a way into House Viper, that meant I was reentering the halls of House Avus after sunrise. Paxon gave me one glance as I strode in, tracking mud all over the pristine foyer, before shooting off in the direction of Milo’s study. I rolled my eyes and headed straight for my room. If my cousin was going to require a debrief, he would be wise to allow me a few hours of sleep first.
I hadn’t told Harrison everything, of course. Just that I’d overheard some people talking up on the Second Ring about how they were trying to use the Bexleys and they seemed dangerous. He took it more seriously than I thought he would and hadn’t questioned why I’d been halfway out Adrian’s window when he entered the apartment if I’d been there to warn him about the Bexleys. He’d probably wonder that later when he’d had enough sleep to think properly but for now I’d bought myself somevaluable time. He’d probably also assume the Vipers were the ones trying to use the Bexleys. Given their history with Cosmo, it wouldn’t be all that far-fetched of an assumption. Though it wasn’t entirely accurate, it likely wasn’t wrong either. Cosmo was out to use everyone any way he could and creating another enemy against the snakes could only be a positive in my opinion.
I knew it would be up to me to ensure the rebels didn’t convert the Bexleys to their cause and I fully intended to bring Milo into the loop but not yet. I needed more information and, at the moment, I needed sleep.
So I fell into my plush bed with a sigh and was out the second I closed my eyes. In no time at all, I was waking to a sharp knock on my door. Blinking and bleary eyed, I sat up with a yawn.
“It’s me, Olympia,” Milo’s voice called from the hall. Was it me or was he sounding more authoritative lately? Succession suited him. “Can I come in?”
“It’s open,” I said back.
The door opened and Milo stepped in, shining silver tray in hand. I glanced over the steaming bowl of soup and freshly stacked sandwich in his hands while he kicked the door shut and strode to my bed. He settled on the edge and handed me the tray. I took it and rubbed my hands together before eagerly reaching for the spoon.
“Paxon said you got in early this morning,” he told me, getting right to it as he always did. “Were you out all night?”
I nodded around a bite of the sandwich.
“Care to tell me where?” he asked, raising a brow.
I considered, cocking my head to the side while I chewed. By the time I swallowed, I’d made my decision.
“Nascha has me spying for her,” I informed him.
The evidence of surprise was immediate. His eyes widened slightly, lips parting of their own volition. I just turned back tomy soup, pushing my hair out of the way as I leaned forward for a slurp.
“She–what do you meanspying?” he asked finally.
“She wants to know what the other Houses are up to. Before she met with Raghnall, she had me break in and snoop around for any hint of what he wanted from her. The guy must be allergic to writing anything down, by the way, but Luca was helpful enough.”
“You know what he asked of her, of me.”
I looked up from my soup to meet my cousin’s gaze and nodded slowly. I did feel for Milo. I had ever since Luca had told me. An arranged marriage, though we’d all grown up knowing such a thing was more likely than not a part of our future, was still a stressful thing to have to face. For Milo, who was far more sensitive than most people seemed to realize, it would be even worse. I thought about reaching out to him, squeezing his hand or patting his leg or something, but that wasn’t me and probably would’ve put him off more than made him comfortable.
“I’ve known it was coming, obviously,” he said before I could decide what to do. He stood from my bed and began pacing beside it. “We’ve all known since we were children that we belong to our House and will do what is necessary to secure the safe transition of power and balance in Sanctuary. That often includes marriage, I’m well aware of that. But–”
“You didn’t think it would be you,” I finished for him. “You thought you were above it.”
“Not above it but…”
He trailed off, looking up at me.
“I know,” I said quietly.
It was silent between us for a moment as we just stared at one another, an understanding of some sort passing between us. We’d grown up together, knowing the same expectations would plague us. That should have bonded us even closer but somehowit had pushed us apart. Now though, with Milo in line to inherit it all and me finding myself as Nascha’s secret lapdog, it was like we were truly in this together for the first time.
“Where were you tonight?” he asked after a moment.
