His voice softens despite himself. “And your family? Are you really going to do that to them?”
I let out a humourless breath. “If this looks real, it’s safer for them. I would rather they hate me and consider me disowned than worry about me.”
The wind surges, carrying the scent of the ocean and the distant celebration. I stare down at the water, waves crashing into the sand repeatedly. “We’re bleeding on defence. I’m done watching us brace for impact while the enemy moves unchecked. In the dark, I can find them. Wherever they hide, I can strike back. I can get you the answers you need.”
Leo is silent, brows drawn together. I know he’s hesitating because he’s more than the King; he’s damn family. And the very weight of that is burdening him. “I’ve met a lot of people, know so many different kinds of people,” he says finally. “Your parents… they’re good. Their hearts hold only the best for everyone. If you walk this path, it’s going to hurt them; they’ll blame themselves.”
I laugh sarcastically. “Oh, come on, bro, you ran a cartel, one that still breathes.”
“I did what I had to-”
I grab him by the collar, fury flaring through me. “Exactly. You did what you had to. And now I’m doing the fucking same.”
My voice drops as I stare into his blazing, magnetic blue eyes. “I’ve killed before. Monsters. The innocent. The not-so-innocent. I’ve crossed lines that can never be uncrossed. I’m not who you think I am.”
He shoves me off him, his aura rising.
“I don’t fucking care,” he snarls.
We stand there, chest-to-chest for a breath, the air between us tense. His gaze turns calculating, assessing me the way he always does when the stakes are blood deep.
“We’ll ask Dante-”
“No.” I shake my head. “Even he can’t see my future. I’m Hades’ chosen. That makes me a blind spot. I need everyone to believe this. It will be easier.” I lift my cigarette, inhaling slowly, and exhale a skull of smoke that drifts toward the sea and disappears into the darkness. “I’m the wildcard you don’t get twice. All I need is one person who knows the truth. And as King, that’s you.”
His eyes narrow. “Your brothers will notice. You know Jayce.”
“Then I’ll leave before they can question me, when they don’t see it coming.” I hesitate, the words thickening. “There’s more.”
I have to tell him. If I’m not around, someone needs to be alerted.
He watches me closely as I tilt my gaze to the stars, cold and indifferent above us. “What is it?”
“It’s about the night Ares was attacked…”
I swiftly fill him in, and when I finish, silence crushes down, heavy as guilt. Even the sea seems to pause.
Leo snarls, the sound menacing and low. “You all keep so many fucking secrets. When are you going to fucking learn?”
“Never; get used to it. I’m telling you now, though, that’s what you need to focus on and shit.”
He takes a drag on his cigarette, staring into the dark water. “Why do you think this is your path?” he asks.
“Because it always has been. I’m not a hero. I never will be. I need this, a purpose for the powers I hold. And you know better than anyone that being King means choosing which sins you’re willing to live with.” Our eyes meet, and I continue, “I’m strong enough to carry this one. Until the very end, and my decision is fucking made.”
“I’m the goddamn King,” he says quietly. “I get a say.”
“Not this time,” I reply. “Either you sanction it, or I go anyway. I’ll stage my betrayal myself.”
He turns back to the sea, and silence falls between us, my words hanging in the air. After a long while, he speaks, “And if you lose your humanity in the process?”
A faint laugh, full of triumph and amusement, echoes through my mind. A warmth that has somehow given me stability.
As long as I have those memories, I’ll be fine. But if someday they fail me…
“Then it’s a price I’ll pay,” I say. “The Indomitable are spreading fear through our allies. Doubt is growing. It’s time the darkness learned to fear us back.” I meet his gaze. “We are the Dauntless. We don’t fucking break.”
“The Dauntless,” he murmurs.
