"Years," Asher echoes flatly.
His jaw tightens, his posture unchanging. But I see the flicker behind his eyes. The calculation. The comparison. We've had weeks. Darius had years.
There's a silence, stretched and fraying.
"A mentor turned lover. How charmingly cliché," Kayden bites out, his voice thick with acid. "Next thing you'll tell us is that he read you poetry by candlelight while training you to be his pretty little pawn."
His sarcasm is cruel, but underneath it, I hear the break, the crack in his foundation.
"I thought what we had was real, Sage," Kayden says, quieter now. "What we were building here. You and me. You and my brother. Us. It was messy, yeah. But it was real. Raw. And now I feel like I've been cast in someone else's fucking fantasy. Just the reckless side character you sleep with on your way back to the hero."
"No," I say, my voice stronger this time. "Itisreal. What's between us. All of it."
He gives me a scornful look over the rim of his glass. "Really? 'Cause from where I'm standing, looks like I was just the local detour while you hid from your monster prince."
I press a hand to my chest, forcing breath into lungs that feel too tight. "It wasn't supposed to happen like this. I didn't plan any of this. I didn't plan for you. Hell, I thought you were going to kill me the first night, Kayden."
He doesn't flinch.
"I didn't know I'd care. I didn't know it would matter so much."
Asher steps closer, tone even colder. "Then why didn't you tell us? Were you planning to run again?"
The question lands like a blade through my center. It's what Darius said too—when things get real, I bolt.
"No," I say, my voice cracking with sincerity. "I wasn't going to run. I stayed. I chose to stay. I was hoping I had more time. That Darius wouldn't find me so soon. That I could tell you everything once it felt safe."
Asher's gaze is steel. "And what made you run in the first place? Was it really about their methods? Or was it about him?"
"It was both," I admit, rubbing the crystal on my neck. "I left because of what I discovered about the organization. They were doing things I couldn't be part of. And because of the satyr influence, I didn't know if what I felt for him was real or something he created."
Kayden stares at me like he's trying to solve a puzzle that keeps rewriting itself. "So you had feelings for him. You loved him. Maybe still do."
I drag a hand over my face, exhausted and raw. "It's not that simple. I thought I loved him. But I think he manipulated me. Because he didn't just want me. He wanted my power. Nymph magic is amplified when bound to a satyr, and he can tap into it. Use it. I think that's what Darius was after all along—the power of a nymph that wasn't born into this world, but was made."
"How did you find out?" Asher asks, voice sharp. "Was that in the files you hacked?"
I shake my head. "No. Another nymph told me. One I trusted. She said Darius had a wife before me. Also a nymph. She died under mysterious circumstances."
Their silence is deafening.
I push off the couch, standing before them, desperate, trembling at the edge of everything breaking. "I know I should've told you. I'm sorry. I was going to. I was... scared. Everything between us happened so fast. So much, all at once. And I didn't know how you'd see me after that. Afterhim." I inhale shakily. "And now it's all just—"
"A fairytale fucked up mess," Kayden interrupts. "Yeah. We're the vampire prince saviors, huh? The getaway drivers. The distraction. Are we supposed to be grateful for the privilege?" His smirk is venom. "Do you even want to be saved? Or is this just a tragic love story where you're torn between the bad guys and the worse guy?"
The words sting. I step forward, standing my ground. "No, Kayden. That's not it. And I'll remind you that I tried to escapeyoufirst. I didn't want to stay here. I didn't want to drag you all into this hell. I was trying toprotectyou. But I will make it right," I continue, breath trembling. "If I go to him, he'll leave all of you alone."
There's a sharpcrack. The glass in Kayden's hand explodes. Crimson drips from his palm. He doesn't flinch. Neither does Asher, though his jaw is locked so tight I swear I hear the sound of grinding teeth.
They speak in unison, raw, guttural, final: "No way."
Kayden's laugh is humorless. "So what's the plan, sweetheart?" he says, stepping closer, glass crunching beneath his boots. "You go back to him in your white dress, bow your head like a good little bride, and pretend none of this happened? That you didn't matter to us? Thatwedidn't happen?" He's close enough that I can smell the blood trickling down his hand. "You might not have noticed, but I don'tdosidelines. I don't stand back while someone I care about walks into fire thinking it's some kind of savior act."
Asher cuts in, measured, cold, but just as fierce. "You're trying to protect us. I get it. But we're not the ones who need saving right now.Youare." His gaze sharpens, drilling into mine. "Unless... you want to go back to him. Fix things."
"No," I say immediately. "But I can't let you or anyone else get hurt because of me. And now… now that you know the whole truth, I'm not sure you'll trust me anymore. I broke something. I'm aware of that. And I don't know if you can forgive me." My voice catches. "So if going with him means he leaves you alone, then maybe that's the only way."
I mean it. I see Eira's pale face, hear the echo of her scream.Death, she said. I can't let that prophecy unfold if I can stop it.
