“She’s your mate!” Ryn snaps at Treno, surprisingly not liking what just happened any more than I do.
“Just stop! All of you. Please!” I yell, but my voice is rough and scratchy, and the bite in my tone sounds more like an aggravated nibble. Fuck, I’m tired. “Zeph, where are the Hidden now? Would Loa have told Lazza where to find them?” I ask, trying to get him to focus on something else other than his desire to rip apart Treno or Ryn, depending on who has looked at him wrong in the last five minutes.
“No, Loa was spotted sneaking off, and it alerted us that something wasn’t right. We moved everyone soon after. They’re safe for now, but it’s a large group to keep hidden for long, and I’m sure Lazza will have scouts out looking for them.”
I nod and turn to Treno. “Do you know what Lazza will do next?” Treno’s clashing eyes move from Zeph to me. I’m not sure if he’s going to answer. I can see the battle in his gaze. Maybe he doesn’t know where his loyalties lie when it comes to his brother, but I know he’s still loyal to his people...to the Avowed.
“He’s not going to fight this battle on his own, Treno. Lazza will send people to their deaths to win, and he’ll do it whether they want to fight or not. I know you don’t want that,” Ryn tells him.
I watch the battle in his face, hoping he can see the truth in what’s being said. But I’m not sure if he can look past his anger and do what’s best for the people he swore to lead.
He shakes his head, and I can’t tell if it’s an admonishment to me or to himself. “He’ll amass an army, and then he’ll search every square inch of land until he finds the Vow traitors and destroys them.”
He runs his hands through his long white hair, but they get stuck on the tangles and matted pieces strewn throughout his normally smooth locks. I’m tempted to reach up and help him comb out the mess, but that’s a stupid thought. He hates me.
“It’ll take time for him to organize his army and to find our people,” Ryn reassures, and Zeph nods lost in thought.
“I think the Ouphe might be our best bet. I mean, if any of you have a better plan, feel free to voice it…” I look at each of them, giving them time to suggest some alternative option, but no one speaks up. “How far is it from here to the Quietus Mountains?” I ask when it’s clear no other ideas are readily available.
Ryn looks at me and then away in thought. “If we could fly, maybe a couple of days, but until we get far enough away from Kestrel City for flying to be safe, we’ll have to walk. Maybe a week? Maybe eight days? It’s hard to say for sure.”
Eight days, can we get there and convince the Ouphe to fight with us before Lazza finds where the Hidden are hiding? I feel like fucking Atlas with the weight of this world on my shoulders. What if I’m wrong? What if Ryn and Zeph are right, and I’m an idiot to trust the Ouphe? What if it bites us in the ass?
I go back and forth in my mind, debating the pros and cons, but the thing I keep coming back to is what else can we do? What other options do we have? We need to try something, because if it comes down to a head-to-head battle, Lazza has the numbers. Even if by some miracle the Hidden can pull off a victory, how much will both sides lose before that happens?
If I can break the Vow though. If I can undo it, then Lazza can’t force anyone to do anything, and what reason would the Hidden have to fight their own people anymore? If I can find the language and figure out how to use it, I could help stop this war.
I take a deep breath and accept the responsibility of the task. It settles like a planet on my chest, and I know I’m going to have to get stronger and prepare a hell of a lot harder in order to successfully carry such a heavy burden.
“So that settles it then. When do we leave?”
They’re all completely silent as they walk away from me and move back into their respective corners. Zeph disappears back into his shadows, but not before he grabs two sticks of meat from the fire. Ryn returns to his seat by the flames and tears into his own dinner. Treno watches all of it from his corner, I’m sure not failing to notice that there’s no more food cooking over the fire for him.
I sigh and shake my head. I stomp over to Zeph and snatch a meat-filled stick from his hand before he can stop me. I jump away as quickly as possible, expecting him to try and take it back, but he just growls and mumbles a bunch of shit I can’t hear.
That’s probably a good thing.
I grab the blanket that Treno was sleeping on and drag it over to his newly claimed angry corner. I hand him the food and the blanket. He eyes them warily and doesn’t move to take them.
“We both know you’re weak and that you need this. You can still be pissed at me and at them while you eat. I won’t read into your acceptance of food as anything other than you being hungry.”
Treno stares at the meat a minute more, and then he concedes. I nod once and drop the blanket at his feet. I move back over to the fire and collect some grot berries and the not-watermelon and set them on Treno’s blanket. An irritated grunt sounds off from the shadow shrouded corner, and I look over my shoulder to glare at Zeph. I can’t make out exactly where he is in the pitch-black area, but I know his eyes are on mine.
I mouthgrow upand then turn back to Treno. “The berries taste like ass. You probably already know that, but just in case you don’t, those things should come with a warning.”
I look over my shoulder and give the dark corner a pointed look.
“You’re up and walking, aren’t you?” Zeph states evenly, andtouchésounds off in my mind.
“Please,” I scoff. “That’s my own stubbornness at play, not your ass berries,” I lie.
Ryn snickers, either from the ass berries comment or my bad bullshitting, but either way it’s a nice sound to hear instead of all the yelling and accusations. I make my way to my own blanket and try to get comfortable—well, as comfortable as you can get lying on the cold rock hard ground. I stare off into the dancing flames of the fire and let my mind wander.How the fuck did my life go so wrong so fast?
I circle that question over and over again, trying to look at it from every angle in my mind. Where and how did everything go so wrong, and how in rutting Thais Fairies am I going to get it back on track? I wallow in those thoughts for a very long time, and then everything in and around me starts to blur and I quickly fall asleep.
* * *
A doorbell chimes, waking me up. Groggily I listen to footsteps as they make their way down the stairs. I hear someone flick the light switch on and draw back the curtain to the window next to the door.
