“It’s taken care of.”
I give him a curt dip of my chin, “we need to speak with Max.”
“Pfft. Good luck. Millie damn near took off my bloody head the last time I tried talking to him.” Bennett grumbles.
I understand.I think to myself, the three of us turning to trek back towards Max’s family manor.I feel like taking everyone’s heads off these days, too.
“Come on, Millie.” Bennett tries.
She stands in the doorway, blocking it so that we can’t pass through. She’d already slammed the door in my face once today, when we first came back to the house, refusing to speak with me until I “cleaned up”.
But now, despite my being significantly less bloody, she’s being just as stubborn.
“We need to form a plan,” Will adds, but she shakes her head, blonde curls bouncing with the motion.
“Form it yourselves and let us know in the morning. He doesn’t want to speak with anyone.”
Bennett sighs, “he never wants to speak to anyone, but he’s going to have to talk to us at some point.” A frown settles on her features as she steps out of the doorway, clicking it shut quietly behind her.
We each take a step back and watch her place her hands sternly on her hips.
“All of you listen to me now. Max isbarelylettingmearound him behind closed doors. Every day is an effort for him right now, and you three? Coming in here and demanding more isn’t helping.” Her voice is hard, and I can tell she has little desire to argue or expound on what she’s trying to share with us.
“We know that he lost someone, Mil. We all lost something that day…” Bennett adds quietly, but by the way her face screws up, it was thewrongthing to add.
“Youdid not have to kill your brother.” She hisses, her bright green irises flashing. “As far as I can tell, your brothers arestill here standing beside you, and you’re all taking fucking advantage of it.” With her left hand, she reaches behind her, opening the door back up. “Let us know in the morning what the plan is. Do not knock again tonight.”
The door slams in her wake, and not one of us moves, the silence settling around us thickly.
After an awkwardly long time, Will clears his throat, disrupting the tension and giving Bennett the excuse to turn on his heel. He mutters an “I told you” while heading off in the direction of our shared quarters, Will following quickly behind him.
I stay – lingering a little longer and debating whether or not I want to defy her demand.
A sharp gasp draws my attention, and in my peripheral view, an attendant of the house scrambles around the corner. We’ve kept mostly to ourselves the days we’ve been here, coming and going quietly, but it’s obvious our arrival has… unsettled those already living in the house.
Begrudgingly, I turn on my heel and follow after my men.
I find them both sitting tensely in the small reception room. For our sleeping arrangements – Will’s taken to the couch, me the bed, and Bennett's on the bench against the window. It’s not the most ideal setup, but we couldn’t exactly expect the same living quarters we’ve been used to.
“We still need to make a plan,” I say, shutting the door behind me. “Bennett? Grab the map.”
He nods, retrieving it from his bags and spreading the marked-up parchment out on the small table. We all kneel around it, my finger dragging from where we are in Mael to where we need to be in Sira.
“It’s going to be at least a day’s ride.” Will murmurs.
“If that’s the case, we’ll need to leave early in the morning. No telling how far behind we are already.”
A sardonic laugh rumbles from Will – and Bennett, and I both lift our heads to look at him.
“Do we even know where we’re going once we get there? Do we have the name of another unfortunate individual? Or are we going to just start sacking whole cities when we don’t find out what we want?”
“Will–” Bennett starts, his tone urgent, but I cut him off.
“No, I don’t have the name of a person this time. He mentioned an inn. I figured we would check every single one. Give descriptions.”
His brows furrow in doubt, “and if they know nothing? If not a single person in the damn capital knows anything, what then?”
I have no fucking clue.I want to say, but instead I snap, “are we done with you arguing my choices?” He doesn’t answer, scowling at me while I fold up the map and shove it back towards Bennett.
