"As soon as I got into a battle with my first dragon and released every bit of the built-up power that was in my body, my madness fell away, and guilt consumed me." She shook her head. "I felt terrible. It was like a fever dream that I remembered doing but never actively made the decision to do so. I was mad for two entire weeks." She glanced at Jasper. "I've been mad three times in my life, and every time I go mad, it's harder to want to come back. It's easier to feel that joy in killing. I don't think you're a bad person. I think that enjoying torturing is a way that you cope with having to do it, but even if it isn't, you don't torture for no reason. You torture people who deserve it."
Jasper leaned forward and claimed her lips with his. "Thanks, goddess." He pulled back and rested his forehead on hers.
I smiled and looked away because I felt like I was intruding on an intimate moment.
Silas and I locked gazes, and we shared a look of understanding.
Fawn had truly been through too much.
"I have a ton of fruit because I didn't want to go fishing," Aimon chuckled, handing out all of the bowls.
Fawn's little thank you was the sweetest sound ever as she took her bowl from him.
"You need to eat all of that, bug. You haven't been eating very well." His gaze pinned her to the spot.
"Yes, Aimon. I promise I'll be a good girl." She grabbed a piece of fruit and slowly pushed it past her lips before biting into it and letting out a small hum of satisfaction.
Arousal thickened the bond through all of us, and we each watched as she slowly ate that piece of fruit and licked her lips, never breaking eye contact with Aimon.
"You are a good girl," he growled out. "But teasing is going to get you punished."
She shot him a cheeky grin before shoving another piece in her mouth and smiling.
Karma leapt into Jasper's lap, and he jumped before chuckling and scratching behind her ear. She sniffed his bowl before turning her nose up at the fruit and meowed expectantly at him.
Fawn giggled, conjuring a small flame in front of her fire cat.
I winced slightly, but I no longer felt that immobilizing fear inside of my chest that I used to when I would see fire.
"All right, you hungry little thing." Jasper used his shadow wisp to pierce the water of the river and come out with four fish that he lined on the ground in front of each cat that had been floating above us.
Each one flew toward the fish, and even Karma had abandoned her flame.
As the phantom cats snacked on their fish, we chuckled.
"There is something that I just can't shake." Fawn shook her head as she stared at her cats.
"What's that?" Casper asked.
She groaned. "I just can't help but feel like we're walking right into a trap."
"Matthieu is definitely a weirdo, and it's definitely possible." Silas didn't sugarcoat it. "I don't want to think that way, but you have brought up a lot of good points. I've had time to think them over."
"In that case, should we maybe try something else?" I suggested.
"Like what?" Silas asked.
"No idea," I muttered, shoving a piece of fruit in my mouth. "We have one more week until the deadline is up, and war will be declared."
The happy-go-lucky atmosphere changed into something dark and foreboding.
I wanted to kick myself in the ass for changing the mood, but at the same time, I knew it was something that we did need to think about.
We were going to war whether we liked it or not. The only question was when.
14
JASPER
