One of his men let out a grunt, but Kazimir didn't bat an eyelid. He stood there, watching the fire consume his offering, looking almost. . .satisfied. "Dragons and their pride."
My hands clenched so hard my knuckles ached.
I watched the folder wrinkle and curve within the flames.
Watched the edges curl and blacken.
My father's location, the end of the war, everything I needed. . .consumed by the inferno. My nails bit into my palms hard enough to draw blood. I didn't feel it.
Anger surged through me, hot and wild, but I kept it down, refusing to let the Lion see how his action affected me.
But deep within, the dragon roared, its fury echoing inside my chest.
But that was the game, wasn't it?
To provoke.
To test.
To see how far one could push before the other finally snapped.
And Kazimir had just played his hand. It was a bold move. Wickedly strategic. Brutish. But undeniably effective. For all his civility, beneath that veneer of sophistication, Kazimir was a beast. "Your father would have taken the deal."
"I know."
"He would have grabbed that folder, promised me anything, and then tried to betray me later."
"I know that too."
"But you. . ." Kazimir tilted his head. "You'd rather fight a war you might lose than win one with strings attached."
"I'd rather earn my victory than have it handed to me by a man who'll demand payment for the rest of my life."
And with that the Lion laughed.
Low.
Genuine.
Almost delighted.
"You're not your father." He nodded slowly. "You're worse. And I mean that as a compliment."
I looked back at where he’d thrown that folder. It was now nothing but ash. And my father was still out there, still hiding, still planning whatever brutal counterattack would come next.
Kazimir shook his head. "Do you know what grows best in ash, Kenji?"
I stared at him. At the pyre behind him. At the gray flakes drifting through the air like snow. “What?”
He smiled, and even though he was younger than me. . .he seemed older. . .wiser. . .but that was what death did. “What grows best in ash? Hmmm.”
I raised my eyebrows.
"Everything. Forest. Empires." The line of his jaw twitched. "Enemies.”
I swallowed.
"If you survive your father in this war. . .I'll be watching to see what grows in yours."
