“Wait. Mealioria is in danger, too?” Kade’s words at last registered, stumping me.
“Our entire continent is in danger.” He clasped his hands over the table. “Don’t you see it? Beaumont doesn’tjustwant Caelestis. He wants control over the entire empire. From there, I’m sure he’ll spread his greed, not stopping until every square inch of this world belongs to him. Why do you think he wants you so bad? Even though you control it about as well as I’d expect a toddler to, you have the most powerful magic in the world.”
“These are some awfully big assumptions, Lyrise,” Sawyer cut in.
“Assumptions that I am willing to bet my life on, Sinclair.”
“Hold on,” Sawyer held a finger up to silence Kade as his suggestion truly sank in, “let's take a step back to when you suggested using Maeve as bait.”
“What about it?” Kade shrugged and leant back in his seat.
“Have you lost your fucking mind?” Sawyer shouted, to which Kade released a deep, gravelly laugh.
“Not yet. But I surely will if I have to put up with you much longer. Therefore, let’s get this over with as quickly as possible.”
“That's exactly what Sebwouldn'twant us to do, which is precisely why we haven't gone back yet,” Sawyer fought.
I stood, putting myself at the center of attention to try and stop the power trip between them. My eyes steadied on Kade. “What did you have in mind?”
Chapter
Seventeen
Before we left at nightfall, I felt pretty confident about our plan. But the closer we got to Draemor, the more anxious I felt.
My job was to distract Beaumont. Jensen would keep watch to make sure things didn’t turn bad while I tried to buy everyone else some time. Meanwhile, Sawyer wouldhopefullyfind the journal, and Kade would find Sebastian. Everyone had their own job that we actually planned to stick to this time. But how they wanted me to distract Beaumont…fucking hell.
“I don’t want to justthrow myselfat him.” I shuddered, looking over the head of my horse at Sawyer.
“No one is asking you to fuck the guy, Maeve. You just need to make it convincing. Bat your eyelashes. Show off a little cleavage. Whisper sweet nothings in his ear. Tell him you reconsidered his offer of marriage,” Sawyer answered.
Glancing down at my breasts, I winced at the thought of Beaumont’s hands touching my body.Vomit.“I don’t think he’ll fall for it. He’s not a total moron.”
Sawyer shrugged, pulling his reins to the right. “That’s up for debate.”
“He doesn’t need to fall for it. We just need you to distract him long enough for us to get in and out of the castle. He'll be too busy trying to bargain with you to worry about anything else going on in his kingdom. He’s not a moron, but he is certainly selfish,” Kade joined in. “And Sinclair is right. The cleavage will probably help. Not a moron, but also still a man.”
“What if he tries to kill me, like he implied?” Regret about agreeing to this idea started to take over me entirely. Not that I didn't want to help Sebastian, but panic and not entirely logical thoughts pulled at the nerve endings in my brain.
Sawyer pulled the reins, stopping his horse beside me. “I will not let that happen, I swear to you. I will protect your life as my own. Just do what we told you, and let us handle the rest.”
Swallowing acidic nausea, I nodded.
We set up camp right before dawn rolled in, though ended up only resting for a few hours before deciding it was safer to continue on. By the time we reached the River of Riesneim, the golden sun had set and rose upon another day.
We rode for another half a day, making the trip shorter than our previous, though I was certainly much more exhausted this time around. I wasn’t a person who did well with little sleep, but it seemed like I’d have to learn to be.
The heat of the morning sun was already blaring when we made it to the outskirts of Draemor. My legs shook as I jumped off my mare, accepting Sawyer’s hand to help steady myself as my boots hit dirt.
“Ready to fuck some shit up?” he asked, letting his grip go slack.
“Not exactly.” My neck cracked as I rolled it side to side. “I’m ready to help Seb, though. It's taken us longer than it should have. I hope he can forgive us.”
“Pft. You could burn the world down and he would forgive you. I hope he forgivesmefor bringing you here to help him. Ihave no doubt that he’s gonna try to kick my ass when he sees you here.”
I fought back a laugh. “I have no doubts about that, either.”
Sawyer and Kade went first, using their stolen Draemornian armor as a disguise to get into the grounds. Once they were out of view and in position, I took a deep breath and stepped forward, walking up a gray, cobblestone pathway until I stood at the front gates of the castle.
