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“Pleased?” I said scornfully. “The hybrids will likely torture Jamic. They will see him as a valuable prisoner—despite the fact that he knows nothing of your plans. His pain and suffering will increase morale for them.” I shook my head, turning my gaze to the ground, as if I couldn’t even contemplate his fate. “At least you would grant him a quick death. The hybrids will make Jamic pay for your failings.”
My heart slammed into my ribs, until I thought they might break. Sabium’s expression had turned cold.
“Interesting arguments,” he hissed, and I raised my gaze. “If I find out you had anything to do with this, I will have your lips sewn shut, so no one can hear your screams. Then I will have your fingers removed, one by one. And that will just be the beginning.”
I clamped my mouth shut, a chill rippling over my skin.
Slowly, his gaze on my face, Sabium got to his feet. “If I cannot use the boy, I will ensure they cannot use him either.” His smile was cold, humorless, and empty. My stomach turned to lead, and his smile widened.
He turned, his mind clearly already on his plans as he walked out of the room.
I shuddered, sweat dripping down my spine. Now that I was alone, my entire body trembled, my breaths little more than shallow pants.
Sabium was enraged, yes. But he was handling this setback far too calmly. It didn’t make sense.
Pushing that thought away, I focused on my own fate. Jamic was free. If everything went according to plan, the next time he returned to this castle, my son would be the Eprothan king, and both of us would finally be safe. Sabium would be watching me even more closely after this.
But I could feel the seconds of my life ticking down one by one. With Jamic gone, Sabium had nothing left to keep me in line—except fear for my own life. Soon, I would receive a dagger in the back. Perhaps poison at dinner. A pillow over my face by a trusted guard. Or Sabium might prefer to watch my death himself.
Pelysian would help me get out. He’d made it clear he was available years ago, before accepting I would never leave Jamic.
But before I left, I needed to deal Sabium one final blow.
* * *
What should have been a few days in the rebel camp had turned into over a week. Today, I’d received a message from Prisca, letting us know they’d managed to free Jamic.
It felt as if my entire body was suddenly lighter. As if I was floating above the ground instead of walking on it. We really had a chance now.
I’d sent word back, letting her know we were all fine. I’d been waiting, hoping to be able to tell her we had an agreement with Herne in place. But that wasn’t the case.
Each day, Demos attempted to reason with him. And Herne refused to listen.
Soon after we’d arrived, Tibris had shown us around the rebel camp. I’d expected the people here to be suspicious of outsiders, unhappy we were here. But simply being close to Tibris meant most people had seemed to accept us by default. Although they tended to freeze whenever Vynthar stalked into camp.
Tibris had always been likable, but he’d settled in here in a way I hadn’t expected. He was content.
And we were going to rip him from that.
Oh, he would want to be where he could do the most good—especially if Prisca were in danger. But I knew him well enough to know he would have stayed here if he could.
And not just for the camp itself. I’d caught the way he looked at Herne. And the way Herne looked back when Tibris wasn’t paying attention.
Demos and I had slid neatly into camp life. For Demos, that meant training with some of the younger rebels, ensuring they could handle a knife and a sword.
I gave a daily class, teaching technique with my crossbow. I’d come a long way from the woman who’d refused to train with Demos in the hybrid camp.
Today, I found myself watching Demos stretch after training. Along with what seemed like half of the female population of the camp—who seemed to sense whenever he was about to strip off his shirt.
When he glanced over at me and winked, I glowered back at him, turning to stalk away.
He caught up with me. Still shirtless.
“You’re done with training?” he asked.
“Yes. I thought I might go help with the traps.”Anything to avoid looking at the way his muscles tightened each time he moved.
“I’ll go with you.”
