And if you lose because you didn’t have enough fighters?
Then it would be far more than the man standing here crying. It would be mothers and fathers, children, and siblings. Countless mortals and immortals would weep throughout the lands as the Lord tormented and destroyed them.
Or there wouldn’t be any crying because they’d all be dead.
She could say no to the sirens now. They could walk away, but if they lost the war, she would always question if there was something more she could have done. And turning away the sirens would be one of those things.
Besides, what would she do if they did win the war? Declare war on the sirens because she didn’t approve of how they lived and the things they did?
She would be no better than the Lord then. She hated everything about her acquiescence to their demands, but she wouldnotbe like the Lord.
Cole placed his hand on her back and pulled her closer. When she rested her hand on his chest, the rhythmic beat of his heart helped soothe her, but not as much as she would have liked.
Yamala and Cela stared at her before Yamala spoke again. “No one else can know the Lord is my daughter’s father. They will use it against her, and they will try to use her against him... to no avail. He won’t do anything to save her; he’d be the first to sacrifice her.”
“I know,” Cole said. “But the Lord has most likely told others what she is to him.”
“Perhaps, but I don’t think so. He enjoyed torturing me and continues to do so, but he believes the siren are beneath him. Even with as insane as he is, and maybebecauseof how insane he is, he wouldn’t want others knowing he fathered a child with a species as low as us.”
“We won’t tell anyone else,” Cole vowed. “But things like this have a way of getting out.”
“That they do,” Lexi muttered.
“We will take our chances with that, but if I find out the information came from either of you, our deal is off,” Yamala said. “Understood?”
“And what if we reveal it after the war?” Lexi inquired.
“Would you?” Yamala questioned as she studied Lexi intently.
“No,” Lexi said honestly. “But you’re putting a lot of trust in us.”
“Not trust. I’m putting a lot offaithinto the hope you’ll be better leaders than the Lord and the madmen who ruled before him.”
“That shouldn’t be too difficult,” Cela murmured.
“One would think, but incompetence has followed incompetence before.”
“True,” Cole agreed. “But we’re putting a lot of trust in you to fight when the time comes for war.”
“We will be there,” Yamala vowed.
“Do you plan to stay here much longer?” Cole inquired.
“No. We will be leaving soon.”
Sadness laced her voice as her hand entwined with Cela’s.
“How will we get in contact with you once you leave?” Cole asked.
Yamala turned and opened a portal behind her. “Send your shadows through, Reaver. Let them see the land where we plan to hide.”
CHAPTERTWENTY-ONE
Everything inside Lexiprotested Cole doing such a thing. With the shadows, he could dismember, see behind him, and kill… but to send them on a reconnaissance mission?
That couldn’t be possible. If itwaspossible, he was communicating at a much higher level with them than she’d realized.
Her fingers dug into Cole’s chest as he stood unmoving against her. At first, he didn’t do anything, and the shadows didn’t move. She started to ponder if perhaps Yamala was wrong about this.
