“Or sic Elliot on me?”
“Guys—” Seph began.
Ash touched her shoulder.
“I’ll take you to the food hall.”
She hesitated, then nodded, letting herself be led away.
Dev glowered at me.
“Dev,” I said tightly. “Talk. Now.”
I took his arm and steered him toward an empty room. He shook me off violently — but followed.
I shut the door behind us.
“I don’t know what bug crawled up your ass,” I said, my voice low and controlled, “but you do not disrespect me in front of anyone. Ever. Is that clear?”
Dev’s eyes burned.
“Disrespect?” he snapped. He stepped closer.
“Like arranging a fucking feral raid on Darkmoor and not telling your partner?”
His jaw clenched.
“Like risking everyone’s lives just to get to one person?”
He laughed, sharp and humourless.
“You want to talk about disrespect? Try that.”
I held his gaze. “So, this is about Darkmoor.”
“You could’ve told me what was happening,” he shot back. “You could’ve told me anything, K. Instead, you threw us all into it like we didn’t matter.”
“I’m sorry you didn’t know,” I said evenly. “Elliot thought it was better to keep it contained — in case Gideon caught wind.”
Dev’s mouth twisted.
“Elliot thought,” he repeated. “Great. Good to know the rest of us are fucking expendable.”
“No one said you were expendable,” I snapped. “It was a strategic decision. He knew you could handle yourself.”
Dev laughed — short, broken.
“Ash almost died,” he spat. “I almost died. And if not for the fucking dragon, I would have.”
“What do you want from me?” I shot back. “We’re fighting a goddamn war.”
“A war you think you can throw people into without considering the consequences!” Dev exploded.
“This isn’t new information,” I said harshly. “You joined us. Do you remember? You came to us.”
Dev stepped closer, shaking with it.
“Because I thought what you stood for mattered,” he said. “I knew what the Council was.”
