“She can resurrect and heal, that's for certain. She's still exploring, but let’s move to the other topic for now.”
I peer at my brother through my lashes, in awe of the way he can stand his ground protectively, and I want to run intohis embrace. Instead, my fingers clench tighter around Baron’s, seeking silent support that I wish I didn't need or want.
Yet I really fucking need and want it right now.
“There are some rumors,” my fencing professor states, guiding the conversation.
“About?” my brother asks.
“Other kingdoms are prepping for something.”
“What something?” Silas asks, and the professor shrugs.
“We don't know, but it feels combative,” Professor Carbon explains, the energy in the room shifting slightly.
“What does that mean for us?” Archer pushes, and Viola sighs.
“It means we have two choices.”
“Which are?” Baron bites.
“Continue as we are with our heads down, working off rumors while hoping nothing comes to fruition, or we…” She doesn't speak, her gaze trailing around the room, but the elongated pause irritates my brother, who chimes in.
“Or we invite them here and ask them for ourselves.”
Somehow, the atmosphere grows thicker.
“Invite them here?” Francesca bites, and Viola sighs for the thousandth time.
“Yes, some kind of ball or event would work,” she clarifies.
“And do you think this is a good idea?” Silas asks, lacing his fingers together as he tries to contain his frustrations.
“Yes,” Viola reiterates.
“What about everybody else?” Archer interjects, casting a gaze around the room, and there's a mixture of responses. All I can do is sit frozen in place, feeling completely overwhelmed by the fact that I'm getting involved in this by choice.
I should probably have regrets right about now. Yet, I don’t.
“The last time we invited people here to an event designed to help us understand what they wanted, Hugo's mate died,” Silas grunts, stealing my breath.
“What?” My gaze latches onto my brother, sadness seeping across his features as my heart shatters into a million pieces. “Hugo,” I breathe, and he offers me a tight, sad smile.
“It's a chance we all take,” he offers, and I shake my head.
How did I not know this?
It’s on the tip of my tongue to ask, but this isn't about me right now. This is about my brother, and he’s in pain.
But why is Silas so concerned about what that means?
My mind rattles with so many thoughts, curiosity and overwhelm threatening to cripple me in front of a room of people I’m not entirely familiar with or comfortable being vulnerable around.
Sax’s hand finds my thigh, offering another pillar of support.
“What do we say?” Professor Viola asks, cutting through my thoughts like I'm not in the middle of a spiraling breakdown right now, and Silas blanches, rising to his feet as he slams his fists against the wood, but before his snarl can snap through the room, a zapping sound flickers through the air.
Immediately drenched in darkness, panic and chaos fill the space as two words leave Baron’s mouth, ready for the domino effect of madness.
