Page 178 of A Courage of the Chosen

The door in the living room bangs open with a loud thwack, and I’m on my feet instantly, sprinting toward the sound.

Brodie is on his feet too, putting himself between Rachel and the group of Seelie at the door.

Hector stands at the head of Reyne, Eòghann, and Paul with a grim expression, and my stomach drops.

He’s dressed for war.

“Your Majesty.” He nods in my direction.

“What is it?” Brodie asks, but we both know what he’s going to say.

“Dorche.”

“How many?” I demand.

“All of them.”

◆◆◆

The council has gathered in our living room to determine our plan of action, since I refused to join them in the chamber off the throne room.

Ninety thousand.

That’s what waits for us. Ninety thousand, and certain death.

The Dorche have been notably absent. No attacks, no sightings. And now we know why. He’d called them to him, ready to deal the final hand.

“We need to ride out.” Hector points to the map spread across the dining table, at where the Dorche are waiting for us. “Head them off before they get any closer to the city.”

He looks at me expectantly. We both lead this army, and it’s technically up to both of us to determine the mobilization of soldiers.

“I’m not fucking leaving her, so it’s your call, General Macleod.”

Brodie nods assertively, refusing to leave Rach’s side as well.

“Callahan, be reasonable. You’re a general, too,” Mother chides.

My title doesn’t matter. The people counting on me to lead them don’t matter. There’s only one thing that does matter, and she isn’t here.

They don’t see that.

I snap. “I’m not going anywhere. It can go to hell, for all I care.”

Mother rises from her seat, thunder in her expression. “Now you listen here, Callahan Knox. When Màiri gave you the chance to leave, and you said no, I told you that it would mean you do not get to pick and choose when to fight. That one day, you would have to choose between your head and your heart, and now that time has come. There is light in your veins. Brodie is one of our strongest. You will be invaluable on the field. And I know that you would both regret the decision to walk away after so much sacrifice.”

Fuck. Fuckfuckfuck.

She’s right.

But my body rejects the idea entirely.

Elsie is far better than I. I’ve always known she was the stronger one of us. She had to ride for Elfayne City when I’d been stabbed by Tavish, and made that choice for the good of the realm.

“What if something happens while . . .” I speak to her not as a general, or a rebellion leader. I speak to her as a man, scared to lose his reason for existing. A son seeking the comfort of his mother.

The sternness in her expression drops. “You can’t control that, Callahan. We will be with Elsie, and if anything does happen, we’ll get word to you as soon as we can.”

“I’ll remain here with a unit,” Paul interjects. “In case they attack the city. I won’t let them hurt my family.”