Page 43 of Red Marked

“It’s a risk I’m willing to take.”

“I’m not sure it’s a risk I’m willing to take.” He sounds angry. “Fuck it!” he all but snarls, sounding frustrated. “I can’t just leave you here. Know that I will look into this whole story once I have all the details, and if any of it is suspicious in any way, I’m bringing you back and washing my hands of all of you.”

“I’m good with that.” I nod a few times. “It happened. Soon you will see that I’m telling the truth. I need to let Scarlet know about all of this, and then we need to brief the females.”

Flint groans. “You mean you haven’t discussed this with Scarlet?”

“No, I didn’t know you’d be taking the females tonight.”

“She’s not going to let you go.” His voice is grave.

“She won’t have a choice,” I tell him. “She has to see reason.”

“I’m not sure how reasonable she is.”

“She doesn’t trust you. That’s all.”

“Okay.” He holds up his hands.

I stand. “Willow, please can you fetch Scarlet?”

“Right away.”

Willow starts to walk away. She shifts and takes to the air.

I take a stick and poke at the fire. Then I throw the stick into the glowing embers and watch it burn.

“So, your whole family thinks you’re dead?”

I nod. “Yes. It was really hard thinking about how they must have grieved for me. At least I didn’t have children. There are two females here who left little ones at home. It’s been rough on them.”

“And a mate? Did you have to leave⁠—?”

I shake my head. I should tell him about Jett, but I don’t. It’s none of his business.

“It’s been hard on females with mates. The not knowing has been the worst. Are my parents still alive? Did my brother graduate? I can’t stay here any longer.”

“Where are you going?” Scarlet says as she approaches.

“Sit,” I tell Scarlet.

“What’s going on?” She folds her arms.

“Please sit, Scarlet.” Suddenly I feel exhausted. I feel it right to my bones.

Thankfully, she does as I ask.

“Flint is taking the Draig females tonight.”

“What?” she snarls. “You can’t let him. I don’t trust him, Star. You shouldn’t either.”

“I’m not just going to let him take them, Scarlet. I have a plan. Hear me out, please.”

Scarlet nods her head; her eyes are hazy. She glances at Flint, and they harden.

“I told you earlier that things have changed, and we need to adapt. We can’t keep going the way we always have,” I tell Scarlet.

I pull in a deep breath and tell her the terms I proposed to Flint and why I proposed them.