Page 140 of Outcast’s Vow

“Because I love her.”

I stare at him. He stares at me.

And even though there are many men in this cavern – powerful and dangerous men – it feels like the entire world shrinks to just the space between us, and how close we are after days apart.

My breath shivers. My knees tremble. My hands shake. All because of one clear, undeniable, resolute truth that surges through me...

I love him too.

But it’s an impossible love. A love we cannot have now. Even I can see it.

“You’re really demanding we simply let her go?” Leopold snarls, breaking the quiet. “After what you’ve done? After you broke the Code and broke your loyalty to the Order? You can demand nothing!”

The vein on the man’s temple is practically bursting.

And then Cromwell steps forward out of the shadows.

“May I interject?”

Leopold sneers at his fellow Elder. He can’t stop Cromwell even if he could, and he knows it.

“I have to admit, I admire his values,” Cromwell says to the room. “Baptiste came here today of his own free will to hand himself over for his woman. That takes the kind of courage we value in the Castaways. The character we are always searching for, is it not? We may not readmit him, but we could put a pause to his punishment.”

A few of the other Elders nod in agreement. Political animals, a lot of them remain silent. They’re judging the room, seeing what unfolds and where the wind blows.

“This is not a discussion,” Leopold interjects. “The Code is unbreakable. The man deserves death for what he’s done. For rejecting a gift from an Elder, let alone coming here and attacking an initiate. We have let this insanity go too far, just as we have with our inaction on the Masked Killer. It’s time to act.”

There’s another silence. The room is colder now. My dress, like Baptiste’s hands around Ethan’s neck, is choking me.

“I will vouch for him,” Cromwell replies.

Leopold scowls. There is spittle on his lips. He’s frothing.

“Oh, you will?”

Cromwell nods.

“I want this all forgotten. Let him walk out of here. Let him live his values. He was prepared to put it all on the line for his woman. I commend that.”

“Are you insane, fellow Elder?” Leopold barks.

Cromwell remains unfazed. He slowly turns to a man who could fix all this. The only man who has the power to do so.

“Seems like we’ve reached an impasse,” Cromwell says to Father. “Which means one thing. It’s up to the Supreme Elder to decide Baptiste’s fate.”

54

BAPTISTE

So, it all comes down to this.

One man to decide my fate.

The father of my wife. The leader of the Order I once worshipped. The man who thinks I’m not good enough for his daughter.

I look at Elwood as he deliberates, the arms of the men holding me back. Their sweat mixes with my own. And then I glance down at the pathetic piece of shit still squirming on the ground at my feet.

Oh, to have another chance at Ethan. For what he’s said to Sylvie. For what he’s done. For who he is.