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The sound of Evie’s voice broke my focus, and I looked behind me to see her approach with a plate of meat in her hands. Fletcher walked behind her, holding what looked like a bowl of soup and a water canteen.
“I thought you might be hungry, so I brought you something,” she offered, sitting on a rock next to me and placing the plate on her lap.
I wanted to say no, but now that it was in front of me, the smell of hot food made my stomach growl. Loudly. “Thank you, Princess.”
Fletcher handed me the soup and the canteen. “Let me know if you want another serving. From what I hear happened during the mission, you will need to fully replenish, and that’s not going to cut it.”
Of course, he thought that. The man would eat the boar by himself if they let him.
“I will.”
Deciding to have some water first, I pressed the soft leather canteen to my lips, frowning when it felt hot in my grasp. The glorious taste of coffee reached me with the first sip, and I moaned with its sweet relief.
Fletcher grinned at me knowingly. “Do I take care of you, or do I take care of you?”
“You definitely do.” I chuckled.
Brushing the imaginary lint from his shoulder, he winked at me and bowed to Evie. “If you need anything, please call on me, Princess Evanna.”
“Thank you, Fletcher.”
After he left, I tilted the bowl against my lips, drinking most of the vegetable soup in a couple of gulps. I was suddenly starving. With a smile, Evie handed me the plate she held, remaining silent while I pinched the soft meat, chewing a few pieces. Damn, that was good.
The need to talk to me about what happened was present in her kind eyes, but I appreciated that she was giving me time to broach the subject on my own. We sat in silence as I ate, until the empty plate started back at me, and I was forced to face the music.
“I’m sorry for acting on impulse,” I offered, finally facing her. “I knew better than to go after Raithian. You all told me about his power and still I lunged myself at him like a raging animal—” I had to pause to take a breath, ire and pain cutting through me again. “But when I saw that man’s head…”
“I know.”
I wasn’t sure, she did.
Guilt tugged at my gut. “I’m sorry I took so long to kill that sentry. I should have acted the moment I saw him. I shouldn’t have waited. If I had been prepared, he wouldn’t have had a chance to sound the horn.”
“It’s okay, you—”
“No, it isn’t!” I snapped, hands fisting. “I took his life and it was for nothing.” My head shook as I glanced across the river. “Asher wouldn’t have hesitated. No one from your guard would have let him reach for that horn.”
“No, they wouldn’t have,” Evie agreed, straightening beside me, and her gaze followed mine. “But they were warriors even before they joined the legion. They grew up around war, seeing things no child should ever have to see. But most importantly, that would not have been their first time taking a life.”
Processing her words, I nodded, glancing into her eyes. “I didn’t want to kill him,” I confessed, ashamed, even though there had been no other option.
Her hand reached for mine, squeezing it, and the expression that captured her face said she’d once felt the same way… though it had been so long ago.
Guilt swelled inside me. I felt like an ass for clinging to the loss of a privilege none of them ever had. I knew they didn’t want to end someone else’s life, but they grew up in a world where it was literally kill or be killed.
“I messed up.”
“You did.” Her voice became stern when she focused on me, letting go of my hand. The girlfriend in her was swiftly replaced by the soon to be queen. “You strayed from the plan, disobeying both my orders and Kingston’s with your actions. Not to mention, you ignored Asher’s warning when Raithian appeared. He tried to stop you and you still went after the Warlock King.”
Her reproaching gaze bore into mine.
“We had a strategy in case things went awry, but you allowed your emotions to get the best of you, endangering the entire mission. You acted recklessly, Braxton, and it almost cost us our lives.” Pausing herself, she took a calming breath, before her temper could take over. “You must learn from this, and as such, you will face the consequences of your actions as soon as we get back home.”
Damn. At that moment I wasn’t sure who I was more afraid of, her or Raithian. Also, H.O.T. I kind of wanted her to spank me too.
Nodding in resignation, I tried my best to take the news like a man. “What will be my punishment?”
“That is up to Kingston to decide.”
