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Sig went from his typical slouched position to sitting bolt upright in his throne. “A stipulation, you say? This is quite out of the ordinary, Rebecca.”
“Yes, Tribunal Leader Sig. However, the elders have observed that a great number of things have been out of the ordinary lately. Wouldn’t you agree?”
Sig frowned. “I am sure I would find logic in your thought process.” It wasn’t quite an agreement, nor was it a total shutdown.
I met Brigit’s gaze and wondered if I looked half as worried as she did.
“I think the Tribunal will like our suggestion, if you are willing to hear it.”
“Speak,” Juan Carlos barked.
“There is the matter of a rogue being kept within council walls. Alexandre Peyton has been imprisoned for one year under the auspices a proper punishment will be decided for him in due time.” As Rebecca spoke, a knot of unease formed between my shoulders and I felt sick to my stomach. “We believe given the relationship between the prisoner and one member of the Tribunal…” her gaze drifted to me and remained, “…it would be best if we, the elders, propose a sentence.”
“I don’t—”
Sig raised a hand and cut me off before I could voice my dissatisfaction with this decision.
Rebecca continued. “Since Tribunal Leader Secret brought us this new warden candidate, we believe the final decision over Peyton’s term of solitude should fall to her.”
“Okay, sure,” I said. “Forever and ever and ever. Longer if possible.”
“Yes, very good,” Rebecca replied with a smile that was too sinister for my tastes. “Only we are proposing a lifeline lock be placed on his prison.”
“A…what?”
Sig was frowning, but not at me. “A lifeline lock hasn’t been used in decades, Rebecca.”
“What is a lifeline lock?” I whispered, which was more than a little pointless given the hearing capabilities of those in the room.
“It’s an old custom we had for dealing with those locked away in solitude. In centuries past sometimes prisoners would be locked away for so long their crimes were forgotten and often the prisons themselves were buried or slipped out of memory.” Sig shrugged like this wasn’t as appalling as it sounded. “The lifeline lock was established so someone would always exist who remembered why a rogue was being kept, and if that person were to die…the prisoner would go free. But as long as the vampire who is locked to the prisoner lives, the rogue remains in solitude.”
“It is a practical solution,” Juan Carlos added. “But I don’t believe Secret has enough experience with the concept to be the one who decides.”
“I just need to pick someone, and as long as they’re alive, Peyton stays in lockdown?”
Rebecca nodded.
“I think I’m smart enough to figure out that one, Juan Carlos.”
My two other Tribunal leaders turned to watch me, and I stared at Rebecca. She was up to something—this plan was too out of left field to not benefit her in some way—I just couldn’t see how. She smiled.
“I volunteer my own life,” I said after a pause. I didn’t know how long I’d live, but with the vampire blood and the werewolf blood, it had to be long enough to figure out a different way to kill Peyton before I bit the big one. I looked at the lines on my palms for a moment before turning my hands down and gripping the armrests on my throne.
“You can’t.” Sig shook his head. He wasn’t saying it like he was shocked or upset. The words were a statement. I couldn’t offer myself. “As a Tribunal leader, you cannot enter into any bargain where your life is on the line.”
“Oh.”
But what then? I couldn’t just pick someone else’s life. Who would I choose? Holden? No… Though I was sure he’d volunteer if I asked, it didn’t seem right. Perhaps someone here would be a good choice, since they were all so damned old already. But…
“Maybe Brigit would like to volunteer,” Rebecca suggested. “As a first show of sacrifice for the council. Surely that isn’t too much to ask given what we are offering her.”
I was opening my mouth to say no, but Brigit spoke first. “Sure.” She was nodding as enthusiastically as I was shaking my head.
“You don’t have to do this,” I told her.
“It’s no big deal.” She shrugged and smiled warmly. “Besides, I’m a warden now. I have the protection of the council. With that and your training…I think I’ll be around for a while. Maybe longer than you.” She gave me a pointed look, and the gunshot scar on my shoulder throbbed in response.
She had a point, one she was trying to make without speaking. Everyone here knew I wasn’t all the way vampire, but none of us knew what that meant for my longevity. Brigit was a full vampire and she was part of the council now. All those things combined meant her life expectancy really was longer than mine.
