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"We're all tired of it," Phantom says, his voice patient. "But the alternative is to give into him, to let him destroy this world, and to let him control us all."
"This world?" Flame almost sighs the words. "It would be a shame for it to be destroyed the way our world was, but this was never about saving this world. It was about protecting ourselves, about fighting to free our people. But each day that passes, we have less people to save. Our men are dying. His men, our enslaved people, are dying."
"No one said war was easy." My voice is soft but it carries over the room.
"No one said we wanted a war," Flame counters, his expression still sad.
"There's no other choice," Phantom tells them, then raises his voice. "We have no other choice. We just need to keep our faith that the prophecy will be fulfilled and we'll save our people."
"There is another choice though," Flame says, and his hand moves to his sword.
My fingers curl around the hilt of my dagger. I don’t want to fight today, but I will because I know what’s coming. Desperation does not make for smart decisions, and these men think they've run out of options.
"I can use the light again. I can help us win this war." Ann's voices carries through the room, but no one seems to care.
"Can you control this power?" Flame asks, lifting a brow, but she doesn't answer. "We already know you can't. It's an incredible trick, but nothing more than a trick if you can't use it when we need you to."
"Be smart," Phantom warns, his voice almost a growl.
"I am." The circle around us tightens, and I watch Flame for any signal he might be giving. “We made a deal with the shadow king.”
“Adeal?” My words come out shocked, harsh. "For what? All the king wants is death and power."
"Not just that." And now, Flame won't meet my gaze.
And it hits me.We’retheir bargaining tool today. They've sold us out for their own safety. The sense of betrayal that flows through me is a shock. I didn't think they didn't owe us anything. But I've watched my brothers bleed, nearly die for our people. They deserve better. Hell, I deserve better. What's more, there's no world in which the shadow king will gives these men anything. They have to be smart enough to know that.
I glance at Onyx. He’s watching, reading the scene, body tense, eyes alert while Rayne moves to stand even closer to Ann, almost completely blocking her from the men, but she glances around him.
"Don't do this," Dusk says. "Only a fool would make a deal with a monster."
Flame nods at Phantom. “It's already done.”
His men unsheath their swords and Phantom shakes his head. After last night, after we fulfilled the mating bond, we’d thought this whole thing was finished and the king would be nothing but a bad memory of a worse time. Now we don’t even know if the prophecy is real. But either way, I don't think any of us expected this.
“What did he offer you?” Phantom’s voice is strong and angry.
“He’s pardoning us,” Flame says, drawing his head up taller.
Phantom gives a humorless laugh, shaking his head. “He’ll just enslave you in your beast form.”
“But he won’t be killing us.” To Flame, enslavement beats death. Beats fighting to live. Beats suffering the torment of a mad king. To Flame, this is the best he could’ve done for the men who trust him to speak for them.
Phantom cocks his head, anger in his gaze. “I might just have to do it for him.”
I’ve never had a gripe with Flame, but after today, he’s top spot on the shit list.My hand curls around the dagger handle at my belt, and I imagine putting this blade through his skull. I won't enjoy it, but I also won't feel too bad about killing a traitor, a man foolish enough to be tricked by my father after all he's seen in these many months. Mistakes often have consequences, and it's sad that his death will be one, but I can't focus on that right now. Can't focus on the idea that soon I'll be killing my brothers in arms.
“We completed the mate bond. Don't you even want to see if it can be the thing to save us? Aftereverything?” Phantom stares at Flame, but it’s no use. They’ve decided already.
“The shadow king won’t care.”
"But he won't be able to claim her now, and getting to her before we mated her is probably why he made this deal. What do you think he'll do when he realizes he can't have her?" I have an edge of desperation in my voice that I don't like.
"The king said that mated or not, he'll have Ann." Flame winces as if he wishes he didn't have to speak the words.
My stomach bottoms out.The king wants her still? He'll take her whether she want to or not, whether his sons have claimed her or not? I feel sick.
"That's impossible." Phantom truly sounds shocked.
