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My hands fist at my sides as Titus appears beside me, my annoyance ratcheting just at the sight of him—that is, until I take in the wreckage that was once my home.
Silence sweeps over us as we all take in the crater. Dirt and debris cover every inch of what used to be our home—the first place I got to call home with my mate.
This is not what I was expecting. I thought there would be at least something to sift through, but Romulus left nothing but splinters and devastation in his wake.
“This...” Osias is unable to take his eyes off the destruction before us. “Liv doesn’t see this—at least not yet.”
I nod in agreement, and so does Mateo, both of us sharing a look. Both of us could tell Liv was nearing her breaking point, and I’m terrified that actually seeing the destruction with her own two eyes will be the thing that throws her over the edge.
“I might be able to salvage something, but that will take time we don’t have right now,” Osias continues, dragging his gaze away from the wreckage and towards the school.
“The students are the priority right now,” I agree, wishing I could at least find something, some small token to give to Liv to remember this place and what it meant for us.
The manor wasn’t just a house; it was the place that really allowed our love and our bond to blossom. Without that closeness, who knows where we’d all be right now. Memories flash through my mind of when we formed the blood ritual, cementing our bond with Liv and bringing her into our family, where she was always meant to be.
The first time I knew she was meant to be mate to all four of us was in this house, when I walked in on Adrian and her in the stairwell. He had her pinned against the wall and—
“I don’t think I’m going to be able to find anything in here.” Titus grimaces as he looks at the manor as though it’s a chore.
Of course it is—because of him.
“Liv said to look for your books, and that’s what you’re going to do,” I snap, drawing surprised looks from Osias and Mateo, but I don’t care. Mateo can say his piece all he wants, that we all chose to use Kallen’s information, but I don’t care. To me the person who’s truly responsible for this is standing right in front of me.
“Woah,” Titus says, raising his hands in peace as he takes a step away from me. “No one said I wasn’t going to try.”
“Good, because I don’t care what anyone else says, this is your fault and you know it.”
“Kyros,” Mateo murmurs, stepping towards me. “I was there with him when Kallen showed us that cave. If you want to put the blame on anyone, I’ll share that burden with him at least.”
“It’s him,” I insist. “It’s been him since the start.”
“I get that you’re angry,” Osias says, turning towards me now too, like I’m the one who’s overreacting. “But this isn’t the time to turn on each other.”
“Then when is the time, because shit keeps hitting the fan and he’s always at the center of it.”
“I think you should—”
“No, I shouldn’t do anything. I’m always the one who keeps an even head; I’m always the one who helps everyone else see reason, but where has that gotten us?” I demand, turning on Titus, where I know my anger truly belongs. “I’ll tell you where it’s gotten us. We now have no home, no dagger, my brother is trapped in a cave, and my mate is barely holding it together and somehow thinks that you’ll be able to solve everything. And despite her faith in you, you’re here whining about how you might get dirty.”
“You don’t think I know all that,” Titus grumbles, fisting his hands at his sides. “You don’t think I’m beating myself up inside for ever bringing my brother here, for trusting him to be part of my future, to help in the plan that I’ve been keeping secret for thousands of years before you even became invested in this fight?”
“This isn’t helping anyone,” Osias says, getting in between us, but I step around him, needing to unleash my anger and frustration on someone.
“Why should we even trust you now? Maybe you knew what Kallen’s plan was this whole time, and you used him as a scapegoat so you could continue to spy on us?” I shout, my hands clenching at my sides.
“Kyros, you’re going too far now,” Osais interjects, but I ignore him, about to fling another insult towards the god of vengeance, when he cuts me off.
“Do you have anything else you want to unleash on me Kyros? Everything you can possibly say to me I’ve already told myself a thousand times over,” Titus huffs in frustration, dragging his hand back through his hair as his eyes light with anger. “So go ahead and throw whatever insults and accusations my way that you want. It won’t help us now. It won’t help either of us find a spell to get Maximus out of that cave.”
I frown back at him, wishing his words hadn’t struck a nerve, but they did. He’s right. I look around at the three of them, noticing how they’ve converged on me, surrounded me. Am I really on the wrong side here? Am I really the one who is blinded to the truth?
I suck in a sharp breath and push my anger to the back of my mind, reminding myself that Liv needs me right now. Who else does she have to rely on? Titus?
“You should go, Kyros. Clear your head,” Mateo projects to me, and I turn on my heel, not bothering to say another word.
Each step feels heavier than the last, like I’m dragging my feet through mud with every stride I take away from what once was our home.
“And I wasn’t complaining about how I might get dirty,” Titus calls to my back. “I was trying to lighten the mood, Kyros. Maybe you should try it sometime.”
