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“Yes.”
She paced. “You used me.”
“Yes.” There was no point denying it. All I could do was hope Daharak would appreciate honesty.
Silence stretched between us, Daharak’s expression colder than I’d ever seen it. If I wasn’t careful, I would make a dangerous enemy today.
I sighed. “Regner wasn’t just going to bring the barrier down and let you sail away to more profitable waters,” I said. “The only reason he wanted to bring it down was to take all of that power for himself. What do you think would happen to your fleet—to your people—if he was that powerful?”
“And what happens when Jamic does the same? Will he take that power for himself?”
“He says it will return to the people it was stolen from.”
“And you believe him?”
I would be lying if I said some part of me wasn’t worried about the strange, silent boy who radiated enough power that Galon was almost always by his side, wards ready. But…
“We don’t have any other options. Either we use Jamic, along with the most powerful people we have, or Regner ends this war within the next couple of days—and all of us die. We freed Jamic, and he has agreed to help.”
She shook her head. “Since you outmaneuvered me, I have no choice but to work with you. But if that boy turns on my people, I will make you pay.”
If Jamic turned on us, I would have much, much bigger problems than Daharak. “He won’t,” I said.
She just shook her head. But some of the ire had drained from her expression. “Regner’s ships are moving this way. Eryndan and his son are with him, bringing ships from their own fleet.”
I nodded. Thanks to the queen’s warning, we were prepared for Eryndan and Rekja. All I could do was hope Rekja was willing to listen.
At the very least, with his lover missing, some part of him must wonder if we knew where she was. I was betting he wouldn’t want us killed until he was sure we didn’t know her location.
I met Daharak’s eyes. “Ally with us. Not just because of the vow, but because this is your opportunity to create a better future for everyone. Help us take down Regner with full cooperation, and I’ll make sure your name is spread across my kingdom. Every hybrid will know the pirate queen helped save our people.”
She gave me a slow, feline smile. “Thanks to your scheming, I have to work with you. But I must admit, I like the sound of that, Hybrid Heir.”
“Then let’s get to work.”
Opening the door, I stepped aside so Lorian could enter. I had no doubt he’d heard everything with his fae hearing, but he kept his expression neutral as he tucked a curl behind my ear.
Within a few minutes, he’d gathered Galon and Jamic. Daharak watched Jamic as if he were a poisonous scorpion.
I gave her a warning look and turned to Jamic. “Let’s talk about the barrier. How close do we need to be in order to take it down?”
“It depends on how much power we can gather. The more power we have, the farther we can position ourselves from it.”
I pointed to the map. “We bring it down here.”
Daharak narrowed her eyes at me. “Why?”
“You’ll see. We need to buy ourselves some time,” I said. “Can we send some ships to another part of the barrier? Make it look as if that’s where we’re about to bring it down?”
Daharak tilted her head. “We can. It will mean splitting our forces, but if time is what you need…”
“It is,” Jamic said. “Without the book, the only way to bring the barrier down is with time and sheer power.”
“The moment Regner realizes what we’re doing, he will do anything he can to prevent that from happening,” Lorian said. “And he’ll do everything he can to get to Jamic so he can kill him there.”
I glanced at Jamic, but his expression remained neutral. If the discussion about his potential death bothered him, he didn’t show it.
“We need to further split our own forces,” Lorian continued. “Half of us on the front, dealing with Regner’s and Eryndan’s ships, and the other half pouring their power into the barrier.”
