Page 102 of Consumed By Fire

“It’s Sire or Your Grace. Your Highness would work, too.” His tone is clipped. It makes me want to cheer. A small victory, not even mine, but I’ll take it, anyway.

The prince visibly diminishes. “Of course, Your Highness.” He bows. It comes across as mocking, but then I know enough about this man to see the subtle undertones. I know his mind. It’s crawling with serpents.

“Remove the gag,” the king says. “Let him get up to his feet first,” he adds when the guards try to remove the gag while I am still on my knees. “Let’s be civil, shall we? If we are going to portray the Draigers as barbaric, we should at least attempt to be better than them.”

The prince’s face has turned a touch red, blending nicely with his suit.

The gag is removed once I am on my feet. It takes a few moments to get feeling back in my tongue and certain parts of my mouth. “Thank you,” I mutter.

“It’s ‘thank you, Your Grace,’” the guard sneers at me.

“No, that’s quite alright. I am not this male’s king. Your name is Octane; is that correct?”

I nod. “Yes.”

“Is there anything you wish to say before you are put to death?” he asks me in a cool tone.

I clear my throat. “Yes, I have something to say.”

“You have two minutes,” the prince says. “Make it count.” He turns angry eyes on me.

I know he is expecting me to out him. To tell everyone here about his proposal and his plans. At least, the parts he wanted me to know.

I’m not going to.

No one would believe me.

I have better things to say with my final few minutes on this earth.

I swallow thickly, pull in a fortifying breath, and step forward. The king holds out the microphone for me. “Thank you,” I tell him.

“Get on with it!” the prince snarls.

“I want to make it very clear that Trinity is innocent. It was unfortunate that she followed the wrong people and accidentally ended up on our island, where I captured her. I held her captive. I treated her badly. I tortured her for information, but she never caved. She never told me a single thing. I grew to like her and respect her. It was grudging, but I couldn’t help it.” I clear my throat. “She was rescued by the father of her unborn child, his brother, and some of his friends. I tracked them to the tunnel and followed. I was beside myself with rage and jealousy. I killed all of the males and begged Trinity to come back with me. I stole money from the males. I took her with me to the tunnel. I was begging her to come back with me when the Red Guard showed up. You know the rest.”

“It’s a lie!” Trinity screams.

My heart sinks. What the fuck is she doing? I’m dead. I’m done for. This is her chance. They will release her if she lets me confess. They will give her a chance at life. She and her baby both.

“It isn’t a lie,” I insist. “Don’t listen to her. Listen to me. I love you, Trinity. I fucking love you. I know you didn’t want to hear me say those words, but I’m saying them, anyway.” I choke up. I choke up in every conceivable way. It takes everything in me to hold back. I can’t cry just before that asshole kills me. I refuse to give him the satisfaction. “I love you so much. I need you to know it. I need you to know how special you are.”

I realize that I can see her. The crowds have parted a little, and I can see Trinity. Perhaps they’re not as cold-hearted as I thought.

I grin and even laugh a little. “There you are, Little Red. You’re so beautiful. And so fucking amazing. You’re a warrior in your own quiet way. You’re going to make a great mother. I will hold you in my—”

“That’s enough,” the prince says. “Get down on your knees and accept your fate.”

I touch my hand to my chest, and the shackles clang together. My heart is beating like crazy. Trinity and I are looking each other in the eye. She’s crying. I know she’ll blame the hormones. The thought makes me smile at her.

She touches her heart, too, and mouths, “I love you.”

I’m ready.

The guards don’t have to force me this time. I go down willingly. I put my head on the block. The chain scrapes against the ground as I do.

The prince grins. He thinks he’s won, but I know my people will not break as easily as he thinks they will.

“Stop,” the king says.

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