Page 41 of Zar

“And if Garra is with us, then they will bring this person into their confidence.”

“There would be deadly consequences if Naxon found out he was being fooled.”

“Let me do it,” Flare said, stepping forward. “I have become very good at pretending to be one thing when I’m something else entirely.”

“Yeah, like pretending to be human when you actually have wings and are from a different planet,” Callie shot right back, as she narrowed a look at Flare. She was gratified when he flinched.

“Precisely,” he admitted in a low voice.

Zadoc snorted. “Did you miss the part that it would be a deadly game to play if Naxon discovered the truth about you?”

Dyre rubbed his chin. “Zadoc is right. This could go bad really fast.”

Flare shook his head and his wings stretched wide. “I brought Callie here,” he bit out. “I ask now to be the one to eliminate the threat to her.”

Zar held up a hand when Dyre started to speak. “You would do this for Callie?”

“I would do it for you both, my king,” he answered as he stared at Callie.

Zar stood and went to Flare. He clasped his forearm with his hand. “You honor us both with your loyalty and bravery.”

“Wait, I didn’t mean to send Flare into danger with my suggestion,” Callie said, worried for her friend. Well, he’d kidnapped her and brought to this crazy place, but they’d bonded. It’d happened when Naxon had stormed into Zar’s bedroom. Flare had put his life on the line to keep her from harm. That sort of thing tended to seal a friendship.

“You aren’t sending me anywhere, Ms. Wilson. It’s my privilege to do what I can to help eliminate the threat to my king. And you.”

Callie shot off the couch and walked up to Zar. “Figure out a better plan,” she pleaded. “There has to be a way to ferret out the threat without sending Flare into Naxon’s camp. I saw his face, Zar. Naxon isn’t entirely sane.”

Zar reached out and cupped her jaw. “Calm, my ofelia,” he softly ordered. “Flare is one of my oldest and dearest friends. I will not let anything happen to him.” His gaze shot towards Flare and he smiled. “Besides, Flare is the best at creating a convincing disguise.”

She could see she wasn’t going to change their minds, but that sure as hell didn’t mean she had to sit around and watch as they got themselves killed. “I want to go home,” she flatly stated, before turning on her heels and walking out of the room.

Callie slammed Zar’s bedroom door. The loud bang was satisfying to her frazzled nerves. Damn it all to shit! Zar had been horribly injured already and now Flare was quite literally walking into the enemy’s hands. How could they not see how insane this plan was? She thought back over the last several hours. Naxon’s sickly smile stuck in her brain and wouldn’t dislodge for anything. Like a lump of meat, it just sat there choking her. One thing Zar and Flare weren’t factoring into their crazy plan was Naxon’s unhinged mind. He was a few bricks short. And those types weren’t easy to predict. Like playing with a live grenade. It would explode. And there would be casualties.

---