Page 121 of Land of Shadow

“Juno is part of me.” I glare at him. “Don’t you understand that?”

“She’s someone who betrayed you, my Blood.” His lips draw back in a snarl. “The only reason she still breathes is because of your love for her, misguided though it is.”

“She’s always protected me! You don’t know her. You don’t know what?—”

“Iprotect you.” He grips the couch on either side of me. “Every piece of information I’ve shared with you, every scrap of intel I’ve passed to the captain, every fucking moment I’ve spent with you—it’s a threat to Gregor. It’s me signing my death warrant again and again just to keep you safe. To keep you alive!”

“Oh, I’m supposed to believe you’d turn on Gregor?” I roll my eyes. “You’re his executioner!”

“Yes! But I’m also one of his heirs.” He reaches for me, then drops his hand as I recoil.

“What does that mean? Don’t lie to me. The next person who lies to me—” My hands curl into fists.

“Never.” He looks up at me, his hair dark silk. “You’re my mate, Georgia. I don’t lie to you.”

“What?” I shake my head.

“You feel it. I know you do.” He’s beside me in an instant, his palm on my cheek. “We’re bound. We’ve always been bound.”

My breath hitches at his sudden heat.

“I have killed, betrayed, and lied to my own people for you. I’ll do so much more if it means you’re safe.”

“I don’t know what you’re saying.” I swipe his hand away, instantly missing his warmth. “And I don’t care. Tell me how to save Juno. That’s all I want from you.”

He drops his gaze. “There’s no saving her.”

“No!” I shove at him. “That’s not an answer.”

He takes it, barely moving. “She made her choice. That’s what you refuse to understand.”

“Well she can unmake it! Tell Gregor the deal is off. Whatever the hell he thinks he’s going to get out of this, tell him it’s over.”

“You know that isn’t an option.”

“It is.” I hate the wheedling in my tone, the utter childishness of my demand that the world be as I wish it. But I have to try.

He sighs and sits back, his gaze holding mine. “Think it through, Georgia. Think about the truths you don’t want to face. The moment you found the cure, Gregor would’ve wiped all of you out.”

“What?” I shake my head.

“He knows you’re close. I did everything I could to keep you from it. But the moment I gave you my blood, I knew it was over. I knew you’d find what you needed.”

I can’t seem to process what he’s saying. “Youintentionallykept the cure from me?”

He gives a stark nod.

“People are dying!” I yell. “You withholding your blood is the same as if you killed them yourself!” My heart stutters as I meet his gaze. “You could’ve saved us.”

“I don’t care how many die as long as you’re alive!” he snarls back at me.

“I care.” I clutch my chest, my heart raging against my ribs. “I care about my sister, my friends. About the people in the world.”

“I care about you,” he says simply. “Only you.”

“It’s not enough.” I glare at him as he touches my cheek again, his fingers so gentle against my skin. “I need more from you. I need the truth. All of it.” I glance at the mangled refrigerator. “You can’t keep me here forever.”

Something in his gaze tells me he disagrees.

---