Page 107 of A Promise so Bold and Broken

When the shifter opened her arms, Ardow stormed into them, his muscular body nearly swallowing the girl whole.

“I didn’t realize it was you! I’ve missed you so much! I thought of you every day,” he whispered, and Lessia couldn’t help but wrinkle her nose at the admiration and awe seeping into his voice.

What had this woman told him for him to act as if she were a deity?

Finding Venko’s eyes, she noted the same confusion rounding his blues, and she shook her head when Raine and Kerym stared at her with raised brows.

“Ardow,” Lessia urged when her friend stepped back from the shifter, still hovering closer to the other group than she preferred. “Tell her.”

He shot her a nod before clasping one of Meyah’s small hands with his own. “I believe she speaks the truth. There is another threat, so perhaps… perhaps we need to listen to her.” Ardow swallowed loudly. “Perhaps we need to speak to Loche again… see if he’ll accept our demands if we stand together against the threat against our lands?”

“Ardow.” Meyah placed the hand he wasn’t holding on his cheek. “You know as well as I do, that is not how it’ll turn out. The humans will sacrifice us—use us—to die for them! And should any of us survive, they’ll go back to what they’ve been doing for the past century: ignore the ones that don’t fit in, shun the shifters and drive them off their islands… harass the half-Fae.” Meyah shook her head. “No. We will not fight beside the very people who forced us to live in hiding. If Ellow is wiped out… then so be it.”

“How can you say that?” Lessia released Merrick’s hand to get into the rebel leader’s face, ignoring the sharp hisses of warning coming from the people behind Meyah. “Many of the rebels come from Ellow! It’s their home!”

“Their home is with their family.” Meyah picked at her nails. “We are their family. We’ll rebuild Korina, let those Fae take over the rest of Havlands, and stay out of their way. Perhaps we’ll get lucky and have the races of Fae turn on each other. It’s happened before, I’ve heard.”

No.

Lessia couldn’t believe this woman.

She’d sacrifice a whole land—all the people in it—for what?

Revenge?

“What about the families still left there?” she snarled. “What about your family, Ardow?” She spun around, pointing to Venko. “What about his family?”

Ardow’s face whitened. “I—”

“We’ll get them out. We have enough ships.” Meyah smirked. “Since you’ve offered us this kind warning, we can begin already now. Probably for the better, anyway. Fewer loyal people who might get caught in the crossfire from our attacks.”

She turned to the group behind her. “What say you? Shall we weaken the human defense so that they can get a taste of what it’s like to almost be wiped out?”

The shifters behind her cheered, and Lessia’s nostrils flared when even Bowen let out something akin to a howl.

She couldn’t believe it.

They’d fought for their lives on the streets of Vastala together.

Had cursed the Fae together.

Had cursed them for being so cruel and leaving people—children!—to die just because they were different.

And now he supported the same thing?

“Please!” Lessia pleaded. “If you’re truly fighting for a better world—do it with us. Let’s speak to Loche. I know I can convince him to work together with us! I can convince him to meet whatever demands you have!”

The sly grin twisting Meyah’s features chilled Lessia to her bones. “That’s not what I heard… I heard he spit on you as you crawled on the castle floor, begging him to love you. If he wouldn’t even forgiveyou—someone he claimed to care for—he would throw all of us into his dungeons as soon as we stepped over the castle threshold.”

Mocking laughter and hums of agreement rose behind Meyah, but the buzzing that had begun within Lessia’s mind quickly drowned the sounds.

She nearly vibrated from restrained anger, and when her magic stirred within her, she didn’t leash it.

No, she let it completely free, her eyes filling with warmth, its glow reflecting in Meyah’s gaze as Lessia gripped her arm.

Enough trying to be nice.

If everyone else was going to fight dirty…

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