Page 157 of Tower of Ash and Darkness
I take a step closer.
“This isn’t a game, Jason. You know what that stone can do. It’s notabout power or alliances. If Clyde or Sarris gets it, they’ll burn this world to the ground. You know that as well as I do.”
Jason’s jaw tightens, his fists clenching at his sides. He looks away, his eyes dark with conflict.
“You don’t understand,” he says quietly, his voice cracking just slightly. “He’smyfather. I know the kind of man he is, the things he’s done. But he’s still my father.”
His words hang in the air, heavy with emotion, and I can see past the anger and into the turmoil he’s trying to hide. Jason loves his father, but that love is tangled in a web of loyalty, resentment, and fear.
“I’m not asking you to betray him,” I say, my voice softening. “I’m asking you to do the right thing. You know as well as I do that he’s playing with fire, and if he gets that stone, there’s no coming back from it—for him or anyone else.”
Jason exhales, his shoulders slumping slightly.
“You think I don’t know that? You think I don’t see what he’s doing, what he’s capable of? But you don’t know him like I do. He’s not like Clyde or Sarris. He doesn’t want to destroy the world—he just wants to protect what’s his.”
“And what happens when that protection comes at the cost of everything else?” Malachi’s voice cuts through the room, calm but firm. His obstinate gaze locks onto Jason.
Jason shakes his head, his gaze locking onto mine with a mix of frustration and guilt.
“So, you're expecting me to betray my father just like you've betrayed Clyde?” Jason's voice cuts through the silence, accusatory. “How do you think Clyde would react if he knew about your secrets—your hidden ambitions?”
My eyes narrow, my voice turning cold.
"Careful, Jason. My reasons are mine alone, and none of them involve taking the stone for myself. Clyde's ambitions are not mine.”
Jason steps closer, dropping his voice to a whisper.
“From where I stand, everyone wants that stone—Clyde, Sarris, my father, and now you. Tell me, Ghost, what exactly sets you apart?”
I meet his intense gaze steadily.
“The difference is that I'm not willing to sacrifice innocent lives to obtain it.”
My voice drops low as I step toward him.
"Do you honestly believe she’d survive if Sarris or your father got the stone? They’ve already tried to kill her once. Do you really think that was an accident?"
Jason doesn’t move. I can see the unease bristle beneath his skin.
“You need to ask yourself who they'll come for first. Who they'llbreakjust to send a message."
His breath catches, eyes locked on mine, searching—desperate for reassurance, for something that might prove him wrong. Denial, maybe. Hope. But I offer him nothing. Only the brutal, unrelenting truth.
A slow breath drags through my teeth as I step back, forcing the frustration to settle. My jaw tightens, irritation thrumming just beneath the surface. He still doesn’t see it. Still insists on framing this as loyalty, as legacy—like it’s about kingdoms or thrones.
It’s not.
This is abouther.
My gaze hardens as I study him, every muscle tight with restraint. He stands there, too proud or too afraid to admit what he knows. My voice comes low and even, each word carved from cold truth, meant to cut through whatever delusions he’s still clinging to.
"Unless you don’t care for her at all," I say, the words a final blow meant to wound.
That’s when he steps back, as if the thought itself strikes him clean in the chest. Jason's gaze drops to the ground, his posture faltering. For a moment, he’s silent—unguarded in a way I’ve never seen before. And for the first time, I see his armor slip. Just enough for something real to bleed through.
“I love her.”
His confession stuns me more than I expect, and I find myself studying him closely. He pauses, glancing toward the side as if he’s searching for the right words.
