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I glare at him. “Shut up and calm down or get out. She’s being serious, yet you’re so blinded by hatred you can’t see this warning as the blessing it is.”
“Blessing?” He scoffs in disbelief. “This isn’t a blessing, Ada. It’s a curse. I can’t believe either of you are okay letting this Shade stay in the village when she threatens the livelihood of every Mongrel who lives here, present and future. Going to war with Nesta is a fucking death wish. Neither of you has the experience needed to take her on.”
“That may be so,” I calmly reply, knowing none of my answers will settle him. “But Nesta is also part of the reason Spiran brought us here, why Spiran is helping us learn about our abilities and surroundings so quickly. She doesn’t expect us to have the time we need to learn naturally—”
“That may be so?” Ecaeris repeats before challenging me. “Really? What are you going to do, Ada?”
“Ecaeris,” Talodus softly cautions, guarded eyes begging his friend to back down.
The mongrel prince takes a step closer to me. “What are you going to do? Kill yourself to prove a point?”
Cold washes over me so quickly I feel as if my fingers are frostbitten. Rage-filled waves rush through my mind, a tsunami ready to tear the world apart. The strength behind the rising storm nearly knocks me off my feet.
“That is enough.” My voice is barely above a murmur, though it rings through the room as if I’ve screamed the words.
Isolde gasps, but I pay her no mind as Talodus drops to one knee between the prince and me. Ecaeris vibrates with tension, though his anger is nowhere in sight now that he’s pushed too far.
“I will not have you throw my past in my face. I’m not the only one who’s been through shit and thought the worst of themselves. The people in this room are not on separate sides of this brewing war, but they will be if you keep lashing out. We do not want the new Shade queen as an enemy; that will only serve to fuel another war in the future that neither tribe can afford.”
“That’s—” Talodus struggles to speak as I stare down Ecaeris. “That’s not what he meant.”
“Then let him explain that to me.”
Tal coughs. “He can’t. You have to drop your hold, Ada.”
I take a step back as I glance at the burly guard. “What hold?”
“That wasn’t what I meant,” Ecaeris whispers, rolling out his shoulders as if he’s stretching. “I might be a dick, Ada. But I’m not emotionless. I would never—we can talk about it later. I just need you to understand that going head-to-head with Nesta is a battle you might not return from, and I’m not willing to chance your life. You may fight with a Shade by your side, but the two of you won’t be enough on your own. You need more allies.”
“What just happened, Ecaeris?” I ask, shoving down my panic until I have an answer. “You skipped that completely. And it’s now more pressing to me than the current conversation.”
Isolde stands as she quietly confesses, “You showed your position in the hierarchy, Ada. I knew where you would sit, but to watch you, to feel that power pour over us, drowning us in your energy, is unbelievable to witness.”
“Wait.” Madi grins at me, trying to ease the tension. “I’m just a Shade now? Not the Shade? Why is he demoting me?”
Ecaeris waves a dismissive hand at Madigan. “You’ve become insignificant now that the Shade is on her way.”
“I didn’t say she was right behind me,” Madi says with a huff. “I’ve been hiding from her for weeks with the help of Lyell. He only sent me here because he felt the Mongrels were our last option.”
“He was wrong,” the prince gripes.
Madigan shrugs a prim shoulder as she smiles, none-to-sweet. “Possibly, but if I die, you’ll have a bigger issue on your hands. If Ada and I can’t fight Nesta by ourselves, then what will you do? She can’t be bartered with; she’s after blood. And she won’t be satisfied with yours.”
Isolde claps her hands as if the show is over, and she’s thrilled with our performance. “Thank you all for getting along so well. I’m looking forward to the coming weeks.”
I lean my head back, begging the ceiling to collapse on me since it won’t give me the answers I seek. But it doesn’t even offer a crack. It just gazes down at me, unbreakable and laughing at the bullshit surrounding me.
“What’s up there?” Isolde inquires, tilting her head to examine the throne room’s ceiling. “It’s marvelous, but it’s nothing worthy of distraction.”
“She does that when she’s exasperated with us,” Talodus helpfully responds.
Jesus, Neptune, and Osiris.
I’m so fucking done with today.
ADELAIDE
DAY FIFTY
