Page 104 of Hero of Havoc

My pulse thunders in my ears as I instinctively wrap my arms around my middle, desperate to shield myself from the vulnerability I continue to feel at the exposure of someone entering my room without my knowledge.

“Whoever is helping him do this has to pay,” Archer snarls, anger tainting his tone as Teddy plants his hands on his hips.

“Don’t touch any of it,” Teddy declares, and I shake my head.

“That’s not the game we’re playing, and we all know it. He’s the puppet master, tugging on my invisible strings, and all I can do is hope I don’t fall beneath the weight of the consequences,” I mumble, earning a rumbling growl from Archer.

“It doesn’t have to be that way. He only has the power because we keep offering it to him,” he insists as I shake my head, hand cupping my mouth as I nervously approach the awaiting items.

“How many more people are going to try and control us?” Teddy snarls, curling his fingers into his hair as desperation exudes from him, and I gulp, hating the answer more than I do the question.

Discarding the ivy, I reach for the envelope, feeling both Archer and Teddy staring at me intently, but neither of them tries to stop me. Slightly relieved that they’re not making this any more difficult than it has to be, I clear my throat, taking in a deep breath before I carefully open it.

Ivy,

It’s time the truth led you where you belong. To me.

- L

“What the fuck is that supposed to mean?” Teddy grunts, reading the short letter over my shoulder, and I shrug, but it’s Archer who finds an answer first.

“It means whatever awaits her in that forsaken relic will make her want to be his fucking Kingdom Champion,” Archer surmises, and I grimace.

“I don’t see how that’s possible,” I mumble, eyeing the relic.

“Ivy, I know curiosity likes to get the better of you, but I need you to hear me out for a second,” Archer starts, reaching for my hand, and I let him turn me away from the gifts. “His letters are usually cryptic, especially the last one. It was all alluring and enticing, reeling you in to discover what he had to offer you while also trying to piece together why he wanted you to have that information. This… this is different; his letter only includes what he wants to gain from offering this to you. There’s no mention of this being a freebie, or for your gain; it’s for his.”

My pulse races in my chest, hammering between curiosity and the hatred of feeling like I’m being controlled. Delving into these relics is addicting, and Leonardo Corrigan knows it.

But even more frustratingly, Archer is right.

This relic comes with an invisible binding contract between the leader of the Second Kingdom and me. I can’t be so naïve and gullible this time.

The realization zaps me like an electric bolt, jolting me back a few steps as I eye the relic cautiously.

“Get it away from me,” I blurt, lacing my fingers together behind my back as I turn away from it.

I don’t trust myself not to act stupidly.

I clench my eyes shut, pressing the palms of my hands against them for good measure as I sink my teeth into my bottom lip, fighting against the desire inside of me.

“Breathe slowly, Princess,” Teddy murmurs, his breath ghosting over my face, but he doesn’t touch me. “I’m right here with you; everything is going to be okay. You’re making the right decision for this moment, and you should be proud of yourself for that.”

“I feel like I’m not. Or I feel like I’m making the right decision for the moment, but it’s not my decision because mine wouldn’t be the correct one.”

“Say the word and I will charge after Archer and get it back for you right now.”

“Despite the consequences?” I press, daring to lift my hands from my face as I look at him through my slightly splayed fingers, and he nods.

“As long as the consequences keep you at my side, I’ll face them all.”

“You’re insane,” I mumble, exhaling some of the weight away as Teddy finally reaches for me.

His fingers ghost over my waist, grounding me in the moment with him, and the tension stiffening my spine loosens. I feel like I can breathe again.

“I’m insane for you,” he whispers, the tip of his nose touching mine, and I shiver, my train of thought long forgotten as he cups my cheek, running his thumb across my bottom lip.

“I hate feeling helpless,” I rasp, almost hating the vulnerability on my tongue just as much, but the way he smiles at me so soothingly makes it impossible for me to cling to the emotion.