Page 215 of Commanding Scythe and Sky

Not me and Cali.

Not Dad.

Not her Guardians.

Not Valora.

She’d had it all in the palm of her hand, and still, like disease in the roots, the fruit from her tree rotted from within.

Let it end here. With me.

With us.

If I accomplished nothing in my damned immortal life beyond abolishing the hold of that cancer, it would be a life worth living.

And I’d do it behind a leader who gave a damn, if nothing else.

I might never understand what it meant to love.

Not in the way normal people with sound parents did, at least. My love for Charles, Cali, and Carrson was the closest thing I had to an example—both the agony and the strength in that vulnerability.

But I understood loyalty.

I understood duty. Honor. Fighting for the balance of the world. Freya embodied all three. Even while I failed her. While grief paralyzed me, she still fought in the wake of Ansel. And despite having every reason in the world to wipe out our entire fucking bloodline and its loyalists, she’d instead taken them beneath her wing.

My sadistic cousin was out there somewhere, and Freya hadn’t wasted souls hunting him after the first party never returned. Instead, she’d focused on building relationships inside our walls, fortifying our defenses, studying the war, her brother’s moves, the enemy’s countermoves. Rather than obsess over variables she couldn’t control, Freya optimized the ones she could influence. Whether it was in her best interest or not.

My turn.

My turn to act as a shield.

If all I could give her was my protection, at least there would be that.

Resolve tasted saccharine, like sweet tea across my tongue, as I stood from the dais.

I stopped by the kitchen for a carrier full of coffees before finding Orion in the training ring, putting the rookies through their paces. One look and a jerk of my chin was enough for him to excuse himself.

“Mornin’,” he said. “What’s goin’ on?”

“You’re bein’ reassigned.”

“Freya—”

“Is your only priority from here on out.” I turned to hold his gaze, relief settling through me when a knowing smirk threatened his composure. “I want you within arm’s reach at all times. Where’s Vesper?”

She misted into existence, both of us flinching as she appeared like a spirit summoned. There were those of us who walked among shadows, and then Vesper, who was living shadow. It’s why I trusted her with the most delicate missions—the ones where no one could hear so much as a whisper.

“You rang?” She smirked, her smile all things wicked and wild. One of her most endearing qualities.

“I did,” I chuckled darkly. “You two, with me.”

“Goody,” she drawled huskily, falling into step beside me. We made our way upstairs and found Carr exactly where I expected—outside Freya’s door. He cocked his head, something like anger flashing as he looked between the three of us.

“What the fuck now?”

“Makin’ some changes to the detail.”

“Excuse me?” he growled, the anger resonant in his chest.