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“Don’t Fae me, dammit. Let me do my part.”

A group of healers rounded the far corner, heading our way. Freya was moving before I’d fully processed it. She cleared her throat as she strode into the mess hall.

“Sorry to interrupt, but you’re about to have company.”

“Good,” Fae snapped, throwing her hands up. “Maybe one of them can talk some sense through his thick skull.”

“One thread, Fae. She gave us one thread and I’ll be damned if⁠—”

“Fuck the threads, and fuck you, August Porter.” And with that, she whirled for the door, storming past us.

Alec sighed where he sat with his feet propped up, a tiny bundle strapped to his chest, hands laced over his daughter’s back and dwarfing her little body. “That go how you hoped it would?” he drawled, russet brows arching.

August huffed out an agonized breath and collapsed into the seat beside him. Face buried in his palms, he shook his head.

“There is no winning here,” he growled against his hands.

“There was no winning the moment the threads changed, mate. We all knew that.”

Feeling like an interloper, I nudged Blaz and jerked my chin toward the walls of weapons. Anywhere but here.

Only, Freya cleared her throat again. “August? I can see your hands are full, but we came to talk to you.”

“I have to meet Kade.”

“Of course you do,” Alec said, voice still soft even as it took on venom. His feet hit the floor, and he was up in a breath. “There’s strength in numbers for a reason, dammit. I thought we fought together or not at all—isn’t that what Ally said? There’s a reason for that. Name one rogue agent who hasn’t met a swift death, August.”

August didn’t bother looking up as he said, “Kade is death, Alec.”

“And that’s who you choose to fight beside instead of your brothers?” His voice shook with restraint, even as he held a hand out toward Tessa. “Marcus isn’t any happier with you than we are.”

Slowly, with a predator’s precision, The Great Commander stood to his full height and stared down at the shield. I stepped in front of Freya, relieved when Orion did the same. Even G’s shadows unfurled across the ground, creeping past my feet in preparation to shield her. Some part of me knew August would never hurt the fucker—let alone risk unleashing his magic with the baby inches away—but his anger was tangible, static charging the air.

“Next time you and your mate decide to fling accusations, perhaps consider that is exactly why Kade is at my side, Alec.”

The shield scowled, and I found myself doing the same, trying to dissect his words.

“Because he’s not my brother. He’s not one of the few people on this planet my mate loves more than life itself. Because losing him will not break us. Because the last thing my mate saw was Ansel’s corpse—” He jammed his eyes closed as Freya stiffened beside me, like he’d only just remembered his company. “—and Aren bleeding out on the ground, his sign-off in our minds. I will not apologize for protecting the people we love.”

“So, Kade and his people are disposable? Is that what you’re saying?”

“Yes,” August ground out, the veins in his neck bulging. Alec’s eyes widened, and he took a step back. The sound of footsteps echoed off the hallway, my shadows warning me.

“The walls have ears, gentlemen,” I cautioned. It was already a vulnerability having two Bellatons at my back while Reyna searched for any opportunity to seize more power. The last thing we needed was every alliance questioning the stability of the ruling circle.

Nodding, nostrils flared, August amended, “At least, that’s how it started.”

“But now you know them,” Alec deduced, and August’s eyes shuddered as he nodded.

“Now I know them.”

The shield’s swallow was audible as he shook his head.

“I thought maybe if I used the one variable she cannot calculate, our odds would be better,” August added. “But even that hasn’t been enough to stop the future she cast. So here we fucking are, becoming just as monstrous as our enemy.”

“They brought this on themselves,” I drawled as the healers finally rounded the corner, making a beeline for the food whose savory spices were filling the air. August’s eyes were burdened as he wrung his hands. Hands I was sure he felt would never be clean of stains none of us could see. I knew because I’d felt the same way when Reagan forced me into the interrogation chamber.

That shit changes a man. Defines us if we let it. I never took pleasure in the pain—at least not like Nix did—but I learned to enjoy that final breaking, the moment they cracked and gave us what we were looking for. It had to be worth it when August finally got what he needed to reach his mate. He just didn’t know it yet.