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“Samuel tried to blackmail me,” Cara said. “He wanted me to kill Nick.”
“An unprecedented event,” the elder said.
“You sound like a lawyer,” Nick muttered.
The elder looked at him. “I was. I’m retired.”
“Wait,” Cara said. “You’re saying it’s not breaking the treaty if he tries to blackmail me to kill someone? As in, murder a person? Actual death? He literally provided a murder weapon.”
“A void isn’t a person,” she said.
“Ouch,” Nick said.
“Blackmailing a witch is highly questionable,” the elder told Cara. “But we are discussing war. I am sorry you went through this, but we cannot risk our entire coven because a vampire asked you to kill a void.”
“But... What about Quinn and Julia?” Cara asked.
“We can only hope they will be returned to their home, mostly unharmed, and they will not remember the trauma they have been put through.”
“And if they don’t come home? What if he...” Cara broke off, and Nick resisted the urge to go to her. It could set off the witches.
“If the worst comes to pass, we will know Samuel broke the peace treaty.”
“You’re going to wait until they’re-” Cara put a hand to her mouth. “You... You can’t do this. They’re innocent.”
“I cannot sentence our entire coven to death because two humans are being used as blood banks. They aren’t the first, and they won’t be the last. It is a terrible and necessary reality of our world.”
Cara’s shoulders slumped. “You won’t help us. This was a waste of time.”
“War is delicate,” the elder said. “We cannot risk a blind reaction to a situation when there are so many moving parts.”
“There are lives at stake,” Nick said.
Her mouth tightened. “And we would never be foolish enough to risk our coven based on the word of avoid.”
Nick gritted his teeth, but Henry touched his arm, silently telling him to be calm.
“I can’t believe this,” Cara said.
“Perhaps you should have taken Samuel’s offer,” the elder said. “It would mean one less threat to us, and perhaps, it would give us leverage to negotiate for the lives of your friends.”
“I’m not going to kill him,” Cara said.
“It no longer matters what you are willing to do. The time has passed. Samuel’s offer will no longer be honoured. Not after you brought the void to our home.”
“My home,” Cara corrected. “Not yours.”
The elder watched her for a long moment, piercing Cara with her eyes. “You have made your choice, and now we must all live with it.”
Nick shook his head. “You can’t be serious. You have to help us.”
“You expect us to indulge your every demand? We are witches, not dogs. You can’t command anything of us, void.”
“I’m not demanding anything,” Nick snapped. “Don’t twist my words.”
“Nick, calm down,” Cara said.
“I don’t need to calm down. I need help, and answers, and I’m not getting any of it here. They don’t care about Quinn and Julia. Coming here was a mistake.”
