Chapter 31 Sybil #2
“I, dear, am the ears that he is so worried about. Well, my brother and I.” Hale’s lips curved into an unnerving smile as his body gradually disappeared. I sucked in a breath, my heart jumping in my chest, telling me to run. “I can mask myself with any surrounding,” his voice whispered in my ear.
Jerking away from him, my chest quickly rose and fell as I assessed the field beside me. “Do that again, and I won’t hesitate to attack. You wanted to talk, so talk. What do you want from me, and how do you know that Samian and Kieran are my mates?”
Hale reappeared on the other side of me, his body so close to mine that I could feel the warmth from his skin. Stepping back, I pushed my dagger toward him, my eyes narrowing.
Hale stared down at the blade, unfazed by my magic. Flicking his eyes to mine, his face softened. “I’m not here to harm you. Lower your blade, and I will tell you everything you want to know.”
I lifted my blade higher, waiting to feel Salem stirring in my shadow, but nothing came. Salem remained silent, though I could feel him watching Hale, waiting for him to make one wrong move. Swearing, I slowly lowered my dagger to my side.
Hale smiled, giving me a slight bow before continuing. “I overheard you during your first talk with Cassia. You know, the time she told you that your fate was to die for your mates.”
Rolling my eyes, I huffed. “Why do you think I’m part of the rebellion?”
“I know Kieran is the leader of the rebellion. I also know that his closest friend is Samian, and that has never changed, even after Ambrose took control of the palace. And with you being both of their mates? I’m smart enough to put two and two together, Ms. Hart.”
My nose crinkled. “Just Sybil, please. What do you want from me?”
Hale’s throat bobbed, his eyes growing troubled. “I want you to get my brother out. I suspect the rebellion is preparing for the execution in two days. I want you to help him escape with the prisoners.”
“Why? I thought you were on Ambrose’s side? Why now?”
Hale shifted nervously, wincing slightly.
“We serve the crown,” he murmured, looking away from me and breaking a flower from its stem.
“The servants of the palace don’t get to pick and choose whom they follow.
If we could, most would have left already, but we have families to care for.
We don’t have the option of leaving. Almost everyone in my family is dead.
It’s just my brother and me now, and I refuse to lose him, too.
Ambrose is becoming mad, and he is only growing worse.
He used to keep up appearances with the servants, but now he attacks anyone who shows even a hint of distrust toward him.
It’s not safe for my brother to stay. He wasn’t made for this. ”
“What about you? Why not have both of you escape?”
“It’s too late for me. I have already done too many unspeakable things because of Ambrose. But my brother deserves more. I only care about his safety.”
“Sybil,” Samian called out through our bond, his voice filled with panic. “Where are you?”
Nodding, my eyes drifted to the yellow flower Hale held so carefully in his hand. My heart squeezed at how attentive he was with the delicate petals, and I couldn't stop myself from wanting to help him, too.
“Kieran hasn’t told me much because of my bargain with Ambrose, but I’ll talk to him and see what we can do to help your brother—and you.
” Hale’s hardened eyes snapped to mine. “Ambrose forced me to do unspeakable things, too, but that doesn’t mean that you don’t deserve to escape with your brother.
I can’t guarantee anything, but I can promise that I will push to help you both. ”
The sound of a door slamming open rang out behind Hale, making me flinch.
A soft smile rose on Hale’s lips, and he closed the distance between us, gently putting the flower behind my ear.
“Have Aster tell Ambrose that she needs more of the blood flower. He won’t say no to that request—can’t, actually. ”
“Why? What does the—”
Hale vanished from sight, my heart lurching from his sudden disappearance. “I can’t give you all my secrets, Sybil,” Hale whispered in my right ear. Gasping, I looked in that direction when I heard movement to my left. “Until next time.”
Samian was silent the entire way back to my room.
Each passing second sharpened the tension in his body until it seemed to seep into the very air.
I wouldn’t say I regretted meeting Hale, though, because honestly, I didn’t.
I knew Samian would have forced me into letting him come, and if he had, I wouldn’t have been able to talk to the mysterious male.
Hale would have stayed hidden, or worse, he might have gone to Ambrose with the information he knew about me.
However, as the air grew more charged, I couldn’t help the guilt that dug its claws into my heart.
Samian had a right to be angry with me. I didn’t even try to connect with him through our bond.
The thought never occurred to me while I read Hale’s letter—or while I ran through the dark passage to the field.
My mind was too lost in the what-ifs that I rushed out before I could stop myself.
But as Samian walked ahead of me, I caught the way his arms and back were stiff, how he took long strides to reach my room while I had to jog to keep up, and I cringed.
Samian opened my door, standing aside to let me enter first. I walked into the living area, my heart beating wildly in my chest, while I anxiously waited for Samian to chastise me. Bringing my hands in front of me, my fingers painfully intertwined, my knuckles turned white from my hold.
I heard Samian walk up behind me, stopping a few steps away. He silently waited for me to face him, and my stomach churned with what he would say next. Turning toward him, I bit the inside of my cheek as he stared down at me, anger flashing in his eyes.
“I can’t believe you would do something so stupid,” he breathed. His voice trembled with fury, and his face was hard. “Why? Why did you not wait for me to return? Why did you not tell me you were leaving?”
I opened my mouth to answer, but no words came out. They lodged in my throat, unwilling to budge as Samian’s jaw clenched tighter. I knew there was nothing I could say to help the situation. I left without telling anyone, and even I knew how stupid that was.
“I asked you a question, Sybil. I returned to this room, eager to get back to you, only to find it empty with a crumpled letter on the floor telling you to meet an unknown person outside of the palace.”
“The letter told me to go alone.” The words came out quickly, and my stomach twisted. I knew without a doubt that it was the wrong thing to say even before Samian’s face pinched further with fury.
The walls shuddered from Samian’s magic, and I winced, internally kicking myself for opening my mouth.
“The letter told you to go alone. That’s all you have to say?
” Samian asked, his voice lowering to a hiss.
“What if it were Ambrose? What if it was one of the lords tricking you?” Samian paused, his breathing becoming uneven.
“You were in danger! Don’t you get that? ”
My hands twisted nervously in front of me.
I did understand it, even as I made the journey to the field.
Those questions circled endlessly in my mind.
But one thought kept me from stopping. “I had to know,” I whispered weakly, glancing away from him, the weight of his anger too much.
“I had to know who it was and what they had to say. What if I stayed, or if you came with me, and the person went straight to Ambrose with that information? I didn’t want to risk it.
I couldn’t take that chance. Not with this. ”
“FUCK,” Samian bellowed, completely losing the restraint on his rage and making me flinch. My heart pounded as he turned his back on me. His head tipped back while he took a few deep breaths to calm himself.
My eyes burned, but I blinked back the tears, refusing to let him see them fall, to let him make me feel guilty for trying to protect him and the others.
Once his temper was in check, he turned to face me again.
“I’m trying so hard, Sybil. I will always be on your side, with whatever you need.
However, you keep going off on your own.
You keep putting yourself in danger without mine or Kieran’s knowledge.
I am working hard to keep Kieran from locking you away, even from keeping you out of the rebellion to protect you.
I keep telling him to trust you and your decisions.
But how can I keep doing that when you don’t let us in?
How can I keep telling him to trust you when you’re running off doing gods-knows-what? ”
“It’s not like I’m running around doing whatever I please,” I pushed out. “I did it twice. The rest of the time, you knew what I was doing and where I was. It’s not my fault that the other times went to shit.”
Samian glowered at me, his lips thinning, but I didn’t back down. He and Kieran were treating me as if I were a child, and I would not allow it to continue any longer.
“I’m strong enough that I can protect myself.
Even Salem wasn’t bothered by it. I am sorry that I didn’t tell you.
I recognize that I could have warned you before you found that letter, but you can’t stand there and pretend that I’m some helpless female.
I can do more than open a fucking door. You know I can do more than just follow Ambrose around like a mindless drone doing the shit he tells me to do.
I’m fighting back, whether you like it or not, even if it puts me in danger. Why can’t you both understand that?”
“Isn’t it a little too early for arguing?”
I blinked, looking behind Samian toward the deep voice. Daelan and Ivara stood just outside the office doorway, watching us with wide eyes, though amusement flashed through Daelan’s.