21. Chapter 21
Arwen
The drive back to Plethora is silent. I can barely contain my rage, and I know Maddox can feel it through the bond.
Kael. What a piece of shit.
The city blurs past again, ruin bleeding back into something polished. We pull up in front of a building that looks like it belongs in a different world. Ornate. Jewel-toned glass catches the light, throwing colors across the pavement in fractured patterns. Music pulses from somewhere inside.
A group spills down the sidewalk in front of us—laughing, dressed in sequins and tailored suits, arms slung around each other as they shout-sing lyrics I don’t recognize.
I watch them… Do they know? What their “king” does?
Do they care?
Inside, the lobby is just as excessive as the outside—marble floors, gold accents, chandeliers dripping light from above.
All I can picture is that old man’s face. By the time we step into the hotel hallway, the noise dulls.
Maddox grabs my hand, and I go to pull away. I failed him. I lost my control, showed my cards. All the things we aren’t supposed to do.
He doesn’t let me go. Just pulls me into his warmth, and my body settles, enveloped by his distinct smell of leather and sandalwood.
“I hate I couldn’t be the hero you needed me to be back there, Arwen.”
I look up at him questioningly. He’s not mad at me?
“Things are dangerous in my siblings’ territories. And I don’t have the control right now to change that,” he continues.
“Maddox, I don’t expect you to be a knight in shining armor everywhere we go. There are things neither of us can control. But I let my temper get the best of me. I ruined our chances of an alliance…”
“He wasn’t going to ally with us, Arwen,” he interrupts.
I blink, looking up at him. “What?”
“I could tell the moment we walked in,” he says with certainty in his voice. “Kael can act like he doesn’t care—like it’s all just entertainment and liquor and blood—but when it comes to his territory, his power always comes first.”
His expression hardens.
“His attitude tonight? That wasn’t indifference. It was confidence. If there were actual conversations to be had, he would have put that first.”
Something sinks in my chest. It was all for nothing. A waste of time. An ally off the table.
“He’s already made his choice,” Maddox finishes. “Amaya and Riven already got to him.”
I let out a sharp breath. “Then why did we stay?”
“Because we couldn’t show our hand. Couldn’t show we recognized his decision or that it bothered us. He needs to think we believe we have a chance at winning him over.”
Of course. And I just left everything on the table for show.
“I’m sorry, Arwen.”
He leans into me before I can move away, both hands coming up to frame my face. It feels warm and grounding.
His brow furrows as he studies me. “I’m sorry you had to see that,” he mumbles.
I swallow.
“But I guess it was going to happen eventually,” he continues. “This is Gluttony. Each sibling rules their territory how they see fit. And most of the time… that means cruelty.”.
“Punishments happen,” he adds. “Regularly.”
“Do you punish people?” I ask, barely above a whisper.
“Not if I can help it.” He exhales through his nose, but his gaze never leaves mine.
Not a no…
“But sometimes,” he continues, voice low, “power requires sacrifice. For the greater good.”
I flinch at that.
“Like I told you at the academy,” he says.
“I can’t let Gluttony fall into their hands.
I can make this world better, but it might not be pretty getting there.
You know who I am underneath it all. You’re one of the few people I let in.
But this is how I have to be if I’m going to get enough influence to change things. ”
“I don’t like it, but I can understand it,” I say, looking away, thinking of that man’s desperate plea to save his family and where it got him. A tear slips out before I can stop it.
Maddox leans in without hesitation, pressing a soft kiss to my cheek—right where the tear tracks down. The contact was gentle and so completely at odds with everything we had just left behind.
My eyes close for a second, wanting to slow down and relish this sweet moment. This contact.
I feel it again—soft lips brushing my other wet cheek.
Finally, I will myself to open my eyes.
He pulls back slightly.
“Please don’t cry,” he murmurs. I’ve never heard this tone before.
“You clearly find my tears delicious,” I say, my voice rough but steadier.
The corner of his mouth lifts. I draw a breath, forcing myself to hold on to that version of me—the one who doesn’t break.
“I know tonight didn’t go the way we planned,” he says, his thumb brushing under my eye, wiping away what’s left of it. “But I have a surprise for you.”
I narrow my eyes. “I don’t know if I’m in the mood for surprises.”
“Yeah,” he says cryptically, already taking my hand again, pulling me down the hallway. “I think you might be for this one.”
We pass door after door until he stops in front of one near the end. He pulls out a keycard, glancing at me once before sliding it in.
My stomach does a small, traitorous flip as the door clicks open and he pushes it inward.
“You better not tell me you’ve just been fucking your bonded this entire time.”
I freeze.
Then scream so loud Maddox flinches behind me.
“Tabby—”
I’m already moving, already across the room, wrapping my arms around her.
She feels like home.