Chapter 27
Back at the First Garden, I met Eve, who wore a satisfied look on her face.
It seemed she'd been able to run at least some of the instance herself, given how pleased she looked.
Not that I blamed her. Even those who led liked to have their own moments of triumph and growth.
If they were good leaders, they often ended up bolstering and supporting others to their own detriment.
Eve wasn’t a great leader, but she still might have been cooped up due to the demon attacks.
"I assume things have gone well in my absence?” I probed.
"Splendidly," she said, sipping a glass of vibrant red liquid that nearly matched her lips. "Your Medusa is fantastic at what she does. I look forward to having her around in the future," Eve continued as if my joining her sect were a simple matter and an inevitability.
"That serpent hair of hers is for more than just looks. It has very well-trained senses," I confirmed.
"Yes, wonderful." She nodded absently, and I was fairly certain she hadn't heard a word.
"And your success? How has that been?" I plastered a smile on my face.
"Good. I was worried I'd grow too stagnant for the present times.
Getting out and doing a few runs myself really helped ease my mind.
I'll make sure you're suitably rewarded in the future," she added, her lips curling into a satisfied smirk at whatever idea of rewarding me had gone through her mind, though I was certain we had very different ideas about what would be ideal.
One of the reasons I'd brought Mul Branova to the city was Gloria's comment about gaining territory and needing someone to manage it. If it wasn't going to be Eve or the tribes, I was left with the nuns in the city or building my own group.
"Well then, since you've had your fun… what do you want to do next?" I asked Eve, knowing I had to let her help craft some of the plan.
"Continue letting your trap run," she answered, as if it were the most obvious thing in the world. "I find myself more supportive of your efforts after getting the chance to dive in myself again. We cannot allow ourselves to remain idle. The demons must be repelled."
I had a feeling Eve had been the strongest person in the area for too long. The arrogance coming off her was simply too great. And unfortunately, it was the kind that got too many people killed. But I was not going to be able to fix that now without burning bridges.
Eve continued the conversation before I could speak. "The next question is how we engage the tribes in helping us purge demons. After all, it would be good to use one force against another, like you running around the city pretending to be demons while killing people."
"We weren't killing people. We were killing demons while pretending to be them," I corrected her.
I had a few more things to say on that matter, but she'd also just handed me a fair bit of information.
She was clearly aware of what was happening in the city despite her dismissal of the nuns.
And that meant she had eyes there—an important piece of intelligence I could have used much earlier.
If she had eyes in the city, I could have gained more information from her network.
But I set that fact aside for the moment and narrowed my eyes.
"You could have told me far more about what was happening in the city," I stated.
"I could have," Eve said calmly. "You could have also told me what you intended to do, in which case I would have informed you of the folly you were making.
The demons have been fairly disorganized.
However, your latest antics have caused them to become far more cohesive, from what my scouts tell me.
I thought you were here to help me, Bran. "
"I am," I said, and she scowled.
"If you were, you would have given me more notice, more details of your actions, and come to me for my opinion before performing them." Eve clicked her tongue, as if disappointed in me. "You're welcome to stay, of course. However, I expect more communication in the future." She pursed her lips.
I reminded myself that even if she was framing me as less than forthcoming, she could have been a far better partner by giving me this information beforehand, if that's truly what she wished.
Only after the fact was she using her knowledge as a way to put herself above me.
This was a reaction to a perceived threat, not genuine disappointment from an ally.
For a second, I'd nearly fallen for the narcissist's playbook.
There was something in it that spoke straight to the human part of us all, put us on the back foot, and made it hard to stand against. Luckily, all I needed was to remind myself where the comments were actually coming from to help me regain my focus.
"Well then, there are several options," I said to Eve, standing tall and confident as I leaned back. "Of course, I could leave and let you handle the rest of this yourself. I'm certain you're more than capable. My coming here likely just disrupted your own plans."
"Yes, but then you won't get what you need from killing demons. Or do you expect me to believe you hunt them out of the kindness of your heart?" she pressed.
I shrugged. "Believe what you wish." I called her bluff.
She stood still for a long moment, staring at me before breaking her gaze and focusing on something in the distance. It was clearly a dismissal and not one that you’d give someone you wanted to work with.
***
The next day, Eve smiled at us. "Another group of insectoid demons has gone into the instance, but I've sent my own elite force in to deal with them." She grinned, looking satisfied.
I nodded slowly. "Well, I suppose that's something." I contemplated what that meant for us to do next, but I paused before letting my mind run away from me. "Was there something else you wanted?"
She was all smiles at the question. "I was thinking of going to join them, or at least making sure nothing too strong interferes."
"And you want me to protect your sect?" I asked, now fully understanding where this conversation was leading.
"Exactly so." Her smile was impossibly bright, considering the situation.
"Well, I won't say no," I said slowly. "However, what are you going to give me in turn?"
Eve paused, crossing her arms. "And here I thought you said the only reward you needed was killing demons."
"It still is. However, if I let you go kill all of them while I do nothing but watch, I'm not killing demons, am I?" I replied. It didn’t really matter to me, but I needed to make sure she didn’t start taking advantage of me. This was a fee for my time to make sure she respected it.
She paused and seemed to genuinely consider my statement. "I assume you have a location for where they came from?" she asked, suddenly seeming a touch too excited.
"Yes," I said slowly, and she nodded to herself as if that had answered the question.
"Then, as soon as I finish here, why don't you attack the demons where it would really hurt?" she asked.
I tilted my head and glanced at Merlin, then at Almeria, both close at hand. Their opinions were important. “We could.” I let my opinion start the conversation.
Almeria made a show of considering Eve’s suggestion.
"The second you hit their base, they'll be aware someone is hunting them," she said, playing devil's advocate rather than answering outright.
"Which means you'll be giving away your traps.
But you'll gain the element of surprise for your attack.
It's really a question of how many more rounds of demons you believe you can lure before they go on guard against your other activities. "
I narrowed my eyes playfully at Almeria. She'd done wonderfully with that explanation. It made Eve seem extraordinarily careless with her plan while framing everything in terms of what best suited my own purposes, completely ignoring any thought toward Eve's.
Which, in my mind, was perfect, and exactly how Eve needed to start seeing this relationship if I was going to make any headway towards making myself feel comfortable planting her in any leadership role here after I left.
It would be difficult to remove her, but even if I put another stabilizing force here in the region, Eve would remain a powerhouse.
"We're getting closer to losing the element of surprise if we keep the trap running much longer. I think it might be better to err on the side of keeping it, best we can." I gave my thoughts.
"Of course. That's what I intended," Eve said sharply, realizing she'd come off far too inconsiderate and regretting it.
"Then go, Eve," I said, waving a hand. "Do what you want. We'll go hit one of the demonic nests in the area and perhaps find a way to rid you of demons far more permanently."
She nodded slowly, her eyes narrowing towards Almeria in a faint challenge when she thought I wasn't looking.
I frowned, wondering if she actually thought she had a chance to pull me away from my women, then realized she definitely believed she could. She considered herself the most beautiful woman in the room, with all the benefits that came with such beauty.
The woman was an increasing pain in my rear.
I was going to have to bring her closer to reality at some point, and I was increasingly getting the feeling that time was coming closer.
And when that happened, she would not handle it well.
I would need to appoint some other leader in the region to counterbalance her. But that was a problem for another day.
***
"So we just wait?" Merlin asked as we watched Eve and her party depart to handle their part of the campaign against the demons.
I turned and smirked at her. "Nope. We're going to attack the hive at the same time."
"Without telling Eve?" Almeria pointed out. "Her sect could be at risk of reprisal while we're out."
I nodded slowly. They had valid concerns.
"My priority is making sure we get rid of the demons.
We've already been more than considerate of Eve's feelings.
" My relationship with her was looking shorter-term by the hour.
"With one of you here to keep watch, and Merlin's ability to bring us back, we shouldn't have any issues. "
Even though Nyx looked skeptical of the plan, Almeria seemed like it didn't matter much to her.
Though I was almost certain Almeria’s honest response, if pressed, would be to play devil's advocate and point out how it could go either way.
It wasn't as if I needed her to give me a straight answer; I'd already made up my mind.
It was just a matter of managing the consequences to make sure this all worked out the way I wanted.
After all, if I botched this hit badly enough, it could come back to bite me in more than a few ways.
I didn't think Eve was reckless enough to work with the demons. In my past life, she was a staunch enemy of the demons to the end. Between her and the tribes, they hadn’t even been able to get a foothold in the region.
But I also didn't want to find out the hard way if she would turn on me.
I was sure Simone would have something to say about the dangers of a woman scorned, and I'd be wise to listen.
But in this case, I was choosing decisive action over being wise. Not that the two were mutually exclusive, but in this instance, I was tired of waiting. I only had so much time, and I needed to make headway, regardless of the various players in the Amazon.
"All right, Merlin, Almeria, Nyx—” I started, only for Almeria to cut me off.
“Lead the way, Lord Bran, and we shall follow," she said instead, and the way she bowed sent ripples of pleasure through the dominant part of my mind. I’d been expecting planning or debate for what came next.
I grinned, only for a second, before squashing it and turning to the other tracker who'd followed the insectoids.