Chapter 36
Ardor had been quiet.
Silent.
Bridger should have known something was wrong. The territory known for its fire had always been the rowdy type.
Smeared across the wall in blood at the entrance of Vincere was a message for Bridger.
Their blood is on your hands.
Welcome back to the rebellion, Commander.
Marlena signed with a heart.
Bridger’s knees buckled, collapsing to the floor as silent grief seized his body. Blood seeped through the thin material of his pants to the skin at his knees—it was still warm.
Lifting his hands, Bridger rubbed his fingers over his thumbs. The blood wasn’t tacky yet.
He’d almost made it in time.
He’d done this.
He’d sentenced them to death.
He could have saved them.
He should have been here to save them.
Why would they come back? I should have been here. I should have been here to protect them.
Not between Vega’s legs…
Bridger let out a pained cry that rocked all of Vincere.
The what-ifs ran rampant. He’d been tasked by the gods to keep his people safe. It was the oath he’d taken as the commander of Tolevarre… and look at what he’d let happen.
At the sake of doing what he knew was right, he had sentenced nearly a thousand of Tolevarre’s best soldiers to their untimely death.
Whose body was he going to find when he looked through the carnage?
Bridger stood on wobbly legs, feeling like his body wasn’t his own.
Bodies of his soldiers littered the common room, the mess hall, and training pits. People lay in their beds, with varying stages of awareness on their faces.
Some must have tried to flee, lying on the floor close to their beds. Many’s eyes were wide open, probably waking just before their slaughter.
The bodies were still warm. Bridger had missed the massacre by no more than a half hour.
Trailing down the hall to his room, Bridger swung the door open and peeked inside. Nothing was out of place.
When he reached Meyer’s door, Bridger had to pause, fighting against the roll of his stomach. He swallowed down the bile crawling up his throat and twisted the knob, toeing it open.
Meyer’s room was untouched.
Bridger dropped to the chair by the door, hiding his head in his hands. “Meyer’s alive,” he said out loud, even though he knew it might not be true.
Meyer was in danger, regardless. Hopefully he knew it and had time to get out of Marlena’s warpath.
She would stop at nothing and no one. Killing the bonded wasn’t possible—but she’d kill everyone else to prove a point, leaving no one but the five gods alive.
Bridger checked every room, searching for anyone who might have survived.
Marlena left no one. She probably did it one by one, making the others watch.
Bridger was the only heartbeat left in Vincere.
He physically hurt, aching for the lives lost. These were the feelings he’d learned to block out when he first left Vega—the pain he felt every single day knowing what he’d done to the only girl he’d ever loved…
He would never be able to hide behind the man he’d pretended to be again. His shield would never be strong enough to push her out twice.
Bridger’s heightened senses caught the sound of boot steps coming from overhead. He jumped from the seat in Meyer’s room and sprinted down the hall to the stairwell. He took the steps two at a time and flung the door leading to the next level open.
The door stopped short, slamming into someone, followed by an unmistakable deep groan of pain.
“Owww,” Halo whined, rubbing the already forming bump on his forehead.
Seeing a living person felt like he’d been pulled from the undertow of furious waters.
“Halo, thank fucking gods.” Bridger let out a breath and pulled the young man into an unexpected hug. He stood only a few inches shorter than Bridger but was significantly smaller in stature.
Halo went rigid, patting Bridger on the back awkwardly.
Bridger tensed and backed away. “Did you just pat me on the back?”
Halo nodded, swallowing hard. “Yes. I-you caught me off guard. You don’t hug people!”
Bridger cleared his throat and flexed his fists at his side. “I’ve had a hand in training every single soldier who calls Vincere home, and now they’re all dead. Excuse me for being relieved to find someone I care about alive.”
“Who’s all dead?” He asked softly, peeking around Bridger’s shoulder like he’d be able to see them all through the walls.
Bridger’s relief didn’t last long, suspicion taking its place at Halo’s response. “What are you doing here, Halo?” He gripped the hilt of the dagger sheathed on his thigh.
Halo noted Bridger’s hand placement, having the sense to look nervous.
“I’ve been here. I was one of the many who stayed behind when Meyer gave us the option.
He said Vincere was yours and anyone who didn’t want to fight beside you was to leave and head to Fortis with him. They’ve been gone for a few days now…”
All of Vincere was Bridger’s. Every single slaughtered soldier had chosen to fight with Bridger and had been killed for it.
Marlena took out the rebellion’s forces—all by herself.
“Why weren’t you here during the attack?” Bridger pressed.
He liked Halo, saw a piece of himself—the unwanted kid he’d once been—inside him, but that didn’t mean he couldn’t betray Bridger.
Betrayal could come from anyone. Bridger knew that better than most.
Halo didn’t hesitate to answer. “I’ve been out looking for you.
When Meyer said you’d decided to stay with the rebels, he wouldn’t tell me where you were.
” He wasn’t stumbling over his words like he did when he was nervous or lying.
“Is it true? You’re with the rebels?” he asked, his eyes void of any distinct emotion.
“I’m with Vega.”
Vega.
“Fuck!” He finally realized his shields were up. They’d been up this whole time, and he was just now paying attention to it.
Halo jumped, reaching for a dagger strapped at his side. “What?!”
Bridger ignored him, opening his shields. “Vega…” He stood locked in place, waiting to hear her reply. “I…” He started to apologize. “They’re all dead.”
He started to panic as the seconds ticked by without a response. “Vega,” he said with an urgent plea.
The door was open and unlocked. She should be able to hear him, should be able to respond.
“Are you okay?” Halo asked, taking a step towards Bridger.
“Yes, no. I don’t know. Vega and I can talk to each other… internally.” Because what other way was he supposed to explain it? “She’s not responding.”
He reached for her again, this time attempting to slip behind her eyes to see where she was—to see if she was okay.
The door was open, but her mental shields were locked tight. Why? What was she trying to keep out? “Shit. She’s at the border of Demuto and Pax right now, meeting with their leader.”
“Demuto has a… leader?” Halo asked, stunned.
Before he could get Halo up to speed, Bridger felt the shift in the room’s temperature, his spine going stiff in warning.
He spun around to find Marlena leaning against the wall only a few feet away, inspecting her nails.
She was covered in blood, dressed like Bridger hadn’t seen her in years.
Her curves were hugged by the well-fitting material of Tolevarre’s best fighting gear, daggers lining every holster on her chest and a sword strapped to her back.
“You and Vega are telepathic. Fascinating,” she hummed, sounding sincerely interested. “Tell her I said hello, would you?” Marlena fluttered her fingers in a delicate hello and pushed herself off the wall.
Bridger said nothing, glaring while fantasizing about all the ways he should be able to kill her.
“Cat got your—” She held her finger up, chuckling to herself.
“Sorry, Kitten got your tongue?” Marlena acted as if she might choke on the nickname.
“You betray me and then have nothing to say for yourself?” Faking a sigh, she took another step towards Bridger.
“At least I let you dig your own grave years ago. When the time comes, I’ll bury you in here with the people you let die. ”
“Do you like hearing yourself speak? Is that it?” His tone held no humor—this wasn’t the normal joking, ready-to-get-under-Marlena’s-skin type of question Bridger was usually a fan of.
Marlena’s eye twitched at his response, forcing Bridger’s mouth to tick into a small smile.
“Bridger, De—”
The sound of Vega’s voice flooded Bridger’s body with relief. “Marlena’s here,” he cut her off.
The sound of Vega’s inhale echoed in his mind. “Get out of there,” she pleaded. The desperation in her voice almost made him listen, but he wouldn’t run from Marlena. Never again.
“She can’t hurt me. I need a minute,” he told Vega.
“I take it you didn’t like my handiwork?” Marlena faked a deep pout. “I told Meyer to handle this for me, but apparently he’s too busy dealing with defectors fleeing Fortis.” She eyed him. “You’ve caused quite the uproar.”
More soldiers were coming, meaning Marlena’s numbers continued to drop.
“When will you stop killing people?” Bridger spat.
“Never.” She smiled a real fucking smile—one he remembered seeing her do when they were young, when she might have actually been happy. “I will continue to wipe this world clean of the people who defy me.”
“What happens when you have no one left to kill?” he questioned.
Marlena’s lips puckered, and she looked to the ceiling. As if she had to contemplate at all… “I guess I’ll have to find a new world to destroy.”
Halo stayed behind Bridger, which is exactly where he wanted him—as far from Marlena as he could be.
“You should know by now I won’t stop until all of you are dead.” Marlena shrugged. “It’s a shame you chose to join them, Bridger. After everything you’ve worked for.” She motioned to the hall they stood in. “You’re just going to give it all up for Vega.”
“Death doesn’t scare me, and neither do you,” he told her honestly.
A laugh bubbled from the pit of Marlena’s stomach. “Of course not, but you’re weak enough to let the death of others affect you. I’ll make sure it’s you who watches them die before I give you the satisfaction of following them to the underworld.”
“I’ll see you down there,” he preened with a rotten smile.
Marlena took a step back and looked around at the blood-splattered walls, inhaling the smell of death more noticeable by the minute. “Your betrayal caught me off guard, I’ll admit. But what doesn’t surprise me is that you are here… leaving the others to fend for themselves against my newest curse.”
Bridger hid his confusion at her words, digging in deeper to throw her off.
“They do say practice makes perfect, and from what I’ve seen, you need it.
I don’t think you’re as strong a cursemaker as you’d like to think you are.
” He faked a wince, as if he’d told a good friend he hated the outfit they wore.
“I was young and acted on a whim.” It wasn’t often anyone heard Marlena admit to being wrong.
“I hadn’t expected Vega to retaliate with a summoning of her own.
That was a mistake I’ll have to live with for the rest of my immortal life.
” Marlena disappeared and reappeared with a knife to Bridger’s throat.
He didn’t move. “I didn’t make a mistake with the curse on Demuto. ”
Halo flinched forward, readying to draw the dagger at his side.
“Don’t fucking move, Halo,” Bridger warned, deciding not to take any chances by throwing a shield around him. It kept him in and Marlena out.
The blade bit into his skin, blood trickling down his neck in a warm stream. “Blood oaths aren’t curses.”
Marlena leaned in close to Bridger’s ear, speaking loud enough for only him to hear.
“Let me let you in on a little secret… The shifters didn’t take a blood oath.
That was just the lie I told them.” She leaned back, meeting his eyes.
“I repurposed the power of the curse on Demuto, using the blood of the Fera line to extend its reach to every descendent of the goddess Diana. Vega stole my power to shift, and that’s okay, because every single shifter is now mine to control. Whenever and however I want.”
“Vega, get out of there. It’s a trap,” Bridger blurted.
“Wh-what?” she stuttered. “We can’t leave y—”
There was no time for Vega to argue. Bridger interrupted her again. “Marlena is coming, Vega! She is coming and she lied about the blood oath. It’s a curse. She cursed the shifters. Get. Out. Of. There!”
Marlena dropped the dagger from Bridger’s throat. “Halo, it’s not too late to come with me, my sweet boy. It’d be a shame to lose a power like yours.” Her eyes twinkled with promise. “I’ll give you everything you’ve ever dreamed of and more.” Marlena held out her hand for him to take.
Halo recoiled. “I’d rather die.”
Bridger breathed a sigh of relief. He’d been right about Halo—there was good in him.
“That can be arranged,” Marlena said before taking a step and disappearing, slipping through the cracks of Tolevarre. Once the rising puff of smoke was gone, the carnage she’d left behind was the only proof she’d been there at all.