They weren’t seriously trying to fix me up in an arranged marriage the way they had my father? And with someone I’d never even met?
And yet, as I stared at Thomas, as I stared at the Council as they retreated like the cowards they all were, I realized that that was exactly what they were doing.
Thomas took a few steps forward, smiling. “We realized last night that you, being a female, Ava, gave us an unusual advantage. One we have never had before. One we never even considered.”
Oh, my god. This is bad.
“Advantage?” I squeaked out. I cleared my throat, trying to cover up the crack in my voice as a cough.
I swallowed hard against the need to scream and kept my decorum as best I could. My mother had taught me how to fake being calm to get through a conversation, but at the moment I was seeing red and could barely imagine a different outcome other than a screaming match. I could never be as good as she was when it came to patience and keeping my face cool and collected while my insides were in turmoil. Bella, sure, but not me.
Thomas smiled and went on. “Yes. We have a chance to breed into the High Warlock line in a way we never have before. By introducing strong male genetics from one of the families.”
I forced down the lump in my throat, though bile tickled the back of my mouth. Breeding? As in horses... cattle. Dogs?
Was that how they saw me? As a breeding machine set to produce the next High Warlock for them? Like I was some kind of animal and the only thing of value I had to offer them was my vagina. My mind, my abilities, my spirit was nothing to them. I shouldn’t be surprised. Hell, I shouldn’t even be hurt. But I was.
“Oh. And which family does, uh...”—I couldn’t remember his name—“your choice come from?”
I didn’t actually care. I was trying not to lose it in front of these people. I couldn’t look at Tavlor. I knew that if I did, I would break down and the last thing I wanted was for everyone to see me cry.
My father answered before Thomas could.
“He’s Charity’s nephew,” he said. “Which will mean that they can breed in the same genetics they were hoping to with my marriage to Charity, but failed to do so.”
I glared at my father, unable to hold back my revulsion to such an idea.
“No fucking way.” My voice was barely a growl, barely a breath, and yet I hoped my eyes threw daggers at him.
My father glanced at Thomas, not responding to me or my glare.
“Give us a minute,” he said again.
I looked towards the too smug Council, then back to my father.
“You can’t be serious?” I said, barely able to get the words out.
Tavlor’s hand on my arm made me calm enough to hold it all together. I clenched my teeth, swallowed, and counted until the Council finally left the room.
Then my anger exploded. “I will not agree to this!”
I was panting, my chest rising and falling at a rapid rate. I stepped back, away from both of them. I couldn’t be near anyone right now.
“I cannot believe they’d try and pull this sort of shit! Especially... especially since they know how colossally they failed with you and my mother. Seriously, they think I’ll just fall in with this plan?”
My father looked up from his reading of my contract to glance at my face.
“They know you won’t and that’s why they’re doing it,” he said simply.
Tavlor was just standing by Matlock’s side, stoic and silent.
I wanted to smack him. Surely, he had something to say about this? Surely he wasn’t okay with me going off and marrying another man? Where was the anger, the passion I had seen from him last night?
“Aren’t you going to say anything?” I demanded.
Tavlor shook his head, but emitted a strange growling sound. I opened my mouth, ready to go off on him about how little he cared when I realized he was pressing his lips so tightly together they were white.
I looked down and saw that his nails were digging into the palms of his hands that I could tell they drew blood, was barely breathing because his body was so tense.