What finally convinced them, however, had nothing to do with me and everything to do with the endless suffering of our people at the hands of human armies.
A platoon of human soldiers had attacked a small village in the dead of night, murdering everyone. Men, women, children. Pulled them half-asleep from their beds, dragged them outside into the freezing temperatures, and nailed them to their homes. We found their bodies days later, the look of terror and screams frozen into their features.
I swallowed hard against the bile rising in my throat at the memory.
We needed leverage. There was no other choice. We were running out of time and our people needed help.
I pored over every word I’d heard the past few days just to be sure I hadn’t missed a single detail, silently pleading for there to be anything that would overshadow this, provide a viable opportunity elsewhere, hashing and rehashing every conversation… but there was none.
This was it. The frail human girl.
I released an exasperated laugh. At least by taking his only daughter, one he had been hiding her entire life, I would cut Evander deep. To make it even sweeter, this was probably the exact reason she was hidden and under guard—yet, I had found her so easily, completely by accident.
Maybe I would kill her, too, to exact revenge for every Fae we’d lost at his command. An eye for an eye. I would love to see the look on his face when I dropped her lifeless body from the sky, letting it land at his feet. A dark grin pulled at my lips, even as a small, small part of me was sickened by the idea.
The sun peeked over the horizon as I landed gracefully and quietly back at the encampment, dimly lit with the yellow haze of sunrise. Feeling slightly more confident now that I had a rough plan, I headed for my general’s tent, stalking down the muddy pathway lined with dozens of dirty tents on either side. Straight ahead was Doran’s tent, candlelight pouring out from the open flap, indicating they were already awake and meeting.
Entering through the flap door, I found General Doran and all five of his commanders surrounding the rectangular table, overlooking a map of the continent. They were motioning to various points along the border, discussing weak spots. At my entrance, every face snapped to me with surprise.
“My King, we didn’t expect you back so soon. Have you gathered the information we need? What have you learned?” Questions bombarded me all at once. Holding my hand up, they stopped immediately, awaiting my reply.
“The first three days were a complete waste. I learned nothing from the humans at court,” I explained and their faces fell. “However, just a few hours ago, I learned that General Evander has a daughter. One that he is extremely partial to, taking great measures to keep her hidden in his estate. Before tonight, I didn’t even know he was married, much less had a child…” I paused, leaning over the map to find his estate, hidden just south of the king’s castle in a discreet village.
“How does this help us, sire? Surely, she is kept under lock and key. It would be almost impossible to get to her,” one commander challenged. Under normal circumstances, he would be right.
“I know how to get her. By random luck, she appeared at the pub this evening and I followed her home,” I explained, carefully leaving outwhyI followed her. “It seems his daughter has a taste for breaking the rules. I watched her climb up a vine outside her window at the general’s estate, so I know exactly which room is hers and how to get inside.
“I plan to use her as leverage to bribe the general, force him to lay down arms, and evacuate Ravaryn. Based on the extensive lengths he went to keep her safe thus far, I would assume he’d do just about anything to get her back in one piece. I’m positive he’ll be able to subdue Adon long enough for our people to rest,” I said, silently pleading for it to be true. “Andfor us to gather forces.
“Once we take her, we’ll have roughly a day before the general realizes she’s missing and sends out a hunting party. I believe he’ll search the immediate towns first. With her history, I’m betting they’ll think she just snuck out. But once they realize she’s not there, they’ll come after us hard and fast. So we must be prepared to move as soon as I return with her.”
They nodded in agreement, moving about to begin readying plans. One commander didn’t move, though, the look of hesitation plain on his face.
“What is it, Lee?”
“How do we know he won’t immediately attack Ravaryn with a vengeance? To get her back, I mean.”
I paused at the question. It wasn’t something I’d considered before, not that I’d had the time to, but the answer was in the forefront of my mind, and I hated it with every bone in my body.
“Unfortunately, the human is my mate.”
There was a collective gasp and looks ranging from pity to outrage.
“How is that possible? You cannot mate with a human!” an elder commander shouted. I shot him a glare, stopping him in his tracks. “My apologies. I am just stunned, we all are. This has never happened before, to my knowledge.”
“I have never heard of it either…” Doran said, looking at me curiously. “But back to the plan, how will that help us?”
“I’m going to claim her, mark her, and then I’ll be able to find her anywhere. He’ll never be able to hide her from me. If he ever attempts to go against his word, I’ll find her and slit her throat. I’ll make it abundantly clear that I will not give him a second chance.”
There was complete silence in the tent as they all stared at me. Doran stepped closer, meeting my gaze with hesitation.
“Rogue… you cannot mark her and give her back. You will have essentially… given yourself to her. You know that. You will never be with anyone else. Your heart, among other parts, will belong to her,” Doran whispered.
I had known that—everyone did—but I still inwardly winced at his words.
“It’s what’s best for Ravaryn. We don’t have another choice. I will sacrifice this for the good of our people,” I affirmed and he stepped back, giving a swift nod of his head. “I will take her tonight. Have the encampment packed and the soldiers ready to move when I return.”
Turning on my heel, I strode out of the tent. Just outside of the encampment, I took a deep breath, snapped my wings out, and thrust into the sky, letting the weightlessness and wind envelop me.