Page 75 of Their War
“It is not I who threatens you. Titania threatens the existence of us all. I am simply asking you to stand up against her in the name of Avalonia by helping me. Grant me access to the water so that I may defeat the true threat.”
“And why should we trust you? How can we know that what you speak is the truth?”
Unsure how to answer this question, I turned to Brannoc in question. He stepped forward then, speaking out. “Brothers and Sisters, what she speaks is the truth. I have been in the world and have seen the signs with my own eyes. I have fought against Titania unsuccessfully for decades. Never have we been this close to defeating her before, and never before have we had the opportunity that Avalonia is granting us now. She brought me into Rhowyn's life, granting Rhowyn to me as my True Mate, so that I may help her in her quest.”
Gasps resounded again; murmurs rumbled in a low roar as everyone discussed his bomb. My own heart pinched and soared all at the same time when he called me his mate. I knew he was just using this as a way to help Arryn and I on our quest, but it still didn't make it hurt any less.
“Is this true?” a Raven called out, clearly addressing Chieftain Revna.
“I have seen it with my own eyes. What he says is true. They are True Mates.”
“Show us,” a Raven demanded.
Looking to Brannoc, he nodded once. Sighing, I closed my eyes and focused on the sensation that I'd come to know well, feeling as my body turned to smoke. Darting around the room so that everyone could see me in this form, I finally settled back in the spot I had been standing before, releasing my hold on the magic with an exhalation.
The entire room was silent in shock before finally erupting into too many questions, none directed toward me. The Chieftain banged her staff on the floor, the knocking sounding out like a gavel as she tried to regain order from the room. “Silence!” she yelled, finally getting through to them. When they'd settled, she continued, “I know not what this means for us moving forward. What I do know is that Avalonia has indeed blessed them with a True Mate bond, and it is not our place to question that. What we do need to decide is whether or not we grant access to Avalonia's waters.”
Turning to me, she added, “Thank you for your petition, Rhowyn; however, I must now ask that you depart us while we make our decision. We must discuss things amongst ourselves. We will let you know when a decision is made.”
I bowed once to her in acknowledgment before turning to face the other Ravens. “Thank you for your time today. I appreciate you listening to me, and I pray that you will do Avalonia's will.”
I bowed to them all before exiting the room with my head held high. Ramund followed Brannoc and I out, leading us back to our room. Or rather, our nice prison cell, seeing as we hadn't really been allowed to go anywhere without an escort. Dress it up all they wanted, I was not trusted and was being treated like the outsider I was.
I could only hope that by speaking with me today that they'd believe me. If they didn't grant us access, I didn't know what I'd do. I knew Lennox and Callum would say we should steal what we needed for the greater good. Arryn and Baer would be on the side of diplomacy. And Brannoc would... hell, I didn't know what he would do because I obviously didn't know him well enough.
I had done my best, trusting in my gut and Avalonia to get me through that meeting. There was nothing else that could be done. So now, all we could do was wait.
Chapter Forty Four: Arryn
“How much longer is this going to take?” Callum grumbled, pacing back and forth near the logs where we had chosen to rest. Rolling my eyes, I tried my best to ignore him, my patience all maxed out. We'd been here since watching Brannoc and Rhowyn walk off with the Ravens.
“Maybe we should just go. I'm sure we could track where they went. This is taking too long, and we have no way of knowing if they're okay or not,” Lennox chimed in, his anxiety chipping further away at my hold on my composure.
“We know she's fine. We'd feel it in the bond.” Baer tried reassuring them.
“Yeah, but you felt what we felt this morning, right? She's miserable. Something happened to her, and I don't know if I can sit here any longer. What if she needs us?” Lennox continued.
“I'll kill whoever hurt her,” Callum growled again, his eyes flashing from amber to gold, his wolf pushing to break free. The last thing we needed was to have him on a rampage.
“Enough!” I snapped. “We can't interfere. We need access to the water, and we can't jeopardize that chance because we're insecure fools.” I looked at each one of them. “We wait here until she lets us know she needs us. She's not in any danger, so we must trust that she knows what she's doing. That she can handle things as a Queen would.”
“He's right,” Baer chimed in. “If we run in there now, it'll only show that we don't trust her to handle things. It undermines her authority, and she won't like that.”
“Ugh! This sucks!” Lennox lamented, throwing himself backward to lie on the ground. Dramatic as ever. “I hate waiting.”
“You and me both,” Callum grumbled, apparently his wolf calmed at the thought of Rhowyn's ire.
Footsteps sounded out on the forest floor, all of us freezing as we listened. When the sound grew louder, I turned around to search out the source. There. Just barely visible among the trees.
We'd had to be careful about what we discussed, knowing that the Ravens were most likely in their invisible smoke form, listening closely to what we said. We refused to give up any information like amateurs. Now, they advanced in their fae form, which meant that there was another purpose for their approach. The guys all stood, flanking me as a form of support and delineating me as the leader of our group.
I wasn't sure when that had happened, but I wasn't surprised. Like Brannoc, I prided myself on my logic and cool-headed approach. Baer wanted nothing to do with the authority or power, as evidenced by the fact that he had shunned his role as heir to his parents’ lands, choosing instead to adventure. Lennox had spent too much time under the Queen's thumb, never having been allowed the opportunity to explore himself or his own conscience. And Callum. Well, he was a different beast entirely. He had been raised to inherit the lands of Autumn, to rule his people with honor and dignity, but after everything fell, he had been tortured for too long. The normally passionate and fiery nature that could be tamed had turned into something that was now explosive and raging in his fury. Understandably so. I didn't know if I could have reacted with the same dignity for as long as he had, but it had changed him.
Brannoc, on the other hand, was too independent, too stoic and logical. Though, lately, he had seemed to be flailing as he developed feelings for Rhowyn, which only made him spiral when he'd found out he was mated to her. I hadn't been confident with him being alone with her in this quest, but there had been no other option. However, there was no way I would voice my concerns about Brannoc's erratic behavior with the guys. They wouldn't understand that despite his profession and nature, there was no way he'd ever betray me or hurt Rhowyn. He'd rather die first.
Which just left me. I was the only one remaining that was able step up and take on the role, same as every other instance in my life. It was how I'd ended up as the leader of the rebellion, by being the best choice out of the options we had. Granted, I had a natural ability to read people and their motivations, which allowed me the opportunity to inspire them and keep them focused on the mission. It helped me cut off any problems before they could even arise, just by being proactive with a guiding word here and there.
I was fair and honorable, my word was my bond, and I didn't ask anything from anyone that I wasn't willing to do myself. All things that my father had drilled into me, training me to eventually become the Captain of the Queen's Guard, a position he had once held until Titania had been twisted by her power. In a fit of suspicion, she had executed my father as a traitor when he’d petitioned the court for assistance for our village. Clearly a false accusation because anyone who knew the man knew that he lived by the rule of law, believing that the highest form of honor was to serve faithfully.