EMBER'S POV

Our conversation played over and over again in my head as I raced out of his astronomy room and it wasn't until I got to the front door that I remembered that It was Jean who had brought me here, and I was going to have to work back to my pack land.


"Fine then." I said and aggressively shoved the front door open. "just fine."

Tears filled my eyes as the cold night wind slapped against my cheeks, and on the inside, I felt incredibly hollow.

Everyone, absolutely everyone I'd ever loved had found a way to break my heart. Even the ones I had never imagined would do so.


"In his defense, he only partnered with Paris, to keep you safe." my wolf said and aggressively scrubbed at the tears that ran down my cheeks

"Please don't start." I bit out as I kept walking. " I told him. We had a discussion about it and I told him that it wasn't what I wanted. It would have been too much. And it's not enough that he still did it, he was so content with keeping it a secret from me."


"What should he have done? Announced it to you over and over again when you were obviously not interested in the idea of it?" she asked,

"I don't know. Please don't question me right now. I don't feel okay."

"Fine, I won't question you. But at least accept his possible reasons. At least try to see things from his point of view. Because he didn't lie when he said he did all that he did for you."

"I don't care about that right now. Leave me alone." I said angrily. I wanted to punch something. I could not believe Jean. I could not believe the situation I had found myself in.

I felt horrible. Lied to and horrible. And between Paris and Jean, I wasn't sure who I hated the most right then.

"I thought you'd be spending the night," Axel said when I got home, and one look at my face had his face contorting in rage,

"What did that son of a gun do to you?" he asked, with malice and vengeance in his voice, and that was all it took to get me undone,

"Oh, Axel." I said and went into his arms, "It wasn't paranoia. It wasn't paranoia."

"hush now. Hush." he said, when I began to whimper, and ran gentle strokes down my hair, "do you want to talk about it?" he asked after I had grown quiet.

I sniffed and took a step back before nodding softly,

"He's been working with Paris. All of this time, even after he asked me and I said no, he's been working with Paris to find the person who sent those three men. As if that wasn't enough, he almost murdered the man behind the metal that dropped on Paris."

"the metal was supposed to drop on you, am I correct?" he asked and I nodded,

"then it seems to me that he's only been trying to keep you safe. Even if it means going through means that you particularly abhor."

"I've told home time and again that I'm fine. And if he didn't understand that, partnering with Paris wasn't the way to air those views. "

Axel sighed, and shrugged, "You and I don't know the things our father has done in the name of keeping us safe. And I can bet anything that it's been a whole lot, and not all of them are very cute. Will you fault him for any of that?"

"No, of course not. He is the king."

"who has a queen, a luna, who might not always agree with him? That hasn't killed their relationship, has it?" Axel asked, his voice the epitome of reasoning. I didn't want to be reasoned with. I wanted my views aired and for someone to feel the same anger and pain I felt.

I wasn't going to get any of that.

"I don't want to hear this," I said angrily and Axel smiled,

"I can tell," he said and put his arm around me, led me to the kitchen, made me sit, and got me a glass of water.

"Thank you," I said and drank, and when tears stung my eyes and threatened to fall, I drank so more water and tried to blink them away,

"I don't think I can go on. "I blurted out. I wasn't sure what made me say it exactly, but I did and the deed had been done and had my brother turning to me in surprise,

"What did you say?" he asked and my lower lip wobbled,

"I can't begin to explain to you how it's been, dealing with pain after pain. Enduring, letting go, holding on. All those tumultuous emotions coming after me, again and again. I think this is the last straw, Axel. I can't anymore." I said and he walked toward me, placed his hands on my shoulders, and searched my misty eyes,

"Now you listen to me, and listen good, Ember. You are, by far, the strongest woman I know. And I'm not talking about physical strength alone. If anyone can brave through the darkest parts of their lives and come out at the top, it's you. So none of that talks about cannot, and not being able to. I won't accept any of that. Not tonight, not ever." Axel said firmly, and part of me was steadied, but the other part, a much dominant part longed to lay in my bed and cry for the longest time."

But I nodded, "Yeah." I said, and swiped at the tears that fell nonetheless, "Yeah."

It wasn't exactly a restless night, as I had expected it would be. I did actually sleep, and I dreamt of metal rods and mangled bodies. So, not so much as a restless night as it was a night filled with terrible dreams. So when I woke up the next morning, I was more than happy that night.

And somewhere between my early morning run and breakfast, I decided it was time to pay Paris a visit.

PARIS'S POV

"Why the hell are you calling me this early in the morning? I said into my phone, my voice a groggy mess,

"Just a heads up, I told Ember about our partnership," Jean said, sounding impatient.

Now that woke me right up.

I sat up way too quickly in bed And drew my brows together.

"What did you just say?" I said, my eyes a bit more free from sleep, but I wanted to be sure that what I had just heard was not merely sleep-induced,

"Ember knows we've even worked together. " he said, and this time he sounded weary, "I don't know if she'll come to you about it or not. But she didn't exactly seem pleased by the idea."

"Now, what in heaven's name made you do that?"

"she was on to me and I got tired of lying to her," he said and I rubbed at my eyes, suddenly tired as well.

He didn't know if Ember would come to me.

Well, I knew. And like hell she would.

"I can understand. She's like a dog with a bone when she has a mind to it." I said and blew out a breath.

"Well, I guess I can be on my way now. Just wanted to pass along vital information."

"Thank you," I said and he ended the call.

"Oh dear God." I sighed as I looked out the window.

Surely it would be best if I got about starting my day. Because I had a flaming dragon on the loose. And I knew she was going to burn.