Page 46 of Claimed By Brothers

I’m angry. Angry at Amber, angry at Binzen, angry at everyone, and most ferociously angry with myself. I should have seen something like this coming. Someone was bound to falter, someone was destined to be the weaker link, but I never imagined it would be my own brother. Our son was taken, and now we risk losing everything, including the woman we love.

My work up to this point feels futile.

As soon as I came back from my trip, I found our town in turmoil. My own people couldn’t bear to look me in the eyes as they directed me to my house, where Binzen waited. As soon as he told me what had happened—including his insane plan to trick Umok into giving him a starship, I understood how treacherous love can be. Just the other day, I’d felt a pang of guilt over not wanting to let go of Amber. I’d felt bad for loving her so hard that I would never set her free. Not anymore. Had I stayed, had I resisted Binzen’s softness for just a day longer, I might have avoided all of this.

Alas, it is done.

The past cannot be changed. Our decisions have led us here, and now we must deal with the fallout. My chest hurts with every breath I take as I think of Valen. He may be too young to understand his predicament, too young to be scared of what might happen to him if we fail to get him back—but he must miss us. He must miss Amber, too. I shake the thought away as I escort my brother to the cages on the plateau’s edge just a few yards south of the steps leading down to the river. We built the cages many years ago for any prisoners we might have to take, though we’ve rarely kept anyone in them.

“I didn’t want to have to do this,” I tell Binzen as Simy and his brother Shay lock him in one of the cages. It’s a shameful sight that cuts me to the bone, but what other choice do I have? “My own brother betrayed us,” I add. “That cannot be dismissed.”

“I understand,” Binzen says. “I’m not fighting you on this.”

“Izzo, we should talk about this more,” Simy tries to convince me, but I raise my hand to silence him. All he and Shay can do is take a couple of steps back and keep their heads down.

“You were with my brother when he conspired with Umok the other night,” I reply bluntly. “Be thankful you’re not occupying a cage of your own.”

“Izzo, please, listen to me,” Binzen interjects. “I accept whatever punishment you wish to exact upon me. I own this mess, but we still have to get Valen back.”

“Don’t you think I know that?” I hiss, baring my fangs at him. My blood boils with rage as I struggle to keep my composure, not wanting anyone to doubt my ability to lead them in what’s ahead. “I brought the clans of the Fire Tribe together. They’re ready to fight with us against our enemies. They are ready to fight to the death so we can keep the humans. What do you think they will say when they hear that you and Amber put us in a precarious position? A position, I might add that will make them less eager to fight.”

Binzen’s grip on the black iron bars tightens to the point where his knuckles are almost pink. “I didn’t mean for any of this to happen. But you cannot let your anger get the better of you, brother. Imprison me if you must but do it after we get Valen back.”

“You are disgraced,” I bitterly remind him. “You were trying to barter a deal with Umok. A sworn enemy. A beast who brings shame to our whole species with every breath he takes. You failed to consider that the bastard was hatching plans of his own since before you approached him. And for what? To send Amber home to Earth? After everything we’ve been through, after every conversation we had on the topic after I begged you to trust me for once in your life. Look at us!”

“We can’t keep her here if she’s miserable,” my brother says.

“You should’ve waited for me to come back. You shouldn’t have gone off on your own. You left us with a fatal opening, and now Umok has the upper hand. He has our son!” I snarl, shaking in every single bone. “Alana’s son. Our child, dammit!”

“I know. Not a minute goes by that I don’t fault myself for it. I was foolish. You’re absolutely right. But you have to let me try to fix this.”

“There is no fixing this,” I reply. “We’re going to war against the Sky Tribe. If you wish to help, pray to the suns that the other clans in our tribe will still be willing to fight once they learn what you did. Pray we survive and pray that I manage to bring our son back alive. It’s all you can do.”

“They will not follow you alone into battle. We should stick together and show them Umok hasn’t torn us apart.”

“I can’t trust you anymore.” I feel awful for saying this, but it’s the truth. The most uncomfortable and most painful truth I’ve ever had to utter. My skin burns, my muscles hurt, and my stomach is in a knot as I try not to think of our son’s life dangling from Umok’s filthy fingers. “And if I can’t trust you, how could we ever lead anyone into battle? No, our people need to know that at least one of us has retained enough clarity to see this through. It’ll have to be me.”

“Izzo, what are you doing?” Amber rushes over from the riverside. Her breath is ragged from having run up the steps. The fear in her blue eyes stabs me deep—but I don’t have the energy left to soothe her, even though all I want right now is to hold this woman in my arms and find comfort in her sweet soul. “You can’t lock Binzen up! You can’t punish him for any of this! He was just trying to help me.”

“And therein lies the problem,” I reply with a flat tone. “He was trying to help you, Amber. He was failing in his duties as a husband, as a father, and as a Fire Tribesman. You couldn’t let it go, could you? You couldn’t let Earth go, even though you have already found new roots here.”

Amber stills, her shoulders sag, and she looks down in shame. I wish I didn’t have to say these things, but they’re truths that need to be uttered. They each carry the blame for what happened, but I think I’m the guiltiest of them all. Deep down, I should have seen this coming. I refused to believe Binzen would be so selfless. I refused to believe Amber would be so selfish. Our father taught us to be leaders. We have failed in our most basic of duties.

“Please, Izzo. This is wrong,” she insists.

Not that I blame her. She is one of the most persistent and ambitious creatures I’ve ever met. It’s a shame she let all that get in the way of us. Deep down, I’m hurt. That is my pride speaking, fueled by anger. I’m well aware, and I know I should stop. But just like Binzen let his love for Amber blind him, I’m letting my love for her blind me differently. It’s willful madness, and it’ll pass. For now, however, I’m proving a point and not budging a single inch. They both need to learn an important lesson here.

“You need Binzen by your side, not locked up like a common criminal. He’s Valen’s father, too. You shouldn’t do this, not now.”

“What I should or shouldn’t do is no longer your concern, Amber,” I say, briefly glancing at Simy and Shay. They already know what to do next. “You had your chance, and so did Binzen. There is too much at stake for me to trust either of you. Our people need a dependable leader, and our son needs at least one of his fathers to come through for him. I cannot risk you getting in the way.”

Amber resists, shaking her head as she moves closer. She puts her hands on my hips—her touch electrifying every nerve ending to the point where I want nothing more than to fill her to the brim, right here, right now. This wretched love has the three of us operating outside reason and logic. It is dangerous, so I pull myself out of her soft grip and keep a safe distance.

“Izzo, we need to stick together.”

“We need to get through this without another casualty. In order to do that, I need a clear head,” I reply.

And in order to get my head clear, I must do something I wish I didn’t have to do. Something I know I’ll end up hating myself for. Something that makes me just as bad as—if not worse than—Umok. May my brother forgive me. May the spirit of Alana forgive me. May my people forgive me, but I see no other way to get my point across.

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