Page 70 of The Order: Rise of the New Empire

"Xavier fought for his love, tasted it, and had it ripped away on multiple occasions. What would you do if you lost everything and had the means to use your power to make a change. Xavier is man who loves. Take that love away, and the repercussions would be astronomical."

Taking several seconds to digest my words, Silas speaks up.

"Are you a man who values love?"

"I value living. I value my kind living. That's what I love. Human connection holds no value to me so long as the path I'm paving has a light at the end of the tunnel for those after me," I admit with full honesty.

Laughing, I dart my attention to Silas.

"What's so funny?" I question, his eyebrows raising.

"Full honesty?" he questions. "It sounds like you are a man who has felt no real love."

Snapping my mouth shut, I struggle to think of a rebuttal, the loud buzzing in my pocket throwing me off from my argumentative state.

Pulling out the communication device Bekah had handed off to me, her name sprawls across my phone.

"Yes?" I question, with a little more aggression than I'd like.

"How close are you to home?" she questions, poking fun at my once horrific state.

"Close enough, why-"

"I heard from Valerie," Bekah sighs. "They got Fallan and Xavier. The others barely made it out alive because of that sick fucking Commander," she hisses, my head shaking.

"Forest and Elyon got Xavier and Fallan?" I clarify. "Why the hell would Xavier let that happen?"

"Apparently, he made a large show of force on the Commander. They had already grabbed Fallan and Xavier made things worse. If trying to remain unseen was the plan, Xavier shattered it entirely. Valerie and the others are heading back to the cabin. Aaron and Val might stop by the Underground-"

"Just them," I hiss, stopping her before she can continue. "No one but the Danvers are allowed in."

"What about Kaiden?"

"Bekah, please, trust me," I plead, something within the Blackburn boy keeping me unsettled for days. "I told you our whereabouts need to remain concealed. Kaiden has too much at stake to stay neutral."

Saying nothing, the line is silent.

"Fine. You better come back here with an alliance. Elyon's forces have made an alliance with the Precipice. A mass extinction of our kind is coming, Mason, if we don't do anything."

Wide-eyed and fearful, Silas stares at the device.

"I know that, so you do your job, and I'll do mine," I hiss.

Ending the call, I cram the device back in my pocket, shaking my head at the boy.

"I hate to break it to you, kid, but I don't have time to love anything. If you were smart, you'd do the same thing."

Brushing past the boy, I move toward the front door, ready to be rid of this cabin.

Busting open the door, the group funnels into the space, each one looking bruised and defeated, their clothes lined in blood.

Taking a step back, Silas drops Forest's sketchbook, the boy still wary of any and all social interactions.

Meeting my gaze, Aaron looks defeated, his focus narrowing once he senses another.

"Who's the kid?"

"A cadet," I snap, watching as Kai takes a seat on a couch, his focus lowering toward Silas.

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