Page 56 of An Honored Vow

CHAPTERTWENTY

“WE CAN’T ABANDON HIM!” Riven shouted, his hood slipping as he paced along the wall. “Nik has done too much for the rebellion for us to leave him with Damien. What if he kills him?”

“Or tortures him,” Vrail added, her leg bouncing in her chair.

Dynara bit her lip. “Or worse.”

I rubbed my brow. “I am not saying that we should abandon him. We know he’s in Koratha. Now we have better options—”

“It seems the surest way to get my nephew back is to give Damien what he wants most.” Syrra’s knuckles bulged over the end of her armrest. “And that is the pendant.”

I shook my head. “Riven, you saw what that pendant can do. We can’t relinquish something so powerful to save one life. This could keep the Elverin safe from theshirakfor the rest of their cycle. Hundreds—no, thousands of lives are at stake.”

Riven jutted his chin from under the shadow of his hood. “None of them are locked in Damien’s dungeons.”

Feron stood. “We have been talking in circles for hours and it helps no one.” His head made a slow turn about the room as he addressed us all. “We must act. I propose a vote.”

Syrra’s lip twitched. “A true Elverin would never vote to leave a soul behind.”

“A true warrior would never sacrifice a shield that can protect save cities for one life,” Gerarda retorted from behind me.

I tugged at the roots of my braid. This was senseless. “Why is this one way or another. We can offer Damien the pendant but not give it to him.”

“So he can kill my nephew in front of us for deceiving him?” Syrra’s jaw hardened.

I drummed my fingers on the round table. “We could make a forgery. Give him a lookalike in exchange for Nikolai.” I turned to Riven. “Then you can get him out of there before Damien learns the truth.”

Elaran shook her head. “He would suspect that. He would test the pendant immediately and then none of us can be sure what he would do.”

“That’s why we need to give him the pendant. The real one.” Riven crossed his arms and leaned against the wall. “I won’t abandon my friend.”

“That’s what you think I’m doing?” I stood, leaning on the table. “This is what Damien wants. This is why he had Kairn take Nikolai in the first place. He wants us squabbling over one life while he makes moves to take thousands. We can’t lose focus. I won’t allow it.”

“Nik would come for you.” Riven seethed. “If it was you in Damien’s keep.”

My head hung between my shoulder blades. “I would hope he wouldn’t. I would hope that if I were captured and my friends hadsomething that could protect the Elverin I have spent my entire life fighting for, they would know that I wouldneverwant them to sacrifice it for me.” My nostrils flared. I pointed to Gerarda and Myrrah. “We are the only ones in this room who have been prisoners in the kingdom, and I know they would share that same hope.”

Gerarda and Myrrah nodded.

“Damien made a grave mistake letting us get a hold of this,” Myrrah said, eyeing the pendant at the middle of the table. “We can’t afford not to exploit it.”

Darythir shook her head as Feron interpreted the conversation for her. “This is just another circle. Let us vote,” she signed.

Feron nodded. “I don’t think we need faelights to cast this vote. We can raise our hands.” He tucked a loose twist behind his ear. “Who believes that we should trade this pendant in exchange for Nikolai?”

My chest tightened. Riven and Vrail’s hands shot into the air. Syrra was slower but just as adamant, her jaw set as she stared down the table at me. Dynara swallowed, her eyes glued to the table as she raised her hand.

Rheih gasped as Feron raised his own hand. “I did not expect that, old friend.”

“It is not an easy choice.” Feron placed both hands on the top of his cane. “But I am not convinced these pendants are great protection. Damien’s Arsenal already struggles to use them to control thewaateyshirakand they are still young. As they grow, they will only become harder to control. I am not willing to sacrifice an opportunity to return Nikolai to us on a tool I am convinced will fail.”

I looked around the room to see if anyone else would raise their hand after Feron’s speech but no one did.

Feron cleared his throat. “And who believes that we should offer a trade but not forfeit the pendant?”

Gerarda and Elaran raised theirs together, followed swiftly by Myrrah. Rheih waved her hand over her shoulder, her eagle-like eyes narrowing on me. My breath hitched as Darythir also raised her hand.

The vote was split. Five to five.

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