Page 151 of The King has Fallen

We stared at each other and my heart was flinching. Every time I thought I’d found peace with her, every time I thought I truly could trust her, some other secret was revealed.

But I knew it was a question that couldn’t be answered here and now. Gault’s body was gone, but he would be missed withinhours at theleast.All it would take was the wrong servant or guard who’d been given instructions to come back and…

I cleared my throat and shook off the dark thoughts.

“I have to go—and so do you,” I said just as emphatically as she’d given her little tirade.

“No,” she said firmly.

“Yilan—”

“No. This is the time, Melek. This is an open door for you. You can take the crown and they will follow and—”

“AndI said no,”I growled. “Dear God, Yilan, let it go. There are very few things in this world worth dying for—but you and Gall are it for me. I willnotrisk either of you to rumors and suspicion and the fucking chaos that’s going to ensue here when they realize Gault is dead!”

Yilan’s expression grew more worried than angry, but she folded her arms. “Your only options are to take the crown, or flee, Melek. But you have no reason to flee—you’ve done nothing wrong.”

“I believe one thing wecanagree on is that my brothers at arms are unlikely to see this that way,” I growled.

Her eyes widened and she dropped her arms. “So… what? You just walk into thatcesspitand get yourself blamed for my actions and killed for no gain? You are my mate, Melek,” she hissed. “I will not let you do that.Iwill walk the shadows and tell them it was me if you try to confess to this!”

I took her arm and God help me, I shook her. “No, youwon’t.You will leave, and I will say you escaped in the chaos in the wake of the King’s death.”

“You can’t put yourself on the line like this!”

“If you’re so certain they want to follow me, why don’t you believe they’ll listen?” I snapped.

“Because we both know they won’tthinkabout this, they’ll only act. Most of them are ill-disciplined, self-indulgent,children!”

“Children who will kill my son if they have even ahintthat he was involved. No judges, no questions. They would tear him limb from limb before I’d even had a chance to shout. You expect me to leave him to that? I will not let him carry this!”

Yilan stared at me, those worry lines appearing on her forehead again, her eyes big and liquid and locked on mine.

“I wouldn’t ask you to leave Gall to them,” she whispered a moment later. “But—”

“I am a soldier, Yilan. I wasn’t born to be King. I do not aspire to a crown, and I never have. If I were supposed to, God would have given me one.”

Her jaw tightened. “He may not have placed a crown on your head at birth, but He has given you men you didn’t ask for, land you didn’t seek to possess for yourself—the entire fuckingcontinentlistens to you, Melek! You are already more than a General. You are a—”

“If I embrace what you say, I am nothing but an ambitious traitor and not anything that all these hearts and minds follow me for. No, Yilan. I will take my chances. I will protect Gall, and you, and I will pray that God finds a way through this for me. But I will not sit myself on a throne that was not mine to take.”

“And if they forgive you… and crown you? Youdidwin a challenge against the King.”

“Then I wouldconsiderit only if no other strong male stepped forward,” I said reluctantly, everything in me recoiling. “But hear me, Yilan, my goal is freedom to live in peace with you.Notto rule a nation.” I was angry, bristling, ready for a fight—and frustrated. But to my shock and dismay, Yilan didn’t push again.

Her chin trembled and she dropped her face into her hands.

And she sobbed.

53. Careful Now

~ MELEK ~

I sighed and pulled her close, holding her for a moment, closing my eyes and inhaling her scent, trying to fix the memory in my mind so I’d never lose it.

Then she relaxed against me, finally.

I was trying to figure out how to raise the specter of Gall—eventually I needed to find him and explain—when someone cleared their throat just outside the tent flap and I almost leaped through the roof.

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