Page 103 of Heart of the Rebel Mate

I turn to find him leaning against the rough stone wall, arms crossed, watching me with an expression that's more curiosity than challenge. The dim torches lining the corridor flicker, casting shifting shadows across his sharp features.

"We don't have another choice," I say.

"That's not what I asked."

I exhale, rubbing the back of my neck. "We have a plan. We have people willing to die for it. That's more than the Council ever expected of us."

Cassian doesn't respond right away. Instead, his gaze drifts past me, toward the open courtyard where a group of children plays, their laughter ringing through the night air.

They're playingHunt the Wolf.

The sight hits me like a punch to the gut. I know that game. Irememberit.

One child—"the wolf"—breaks away from the group, sprinting toward the edge of the courtyard while the others chase, their voices rising in high-pitched howls. The wolf has to evade capture, ducking and weaving, using the shadows to escape. If they're caught, they fall to the ground, playing dead, and the game starts over.

I remember being that young. I remember feeling like I had the entire world at my fingertips, like I'd never have to fight for my place in it.

That illusion shattered the first time I saw what the Council was capable of.

Cassian's voice pulls me back. "You ever wonder what happens after?"

I blink, dragging my gaze away from the children. "After?"

"Yeah." He shifts, tilting his head against the stone wall. "After the fighting. After the blood and the betrayals and the death. What's left of us when the war is over?"

I don't have an answer. I don't think any of us do.

Cassian lets out a slow breath, then says, almost absently, "You know... I used to be a different person."

I glance at him, waiting.

He huffs a quiet, humorless laugh. "Before the Council took her from me."

Her.

Understanding clicks into place, sharp and brutal.

Cassian has never spoken about his mate before. Never given voice to the wound that must be carved deep into his soul.

"They severed the bond," I murmur.

His jaw tightens. "Not just severed it. Ripped it out of me like it was never there to begin with." His voice is low, raw. "For years, I thought I was losing my mind. The rage, the emptiness—it doesn't go away, Adrian. It just sits there, festering, waiting for something to burn."

I know that rage. I've felt it coil inside me, a wildfire barely contained. But I've never had my bond stripped away. Never been forced to live as half of something that no longer exists.

A sharp cry echoes from the courtyard. One of the kids—the "wolf" this round—has been tackled to the ground, giggling as they pretend to fall lifeless. The other children circle them in mock victory, celebrating before the game begins again.

They have no idea what's coming for them.

No idea that the Council doesn't just control our lives—they steal them. They rip apart families, sever mates, crush rebellions before they can even begin.

They are the reason wehaveto win.

"Is that why you joined the rebellion?" I ask.

Cassian's lips curl in something that's not quite a smile. "I joined because I wanted to watch the Council burn. But now..." He hesitates, glancing toward the closed doors of the war room. "Now, I don't know. Maybe it's more than that."

I don't press him.

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