Page 56 of Dissent

“Knew what?”

Once again, silence. Sasha inhaled deeply, appearing to ground herself. “I suppose it is better from me than from someone else. Remember, Mara, that many events were placed into motion during the last war. Raúl had taken control of the West, but we knew he wanted more power. He envisioned an empire, and it was only a matter of time before he would seek support from the other regions and enslave this entire continent. Intelligence reports suggested that he had his eye set on the South next, but President Smith lacked the manpower to defend her region against a Telvian attack. She had other resources, however. Resources that the region to the North desperately needed. And they had the manpower we required.”

I pressed my lips together, body stiffening. I had a funny feeling I knew where this story was going.

“The North was powerful—by far the most powerful of the four factions—but not powerful enough. It came to my attention that they had concerns of Raúl conquering the South. They worried he would seek to take the North next.” Sasha lifted a finger, eyeing me like I was her pupil at the academy. “To fight the West was one thing, but to take on a battle against the West and South was another. The North didn’t have the capacity to wage war against half of the UFA.” She dropped her hand. “So, we came to the bargaining table. We promised to supply them with the resources they desired if they provided the manpower to help defend the South and recapture the West. They were open to those terms, but they were hesitant. They were worried that, should we regain control of the West, we would be too powerful and turn on them just as Raúl had turned on all of us just a few years prior.”

Sasha reached for the tea kettle and poured herself another cup. “We agreed to form an alliance, but the North was not willing to accept the agreement unless there was a way to guarantee we would not turn on them in the end. It was decided that marriage would be the ultimate sign of trust and loyalty. The ruling family of the North were the Calvernons, and they remain in power to this day.”

My heart dropped as the realization of what she said hit me. “Chase.”

Sasha nodded. “Yes, Chase. Chase was the oldest—by minutes mind you—but oldest nonetheless. We agreed that the First Son of the North would marry the First Daughter of Telvia. In this way, the North did not need to fear being taken over since this union would hold both sides in an alliance of peace.”

My eyes drifted to my lap, staring but seeing nothing. “Chase and I—”

“Were promised to one another, yes.” I looked up at her, catching the pitiful look she gave me. “You were to be wed following your eighteenth birthday. Of course, that was before we lost in the uprising. Never did we imagine Raúl would still reign for this long. But our pact was still in place. So, when Chase was old enough to train, he did. And once he was of mature enough age, he was assigned a false identity and began working his way up in the Telvian system. He was tasked with befriending and protecting you in Telvia.”

“Oh my god,” I muttered, gaze drifting to the distressed wood of her desk. This…this couldn’t be real.

“He was aware of the alliance agreement and accepted it was his duty. But then, I think he rather enjoyed the idea. And eventually, he confided in me that, although Raúl remained in control and he was not required to wed you until after the successful completion of the rebellion, he wanted to move forward with asking you to marry him. He was hoping to do so shortly after he had been approved as your match, of course.”

Fog filled me, and I felt overwhelmed by emotions. Chase cared about me, and he was going to ask me to marry him?

It all felt so wrong and so right at the same time. As much as this new revelation brought me comfort—reassured me that at least some of what I experienced with him was real—it brought with it new devastation over his death. And then, it hit me…

I had been promised.

I had beenbetrothed.

Who thehellhad the right to betroth me to anyone?

Jaw clenched, I scorched Sasha with a gaze I was sure could melt titanium. “Who in the world thought they could promise me off to somebody? Because I know damn well Raúl didn’t do it. Who the hell do you think you are, Sasha? How could you!”

A flicker crossed her eyes as a small grimace took over her wrinkled lips. “I did not promise you to Chase Calvernon. Your anger is misplaced.”

I scoffed, “Well then who, Sasha? Because last time I checked, you run this place.”

And then I saw it. Grief crossed her face, but she maintained her composure as she rose to my challenge. “The only person who had the right to do so, child. Your mother.”

My jaw hit the floor.

27: Need a Friend?

Mymindwasswimming.The earlier conversation with Sasha was still overwhelming me. Not only had Chase been “assigned” to me, but we had been promised to one another. Chase and I were destined to be married. A destiny that was gone and buried, but still…we were betrothed. I shuddered at the thought as I sat on the riverbank, watching the water rush by with abandon.

I cared about Chase—that wasn’t the problem. It was more the principle of the matter. Who the hell did my mother think she was to promise me to some boy just to help the rebel cause? It just felt so…wrong. I mean, would I have complained about marrying Chase? Absolutely not, but that wasn’t the point. I was a baby, already having my fate decided for me. What if I didn’t like Chase? What if he was a total jerk?

Oh my god…

What if they had promised me toWes?

I stilled. Something about that created a deep-seated sensation of—

I shook my head abruptly, slamming the door on that line of thinking. I didn’t want to imagine that, notever. I shook off the feelings I refused to name.

Then, there was this whole idea of my mother. I’d been so focused on trying to survive my training with Wes and navigating the stupid Matias, me, and Chelsea love triangle, that I had completely forgotten about her. There was a part of me that felt better knowing thatsomeonehad cared about me, but now knowing that she had promised me to somebody just to further the rebel agenda made me question how much she really loved me. Maybe I really was just a pawn in the end. Maybe she got pregnant on purpose in order to have a kid to fork over to the North. I didn’t know about that one, and I hadn’t bothered to ask Sasha for the details.

No matter how it all happened, it filled me with grief nonetheless. I didn’t want to think about this. My mother had used me as a bargaining chip and now she was dead. There was no point in wanting her or hoping that one day I would find her. She clearly didn’t care about me. End of story. Raúl was the only parent I ever knew and Jacob, as far as I was concerned, was the only family I had that actually cared about me. That was it. Apart from Jacob, I had no one else.

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