Page 87 of When the Wicked Sing
“You work for Stavrosandfor Halia?”
“Yes.”
She thought about everything he’d done for them. He essentially worked for and against both Halia and the king, a tug of war between the monarchy. How did he live like that?
“I don’t understand. Why do you do it? Why work for them?” she asked quietly.
He swallowed, his face tightening as though thinking about thewhyshurt him.
“I know she’s holding the safety of your family over you,” she continued. “But you do not belong to her, Dax. And you don’t belong to the king. You are not their slave.”
Dax shook his head, his expression defeated. “You don’t understand.”
“Then tell me. Help me understand,” she pleaded.
Standing tall, hands on his hips, Dax regarded her carefully. “After I silenced my power, I didn’t have a way to defend my family anymore. We’d been hidden for so long, but after an Aurelian scout discovered our location and somehow escaped us, I realized I had no way to protect them.
“My people were weaponized and oppressed for so long during the Infernal Wars that we longed for peace; we longed to hide from the world. But that wouldn’t be possible anymore if word spread that we still existed. That we didn’t all die out in the war. So…”
He sighed. “I approached the royal family. The king saw my military background as a benefit, but Halia saw something else. And the scout? He belonged to her. She made a deal with me to protect the location of Kythera while I worked for her under the guise of working for the king, and my servitude began.”
Mariana shifted on her feet, suddenly unsteady with all the information. “How long ago was this?”
“Too long.”
Irritation spiked through her, but she brushed it off.
“Why did you silence your power?” She shuddered at the thought.
He shook his head, as though just thinking about it was too much. “That’s a story for another time.”
The defeated look in his eyes told her it was a sensitive subject.
“I just wish—” He sighed deeply. “I wish I could show you how sorry I truly am—for everything. I never wanted to hurt you, and when I told you I’d protect you, I meant it.”
“Dax,” she started, her voice wavering. He’d given up years of his life to protect his family. Everything he did was for them. They were more alike than she’d thought. And she could see in his pleading gaze that he was telling the truth.
“Where do we go from here?” Her voice was small, weak, like she was desperate for an answer to an impossible question.
Dax worked for the royal family that would stop at nothing to get what she needed to save her mother’s life. If he risked leaving Halia’s clutches, he’d get caught in her claws and torn up in the wreckage. Kythera would be at her mercy.
Mariana couldn’t imagine that beautiful village being burnt to the ground, the Mother Tree in ashes. Her heart ached at the idea of their people losing their home the same way her sisters had. She couldn’t let that happen.
Dax didn’t say a word, like he knew as well that there was no answer. There was nothing left to say. So, she closed the space between them. Lifting herself onto her toes, she wrapped her arms around his neck and hugged him.
When she felt his arms embrace her, sealing their bodies together, she felt it again. That instinctive pull toward him, the same way the sea pulled her close. Burying her face in his neck, she felt tears prick her eyes.
He was the home she’d never get to have.
“Let me help you with your power,” he whispered into her hair.
Mariana’s brows pulled together. “How?” she asked, her lips moving against his skin. She stopped herself from kissing that spot.
“I can show you how to control it.” He pulled back so he could see her face. “I want you to be able to defend yourself properly. If you know how to control your sky power, none of them will stand a chance against you.” Dax stared into her eyes like he was making a vow, and she felt how deeply he wanted her to be safe, even if that meant protecting herself when he wasn’t there.
Her heart cracked. He wouldn’t always be there, and she needed to learn how to control whatever was building up inside her.
“Okay,” she finally said.
