A Most Dangerous Weapon

Chapter 54: Death and Love

Our people were hiding amongst the trees in a dense forest, slightly spread out to avoid detection from any Romallian scouts that wandered too far from their settlement.

I sent Arlo and Evander a couple yards west to where Rowan, Kilgorian and Camilla were resting. I went further east to find our prisoners who were being guarded by Theo.

I could hear Marcus and Arrian speaking in hushed tones, ignoring their jailer as they were resigned to remain securely tied to a large tree trunk. I was grateful that they seemed to have no intention of persuading Theo to free them. Hopefully their compliance was their way of proving themselves to me and the cause.

Theo was on high alert. He saw me approaching and raised his arm in the air to wave. I gestured for him to lower his hand and remain silent. He looked around carefully, thinking that I meant we had other company. When he returned his gaze to mine, his confusion quickly melted away as he absorbed my mischievous smile. He began to slowly saunter my way in hopes of not tipping off our prisoners. They remained hunched together in conversation.

When Theo was finally standing a few feet away, I whispered to him, "What are they talking about?"

He smiled at this. "The only thing they have in common..."

I gave him an impatient look, not understanding what he was getting at.

Theo actually rolled his eyes at my stupidity. "You, of course."

I looked back at our prisoners. They faced away from us as they continued to chat. "Wait here." I told Theo as I took a step. "And keep an eye out for the others. They'll be here shortly."

"Sure thing."

I snuck up as close as I dared to, crouching down into the shrubbery in hopes that they wouldn't detect me. I was making a habit of eavesdropping on people today, so why not continue to do so when the topic of conversation was me?

"When it comes down to it, I hope she dies first."

Marcus looked at Arrian with wide eyes. "That's a pretty morbid thing to say."

Arrian doesn't seem bothered by this truth, but rather tries to explain why he said it in the first place. "It would be too hard on her if I go first."

"Because she can't take care of herself?"

"On the contrary, she never needed me to survive. She only thought she did."

"Then why-"

Arrian cuts my brother off. "I know how much it's going to hurt when I watch her die... she doesn't need to go through something like that again..."

"Again?"

"Her father's death almost destroyed her, did it not? In fact, it's still tearing her apart day by day eight years later. And your disappearance left a similar hole in her heart. Now there are very few people she loves that dearly for fear of losing them."

"And you think you're one of them?" Marcus raised a skeptical brow.

Arrian nods as if the answer were obvious. "I know I'm one of them, because she's one of mine."

"You're really that convinced that we'll all die on the battlefield? You think Candra won't make it out alive?"

"I hope I'm wrong." He declares. "I want to be wrong. I'll do everything I can to keep her breathing, and I know that you will do the same. But that task would have been much easier if she just let me take us to safety when we had the chance. Going to war... it's going to destroy us."

Marcus slowly begins to nod in understanding. "It's going to kill her..."

"... because if it doesn't, she'll be left alone to bury all those she once loved and cared for. She will bear the blame for an eternity..."