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I didn’t want to go sit in my cramped room by myself, so I headed to the woods to clear my mind. It had been easy to avoid my father and my “family” these past few days. They didn’t seek me out, and I didn’t bother them either. I wondered if this was how my life had been before I went to Crimson. What had I done to occupy my time before? Maybe I had hung out with Sybil and the twins.

“Gods, this is fucking torture,” I muttered, bored.

?????

The next morning, the men stood in line formation, confused because the king was standing with Jeb and I. The kingwas never here. This was definitely not something he deemed important.

“Yesterday, it was brought to my attention that you may not approve of your captain, Thea, leading you.” The men all looked around confused. “Jeb feels that you may feel more comfortable with him keeping the title. So, today I ask that all of you make your selection of who you’d like as captain by standing behind them.”

The men looked around at each other but stood without moving. I nearly chuckled at how ridiculous this was. There were a few who would choose Jeb, but I was confident the majority would choose me.

“Now, would be good,” my father growled, and Leer was the first to leave formation and stand behind me. That was the only encouragement the men needed to move behind me. Two soldiers went to stand with Jeb, but it was clear that he wasn’t even close to having my leadership skills.

“Well, Jeb, that is settled. Thea will be the captain of the guard,” the king sighed, narrowing his eyes at him, as if he had expected a different outcome.

“I want Jeb gone,” I demanded.

My father turned to me.

“He’s an asset.”

“He’s a liability. He’s undermining my every move. How can we prepare for war when he’s trying to divide the men?”

“He will back off.” The king narrowed his eyes on Jeb.

Jeb’s jaw was so tense, I thought it would snap. He glared at me with a promise to destroy me. Too bad for Jeb, because he would be dead soon. I wasn’t letting him continue to fuck with me, and my father wouldn’t do as I asked.

“Fine,” I agreed, knowing what I had planned.

“We expect to see you for family breakfast in an hour,” my father said to me. I couldn’t hide the shock that crossed my face.

“Alright,” I nodded.

The king walked away, and the men got into line formation. Jeb stood next to me, still tense. I glanced at him.

“Join the line formation; I don’t need a babysitter.”

Leer was holding back a smile as Jeb did what I ordered. The men stared at me with respect, and it made my chest swell.

"Actually, Jeb, you are on blade-sharpening duty,” I dismissed him. “I’m sure all of you are not used to hearing praise, but thank you for trusting me as your leader. I promise not to abuse my power, unlike some fae.” I glared at Jeb. “As a token of my appreciation for each of you, I will again be giving you the rest of the day. Rest, relax, and spend it with your family. We will resume training tomorrow.”

The men saluted me before cheering as they left. Jeb glared at me from the small armor shed.

Dick.

Chapter 13

I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t a bit nervous, but I was more curious about my father inviting me to a family meal. I didn’t bother dressing up and wore plain black clothing. As soon as I entered the dining room, everyone at the table turned to me. They all put on brave faces, but my darkness hummed at their fear.

I sat away from them. Jesper was the only one who glared at me. I said nothing, hoping they didn’t expect an apology. Food was placed in front of us, and I slowly ate the meat as I stared at them.

“Thank you for coming,” my father struggled to say, making me smirk. They didn’t want me here. They must need something.

“What do you want?” I asked, shoving bread into my mouth. “You don’t invite me to meals, and you wouldn’t start now, not after I ruined your party. So, what do you want?”

My father glanced into my eyes.

“We’ve received word that Falgon is planning to move into our territory again. We’d like you to scout their troops and see if you can determine if they’re planning an attack.”