Page 9 of A Simple Truth (the Freckled Fate #2)

8

GIDEON

I scratched the silky feathers of the large, black raven sitting on my desk, her head tilting in appreciation. The piles of unorganized papers gave me an irritating headache as I took another look at them. My tired face turned bitter as I stared at one letter in particular. The broken wax seal brought nothing but an unpleasant feeling to my stomach.

“When it rains, it pours, doesn’t it, Liriya?” My eyes met the black, beaded eyes of the bird. I sighed heavily as I got up, clearing off the desk and putting that stupid invitation away. I ran my hand through my hair, letting out a heavy scoff and making a mental list of the never-ending tasks I had to take care of before leaving again.

The flap of my tent opened wide as the one person I least expected to see appeared in front of me.

“Hello, General,” Finn said, her voice tense, but airy. My brows furrowed in concern, noticing the slight reddish tint of her beautiful eyes.

“Finn, to what do I owe the pleasure?” My voice laced with curiosity.

“I’d like Heart Piercer back,” she stated. At my confused look, she explained, “It’s my Basalt Glass dagger. You’ve returned most of my weapons, but conveniently failed to return that one,” she accused.

“Planning on murdering someone?” My words failed to be as upbeat as I intended.

“Not yet. But it’s mine, and I want it back. Or am I your prisoner?” She clenched her jaw tight. I rubbed my brow, closing my eyes for a minute. The escalating headache was now pounding.

“No, you will have your weapons back tomorrow,” I replied, giving up on the hope of a pleasant conversation. “Any other demands you have for me?” I narrowed my eyes on her.

“Yes. You owe me one more thing…” she started.

Well, someone is certainly entitled, I wanted to say, but held back, motioning with my hand for her to continue.

“That day in the valley when I shot you, you said you had some information about the Rock Quarry slaves. What was it?”

“Do you truly wish to know?” I asked, clasping my hands as I rested them on my folded knee.

“Yes, I wouldn’t be asking otherwise.” Her lips turned into a thin line.

“Suit yourself, then. The Mad Queen is using slaves to complete her army of dead soldiers for the war she’s been carefully planning for the past twenty years. Our dear Lord Inadios, whom you’ve already met, has been her key supplier. Anything else I owe ?”

“Yes. Why aren’t you freeing them?” She shook her head. “You have an army of Destroyers. You have the power to free them. There are people suffering and dying with every day that passes, while you just pick and choose who to save. You have the means to save them all, so why aren’t you doing anything about it?”

I exchanged a glance with Liriya, who was now casually perched on my chair, intriguingly listening in.

Getting berated by a snarky assassin was not on my to-do list today . But before I could answer, she added,

“Lack of action is still a choice, General. So, you are choosing to let them die.”

A muscle in my jaw twitched and I took a long breath, keeping my voice cool and constrained.

“Your anger, however righteous it might be, is misplaced. To answer your question, if it was that simple, believe me, I would’ve done it already. I reap no benefit from their suffering.”

“It is that simple. You can take your army and save them,” she countered, taking a step closer.

“Seems like you have all the answers, Finn. Perhaps, you can provide more of your simple solutions for me. If I take my Destroyer army to march across Esnox to the Rock Quarries tomorrow, it would be an open act of war. Then, everyone would know the Destroyers’ clear involvement with the Rebels. Everyone would know of my involvement, so all the intel I’ve gathered would be pointless. We would be left with no allies, no knowledge of their armies, and no plan of attack. So answer me this, Finn, when we lose the war we are not yet prepared for, are you going to protect the few surviving Magic Wielders? Granted, that is if there would be any left after the Queen makes her move. Is it going to be your people murdered in an ambush the moment we start a war on a whim? Why would I sacrifice all their futures and the future of Magic Wielders for your human friends, whoever they are?” I harshly answered, my eyes darkening with a warning.

“His name is Viyak.”

“Great...Perhaps, you should ask yourself if his life is worth more than the rest of theirs?” I motioned with my chin toward the camp outside the tent. “Because if you tell me right now that this one human life is more valuable than all of theirs, then I will retrieve him for you myself. I will bring him to you on a silver platter. I will pay the price for you with many, if you answer me this one simple question: is his life worth more than all of theirs combined?”

Devastation flashed through her face, as she pulled her eyes away from me.

“No,” she finally said, her voice quiet, almost a whisper. The sorrowful look on her face made my heart ache with unfamiliar to me feelings.

“You wanted the truth, so here it is. Whether you like it or not, everyone pays the price in war. Now, if there is nothing else that I owe you, I must attend to some urgent matters,” I said, feeling regretful for how this conversation had unfolded.

Before I could say anything else, Finn stormed off without another word, my eyes trailing her departing figure. I pinched the bridge of my nose as I closed my eyes, wondering if, for once, the price to win had become too high for me to pay.