Page 106 of Balance

“You.” Miles’s voice echoed in my ears. He wasn’t even giving me the chance to run away. “You’re his weakness.”

The air thickened. Pieces of past conversations fell into place around me. “What?”

“You and Shui were the first to get together. You wore me down next,” Miles said, sighing, as the fight bled from him and his tight features relaxed. “Our relationships were… private. Although people suspected. Then there was Jin. Dragons are patient and slow, and before he becameyourbodyguard, Jin was always at war. During this, you watched Huo; but he’s an idiot when it comes to relationships, and he never seemed to see you in that way. Not until it was too late.”

Too late?

Miles’s gaze flickered back to me, traces of humor back in his expression. “Why do you think we all find ithilariousthat you reject Damen’s advances?”

My pulse soared and fists tightened over the blanket.

“But you’ve always been persistent.” Miles ran his fingers through his hair. “It tooklifetimesof effort, but eventually Huo couldn’t ignore you anymore. But once his feelings became obvious, our enemies changed their target to you instead. The easiest way to tear us apart, or to force our participation, is to use your safety as motivation.”

I sucked in a breath. So, I really was the weakest link, and I always had been?

“We’re not supposed to do more than maintain balance. We’re archetypes.” Miles rubbed the back of his neck, shuffling his feet. He sounded almost bitter now. “Outside of preventing corruption, we’re meant as figureheads for our respected groups—and they, being around us, grow stronger. Despite that, you always wanted something the rest of us had no interest in.”

“What’s that?” I was almost afraid to know.

He looked to me then, his eyes holding my own as a shadow seemed to pass over us. “Humanity.”

I blinked; Damen said we were human, so what did he—

“Witchcraft is a solitary practice.” Miles waved his hand in the air, and the dirt at my feet seemed to shift. “Shifters have their packs, an onmyoji’s realm lies in the underworld, and necromancers rule the dead.

“Out of all of us, you’re the only one who ever really cared about humans. You see their souls andfeeltheir emotions,” Miles said.

“So…”

“You’re the first who believed in their worth,” Miles explained. “That we should share our powers. It’s because ofyourinfluenceHuo concerned himself with this realm. Damen’s interest in psychology comes fromyou. You wanted to learn about people’s motivations, so Huo wanted to learn too. Over the years, you’ve taught us a lot about humanity. And in doing so, you’ve made yourself the heart of our group.”

My heartbeat was echoing in my ears. My toes and fingers turned numb. That wasn’t true at all.

Most people were mean and scary and took advantage of you. The world was dangerous.

Miles frowned at me, his mouth twisting before the indecision melted from his expression and he stepped forward, grasping my hands. “What happened to you represents the darkest parts of human nature. I wasn’t sure how to say this before, but we’re going to have a serious problem if you’re not careful.”

“What do you mean?” My lips felt numb and it was only because the strength of his presence filled me that I hadn’t fled.

“Damen, Julian, even Titus…” Miles’s voice was tight as a hint of regret twisted on his expression. “Their only connection to humanity wasthroughyou, and your belief. Ifyoudon’t think people are worth the risk, they’re not going to either. For now, they’re living on the lessons of our past lives.”

What would happen if they didn’t feel connected to humanity anymore?

“But I don’t think all people are bad…” I protested weakly, pulling my hands from his and fingering the edge of the blanket. At Miles’s doubtful glance, I shook my head, my resolve firming. “I don’t!”

He didn’t seem reassured.

“I’mscaredof…” My voice trailed off as the expression on his face began to dissolve into something heartbreaking.

I didn’t want him to feel sorry for me.

“Iknowthere are good things in the world.” My heart was racing as my skin grew clammy. I had no idea how to explain this, but if I said the wrong thing, would something terrible happen?

“I don’ttryto be weird…” I finished lamely. What did everyone expect from me? “I never asked to be this way! I don’t want them to hurt anyone…” Well, except for a few people, chosen specifically by me. But they didn’t count. I made no sense at all.

“Don’t misunderstand me.” Miles stepped forward, wrapping his arms around my shoulders as he pulled me to him. His shirt was rough on my face, and his touch was steady as he stroked the back of my head. “You’re completely normal, considering what happened. I didn’t tell you this to upset you. I wanted to give you hope.”

“What do you mean?” I sniffled.