Page 32 of Dissent (The Dissenter Saga #1)

The pull, the desire to be near him was real…

commanding . And I didn’t push back against it.

I took steady steps toward him until I was at his side on the edge of the cliff.

I was right. He was afraid. He was afraid of the man he was going to be forced to become.

Like Jacob, they were both required to become specific individuals, tied down and limited by rules and responsibilities simply because of their parentage.

But, unlike Jacob, Wes wanted nothing to do with his hereditary title.

My lips curved softly at the corners, and my chest swelled with an emotion I just couldn’t thumb down, but it rolled within me, carrying me through.

“I get it. I don’t know what the North is like compared to Telvia, but I can imagine your job as the First Son is probably a lot like my brother’s. So, I get it.”

Wes looked away from me, licking his lips as he stared out over the valley.

“Yeah, probably.” Silence fell between us again, and I took the opportunity to look out too, admiring the vista.

And it was beautiful. The sun was setting, and the sky was painted with hues of purples, pinks, and pastel oranges, looking so much like an oil painting with measured brush strokes.

My mind was flooded with memories of my past, of my brother, of Chase.

“You know, I remember this one time Chase got into one of his righteous moods. Something would bite him in the ass and then, suddenly, he’d be going on and on about it.

” A smile encased my lips as the memory played out in my mind.

“He was so indignant that he stood up on his chair at the academy and was giving this huge speech to everyone. It was pretty good, actually.” I looked at Wes.

He was still looking out over the valley, but I could see the corner of his lips were twitching.

“I don’t even remember what the hell it was that got his boxers up in a bunch, but he had all these people watching him, and then… he fell off the chair.”

Wes’s body stiffened. He didn’t shift his gaze or make a sound, but his body stood unwavering.

A laugh escaped me as one of my arms curled around my waist and the other hand flew to my mouth.

“He totally fell off. Like, totally ate it in the middle of this huge speech he was making. I felt so bad for him, but it was so damn funny because he was being so smug.” And then another laugh escaped me as the vision of Chase falling off the chair and the look of morbid embarrassment filled his face. “Like, he totally deserved it.”

Wes remained serious for a moment, and then, slowly, his lips curved. They parted, and then…

He laughed.

He laughed just like he did in the tent. Deep and full—genuine. And his laughter made me laugh even more. Before I knew it, we were both rolling, feeding off each other. And as the laughter began to subside, the most mortifying thing I could think of happened.

I snorted.

Like, a full-blown piggy snort.

Both my hands flew to cover my mouth, my eyes growing wide. I had never snorted in my life! How embarrassing! But then again, I guess I rarely laughed like this back in Telvia.

Wes’s eyes grew huge, and then he tipped his head back and howled in more laughter, both his hands flying to his stomach as he did.

I could feel my cheeks flush with heat, but the embarrassment slowly subsided as I became infected once again by Wes’s laughter.

It felt good. It felt so good to laugh. A medicine I hadn’t felt since Chase died. And it was so… healing .

The laughter flowed through us for another minute before we both quieted down, settling back into the relaxed, tired state that follows such a cascade of belly laughs.

We both looked back out toward the sunset, the sun almost down over the horizon.

I took deep even breaths, enjoying the cool air that filled my lungs, and the sense of calm that spread through me, bringing comfort. And then Wes spoke.

“Thank you.”

I turned to look at him, surprised by his words, and caught his steady gaze on me. The look on his face, for once, was light. Unburdened. Soft and warm and—dare I say it—endearing.

And this version of him…

This side I had yet to witness…

God, it was stunning.

He was so handsome, so absolutely gorgeous. And at that moment, I saw Wes for who he truly was. This was the real him…not the cold, hard block of stone that he walked around as. This was the real Wes. And I smiled. “You’re welcome.”

Silence fell between us again as we both looked back out over the land. Rubbing my lips together, I reveled in my little discovery, relishing this new sense of calm— peace —that I was finally feeling in Wes’s presence. It felt good…so, so good.

“Mara?”

“Hmm?”

“Do you know how the REG figured my brother out?”

My stomach dropped, tanking hard, as a cold sensation climbed up my spine like ghostly fingers. It was déjà vu. I’d been here before. Me and Wes in an abandoned hallway with the same loaded question hanging between us.

I knew he blamed me this whole time for Chase’s death, or at least I suspected it.

But now he was asking me… again . Which meant he hadn’t bought my lame answer before, or he knew the truth and wanted me to confess it to him.

But the thought of saying those words out loud seized the beating of my heart.

Just like before, the little voice inside me urged, Tell him, Mara.

Just tell him the truth. I just didn’t know if I could do it, so I deflected.

“Why do you ask?” I didn’t look at him, but I kept him in my peripheral vision, watching how he reacted. This was the elephant in the room, the main obstacle that stood between Wes and me from the first day we met at the river.

He was still for a moment, but his energy shifted, stiffening. “I just need to hear it.”

I swallowed again. I wanted to say it…to say that it was my fault.

Tell him! You owe him at least that. Time felt as though it stood still, suspended in the balance. But what if he doesn’t forgive me?

I couldn’t. I was too much of a chicken. Too worried about what would happen to this new fragile alliance we had formed. My chest tightened as I opened my lips. “I-I…” I stuttered.

Wes rolled his shoulders back as he pivoted to face me. “How did they find him out, Mara?”

I took in a deep breath as I looked at him, our eyes locking as I tried hard to muster the courage I needed.

And then…I failed. “There was a guard, an Enforcement officer. The guard was disciplining a Subclass, and Chase got in the way. I don’t know for sure, but I think the guard figured out who he was and turned him in to the REG. ”

Wes’s eyes glinted, emotion passing through them too fast for me to catch what was there. And then it was gone again, emptiness returning. He cleared his throat as a stoic expression swept his face. “It’s getting dark. We better get back.” Then he veered and stalked off, heading back to the trail.

I blew out a breath, feeling my nerves on end. I knew I screwed it up. I had no doubt. The question was, how badly?