Page 9

IRIS

My expectations lie in more shreds than the papers from Remington’s filing cabinet.

This is so not how a guard is supposed to work.

A guard is the backbone of a region.

We protect the humans who can’t protect themselves. Even out here, where barely any settlements are left under the Farguard’s protection, we have to stay strong and united to keep Faervaine’s borders from shrinking any more.

Every time we lose ground, we come closer to losing everything.

Kevan’s Deathguard is the farthest thing from perfect, but it’s a masterclass in military management compared to this shit-show.

Vhex is a hot mess, more likely to melt the Farguard than to defend it.

Remington isn’t leading anyone into battle.

I didn’t notice before, but now that he’s close, I spot at least three eras from my history books represented in the pieces of his uniform.

All mismatched. None including shoes.

These Sentinels are barely functioning.

And if they’re not working?

Neither can I.

“Vhex,” I coax, grabbing his horn before he uses it to slice open my bra. “See if the major’s badge is in his desk.”

I have Vhex’s energy smoothed to mostly docile for now, but it’s nowhere near tamed. The jolt of glee as he jumps to his feet—making his bubblegum cock bob—says he only obeys because he’s having fun.

I want to groan.

Helping them is going to be so much work.

Like you don’t love how much they need you.

Remington snarls as Vhex breaks into his desk drawers.

I yank the tatters of his shirt and curl tighter into his shadowy silks, fighting to keep him from backsliding. “Remington.”

The blacks of his eyes spin.

“ Remy ,” he insists.

Even fully human, the man has this chilling, eldritch vibe. His pupils are too wide and he barely breathes, let alone blinks.

I’ve never seen long-term damage this bad.

Most Sentinels would’ve died a long time ago.

“Remy,” I sigh. “Do you remember blasting holes in your perimeter wall?”

“A few small gaps.”

“You cracked the defensive arrays.” I fight to muffle my frustration. The Sentinels’ energies are so warped, they could read any little expression of anger as a threat.

I need their trust.

After I’ve healed their damage, I’ll tell them what I really think.

Vhex skips back to me, carrying a filigreed gold box. “For you.”

“Good job.” I reach, but he lifts the box above his head.

“Reward me.” When Vhex grins, his fang cuts into his lip.

Already getting used to his energy patterns, I soothe him with a twirl of silks, stroking around the tip of his horn. “You did well, Sentinel.”

“More,” he says huskily, lifting the box higher.

Remy’s shadows seethe.

I try to split my focus again, but my spiritual well is way overdrawn. I lose my grip on both Sentinels as my knees buckle.

Each one catches me by an arm.

Not caring they’re the reasons I’m swaying on my feet, Vhex and Remy trade snarls. Their silks sharpen as their energies surge, ready to undo all my work this far.

“Enough screwing around.” I lock down their wisps and snatch the box from Vhex.

My fingers pulse as I pull out the token given to the Farguard’s commander. The magical tool is as heavy as the duty it represents. The shield-shaped badge bears the emblem of the Farguard—a lone mountain tower, surrounded by vines and swords.

“This old thing?” Remy tilts his head. “You can have it.”

Something electric skates across my skin.

I’m finally doing something Baroness Ashbourne would approve.

Working overtime to keep both Sentinels in line, I inject my spiritual power into the badge. Remy’s mental imprint should block me from snatching control, but sure enough, it’s not there.

The badge has no owner.

That means the Farguard has no commander.

I sway like a black hole just opened in the floor.

I can’t pledge an oath to no one.

Even more, I can’t let the gap in leadership stand.

The badge’s functions are critical to the Farguard’s defense. I may never have held a badge or a title, but there’s no part of managing a guard I haven’t already done while supporting Kevan.

Someone has to step up before we’re overrun with feral hordes.

Decisively, I connect a silk through the surface of the badge.

The metal sucks up my energy. Information rushes into my brain.

People. Maps. Records.

The Sword Major’s position comes with all kinds of authorities and tools I don’t have the time to play with right now. I cut the flow before I reel any more, then jam the badge into my pocket. My fingers tingle. “Let me hold on to this for you.”

Just temporarily.

I’ll return the badge and the job as soon as Remy is lucid.

By then, the whole Farguard will see the value I bring to their team.

“You.” I point to Vhex. “Go patrol for any monsters that ran over after you steamrolled our walls. And you .” I switch my glare to Remy. “Start repairing your damage to the buildings and arrays. We’re defenseless.”

Neither Sentinel moves.

Their energies spike in rebellion.

Instead of soothing their agitating asses, I grit my teeth and force my order through the commander’s badge.

When Sentinels join a guard, they swear their loyalty oaths in blood. The commander’s authority can’t stop them from rampaging, but it has enough juice to enforce a little bit of obedience.

Or it should .

I nudge them through the chain of command, but the Sentinels don’t budge or even seem to care.

These men aren’t going to make one single thing easy on me.

I have to offer them a little sugar with my stick.

I use what’s left of my split-in-half energy to stroke their souls. “If you don’t secure the base, I won’t be able to relax and guide you. Make it safe. Then come see me at dawn. I’ll take care of everything else you need. Okay?”

I pour on sweetness, but neither Sentinel blinks. Their silks hold tight, hungry and totally unwilling to leave my comforting touch.

“Fine.” I groan. We can do it their way. “Who’s up first? I’ll take you on the desk, but you’d better pump fast if you want to come before we’re interrupted. The monsters will see us fucking from the tree-line.”

Finally, their eyes leave me.

Remy sneers into the darkness outside his office’s floor-to-ceiling sky-hole. “Dawn is far away.”

“Exactly.” I need to shower and sleep before I take on a double-Sentinel session. Maybe even grab a meal and some stitches for my throat. “It’ll take you that long to clean up the mess.”

“Take care of me first?” Vhex palms his still-erect cock.

“ Go ,” I order hoarsely, trying not to imagine how that bubblegum stick will taste buried in my throat. “And put on pants. Some monster with crocodile jaws is going to think that thing is candy.”

“It’s candy for you.” Vhex’s aura glows pink with lust. “Want a lick?”

He strokes himself, pushing down his dick to show off his extra features.

A ridge of bone bridges from his pelvis to his cock.

When Vhex flexes, the bone-slide moves side to side, waving me aboard.

“Go now.” I squeeze my thighs to stop a quiver.

At least I’ll get something in return for all the bullshit these dukes are about to put me through.

A shadow tendril strokes my ear.

“Don’t be impressed by so little,” Remy says darkly.

Grinning like an absolute psycho, he yanks Vhex under a cloak of shadows. The darkness pulls tighter and tighter until it disappears in a tiny point, leaving empty air behind.

My silks snap free.

Finally alone in my own head, I stagger against Remy’s desk.

Vhex and Remington— Remy —are…

A lot.

And a lot more than I signed up for.

I’ll have both hands— and hopefully a few other places? —totally full with them.

I chuckle with a throat so dry that the sound comes out a rasp.

Work is work.

The sex is just a perk.

Besides. I know better than to believe anything they say.

Determined to maximize my Sentinel-free minutes, I head to find Cherise. The Farguard needs a plan, and we need it working long before dawn.