Page 49 of Revenge (Warriors of the Drexian Academy #6)

Chapter

Forty-Nine

Sasha

I let myself sink deeper into Deklyn’s embrace as the chaos swirled around us in the corridor.

I vaguely registered my father being dragged away by angry Drexian officials.

It should have filled me with satisfaction that someone was facing consequences for betraying me, but all I felt was hollow exhaustion.

I’d finally gotten my answer, but it was the last thing I’d expected. Not some soulless politician, but my father. The man who’d raised me and pushed me to excel, and then condemned me to months of torture because his hatred of aliens mattered more than his love for his daughter.

Deklyn’s arms around me were a shield that reminded me what true protection felt like, but I knew it couldn’t last forever. Not when our ruse was at its end.

“Ow,” Ariana muttered nearby, shaking out her right hand. Her knuckles were already swelling from the impact with our father’s face, but her expression held no regret.

I straightened and met her gaze, seeing some of my pain reflected there. “I’m so sorry for not believing you. You were right about everything.”

Ariana’s expression softened, and she placed her uninjured hand gently on my arm. “I understand not wanting to believe the worst about your own father. I didn’t want to believe it either.”

The forgiveness in her words broke something loose inside me. I pulled away from Deklyn so I could wrap my arms around my sister, finally allowing myself to cry for everything we’d both lost. “I’m so sorry for the horrible things I said to you. I didn’t mean any of it.”

“I know.” Ariana held me tightly, both of us shaking as we cried. “And I didn’t mean any of the horrible things I thought about you.”

I laughed through my tears, but I knew acutely that Deklyn remained right beside me, his presence a steady anchor. When I finally dried my eyes and pulled away from Ariana, I turned to face him.

“Well, Dek, we did what we set out to do. I guess we should tell everyone the truth.”

Ariana looked from me to Deklyn and back again, confusion creasing her brow. “What truth?”

I took a deep breath, steeling myself. “The engagement was a sham. It was a way to get all the Earth officials to come to the station so we could find out who was behind abandoning me to the Kronock.”

Ariana’s mouth fell open, but she closed it quickly. “I knew you weren’t the type to get engaged so fast.”

“It was my idea,” I continued quickly, “and Deklyn only went along with it because I begged him to. No one should be upset with him for this.”

“It was fake?” came a weak voice from behind us.

We all turned to see Serge approaching on short, shaky legs. His purple hair was disheveled, his turquoise suit wrinkled, and he appeared utterly devastated.

“I’m sorry, Serge,” I said.

He looked from me to Deklyn with wounded eyes, which rolled into the back of his head as he fainted, becoming a brightly colored heap on the floor.

Reina rushed over to check on him. “Oh, dear.”

“It wasn’t fake.” The voice was so low I barely caught it.

I turned to face Deklyn. “What?”

He locked eyes with me, his gaze intense and unwavering. “Nothing I’ve said to you has been fake, and nothing I feel for you is fake.”

I stared at him, stunned speechless as tears welled in my eyes again.

“It might have started as a way to get to the truth,” he continued, his voice growing stronger, “but it got to the truth about us, too. Sasha, I love you. I can’t imagine life without you, even if you are the most stubborn female I’ve ever known.”

Despite everything that had just unfolded, I laughed at his characteristic blend of devotion and exasperation.

“Will you marry me?” he asked, taking my hand in his. “Not for revenge or any reason other than I love you more than I thought possible.”

“I thought you weren’t the marrying type.”

He shrugged, a gesture so completely cocky and completely him it made my heart flutter. “That was before you, sweetheart.”

I didn’t have to think hard. I knew that I’d fallen for him despite his being cocky, infuriating, and way too much like me.

I gave him a wicked smile. “I do feel bad for Serge and all his hard work. I suppose it would only be fair for me to say yes.”

Deklyn yanked me into his embrace, his laughter rumbling against my ear. “So stubborn.”

“So cocky,” I whispered back, then added more seriously, “And I love you so much.”

When he kissed me, I barely registered the cheering that erupted around us.

For the first time since my rescue, I felt truly free. Not because I’d gotten revenge on those who’d wronged me, but because I’d found something better than revenge. I’d found something real, something honest, and something that could survive any storm.

I’d found love.