Page 100 of The Never List
Axl gently moves his hand over my cheek as he eyes my split lip. “I’m not sure,” he says. “It’s the same as last time, and it only lasts for small bursts before I get my power back.”
“That’s why they ran?” I ask. “Whoever whistled… It was a signal that they were outmatched?”
“Easily,” Kal says. “But they still got away. They always get away.”
“They’ve proven their intelligence when it comes to evading us,” Pierce says, frustration lining his features. “I do not believe it is skill alone.”
I survey the destruction they caused, a weight sinking in my stomach. “What was the point of this?” I look to Pierce. “This wasn’t a test by the kings, was it?”
“No,” Pierce answers, moving closer to us. “This has been happening since before the Choosing started.”
I tongue the small hurt on my lip, glancing back to Axl. “We have to help make up for the losses, Axl,” I say on a rushed breath. “Some of these wares…they’re people’s livelihoods.”
Axl smiles down at me. “We will,” he says, drawing me in closer. “I promise that those affected will be taken care of.”
I lean into his embrace, relief easing some of the tension in my shoulders.
“We’ll check on the people who fled,” Kal says.
“We’re right behind you,” Axl replies, still holding me close as Kal, Pierce, and Jax head toward where all the villagers escaped.
“You defended them.” Axl pushes me away just enough to look down at me. “You could’ve stayed back,” he says. “You could’ve protected yourself with the kings and elite enforcers, but you chose to defend my people.”
I meet his gaze, and the sincerity in his golden eyes has my heart clenching in my chest. It’s evident that no one other than the Legends has ever supported him in such a way. I can sense how much it means to him, can see it in the gratitude lining his features.
And he’s not wrong. I probably should’ve stayed behind. I’m not sure how much help I truly was, especially without using my power for fear of them discovering what I am. Pierce said it himself a moment ago—he thinks the Fadersmight be demis because of their ability to evade capture and to stand against them.
But these people wereinnocent.
Axl’s people didn’t deserve any of this, and there’s no denying I would do it again.
For any one of their people.
“I’ll never hide when something I love is in danger,” I finally say, knowing the full truth of that statement.
This is no longer a game.
No longer just about my survival.
I’m willing to put myself in harm’s way for the Legends and their people…
And I worry that instinct will get me killed in the end.
the emerald wood
29
Rylee
Although Pierce meets me in the Emerald Wood, it’s nothing like when I met with Kal for the first time, or even Axl.
Gone is the banter he delivered at the dinner on Axl’s ship, replaced with nothing but exhaustion written on both of our faces thanks to last night’s attack.
Even tired Pierce looks incredible, his full lips smiling softly, his fit body still wearing the clothes he wore last night, some of them tattered from the battle. I didn’t have time to change, either. Not when we’d spent the entire night ensuring that all of Axl’s people affected by the battle were taken care of, and after, we discussed possibilities of the motivations behind the Faders’ attacks.
Kal and Axl had both made a point to check in with me before I climbed into the carriage that would take me to the Emerald Wood, asking if I wanted either or both to accompany me.
I thought about it for only a moment before I realized the earlier apprehension about being alone with each Legend following Kal was gone.
