Rix wanted to fight.
I could see it in her stance, but these were our friends. These were people we were going to need by our side if we were going to get out of this early. If we started killing the others, I had no idea what Glima would do. Or if that would trigger Sipher coming back.
“How long have you been there?’ I looked at our newcomer.
“Not long.” The raven-haired woman looked at the weapon in Rix’s hand. "But long enough to know that Rix is willing to kill to keep a secret that’s on the same level as you being a demon.”
“I’m not a demon…” I sighed. "This is getting out of hand.”
“I’ve got to tell Glima something!” Gesai was still on her knees. "Let me help protect you!’
“You pledged your loyalty, now prove it.” Rix pointed the barb at her. "Trust in him and tell her what I told you to say.”
Gesai had tears running freely down her face as she looked at me. I shook my head. "Even if I wanted to tell you, I couldn’t do it here. You know the risks. We have no idea how much Sipher is monitoring us.” I watched her shoulders droop. I couldn’t help myself, I walked over to her and knelt down in front of her.
“Look, help us out. Prove you’re with us and then as soon as it’s safe…” I looked over at Rix who was shaking her head while muttering about how we were all going to die. "I’ll bring you in.”
She looked at me with her green eyes. I realized that she was too close for Rix to react if she tried to hurt me, but I wasn’t afraid of her. What I saw looking back at me was hope.
I wrapped her in a hug before she could say anything. She leaned into it, clinging to me like her life depended on it. I put my face close to hers and whispered in her ear. "If it was safe, I would tell you now. But Rix is right, this could get us all killed.” I pulled back and put my hands on her shoulders. "I trust you, I d…”
Stolen content warning: this tale belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences elsewhere.
Her lips cut off the last part of that as she kissed me. I started to pull back, but there was a hunger behind it. That need to belong. I wasn’t sure what to do, but I hoped I made the call that Ether would approve of and leaned into it. I drank her in, then pulled away and began blushing when I realized that Oz was standing there.
“Does this make you a teacher’s pet or you a student’s pet?” The green-eyed Hitter quipped.
Rix snickered.
My face was burning as I looked into Gesai’s eyes. "Feel better?” I moved some hair out of her face as she nodded. There was only seven years between us and in the beginning, she’d felt like an adult, someone of the generation before mine, but now, even though she was two Tiers above me, she felt like a peer.
I helped her up and she looked so girly as she walked towards the pyramid. I turned around to find Oz and Rix standing next to each other.
“Okay.” I held up my hands. "Before you say anything, I’ve got to know something.” I pointed at Oz. "How come you were ready to kill Gesai, but you’re okay with Oz being in on this too?”
Rix scrunched her brow. "I thought she was already part of the harem.”
“The WHAT?” Oz looked from me to Rix.
Rix smiled.
“Don’t…” I started moving towards her. "Don’t go Aelin on me!”
The redheaded woman held out the improvised weapon. "This is real and I’d hate to slip…” She looked over at Oz. "He’s building a harem. Ether, Justia, Aelin, you and her.” She pointed at the pyramid.
Oz looked at me, then back at Rix. "WHY?”
“That’s… part of what we can’t tell you right now.” Rix frowned. "You didn’t know about this?”
“I knew about Ether, but… Justia?” Oz looked confused.
“It’s supposed to be a team thing, then Aelin thought it would be funny to call it a harem and it stuck. It's not what it sounds like.” I tried to clarify.
“So… it’s just what it looks like?” Oz raised an eyebrow.
“It’s…” I had no clue what to say. "I have no idea what’s going on.”
“Seriously?” Rix cut off Oz. "You slept with him and didn’t know about this?”
“We didn’t..!” Oz blushed and covered her face.
“Not like that…I…We…” I suddenly had an idea. "Where did you get that?”
Rix took a moment to compose herself and motioned behind her. "Just because we weren’t going to use the crates to escape didn’t mean that I couldn’t hide a few things away. Why?”
“Because I have a plan.”