peace treaty between our peoples?”
She straightened her spine in resolve. “A female Theronai.”
Chapter 8
Lyka couldn’t believe she was doing this. It was insane. Completely nuts.
She moved to the sliding glass doors on the back wall of her suite. They overlooked a parklike setting, complete with flowers, topiaries and wrought-iron park benches. Normally the view soothed her, but not tonight.
Even hinting that she knew where one of their women was located was enough to get her waterboarded. But what choice did she have? Eric was missing, possibly dead. The young still hadn’t been found. Every hour that passed was one in which they were vulnerable and afraid.
Assuming they still lived.
As those dark thoughts swirled through her mind, she had to shove them away with a force of will before they could take root and fester.
She couldn’t simply stay here in these safe, lush surroundings while her brother and those babies suffered. Even if it meant giving up her secret, her freedom. Irrevocably.
Joseph still hadn’t said a word, making her wonder if he’d heard her.
She strengthened her willpower and forced herself to stay on the only path possible. “Your men are still dying without their mates. I know that a few of you have found women, but every one you find is a big deal, right?”
Joseph nodded slowly, eyeing her as if looking for her lie. “Huge. A bonded pair of Theronai can save thousands of lives.”
“Then it seems I have something of value to you. I propose a bargain.”
He stepped closer. “Don’t play games with this, Lyka. I mean it.”
“I’m not playing.” She swallowed hard. “I’m acutely aware of the stakes.” She was going to regret her actions here today, but only if her plan failed. If the young survived, their lives would be worth every day she spent in captivity. She had to believe that.
Joseph’s hazel eyes darkened. His voice dropped to a tone so low, it vibrated with an unspoken threat of violence. “Tell me where she is, Lyka. This isn’t the kind of secret you can keep from me.”
She’d never seen him like this before. He’d always been so accommodating and solicitous. Every creature comfort she’d asked for, he’d provided. The only thing he hadn’t allowed her was her freedom. She’d had no idea that what she dangled in front of him now would evoke such . . . darkness from him.
She balled her hands into fists and steadied her nerves. “First you have to promise. Bind yourself to your word. There can’t be any room left for you to weasel out of your promise, or my lips stay sealed.”
All the glittering light that usually reached his eyes was gone now, leaving behind the kind of darkness a man would need to have to slay beasts without mercy. She’d always seen him behind a desk, but that docile impression of him vanished. What remained was a hard, lethal warrior standing in front of her.
His voice was still low, vibrating with power, but also coaxing. “What vow do you want in exchange for this information, kitten?”
This was it. Her only chance at helping find her brother and the young.
She pulled in a long breath, giving herself enough air to state her demands without her voice wobbling. “Freedom. I want to be free to leave Dabyr whenever I want, and to go wherever I want. Alone.”
He shook his head. “No. That’s too much to ask of me. You can’t expect me to trade your life, not even for information like this.”
“That’s not what I’m asking. My life is my own. Not yours. You don’t get to trade it for anything.”
“You’re putting me in an impossible position. If I don’t give you freedom, then one of our women goes unclaimed and unprotected. If she dies, so does one of my men, and untold others that a united pair of Theronai could have saved. If I do give you freedom, then you could be hurt or killed, and the peace between our people could crumble, taking countless lives along with it in future battles. How can you stand there asking me to choose from those two outcomes? Just tell me what I want to know so we can save this woman.”
Lyka wasn’t about to fall for it. She wasn’t putting some stranger’s life at stake, but he couldn’t know that. “She doesn’t want to be found. Outing her is a huge betrayal. If not for the lives of our young and my brother being at stake, I wouldn’t even consider telling you