them taking a careless step. Still Tobias gripped tight to his blade, tense and on guard. Perhaps Raphael was looking for the rose, but Tobias was searching for those two heinous Beasts.
Raphael cleared his throat. “Sorry. About what those two were saying earlier. Sounds as though the Sovereign has sicced his precious pets against you.”
“Nothing I didn’t already know,” Tobias mumbled.
“Have you wondered why that is?”
Stay away from my Daughter. “I have my suspicions.”
Time dragged slowly. Soon their frames loosened, their nerves at ease, and the once-imminent danger had withered to tedium. Tobias studied the forest, searching for Beasts but finding more of the same: same green leaves, brown trunks, speck of pink.
Pink. A spot of color was propped against the base of a tree, and Tobias’s heart sank.
The rose.
“What is…?” Raphael staggered to his side. “Oh, shit.”
They stared at the rose in silence, both wearing the same blank expression.
“I suppose this means the challenge is over,” Raphael said. “All we have to do is bring it back to our station.”
The air around them became thick. This was the last thing Tobias wanted, and he gritted his teeth to keep from cursing the man at his side. If Raphael weren’t here, I’d simply walk away. Pretend I hadn’t seen it. That wasn’t an option, yet neither was time alone with The Savior. I can’t win the reward. I refuse.
“You should do it.” Tobias spun toward Raphael. “Carry the rose. You’ve earned the individual reward.”
Raphael hesitated. “Oh, I don’t know about that…”
“I’ve had time alone with Cosima. You haven’t. Do the honors.”
Raphael shook his head. “I couldn’t. The reward belongs to you. You defended us.”
“From nothing. No one’s come this way the entire time.”
“But still, you took it upon yourself.”
“With your blade, which you so selflessly gave to me.”
“For my own benefit, really.”
Tobias’s patience waned. “Raphael, I insist. Take the rose.”
“No, I insist—”
“I couldn’t in good conscience—”
“Fuck your good conscience, what about my good conscience?” Raphael spat.
Tobias started, then scowled. “Just take the rose, Raph.”
“You do it,” Raphael snapped.
“No!”
“Take the damn rose.”
“I’m not touching it.”
“Oh, don’t be such an ass!”
Tobias scoffed. “I’m the ass?”
“The challenge requires it.”
“Why the hell is that my problem?”
“You’ll win the reward with Cosima!”
“I don’t care about Cosima!” Tobias barked.
“Neither do I!” Raphael fired back.
Both men froze, their faces awash with instant regret. Fuck. Tobias racked his brain for something to say, anything to nullify his miserable slip of the tongue, but there was only silence. You idiot. This complicates everything.
Leaves crunched behind them. The two spun in place, Tobias with his blade drawn, but he relaxed once Garrick appeared through the foliage.
“What’s going on?” he said.
Tobias gestured toward the base of the tree. “We’ve found the rose.”
“Just trying to decide who should return it to the station,” Raphael mumbled. “Win the additional reward.”
With a grunt, Garrick shouldered his way between his teammates, snatching the rose from the ground. “Idiots.”
A sigh of relief swelled in Tobias’s chest, but he forced it down. He glanced at Raphael, who looked away, and without a word, they followed Garrick.
The three men walked in silence, Garrick ignoring his teammates’ company while Raphael and Tobias refused to look one another in the eye. He’ll keep quiet, because he has to… Or he’ll squeal first before I have the opportunity. Tobias debated himself for what felt like miles, until finally the trees thinned, the field and the two pedestals clear in the distance. The challenge is over. My team won. But the rose wasn’t in his hand, and that was all that mattered.
A man stumbled out of the nearby trees, blocking their path. A black shirt—the opposing team—except the competitor wearing it was hardly a threat.
“Flynn,” Tobias breathed, dropping his weapon.
Flynn’s eyes darted between the three. “Gentlemen.” He went to smile but stopped short, eyeing the rose in Garrick’s grasp. “What do we have here?”
Garrick raised his chin, the rose tight in one hand, his blade in the other.
Flynn straightened his posture. “Apologies, brother. I don’t want to hurt you, but I really, really want that reward. And I’m willing to fight for it.”
“I’d like to see you try,” Garrick scoffed.
Flynn went quiet, deep in thought. “How about we drop our blades and sort this out like civilized men—with our fists. Winner gets the rose, loser walks away with his life intact.” He knelt low to the ground. “I’ll go first. A show of good faith.”
Flynn placed his blade at his feet, then regained his stance, raising his fists in preparation. “All right.