Chapter 3

Chapter

Three

"You're going to be okay," I told Tetra as I paced the changing room. She was struggling to get her uniform over her twisted foot. I wanted to help her but I knew she hated that. She'd been painfully silent since the Lottery. I'd begged my father afterwards to reverse the decision, but he told me it was done, witnessed in front of so many people. It would cause a rebellion to show preference to his daughter's best friend.

"I told my father to make sure the soldiers let you in as a visitor only, not to put your name in," I mentioned under my breath. "He promised. Someone screwed up and they will pay with their life."

She looked up at me then. Her deep brown eyes were in such contrast to her moonlight-colored hair. "Why should I get special treatment?" She shrugged and I frowned.

"Because you're my best damn friend and I won't let anything happen to you," I promised her.

She stared at the floor, avoiding my gaze. "I know how this works, Aisling. If you are distracted in The Wilds trying to keep me alive, you put yourself at risk. I won't let that happen. Just… make sure my mom is taken care of when I die."

I gasped at her resignation. "No!" I shoved her and she almost fell over. "Make sure yourself when we both walk out of The Wilds with creatures bound to us," I shot back.

She stood in her underwear, one leg in her black, issued pants, glaring at me with anger.

"There's the Tetra I know. The badass who won't let anyone put her down," I told her.

Her glare turned to a smirk. "Push me again and I'll punch you in the boob."

I grinned. My bestie was back, aggressive sarcasm and all. She was going to be fine. She had to be. I couldn't imagine a world without her in it.

"We're a team, Tetra. You and me. We can do this." She wasn't good with hand-to-hand combat, but she aced archery, and you were allowed endless weapons, so if she could get a bow and arrows somehow, we had a shot at keeping her alive.

She relented, reaching out to use me to steady herself so she could get her pants on. Now she was dressed like everyone else, excluding me. I wore the black military jumpsuit everyone else had on, but the golden puma emperor patch over my left breast signified my station as successor to my father's rule.

"I didn't pack a bag," she informed me.

I nodded. "There's time. You go out and keep your mother calm. Tell her I'm going to make sure you survive this and I'll get you a three-day pack."

She released the breath she'd been holding. "Aisling, even if you protect me from other candidates, you can't keep me safe from the creatures."

"Watch me," I growled.

Her face softened as if she were talking to a child. "There are only two ways to leave The Wilds. In a body bag, or bonded to a creature."

"I know that," I said through clenched teeth. Why was she pushing this and being negative? I didn't want to talk about this right now. I wanted to believe it was possible for both of us to get out of this alive and bonded.

"The second a creature sees my limp, they will take me out. Too weak to bond," she said, and I reached up and plugged my ears like one of my little sisters.

Tears filled my eyes but I blinked them back. Everharts didn't cry.

"It's okay," she said, as she pulled my hands away from my ears. "I just want you to know that whatever happens in The Wilds… I'm okay with it."

"Stop," I begged, my voice nearly a whimper. We were crammed in a small changing room and I knew the girls around us could probably hear at this point. How the hell had we gotten here? My best friend with the bum foot was going into The Wilds. It hurt worse than Jace's cheating. It hurt worse than anything I could think of.

She changed the subject: "What did you want to tell me after? It was big news?"

Oh right. Maybe we needed a subject change.

"Jace cheated on me. We need to plot a big revenge."

Her eyes flew wide. "That bastard. I'll kill him in The Wilds myself." She gripped her cane to illustrate her point.

I grinned. "Just keep that attitude and you're going to do fine. All you need is one creature to see that fighting spirit and?—"

"Take pity on me?" she interrupted.

I shook my head. "See your true worth."

I noticed that my words made a difference. Tetra stood a little taller then and I pulled back the curtain to exit the dressing room. "Finish getting ready and then go talk to your mom. I'll be back with a three-day pack for you."

She nodded and I slipped out of the dressing room. Sure enough, the other girls avoided my gaze as I passed, which told me that they were totally listening to the louder parts of our fragile conversation.

"If any of you tries to pick her off as an easy kill in The Wilds, I'll have my father make sure your families work in the iron mines for the rest of their lives," I said boldly.

All of the girls looked farther down at their feet, except for one. An Imbrian. She laughed.

"What's so funny?" I stepped over to her, not in the mood for any crap right now.

"My family already works in the mines," she said casually, and her friend chuckled. I recognized her; she had been sitting with Kohen Badshah earlier. She had four piercings in each ear, and the right side of her head was shaved. Her long brown hair was in a braid over one shoulder, and I couldn't help but remark on her beauty. She must be in Kohen's little Avasan gang.

I lowered my voice, knowing I had to stop this insubordination right now or it would grow. "Well, then, I'll have to think up a special punishment for them. How does that sound?"

The grin was wiped from her face, and for a moment I felt bad for saying it, but I would do anything to keep Tetra safe. If people thought she was an easy target, they were going to be sorely mistaken.

"Relax, princess," she said. "I don't bite unless provoked." She then gave me her back, a disrespectful move, but one I didn't care about. I had more pressing matters at hand, like keeping my best friend alive.

Every candidate who came to the Lottery packed a three-day bag for their time out in The Wilds should they be picked. This pack would keep you alive out there while you hunted your creature… or they hunted you. Tetra hadn't brought one because I'd told her that she wouldn't be picked, and now the buses were leaving to take us out to the border lands and if I didn't get a pack for her she was as good as dead.

I burst from the dressing room with my own pack on my back and ran outside, where the families of those who were not picked had gathered. They now walked away en masse with their children, heading across Emberlane Park to the underground train station that would lead them north, probably to Cedar Creek where they lived.

I scanned the crowd in panic, searching for any face I knew.

Come on. Come on.

"Charline!" I screamed across the park and she turned, her mother, father, and three siblings in tow.

Taking great strides, I bolted across Main Street and into the park named after the very valuable substance that fueled the trains, buses, and factories that ran our city.

Charline was a strong girl. She would have made an amazing candidate to go into The Wilds. I knew she had aspirations to join the Imperial Fleet, and because she was not chosen and would not bond with a creature, she would have to join as a human and would live her life in a grunt position. Her face was downcast; I knew she was disappointed about not being chosen. We'd gone to school together at the Imperial Fleet Academy from grade six to twelve and she was a decent person. She didn't kiss my ass based on who my father was, and also didn't seem scared of me.

"Sorry about your name not being chosen," I told her.

She nodded sadly. "Thanks, Aisling. Good luck out there."

I eyed the pack on her back. "Hey, Tetra wasn't prepared for her name to be called…"

Dawning understanding shone on Charline's face and she gripped the straps of her pack tightly. "I would, I mean I want to help Tetra, but this stuff was expensive. I was going to give it to Truly for her Lottery." She looked at her fourteen-year-old sister.

Truly and my sisters were friends.

Charline's family wasn't well off. Her father worked in a machine factory and her mother cleaned houses on the weekends.

I reached up and ripped the emperor's patch off my chest, causing the garment to tear slightly, and handed it to her. "These threads are made with real gold. It should cover the cost of the pack and more, but if not, you can go to my house, ask for my governess, Elaine. Show her the patch and she will pay you in imperial coin if you prefer."

Her eyes widened and she peered back at her mother and father.

The horn sounded for the bus caravan leaving for The Wilds and I rocked on my heels, praying to the stars that she would say yes. I had no other options.

I drove my point home: "Elaine will pay you whatever amount you ask. Triple what you spent on the pack. And you can keep the patch." Elaine would. She would see the patch and know that I had given it freely. Charline was strong, but not strong enough to rip it from my chest.

Her mother nodded, and I sighed in relief as Charline unslung the pack.

"Is there a hunting knife?" I asked her.

She bobbed her head. "Water canteen, two days' clothes, tarp for sleeping, dried meats, matches, a tourniquet. It's fully loaded, we've been building it all year." Her eyes welled with tears and my heart pinched.

"Hey, enroll in the Imperial Fleet anyway and work your way up. Even without a creature you can get a good paying station. Especially with how talented you are with a blade," I counseled her. She was damned good with a dagger.

She brightened at that. "You think so?"

I nodded. "When I'm empress one day, I'll even hire you on my personal guard." It was a promise. I never gave someone my word if I didn't intend to keep it. Charline was amazing with a blade and loyal to Amersea, and as my father taught me, loyalty was invaluable.

She stood a little straighter then. "O-okay."

Her mother and father smiled, looking pleased.

The word of the emperor's daughter was as good as a signed job contract.

I saluted her and she saluted me back. Taking the pack on one shoulder, now carrying two, I wished her well and then ran as fast as I could to the line of a dozen sleek silver buses, large chunks of ember glowing under the hoods.

Everyone was already inside with only a few stragglers making their way in the open doors. I groaned under the weight of two packs, but pushed through the pain of my burning muscles. Tetra waved me over to one bus from the window where she sat inside, and I made it just in time to toss both of our packs in the storage compartment under the bus and then slip in line.

Jace's voice came from beside me. "Aisling, let me explain this morning…"

I growled. Was he serious? We were about to go and fight for our lives in just hours and he wanted to talk about why he'd cheated on me?

I pulled the blade from the holster on my thigh and held it up to his throat, causing his eyes to go wide.

"Jace Ledger, if you attempt to explain your man whoring one more time, I swear to every star in the sky I will gut you like a fish the second we get to The Wilds, just to shut you up."

Hurt flashed across his face and then his gaze fell to my lips. "But?—"

I pushed the blade deeper until one drop of blood trickled down his neck.

His gaze darkened and he snapped his mouth shut and wisely stepped away from me, moving past me to get onto the bus. The second he left, I was staring down Kohen Badshah, who had just heard every word of what I'd said and was apparently standing right behind Jace.

I swallowed hard, sheathing my blade as I tried to read his expression. It was blank, like he either had no emotions or he was good at hiding them. I was guessing the latter.

Why had he stepped out of line during the Lottery so Tetra could stand next to me? It didn't make sense. Unless he had some ulterior motive…

I raised one eyebrow. "Enjoying the show?"

His tongue swiped out and licked his lips, causing my stomach to warm at the sight. He was undoubtably the most handsome man I'd ever laid eyes on—and completely untouchable to me. My father would murder me and make Valor his heir without hesitation.

He stepped closer, cocking his head to the side, and peered at the opening of the bus where Jace had just entered. "If you want me to, I can make him disappear."

Surprise rushed through my body, which was quickly doused in fear. I had been joking about killing Jace to shut him up. I still cared about the bastard, I just didn't want to hear his excuses for why he was screwing some blonde on Lottery Day when we had been saving ourselves for each other.

"No thanks," I said and turned, confused.

I got onto the bus and found Tetra. She had saved me a spot, and I slunk into the seat beside her. My mind was still spinning with what had just happened outside.

"Got you a pack. How did your mom take it?" I asked her.

"She said she would start saving for my funeral costs."

I barked out a laugh. That sounded like Bethel. Brutally honest and sarcastic. I loved her like my own mother. "But seriously, did you assure her that I would take care of you?" I turned to face my bestie.

She shook her head. "I didn't need to. She said she knew that we would either both come out alive or there would be two body bags when our name was called."

I grinned, happy that Bethel had confidence in me to keep Tetra safe.

The bus started on its journey and a short girl with pink dyed hair that I didn't recognize as being from Riverine walked over to our seat and crouched down.

She met my gaze. "We are forming an alliance. You want in?" she asked me.

Though she was small, I could see her arms were stacked with muscle, and she had an eyebrow and lip ring for whatever that was worth.

"Who is we?" I asked her.

She flicked her head to the back of the bus where there was a group of meatheads speaking in hushed tones, Jace being one of them.

"Pass," I told her. We needed an alliance if we wanted to survive, but I wasn't so desperate to join Jace and his idiot friends.

Her face fell. "We can protect your friend." She flicked her gaze to Tetra, who crossed her arms in annoyance. She didn't like being talked about like she was fragile, and normally she wasn't, but in this case she was.

"So can we," a familiar female voice called from the seat in front of me, and I looked up to see the Imbrian girl from the locker room. The one with the four earrings who had laughed at me.

"I'm Anika." She held out a fist and I frowned. Reaching out, I bumped her fist but glared at her.

She peered at the pink-haired chick. "You can run along now. She passed."

I liked her attitude when it wasn't aimed at me.

The girl with the pink hair growled but took off, walking back to the end of the bus.

Anika tipped her head over to front of the bus, where seven people were huddled and talking. "We want to keep our alliance small, but we have room for two more people. We plan to sleep in shifts and watch each others' back during creature fights."

I stared at the group she had indicated. Five of them looked to be in Kohen's gang, six including Anika, but two of them I recognized as top students at the Imperial Fleet Academy where I went to school. Roc and Alek had the power and skills of ten men combined. I sat a little straighter then, seriously considering this. But then my gaze locked with Kohen and he tipped his head as if telling me he agreed with Anika's choice to invite me.

I snort-laughed then. "You realize I'm the heir to the emperor's throne, right?"

She looked at me like I was an idiot. "Yeah, that's why we want you."

I crossed my arms and sighed. "I can't be in an alliance with Kohen Badshah."

It was bad enough the group was made up of mostly Imbrians. Though they were lethal and respected fighters, they could not be trusted not to slit my throat in my sleep for the retaliation my father had inflicted on their land after the Great Blackout.

Was she insane? Was Kohen insane? My father killed his father in the Blackout War. He was probably planning to poison me in my sleep.

She scrunched up her face at that. "We don't care about politics, princess. We just want to survive the night."

I peered at Tetra, who was picking the skin of her fingernails. Right now on this bus with heat and sunlight, everything seemed great, but when we entered The Wilds and the sun dipped over the horizon, all manner of hell would unleash and an alliance would be smart. The right alliance.

"I can't, I'm sorry. I'm not an idiot. I know Kohen probably wants me dead," I told her. I'd be better off tucking tail and begging Jace's group to form an alliance.

She glared at me, teeth clenched as she leaned forward and got right in my face. "You don't know shit about Kohen Badshah."

Then she pushed off the seat and went back to the group, shaking her head.

Whoa. Possessive much? Maybe they were dating.

Tetra peered at me. "That was the right choice. You wouldn't be able to sleep knowing Kohen and his gang were watching your back. It sounds like a trap."

I sighed in relief that she agreed with me. "Maybe I should go back over and talk to Jace?—"

"Stars no! That bastard doesn't deserve to be in an alliance with you. It's taking every ounce of self-control I have not to shove this cane up his ass." She shook the giant pearlescent ball of her cane in my face and I grinned.

"I love you. Please tell me you've started a revenge plot for when we survive this."

She nodded. "I have. It all starts with hair remover cream in his shampoo bottle."

I barked out in laughter, so loud that several people looked my way, including Kohen and his friends. I narrowed my gaze at him but he kept his face calm, betraying nothing. I hated when a guy was hard to read.

He broke away from his group and walked towards us, causing the breath to hitch in my throat. I grasped the hilt of my dagger and swallowed hard as he walked right over to me, looming over both Tetra and I.

"Can I speak to you privately, Aisling?" he asked.

I glanced at Tetra and she shrugged, as if saying, You're in charge.

I sighed, curious as to what he might say.

Standing, I met him face to face, or more like face to chest because he was so tall, but he didn't back up as one might expect and so we were inches from each other. I could feel his warm breath splash over me and inhaled the scent of cardamom and ginger. Spiced tea. The Imbrians were known for it.

After an agonizing few seconds he stepped to the side and walked over to a few empty seats. He sat first, against the window, and gestured that I sit next to him in the aisle seat.

I looked left and right, knowing this would start rumors I didn't need. Instead of sitting, I knelt on one knee so that I was still visible to everyone. I didn't need anyone saying something happened between Aisling Everhart and Kohen Badshah that didn't.

"What?" I asked in low tones.

He looked up at me with a vulnerable expression, the first time he'd let any of his cards show. "If I leave the alliance, will you join? I know you have to be careful with your image."

I frowned. Was he serious? "Why would you do that?"

He swallowed hard. His Adam's apple was covered by part of a snake tattoo which moved when he swallowed, and gave off some serious I've been to prison vibes.

"I want Anika, Nikhil, Meera, Dev, and Kian to be safe. They're like family to me." His timbre had changed from the cold tones he was using earlier, and with each name he listed of his friends, the emotion built in his voice.

Against my better judgment, I dropped to sit beside him and almost regretted it immediately. His scent washed over me, along with the heat of his body and my thighs clenched in response. "You seem perfectly capable of protecting them," I told him, eyeing his gigantic muscles which pulled at the fabric of his shirt.

He nodded. "Normally yes." He met my gaze then and I nearly lost myself in his ice-blue eyes. "But I know your father will have plans to assassinate me in there, and when I'm gone they will need a strong leader to get them out alive. Someone like you. Someone trained for this."

I couldn't help the sharp intake of breath that pulled through my lips. "I?—"

"Don't bother denying it. It's what I would do," he said, facing forward this time, staring at the leather seatback in front of him as if it held some important information.

He knew my father's plan was to kill him… and he was trying to look out for his friends?

"You won't stand a chance without an alliance," I informed him.

He nodded. "I'll make one with the weaker candidates. It will buy me time to maybe bond with a creature, but if the emperor wants me dead, I will only be a danger to my friends."

He was right. If my father wanted him dead, he'd have his spies in The Wilds take out his entire alliance.

"And why do you think I would do you a favor?" I asked, sizing him up. He just said he would do the same as my father, meaning he would take out his competition and keep them from getting stronger. And how the hell was I even entertaining this conversation? It felt borderline treasonous.

He looked at me again. "Because of how you reacted when they called your friend's name. You would do anything to protect her, right?"

My heart was in my throat. I simply nodded.

"I need someone like that looking out for my family, and in return they will make sure not a single hair on your friend's head is touched."

I had to control my breathing. It felt like he was staring into my soul. He saw me, like really saw me for who I was, and I wasn't sure what he thought.

"Okay," I blurted out before I could lose my nerve. "For Tetra. But if I join the team I want to be in charge. It's the only way I can ensure things will run smoothly and we get out alive."

He dipped his head. "Done. I have heard that Amerseans are a people of their word. That to go back on your word would drive you to a shame so deep you would kill yourself."

It was true. Our custom was that we gave our word, and shook on it, and the deal was done. No need for contracts or signatures.

I nodded. "That's right. You have my word. I will protect your family to the best of my ability." I used the word family because he had.

Reaching out, he extended his hand in the Amersean way. I took his warm fingers in mine, ignoring the way his touch made my heart beat a mile a minute. We shook, and then I left the seat before rumors could start.

"Get up," I told Tetra, and jerked my head to the front of the bus. "We're joining an alliance."

As we made our way to the front, Kohen started to speak to the stragglers in the middle, grouping them up into a large alliance of over twenty people.

I met his gaze from across the bus and he subtly nodded. All emotion gone from his face; he was back to looking like a ruthless warrior. Did I just play into a trap?

What the stars did I just do?