Chapter 33

Aiden

"I think I see someone," our father announced, standing from the chair he'd placed in the middle of his stage.

He'd been rambling the entire time Lilly had been up there. He talked about his dragon and how no one had ever bested him. He spoke about how he thought the whole thing would go down and how the ‘human' would die. He talked about his wonderful cave of treasures and how everyone here should be jealous because they weren't the ones getting to see it. It made the wait even more excruciating.

Keir was preoccupied the entire time, saying he could feel Lilly and her fear, but he couldn't hear or speak to her, not behind all the warding on the door. He was freaking me out the whole time, making me worry even more.

The worst part was when fire erupted from the side of the mountain. We tried to run up the path, but the guards kept us from doing so. Our father threatened us, telling us to stand down or he would kill Lilly regardless if she'd managed to make it out alive.

There was no word strong enough to describe the panic that filled my chest when I spotted my twin marching down the pathway, cradling our girl's limp body in his arms.

"No…" I said as an unsettling feeling took over.

"Lillian…" Keir whispered at the same time before we both took off up the path to meet them, shoving the guards out of our way.

Our father's blustering laughter followed us as we ran to her. Nicholas's face was tight with distress, looking frantic until he saw us coming his way. He stopped short, letting us close the distance.

Keir reached them seconds before I did. He caressed Lilly's cheek with his hand, murmuring in her ear about coming back to him, staying with him. He took her from Nicholas's arms, burying his face in her neck.

Her face was splattered with blood, and her nose looked a bit swollen, blood caked beneath it. She looked like she'd been attacked, but there was no way Aridam would have just punched her nose or something, so it made me wonder what happened in there.

"I've got you, princess. You're safe."

Her head moved slightly as she nuzzled into his body. I swear, we all blew out the same breath of relief. She was alive—tired, but alive.

"She was in the fire."

"What?" I asked my twin, sure I'd misheard him.

"She was running out of the tunnel, but the fire came out before her. It incinerated the guard, but she came out just fine." Nicholas shook his head, as if he didn't believe his words. He rubbed his palm over his face. "And her eyes…"

"What about her eyes?" Keir asked coarsely. He looked down at the woman in his arms, probably hoping she'd open her eyes so he could get a look for himself.

Nicholas shifted his stance nervously. "They were different. They were—one was blue, and one was red." He looked right at me as he said, "Just like ours."

"Fucking shit…" I looked between my brothers.

"It's a good thing the guard is dead then." Keir's jaw flexed. "No one can know about this."

"Nicholas?" our girl mumbled.

Nicholas got close to her, sandwiching her between him and our older brother. "I'm here, baby. I'm right here."

I stood next to them and placed my hand on her knees. Her eyes fluttered open, catching sight of Nicholas first. She smiled at him then looked at me and said, "Aiden."

I flashed her my signature smile and wink, thanking the damn universe she was awake.

She seemed to take notice someone else was holding her, and once she looked up at him, she gasped. "Keir…" She reached up a hand and rubbed it over his neatly trimmed jaw. He just stood there, watching her intently, letting her touch him. "I heard your voice," she said with another smile.

He smiled back down at her, and my chest warmed. I'd been silly to worry that Keir and Lilly getting together would be an issue.

"Can we go home?" she asked in a small voice.

"Of course," my twin and I said together.

Nicholas shrugged the backpack from his shoulders and shook it, the treasure clanking within it. "Let's get this done."

"So she lives…" our father said with a curl of his lip as we approached the crowd and stage. "No matter. It's not over." He eyed the bag in Nicholas's hand. "Where's the guard?"

"Ash on the ground, thanks to your pet ," Nicholas bit back before dropping the bag onto the stage at our father's feet. "There."

Our father looked at one of the councilmen in the crowd, who stepped forward with a scale. He set it on the stage, pressed a few buttons, then grabbed the bag and placed it on it.

My brothers and I stood stiff as we awaited the final verdict. I tried not to allow myself to think about what we would do if the weight was wrong—if she hadn't done it. The idea that our father would try to take our girl's life enraged me. It made me want to rip through the crowd, literally bathing us in blood.

As I waited to see what came next, there was one thing I was confident about. I would defend her until my last breath, no matter who raised their weapon against me, even if it was Father.

"Impossible!" our father barked at the councilman with the scale. "Weigh it again!"

I exchanged looks with my brothers.

"She did it," Keir said matter-of-factly. "She fucking did it." He squeezed the girl in his arms, making her squeal with delight and moan in pain all at once. "Sorry, princess."

She patted his chest. "That's alright, big boy. I'm happy too. Can you put me down so I can celebrate?"

He didn't seem to want to put her down, and I couldn't blame him, but the moment her feet hit the floor, my hands were on her cheeks, smooshing them as I pulled her in for a soul-crushing kiss. I moved my lips against hers, my tongue invading her sweet mouth. I didn't care if I ever came up for air. I'd just steal hers.

"Geez, Aiden," my twin directed at me. "Save some for me."

I pulled away, letting him take my place. He wrapped his arms around her and peppered her face with kisses.

"You cheated!" our father howled as he jumped from the stage at Lilly, his finger pointed directly at her.

Keir grabbed her, pulling her back to his chest as Nicholas and I stepped in front of her, ready to protect her.

"You can't hurt her," Keir said confidently. "She completed the trial. You can't do anything to her."

Our father snarled with disbelief, opening his mouth to speak and then closing it. "I don't know how you managed it, but it won't happen again." He turned away, stomping back toward the stage with all eyes on him. He took a second to compose himself before speaking to the crowd. "The human seems to have completed the first trial successfully." Somewhere, I couldn't tell from whom, though, a couple claps sounded, but they were silenced by his glare. "The second trial will be revealed at the next council meeting. In three days." He gave us an evil smile. "The trial will be performed a week from today."

My brothers and I erupted in a mixture of "that's not fair" and "that's impossible".

Our father snapped at one of his bodyguards, who turned to get our father's car ready to go. He looked at us, unphased by our outbursts. "My game, my rules."

"Lillian!" Keir shouted, making Nicholas and I turn.

Lilly had collapsed against Keir, his body the only thing keeping her from hitting the ground.

"We've got to get her home," I said as I bent down and scooped her into my arms. She stirred and mumbled but didn't do much else.

I didn't wait to see if my brothers were following me. The crowd didn't hesitate to get out of my way as I carried our girl down the path.

Nicholas and I held her between us in the car, her head in my lap and her feet in his. I played with her hair, pulling it from the ponytail and carefully running my fingers through the tangles. Nicholas had taken her shoes off and was rubbing her feet.

Keir sat silently, brooding in his seat. He was angry and worried. I could relate. Our father was ruthless, putting our girl in danger, hoping she wouldn't make it past his stupid trials. Our girl was lying on my lap, only the rising and falling of her chest assuring me she was alive and well. Where were we to go from here? Lilly was in no condition to be ready for another trial in a week.

"Ida is meeting us at the flat," Keir spoke to the car. "She said she may be able to help."

I nodded at him before returning my attention to the sleeping beauty in my lap, where it stayed until we got to our building. Keir told us Ida was already up in the flat waiting for us.

Nicholas carried her in his arms, Keir and I on either side of him as we made our way to the elevator.

"Hail Satan, what happened?" Ida exclaimed when she saw the state of our fragile, human girl. "Tell me the dragon didn't get her."

"It did," Nicholas answered, making Ida inhale sharply. "But that's not what's wrong."

"She isn't staying awake, Ida," I explained. "She collapsed outside the cave after being engulfed in hellfire, then again after she came down the mountain, and she hasn't been up since. She was out the entire way here. We tried to wake her up."

Nicholas laid Lilly on the couch, and Ida immediately pushed him out of the way so she could kneel and look at her. She checked her pulse, listened to her heart, felt her forehead, and fussed over other things for a few minutes.

"She's alive," Ida told us as she stood. "But she's exhausted. There's something that can help her, but it may not be possible. I can find something else for the time—"

"No." Nicholas looked between Ida and Lilly. "What is it? What will help her? We'll do anything, Ida. We will go anywhere, pay anything."

She gave him a sweet, pitiful smile. "It's not a thing you can just go get or buy, hun. It's more than that."

"Please, Ida," I pleaded with her. "Tell us. We will make it happen."

"I'm afraid you two," she gestured between my twin and me, "cannot do a thing for her in this manner. You've done your part." She looked at our older brother, who was still standing near the elevator, unmoving, a complex expression on his face.