Anger sparked in my chest as he took the information in with an indifferent gaze. “What’s wrong with you men that murdering a woman is just another day for you?”
“The interesting thing about it is, that it was all done to protect a woman. Or a girl, I should say.”
I faltered. “What?”
He eyed me warily but then shook his head as if to clear his thoughts. “Roldan has always been . . .
well, Roldan. The least sympathetic of us all. But he has one soft spot, and his father knew it. Even without the threat, though, I’m sure he’d have tortured you if that was the arrangement.”
“What do you mean, arrangement?”
“Why do you think there are posters of you all over this city? There were all sorts of people looking to find you. Roldan was sent to kill you by order of the seven kings, and he would’ve done it a lot sooner if Weston hadn’t been there.”
The posters were vague, not at all hinting that the kings had officially ordered my death. It was a little much to take in.
“After Roldan realized he wasn’t going to be able to get close enough to you with Weston stuck to your side, he went back to the council. Weston was committing treason, of course, but nobody fucking cares when their golden boy runs off with the woman who could destroy our entire society if she meant to.”
Bitter, much? was my first thought.
But then, I faltered.
He knew. He knew about the seal and me. Of course, he did. My heart beat against my ribs. What did that mean for me?
“Titan had the most to lose in this. If you opened the seal, a farmer could have more power than a Titan warrior. Of course, they were in an upheaval about the whole thing. Warrick, Weston’s father, took matters into his own hands and threatened Roldan’s daughter’s life if he didn’t find a way to kill you.”
A sinking sensation began in my chest. “How old is she?”
He smiled. “Just turned three. Gonna be a fierce little warrior.”
I pulled my knees up close to me, my arms still uncomfortably chained behind my back. I hated Roldan for what he did to me, and would never forget the details of that day. How his emotionless gaze still burned into my dreams making me wake with a thin sheen of sweat. But his motivations, saving his daughter, loosened a bit of the resentment in my chest.
I realized then, that hate—it only dragged you slowly under. And the last thing I wanted was to be pulled into the deep. It danced around me, just waiting for its moment.
There was a companionable silence that settled between us. Maxim had his hands clasped, looking at the floor with his elbows on his knees.
My words were quiet. “Why do you hate each other?”
He was still before meeting my eyes, a reminiscent smile pulling on his lips. He was handsome as it was, but when he smiled—I had the sudden urge to fan my face. An awkward feeling to be sure.
“We didn’t always hate each other. Hell, we were close enough we did a blood bond. Stupidest mistake I ever made.” He glanced at me meaningfully. “You have to know Weston isn’t a normal Titan.”
I looked at him blankly, because, of course, I knew that.
“I said something to someone I never should have. A secret Weston told me that ended up getting his mother executed.”
My eyes widened. “How long ago was this?”
He paused in thought. “Twenty years ago.”
“How old are you?”
“Twenty-nine.”
I blinked, putting it all together. “You were nine years old when you let a secret slip? And somehow you’re still enemies?”
He smiled sadly. “But that’s only when the feud began.”
I groaned, because of course.