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“...if you seriously expect me to believe that I can walk through this land without defending myself or my family, you’re delusional,” Zev snarled, then finally took a breath after a tirade of white-hot rage over the way he and his mate had been treated.

Tarkyn was almost despairing. He’d heard every word, recognized that he likely would have felt the same in the same shoes, but how to show the Chimera in the wake of this that the Anima weren’t like the humans and had no desire to destroy or exploit them?

The only ideas he had during the conversation were executable offenses, and far too risky. He needed to talk to Harth, to find out if there was a way to approach this, specific to the Chimera and their traditions, to see if they could create some kind of ceasefire or truce in which to discuss it.

“Do you at least believe me?” Tarkyn asked Zev quietly when the male had finished, his jaw jutting out and eyes glittering with malice. “Do you believe that my bond with Harth is real and I want peace for our people?”

Zev stared at him for a long moment, clearly measuring whether to be honest or not. Tarkyn prayed he would be.

“I’d need to talk to her,” Zev answered finally. “But you are one male, Tarkyn. Even one with power, you answer to your Queen. And that bitch-”

Sasha sucked in a breath and Tarkyn stiffened, his hackles rising.

Zev cut himself off, but didn’t apologize for the word.

.....

Tarkyn prayed Elreth wouldn’t plow in there to punish him herself. But that also convinced him that the male needed a break. Unfortunately, that also meant that Tarkyn needed Sasha.

“The Queen is... more compassionate than you might think,” Tarkyn said quietly, carefully. “But I know this has been a hard morning. I wonder, Sasha, if you would be willing to come with me outside, to speak with her?”

Sasha opened her mouth, but Zev jumped in. “You’re fucking kidding me, right?” he snarled, shifting himself between Sasha and the door-and Tarkyn-in a blink.

Tarkyn raised his hands to soothe the tense male. “I know Sasha and the Queen have already spoken at length-safely. I don’t want to remove her from you. Only to give her a chance as Alpha to... hear the Queen’s petition.”

Sasha’s face was pained, watching her mate’s back as he growled, his back rippling towards the shift. “You are not taking my family from me!”

“No, Zev,” she breathed. “Remember, I told you? I went with the Queen before. She... she promised me safe passage and she gave it. I wasn’t touched or hurt. We just talked. I think... I think it might be good to-”

“Don’t trust these savages, Sash,” Zev snapped. “Don’t let them fool you. It’s bad enough that we have to let them feed Zan. Who knows what they’re giving him.”

But since Zev didn’t turn away from Tarkyn, his hands back and held out to keep Sasha from moving forward, he didn’t see the way his mate’s face twisted in pain.

Tarkyn watched her carefully, sensing perhaps a better chance at success with her-but would it work? If they shared the power, would Zev have the capacity to overrule her? Or would their tribes be split if they disagreed?

The questions only made him want to be able to speak with Sasha more. And it was clear from her expression she wanted to speak to him, as well. But it was also clear that Zev wasn’t going to accept that. Not in his current state of mind.

But Sasha stepped forward then, the baby at her shoulder, and touched Zev’s arm. “Zev, look at me. He can’t get in here, it’s locked and he doesn’t have a key. Just... look at me. Please.”

Zev turned slowly, reluctant to take his eyes off of Tarkyn, but Sasha waited, her eyes wide and pleading. “Why don’t I leave Zan here with you? You can watch him and keep him safe. And I can go talk to them-”

“No! This is the humans all over again-you’ll go and they’ll keep you and-”

“I give you my word that we won’t,” Tarkyn interjected quickly. “We’ll let her speak to the Queen unbound, and right outside the door. We won’t take her away. You keep your son and we won’t touch her. She’ll just... have a chance to... talk. Would you rather find peace if you could, Zev? Wouldn’t that be better for your people as well as ours?”

Sasha handed Zev the baby and put her hands up to his jaw, clearly speaking to him in his head as she cupped his face.

Tarkyn waited, holding his breath, to see if Zev would agree-he seemed so tense.

Then Sasha said, “I’ll make them stay outside so you can breathe.” And something in the male shuddered.

It all came home to Tarkyn then. There really was only one option here.

Damn.

Moments later, after Tarkyn had obtained the key from a guard, then returned to the prison, he grimly led Sasha out to find the others waiting for him just outside the door.

One look at Elreth’s face confirmed that they’d heard every word.

Zev’s white-hot rage at the way he’d been treated, his utter disbelief that the Anima could be trusted-though he’d conceded that he believed Tarkyn meant to help, given his attachment to Harth-made Tarkyn terrified that the bridge had already been burned.

He didn’t even wait for Elreth to ask, but he launched in. “The only thing that’s going to help him is freedom,” he hissed.

“Impossible,” Elreth said, shaking her head sadly.

“El,” Tarkyn started.

“I’m listening! I’m not trying to say there’s no way forward here, but seriously, Tarkyn, would you run in there and just cut him loose? Let him walk out of here?”

Tarkyn didn’t respond, because he’d had the same thought. Of course he wouldn’t. That male was in crisis, a cornered animal. And cornered predators used fangs first and asked questions later.

But where did that leave them?

Tarkyn’s heart sank.