Chapter 21: The tension
Chapter Twenty-One
Tiara’s POV
The cavern trembled again, harder this time, and a shower of dust fell from the ceiling in a soft rain. Rowan did not flinch. Maxie did not move. The tension between them was so thick it made the air feel heavy in my lungs.
Rowan lowered his outstretched hand slowly when Maxie stepped forward, blocking me with his entire body. His voice remained calm, but there was a quiet urgency beneath it that felt unsettling.
“You cannot fight the King in a closed space,” Rowan said. “If you stay here, all three of us die.”
Maxie glared at him. “You are not part of us.”
Rowan’s expression didn’t change. “I never wanted to be.”
I took a breath and stepped around Maxie just enough for Rowan to see me. Maxie’s arm came out immediately, holding me back, but I placed a hand on his wrist.
“Let me hear him,” I said softly.
His jaw tightened, but he lowered his arm just enough for me to stand beside him.
Rowan’s gaze settled on me with a mixture of respect and something else I could not read.
“You saw Lysandra,” he said. “You heard her voice. You know I am not lying.”
I shook my head. “I did not see her face.”
“But you felt her presence.”
“Yes,” I admitted.
“Then you understand,” Rowan said quietly. “The threat is far bigger than Marcus ever was. Bigger than Cyrus. Bigger than the King.”
Maxie exhaled sharply. “Do not speak about Cyrus as though he is innocent.”
Rowan’s jaw tightened. “Cyrus was foolish and jealous, but he did not plot her death.”
“And you expect me to believe you did not either?”
“I expect you to believe Tiara’s memories.” Rowan looked at me again. “You remember I tried to pull you away from Marcus.”
The images flashed behind my eyes. A hand grabbing my wrist. A voice whispering run. Another voice shouting my name. The chaos of fear and snow and betrayal.
“I remember your voice,” I admitted. “But I remember you holding me too tightly.”
“I tried to stop him,” Rowan insisted.
“But you let him near me,” I whispered. “You let him touch me.”
Rowan’s eyes closed for a brief moment. “Yes. I did.”
Maxie’s growl reverberated through the cavern.
Rowan opened his eyes again. “I will spend the rest of my life answering for that. But right now, you need to survive long enough to get those answers.”
Cameron’s roar boomed down the tunnel again, closer than before, making the water ripple in the glowing river below.
Maxie took a protective step in front of me. “We do not need your help.”
Rowan nodded slowly. “Perhaps not. But you need time. And I can give you that.”
Maxie stiffened. “You are not sacrificing yourself.”
Rowan almost smiled. “I am not trying to be a hero, Maxie. I am trying to fix one thing before this ends.”
Tiara, run.
The words slid into my mind with a weird clarity. My heart skipped.
I clutched Maxie’s arm. “He is not lying. I can feel it. He is trying to help us.”
“You trust him now?” Maxie asked sharply.
“No,” I said. “But I know when someone is telling the truth. I feel it in my mark.”
That made Maxie hesitate. His eyes shifted to me, searching my face.
Rowan watched this silently, and when he spoke again, his voice was low.
“The King is fifty paces behind you. If you try to cross the bridge again, he will catch you on the open stone.”
Maxie bared his teeth. “Then we fight.”
“You will lose,” Rowan said. “He has the throne. He has the crown bond. His wolf is twice the size of yours now.”
“I do not care,” Maxie said.
“You should,” Rowan replied. “You cannot win alone.”
Maxie stepped forward, and for the first time, Rowan stepped back. “I do not need to win. I just need to give her enough time to escape.”
Rowan blinked. “You would die that easily?”
“There is nothing easy about it,” Maxie said quietly. “But I would do it.”
My heart cracked at the rawness in his voice.
Rowan studied him for a long moment, then nodded. “Then we agree on one thing. She must live.”
Maxie didn’t answer.
Rowan took a slow breath. “The far tunnel leads to the upper caverns. There is a hidden exit near the cliffs. I will hold the King at the bridge. You take her and you run.”
“No,” I said instantly.
Both men turned to me.
“I am not letting anyone else die because of me,” I said. “Not Leo. Not Maxie. Not you.”
Rowan’s gaze softened. “Tiara. You are the reason any of us still have a chance.”
“I do not want to be a chance,” I whispered. “I want to be a person. I want to be free.”
Maxie touched my arm gently. “You will be.”
“No,” I said, stepping back. “Not like this. I am tired of running. I am tired of hiding. I am tired of being chased like prey.”
“Tiara,” Maxie said softly. “We are not asking you to fight.”
“Then I am asking you to listen,” I said.
They both stopped.
I took a deep breath, the cavern air burning cold in my lungs.
“I am the one with the Moon Mark. It awakened for a reason. It chose me for a reason.”
Maxie shook his head. “You do not have enough control yet.”
“Maybe not,” I said. “But I am done letting everyone else get hurt while I stand behind them.”
Rowan looked almost startled. “You want to face the King.”
“No,” I said quietly. “I want to stop running from him.”
Maxie stepped closer, his hand cupping my cheek. “If you fight him now, he will break you. You are not ready.”
“Then stay by my side,” I whispered. “Help me be ready.”
His breath shook.
Rowan watched the two of us quietly, then turned his head toward the tunnel. Cameron’s aura pulsed closer, the ground trembling beneath our feet.
“You have very little time,” Rowan said. “Once he sees the mark at full power, he will lose all reason.”
Maxie pulled me against his chest. “We go. Now.”
Rowan nodded once. “Follow me.”
He moved toward the far tunnel.
I hesitated, tightening my arms around Maxie.
“Do you trust him?” I whispered.
“No,” he answered. “But I trust you.”
A knot formed in my throat.
Maxie took my hand, and together we stepped into the tunnel Rowan opened.
Behind us, Cameron’s roar rose again.
This time, he sounded close enough to touch.