“We failed them. I failed them,” Alden said through choked emotion.
“You did your best and no one can say you didn’t. The Guild, however, is trying to say just that. Savlian and Sevrin were at Vlad’s not too long ago, and saw a news station showing one of the Guild Elders offering a reward for your capture. They’re saying you’re a traitor. Of course they’d never admit to the loss of the Guild being an inside job. Instead, they are accusing us, and they have pictures they’ve been smearing all over the TV of us entering the Guild. Vlad and Adrian have been using some outside help, and they say that the Humans are also rising against the Fae in droves now. There are the females, and some males still thinking that the Fae are better than boy bands, but those ones have always been a little brainless concerning them. The others, however, are encouraging the Guild and backing them.”
“Are you serious about starting a new Guild; a better one where we can keep people safe while we do the right thing?” Alden asked as he took in the kids that looked scared as Ryder and his men walked in.
Like me, they’d been raised to fear the Fae. Fear keeps you alert, and it keeps you alive. It was one of the things I prided myself on. I knew I was terrified of the Fae, but I’d been taught to never show it. I’d used my mouth to show them I wasn’t afraid, while holding that fear in check internally.
“I am, and I still want you to run it,” I said, watching as the kids kept their eyes glued to the men, and cowered a little, but I couldn’t blame them for it. “They need to be taught the right things, and not a crap load of lies. You can teach them that, and together we will build something that no one else has ever been able to do before. We can build something that helps to protect any creature that needs it. I’ve talked to Ryder’s guys, as well as Adam. We are all willing to help you, and we will back you whether you decide to run it or not.”
“You’d do that for me?” Alden asked softly.
“I would,” Adam said as he sifted in to stand beside us. “In a heartbeat, Alden,” he continued with his eyes on me. “Besides, I need a place to stay at while I search out the Light Heir. I’d stay with Vlad and Adrian, but I think it would be counterproductive. It’s a party every night with them.”
“Okay, we can discuss the new Guild later. Right now we need to account for the charges the Guild is accusing us of. I think you should do the talking, and we’ll back you up if anything happens. Vlad has a friend who will also be there with a few of his people. It will add to the army we’ll be walking in with. I’d suggest we go without them, but I don’t trust the Guild not to attack us unless we show them force. So we go in with the backing to make them stop and think. Plus, we don’t know how many Mages have infiltrated or weaseled their way into the Seattle Guild,” I said with my business face on.
“And Olivia? What do we do if they ask for her?” Alden asked.
“We hope to God that they don’t ask. Ristan will either get the truth out of her, or not. I don’t know if she’s guilty of being a Mage or just trying to be a good little soldier, but we all know that you and she have been here too long for the Guild not to suspect that you’ve both been compromised. If we hand her over to them, she’ll most likely be retired. I can’t in good conscience do that to her. There’s a chance she could be innocent, or that she’d been drinking the Kool-Aid that we all were. The point is that we don’t know what happened. You were passed out and we weren’t there. Zahruk could possibly pull it from her mind, but he and Ryder have decided to honor Ristan’s request to get the information from her in his own way. I can, however, tell you this: If someone asks us for her directly, then that is who we should suspect of being a Mage. I believe her on that part; that she was told you were a traitor. We know that you were under suspicion by the Seattle Guild for a time, which is why they sent the other Elders to the Spokane Guild. I think she was used and fed lies by the Mages. It may not be true, but she wouldn’t have been able to say no if it had been an upper level command. We all know that. Her fate is out of our hands now, and Ristan isn’t quick to judge people or make hasty decisions. I trust him to do what he believes is right. I have to.”