“Both of you, stop,” I beg. I don’t want to see them come to blows. I just know it won’t end well.
“If you really care about her, you’ll protect her,” Cole says as spit flies out of his mouth. His fists clench at his sides and his eyes darken.
“Protect her? Like you have? What—try to get in her pants? Try to schmooze your way into her heart just to tear it to shreds? Don’t think for one second that I haven’t noticed what’s going on between you two. You’re the one treating her like a slut!”
Then Keegan shoves me onto the cot and fists begin swinging. I start screaming for them to stop, but no one listens. Cole knocks him to the floor, straddles him, grabs his collar, and sends his fist straight into Keegan’s jaw. Keegan returns the punch, forcing Cole backward onto his side. Cole moves to hit him a second time, so I throw myself between them just as he swings a punch that lands in the middle of my back.
I land on Keegan. I try to inhale when a sharp pain shoots down my back, making me arch.
“Lexi,” Cole says, rolling me over onto my side. I curl into a ball. “Damn it. I didn’t mean to hit you.”
“Get off of her, you idiot.” Keegan shoves him into the wall with a burst of speed.
I’m immobile on the ground. I look up just as Keegan moves toward Cole and delivers a head-swerving hook. Blood spurts from Cole’s nose and drips off his face. I feel warmth overtaking my body and my vision blurs at the edges. Blackness seeps into my field of vision.
CHAPTER 18
The noises of grunting and barking bring me back, and I open my eyes in time to see Bruno charge into the room, closing the door before Zeus can enter. He pulls Cole away, and they both fall down. He curses under his breath. Blood trickles from Cole’s nose as he covers it and his eyes hold hatred that I’ve never seen before. Keegan bolts to my side and lifts me up.
I groan while digging my fingers into his arm. The pain on my right side cripples me.
He puts his strong arms around my waist and pulls me upright. “You make me sick,” Keegan says to Cole. He sets me on my cot. “Who the hell do you think you are?” he yells.
Cole turns to him, wiping his nose with his shirt. “Who the hell do I think I am? Who the hell do you think you are? What, her brother? The one who walked out on his sister when she needed him the most? Face it, Keegan, you don’t have the slightest clue who she is now. The woman she’s become. But I do. I know everything about her.”
“You prick.”
“Stop it! Calm down, both of you!” Bruno commands.
Bruno plants himself between them before another fight breaks out. He takes Cole’s arm and drags him away.
By now, other men have filed into the room and they point their guns at Cole and Bruno. Bruno pulls out his gun and points it at Keegan. Zeus bolts in and plants himself in front of me as the tension dams at my throat. I don’t even know where to begin.
“Are you okay?” Keegan says, ignoring the insanity that’s about to erupt.
Part of me doesn’t want to speak to him at all. He ruined one of the best moments I’ve had in forever. Yet he also believes I should fight. And I want to.
“No. You idiot. I’m not okay.” I shout.
“Lower your guns and someone find her a medic.” Keegan stands tall like there isn’t a gun pointed at his face. Reluctantly, the men lower their pistols and place them back in their holsters. Bruno follows suit.
Keegan turns back to me. “No, seriously, how are you?”
“Well, let’s see… the two people I care about the most are ready to tear each other’s heads off. How do you think I am?” I say. The pain forces me to clench my teeth.
Cole butts in. “No way in hell she’s fighting.”
“Last time I checked, she was alert and oriented, so she’s quite capable of making that decision for herself,” Keegan says.
Cole pushes from behind Bruno and meets Keegan’s eyes with his own death glare. “She just found you and you’re willing to lose her that easily? Throwing her into combat? No way can anyone train her in the short amount of time before the revolt starts. She’s not going out there. Use your brain, Keegan! These are trained guards we’re talking about. She won’t last a minute out there and you know it!” he says.
“You don’t know anything about me,” Keegan retorts. “She’ll be ready and you can just sit and watch!”
“That’s enough,” Bruno says and puts his arm around me, leaning in close and looking me in the eyes. “What do you want to do?”
All eyes rest on me—Keegan’s angry deep blue, Cole’s pleading obsidian, and Bruno’s brown eyes glare. I don’t know what to say. My answer won’t make Cole happy or make things easier for myself. But if I ever want to be with him, uninterrupted, without fear of death, then I have to make my choice known.