Scarlett (Second Edition)
That fear had led us to make cowardly choices, compromises that had chipped away at our strength until there was barely anything left.
Scarlett was the perfect example of our failures. To keep the peace, to appease the people, we’d tied her to that post. We’d humiliated our own mate in a desperate attempt to avoid conflict. And when we snuck back to free her, hoping our deceit would somehow repair what we’d broken, it only made it clear how weak we truly were. We weren’t leaders. We were cowards. Garland had probably seen it all, known that we were nothing but a joke.
Lucian shook the box lightly, the heavy contents shifting inside, and then set it down on the ground. The letter lay unopened