"Exactly." Jack resumed walking, his pace steady as they approached Chiron's location. "Which brings us to your original question. What am I planning to do with Rhys and you? The answer is simple: exactly what I said. He works for me, I support his claim to the throne, we both benefit from the arrangement."
"And if he wants out?" Sylph asked quietly.
"Then he shouldn't have signed," Jack replied without sympathy. "The terms were clear. He agreed. The contract is sealed. Whether he regrets it now is irrelevant. He made his choice, and both of us are bound to honor it."
Sylph fell silent for several heartbeats, her tiny form outlined against the darkening sky. Finally, she spoke with something that might have been resignation. "You're not what I expected."
"What did you expect?"
"A monster," Sylph admitted. "Someone who'd look at Rhys and see a tool to be used and discarded. Someone who'd enjoy the power over us, who'd use the contract to make him suffer just because they could."
