Breaking Ties by Vaughn R. Demont

Nee O’Rourke.”
    Oh shit.
    Rourke had a son. A son who was a Ra’keth.
    The way Rourke tells the story, his son wasn’t always on the road to being a supervillain. He was a good man, once, who fell prey to feelings of inferiority, that he’d never be powerful because of his mixed blood. And he blamed Rourke for that, became something darker, gave in to baser instincts, abused the power he had and was on the verge of bringing about the end of existence. Rourke had to do something.
    So Rourke killed him.
    He stabbed him in the heart, and held him in his arms as he died. Rourke told him he loved him, that he’d always be his little pup, that no one should ever have to die alone and afraid.
    And his son died accepting that.
    To show a Ra’keth that they’re human, not an infallible force beyond anyone’s reach, that’s the purpose of the Emerald in the Snow, and that Emerald was the Phouka’s first and only.
    But there’s one part of the story I never asked about.
    â€œYour son, Rourke, I know it’s a sore subject, but he did have children, right?” Because Rourke never had children again, and all the Phouka had to come from somewhere.
    He nodded.
    â€œSo you’re not going to trick James because you don’t trick…” It finally hits me. “You don’t trick family. Because the last time you had to do that…” I don’t finish the sentence. I feel bad enough about bringing it up. “So James is descended from your son, a Ra’keth, whose mother was a Ra’keth, so is that why he’s a…”
    â€œI have suspicions as to who James really is, given his heritage. Humans have an obsession with cataloging familial records. If he is who I believe he is, that would be enough to bring out my son’s heritage instead of my own.” He shrugs. “I would not be surprised if there have been Phouk amongst his family line.” Rourke then sits down on his couch, and I’m getting the feeling that all of this is weighing heavier on him than my own concerns.
    So I sit down next to him, no moves, despite what we’d both done on his floor a few minutes before. If you’re going to do the whole sex-with-the-ex thing, you might as well make an effort to be one of the good exes. “I won’t tell anyone. Or him, if you want. Something like that should probably come from you, don’t you think?”
    â€œI told him we would never darken his doorstep. I gave my word.”
    I reach over, take his hand. “He doesn’t have any family, Rourke. None who know who he is, anyway. Be honest with him, actually honest, not Fae honest. He could probably use that. Hell, I think both of you could.”
    â€œI find it odd that a Coyote would try to talk me into a position where I could attempt an Emerald in the Snow.”
    â€œI’m not. I’m interested in keeping James in a place where he’ll never deserve one.” I squeeze Rourke’s hand.
    A moment passes before he squeezes back. “Spencer, why do you need to know about the Cobalt Order?” He leans against the back of the couch, inquisitive. “They are not an issue for non-Fae.”
    I get up to face him. “Because fuck the Feud. That’s why. These people are bigots who kill people, and someone should stop them. It’s the right thing to do. I’m on the outs with the clan, so I’m a free agent. You know this, otherwise you never would’ve let me in the door, given our history. For God’s sake, Rourke, this isn’t a game.”
    â€œBut it is . A dangerous one, but it is always a game when the Fae are involved. This is a game, and I am a king. Which piece will you be?”
    â€œNone of them. I’m not a piece, I’m a hero.”
    Well, James’s hero, at least.
    He sighs at that, getting up as well. “So you’re a pawn.”
    â€œI’m not a—”
    â€œYou’re