"Can you forgive us in exchange for that information?" Jeannette said quickly, the words tumbling out with desperate hope. "We were brought with a bad purpose, yes. But..." she paused, something like guilt crossing her face, "we didn't have much choice. Our families ordered. We obey or they throw us out."
"You didn't have much choice?" Ren repeated, his anger diluting slightly at having heard only truths from them.
"Ren," Cassia said with a softer voice now, vulnerability replacing the normal pretense of charm, "we're just pawns."
"We were chosen as political pieces from birth," Seraphina continued, her usual composure cracking to show the genuine emotion beneath, "We wouldn't do this, but our families have reasons to want you to fail. Or at least, to want you not to have complete success."
"And you?" Ren asked, looking between the three. His eyes moved from face to face, searching for the smallest lie. "What do you want?"
