Chapter 297: Leader (2)
On her walk here, she thought over how she would get to speak to Rafael without anyone interrupting her. If her father is present, he wouldn’t allow her to go forward to speak with Rafael on their behalf. Her father sometimes reacted too fast instead of hearing her out. Annalise didn’t want him anywhere near Rafael when she was already tasked with trying to get Rafael to hear her out.
Phillip folded his arms. "I don’t like this idea. With the knights coming, this is too big of a war for you to lead on your own while I am here. You don’t have the experience leading an army."
"You would not be sitting around doing nothing. It is important that our homes have warriors here to protect them in case everything does not go as we planned. You said it is time I start getting experience leading. Trust that I can handle this on my own," Annalise said, hoping her father would say yes.
"You are my only child, Annalise. I don’t feel comfortable letting you lead without me by your side. You need to watch what I do-"
"It’s a little bit too late for that," Celeste said, interrupting Phillip. "You had plenty of time to let her follow you when she turned sixteen. She was already skilled in using all kinds of weapons and she excelled in our fake wars to train the children. You let boys whose hands shook when they picked up a sword join you, but you kept Annalise behind. Should our warriors start losing, we need a second defence here to protect the old and children left behind."
"I know you fear losing me, but you have to let me do this. You always feared that I would not be safe going beyond where you marked, but I survived being far away from home for weeks. I have a plan to help us with this coming fight and all I need is for you to give me enough warriors to carry out that plan," said Annalise.
"I don’t see why you are not agreeing to it. She’s always been praised for her skill with a sword. There is no one I know who hunts like my granddaughter. Remember that your father sent you out leading a group of our warriors to prove yourself. You can’t keep Annalise under your wing forever. It’s time to make use of her years of training," Celeste said.
"I agree with Celeste," Ezra spoke up. He had been following Phillip for ten years now and those years had been great, but it was time for Phillip to step down and let someone young with new ideas take over. "I am not against you being our second defence. They will target you. They’ve seen you many times to spot you amongst our warriors. They have not seen Annalise."
"I will join in staying behind to protect our homes," Celine announced. Her talent had always been in making poisons, but she was skilled when it came to using a bow and arrow.