Erik, still grinning with undiminished confidence, challenged Frostfang's demand. "And what if I don't?" While the reason for withholding the information about the whereabouts of his companions was obvious, he wouldn't actually mind telling Frostfang everything the council knew, since their knowledge was minimal at best.
But his readiness to escalate the situation wasn't about withholding crucial secrets.
Instead, it was meant to stir the already simmering tensions between Frostfang and Victor. After all, if they told Frostfang everything, there was a chance he would simply do away with Victor, but that wouldn't necessarily be beneficial to Erik and his group.
So long as there were two groups in play, the Silver Enclave and the council, Erik and Elora could play the two against each other.
Naturally, this was a high-risk, high-reward play, but high-reward was what they needed if they wanted to get out of this with both their lives and independence intact.
