The Girl Who Broke Free (Death Fields 5)

“Yes.”

“General Erwin has requested your presence.”

“Requested?” I laugh. “That makes it sound like I have a choice.”

The solider doesn’t blink. “His office is upstairs. Follow me.”

“Okay then.”

Erwin occupies the former Mayor’s office and I sense the change in him before he speaks. He looks younger and in better shape. Erwin isn’t young by any means, closer to fifty than anything else I suppose. But now he looks a decade younger and his dark, shadowed eyes give me a chill.

“Alexandra.” He stands to greet me. There’s no affection. There never has been between us. We walk the fine line between ally and enemy, fueled by the desire to rid society of monsters—human and otherwise. Now the Mutt mutation under his skin makes that line obsolete.

“Erwin,” I reply. “Looks like we’re still here.”

“Indeed.” He gestures to the chair across the desk. I notice he’s dressed less formally—less General-like, but more like a regular Fighter, in basic fatigues. Wyatt is right, things aren’t the same around here. “I wanted to debrief you after your time with Chloe.”

“Sure, okay. But don’t you have intelligence at her Headquarters?”

“Yes. And they’re the ones that found the opportunity to break you out.”

I laugh. “It took them six months to find an opportunity? Two weeks ago Cole nearly killed me.” His expression doesn’t change. “You knew that. You left me there for dead.”

“No. We left you there waiting for the right time to get in and out. My soldiers were there to stop Cole’s attack and get you to the infirmary.” He’s unaffected by my angry glare. “I’m sorry Alexandra but you know better than anyone this war is about more than one person. The instant we made an attempt to rescue you and the others, we made this place a target.”

In a blink I understand. “And the town wasn’t ready.”

“Not by a long shot. They needed intensive training before I could send them outside the gates. They’re lucky as hell we got here first.”

“Lucky?” I ask, daring to challenge his moral superiority. “Seems you turned most into Mutts anyway.”

“I gave them a choice. She wouldn’t have. I was not awarded that luxury.”

I tap my nails on the arm of the chair and glance around the former Mayor’s office. The books in the bookshelf are about ground warfare. A large topographical map of the area hangs on the wall and an organized table of weapons sits against the far wall. Interestingly, Erwin looks a little more settled in than at past locations. This makes me curious enough to ask, “You plan to stay here when this is over, don’t you?”

“Catlettsburg is the end of the road for me. We take Chloe out now or we don’t at all. We’re at the tipping point.”

“Where do you need me?” I ask. I’m not ready to share my plan about taking the new shot, but I’d like to know what he has in mind.

He hesitates and holds my gaze with his dark, disturbing eyes. “I think you would be best served away from the battle and away from Catlettsburg.”

“What the hell does that mean?”

“You’re a distraction in this war, Alex. This feud between you, Cole, and Chloe has created an impossible scenario of torture and retribution. She doesn’t care about killing either of you. Her twisted Hybrid brain wants to punish you.” He leans over his desk. “I want you off the grid because you’re nothing but a liability at this point. You’re sitting this one out.”

I want to argue back. Tell him this is my battle to fight as much as his, but I bite my tongue. I understand the ranking here. Not only is he the General, with an entire army of soldiers at his command, but he’s a Mutt. And that’s how life goes now. Eaters, Hybrids, and Mutts. At the very bottom, under their murderous feet—humans.

“Where will I go?”

“You’ll be escorted out of the town before we leave for battle. That’s where you’ll remain until further notice.”

The door opens behind me and he gives a slight nod, making it clear our meeting is over. I keep my rage in check and stand. I do ask one final question on my way out. “Does Wyatt know about this?”

“Wyatt has been given orders to get ahead of the teams and scout.”

“When did this happen?”

“This morning.” He watches me closely. “He won’t be returning before the troops depart.”