Phantom Game (GhostWalkers 18)

“I swore to myself he would never get to me with his accusations. Marigold and I even discussed it at night with the other women. We used telepathic communication, but as my strength began to grow, I found myself afraid to use it. I didn’t trust it. Anything coming from Whitney was suspect, especially when he watched me so closely. So, at night, when we talked about our futures and the fears we had of Whitney’s breeding program, it was easy enough to keep my doubts to myself. I didn’t have to do much talking.”

“But you listened to everyone else. The new networks helped you hear lies, didn’t they?”

She nodded reluctantly. “Lies registered as a jarring note that jangled along the nerve endings when someone was talking. It could be a small jolt or a really big sizzling one, like a bolt of electricity running through me. Not at all pleasant. It was all new, so I was just learning what each reaction meant.”

Jonas heard the note of reluctance that was still in her voice. Still in her mind. She didn’t want to know if Marigold had been the one to betray Camellia when she was attempting to escape. Camellia had already accepted Beverly as the guilty party. She wanted that betrayal to be the damning one, the ultimate. If Mari had known about her twin and chosen to keep her existence a secret, eventually Camellia could come to accept that. But would she ever be able to forgive a betrayal that caused the death of a fellow sister?

Jonas sent a silent prayer to the universe that no one interrupted them. Camellia needed to get it all out. To let herself speak of her fears. She had to have one person she could talk to without fear of recrimination. He wanted to be that person for her.

Camellia sighed. “Marigold never brought up the subject of Ivy or Beverly, and when someone else did, she was very quiet as a rule. There was only one time . . .”

She fell quiet, swallowing hard. When she looked up at him, her eyes meeting his, she looked all woman, no sign of her cat. Her eyes had gone as liquid blue as the sea, making his heart ache. “Marigold said we knew who had betrayed us and we could never allow Whitney to drive a wedge between us. We had to stay strong together, that there was no sense in talking about it any longer. That was when she brought up the idea of talking to Senator Freeman and putting together an escape plan for all of us.”

The wind tugged at their clothing, growing stronger. He felt that vague threat growing closer. Whatever—or whoever—was on the move. He had to talk with Jeff and Kyle and make a decision. Ryland and the others had to be warned. He didn’t have a lot of information, but he knew for certain there was an actual threat. The team had to go on high alert. That meant getting the children under lockdown. Daniel was a handful, and if there was one thing the boy didn’t like, it was to be restrained in any way. Jonas had hoped to know exactly what they were dealing with before he sent a report back to Ryland, but he couldn’t wait. He couldn’t risk something happening to him before he alerted the team and their families to the approaching threat.

Through the shared networks, Jonas examined the memory in Camellia’s mind, noting every nuance, every inflection of Marigold’s tone as she spoke to the other women about betrayal, trust and plans for escape. He did so dispassionately. He wasn’t a man who ever made judgments about fellow GhostWalkers. Enhancements were difficult to live with. The things Whitney had done to them made it nearly impossible to get through a day at times.

Camellia’s mind was a wonder. Each memory stored in vivid detail, down to the smallest aspect. Whether consciously or not, she had noted everything, from what the temperature was to the exact measurements of the room she was in. She had even counted the rotations per minute of the fan above her head.

Yeah, he was going to have to go with Camellia on this one—Marigold hadn’t been telling the exact truth about something. She had successfully shut down the conversation about Ivy, Beverly and Whitney’s intimation that someone else might have been the one to alert the guards to Camellia’s absence. As she had volunteered to try to go out with her former unit to be on the protection team for Senator Freeman and Violet, she clearly believed she might be able to help all of them, including herself. That led him to the conclusion that she knew more about the night Ivy was killed than she let on. That didn’t make her guilty. It only meant that, like Camellia, Jonas didn’t altogether trust her.