I quickly move to the back of the cage, scared to death of what he’s referencing. Images of Vlad thrash through my mind as the guards begin to unlock my crate. I watch them retreat as Hiro stands, hovering above the low ceiling of the disgusting piece of metal I’ve been placed into.
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But the moment the doors close, he bends down with a smile on his face.
“Clarissa. I thought I’d never find you,” Hiro says.
“What’s going on? What’s happening? Where’s Penny?” I ask.
“I don’t know. I still haven’t found her. You were captured before I could bring my emergency to the Council, so plans changed. I told them I found you.”
“You what?” I ask.
“We don’t have a lot of time, so I need you to listen and trust me. I’m still searching for Penny, but in two hours you’ll be brought before the Council, and your existence will be tried.”
“What? What does that even mean? Hiro, I have to get out of here,” I say.
“No. Stay. Because once you’re in front of the Council, you can use your rage against them. I’m trying to get as many answers as I can, but I know they’re hiding something. I can sense it.”
“What are they hiding? Please tell me you’ve found something.”
“The guards are coming back. I don’t have time to explain.
Clarissa, go before the Council. They will debate whether or not you deserve to live and what will happen to everyone who lied about your existence. I have their favor for now because they believe I brought you in. I’m hoping I can convince them Penny helped me, so it’ll force her out of the hole she’s hiding in because she’s planning.”
“How do you know she’s planning?” I ask.
“She’s an opossum. They weren’t bred for physical war, but mental manipulation. That’s their forte. She’s concocting a plan I’m sure, but I have to find her so she doesn’t blow mine. Which means outing her as someone who helped me. I’m hoping we will find her safe. But I do have pertinent information for you.”
The door opens in the background, and I can hear the footsteps of the guards. Hiro reaches his hand into the cage and silently apologizes. He wraps his hand around my throat and pulls me to his face, and I can only assume it’s an attempt to please the guards. I’m trembling. Digging my claws into the concrete floor of my cell to try and get away.
Then he holds me close to his face and delivers the one thing I’ve wanted to know for weeks.
“They’re here,” Hiro says. “The Primals who killed your mate.”
He drops me in my cell, and the guards slam the door closed. But all I can see is red. They’re here. Kyle’s murderers. Which means I’m closer to my answers than ever before. I hunker down in my cell and bide my time, stowing my anger away for a pertinent moment. Building up my energy stores so they don’t deplete before I can slaughter them in droves and get retribution for my slain husband.
As well as get safety for the rest of the Primals walking this planet.
The guards open my cell and cuff my ankles and wrists. Made of the same material my cell is, I can feel my energy draining from my body. They’re tossing me down the hallway and pulling me along, laughing and howling and taunting me with the sharp end of their spears. I’m covered in little bleeding dots by the time they toss me in front of the Council, and I can feel my anger bubbling in my veins.
Seeping through the pores of my skin.
Pounding the vessels in my brain.
I’ve never felt stronger. More resilient than now. I stand to my feet, my back hunching and my eyes darting around to every single member of the Council.
“Your friends told us you were dead,” one of them says.
My eyes lock with the man in the middle. He’s holding a spear matching the ones the guards were poking me with. My eyes lock onto him, and I watch him closely. Carefully.
He’s a species I haven’t encountered before.
But in a few minutes, it isn’t going to matter.
“Care to explain how you’re still alive?” another asks.
“Breathing,” I say plainly. “It’s usually how most survive.”