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  With no answers to any of those questions, I finally let my mind go where it wanted, where I’d been desperately trying to prevent it from going.

  Daemon.

  My eyes fell shut as I exhaled. I didn’t even have to try to see him. His face pieced together perfectly.

  His broad cheekbones, lips that were full and almost always expressive, and those eyes—those beautiful green eyes that were like two polished emeralds, abnormally bright. I knew my memory really didn’t do him justice. He had this masculine beauty I’d never seen before in real life, had only read about in the books I loved.

  Man, I missed books already.

  In his true form, Daemon was extraordinary. All of the Luxen were breathtakingly beautiful; being made of pure light, they were mesmerizing to look upon, like seeing a star up close.

  Daemon Black could be as prickly as a hedgehog having a really bad day, but underneath all that spindly armor, he was sweet, protective, and incredibly selfless. He’d dedicated most of his life to keeping his family and his kind safe, continually facing danger with little thought to his own safety. I was in constant awe of him. Though it hadn’t always been like that.

  A tear dripped down my cheek unbidden.

  Resting my chin against my knees, I swiped at the wetness. I prayed that he was okay—as okay as he could be. That Matthew, Dawson, and Andrew were keeping a tight leash on him. That they wouldn’t let him do what I knew he wanted to: the same thing I’d do if the situation were flipped.

  Although I wanted him—needed him—to hold me, this was the last place I wanted him to be. The very last place.

  Heart aching, I tried thinking about the good things—better things—but the memories weren’t enough. There was a strong chance I might never see him again.

  The tears slipped out of my tightly squeezed eyes.

  Crying solved nothing, but it was hard to hold it in when exhaustion dogged me. I kept my eyes closed, slowly counting until the knot of messy, raw emotions climbed back down my throat.

  The next thing I knew, I jolted awake, my heart pounding and mouth dry. I hadn’t remembered falling asleep, but I must’ve. A weird tingle moved over my skin as I dragged in a deep breath. Did I have a nightmare? I couldn’t remember, but something felt off. Disoriented, I threw the blanket back and looked around the dark cell.

  Every muscle in my body seized as my eyes picked out a darker, thicker shadow in the corner by the door. Tiny hairs on my body rose. Air halted in my lungs, and fear sunk its icy claws into my stomach, freezing me in place.

  I wasn’t alone.

  The shadow pulled away from the wall, moving forward quickly. My first instinct screamed Arum, and I reached blindly for the opal necklace, realizing too late I didn’t have it anymore.

  “You’re still having nightmares,” the shadow said.

  At the sound of the familiar voice, fear gave way to rage so potent that it tasted like battery acid. I was on my feet before I knew it.

  “Blake,” I spat.

  Chapter 4

  Katy

  My brain clicked off and something a hell of a lot more primitive and aggressive took over. I felt the horrible, sinking sense of betrayal. Swinging out, my fist connected with what felt like Blake’s cheekbone. It wasn’t a girlie hit, either. Every bit of anger and pent-up hatred I felt toward him was packed into that punch.

  He let out a startled groan as white-hot pain danced across my hand. “Katy—”

  “You bastard!” I swung again, my knuckles slamming into his jaw this time.

  He let out another grunt of pain as he staggered back. “Jesus.”

  I spun, grabbing for a tiny lamp beside the bed, and without warning, the overhead light came on. I wasn’t sure how it did. If my abilities didn’t work in here, then Blake’s shouldn’t, either. The sudden glare caught me off guard, and Blake took advantage.

  He sprang forward, forcing me to back away from the lamp. “I wouldn’t do that if I were you,” he warned.

  “Go screw yourself.” I swung at him again.

  He caught my fist and twisted. Sharp pain shot up my arm, and I let out a surprised gasp. He spun me around, and I kicked out. Letting go of my arm, he narrowly avoided the thrust of my knee. “This is ridiculous,” he said, hazel eyes narrowed. Anger churned the green flecks.

  “You betrayed us.”

  Blake sort of shrugged, and, well, I sort of lost my shit again.

  I launched myself at him like some kind of ninja—a really lame ninja, because he easily dodged my attack. My left leg banged into the bed, and the very next second, he slammed into my back. Air punched out of my lungs as I toppled forward, hitting the bed on my side, bouncing it against the wall.

  His knees went down on the mattress as he grabbed hold of my shoulders, rolling me onto my back. I slapped at his arms, and he let out a curse. Rearing up, I swung at him once more.

  “Stop it,” he growled, grabbing my wrist. The next moment he had hold of my other one. Stretching my arms above my head, he leaned over me, bringing his face within inches of mine, and spoke low. “Stop it, Katy. There are cameras everywhere. You can’t see them, but they are there. They are watching right now. How do you think the lights just came on? It’s not magic, and they will flood this whole room with onyx. I don’t know about you, but I don’t find that very appealing.”

  I struggled to push him off, and he shifted his weight so that his knees pressed into my legs, trapping them. Panic was a slow crawl inside me, causing my pulse to jump. I didn’t like his weight on me. It reminded me of how he had snuck into my house at night and slept beside me. How he’d watched me sleep. Nausea rose swiftly, and the panic grew. “Get off me!”

  “I don’t know. You’re likely to hit me again.”

  “I will!” I bucked my hips, but he didn’t move, and my heart was racing so fast, I was sure I was going to have a heart attack.

  Blake gave me a little shake. “You need to calm down. I’m not going to hurt you. Okay? You can trust me.”

  Eyes wide, I let out a strangled laugh. “Trust you? Are you insane?”

  “You really don’t have a choice.” Bronze-colored hair fell over his forehead. Usually it was styled in that artfully messy way, but it looked like he’d run out of hair gel today.

  I wanted to hit him again, and I strained against his hold, getting nowhere. “I’m going to break your face!”

  “Understandable.” He pushed down, eyes narrowing. “I know we don’t have the most stable relationship—”

  “We don’t have any relationship. We have nothing!” Breathing heavily, I willed my muscles to stop trembling. Several moments passed as he stared down at me, nostrils flared and mouth set in a hard, grim line. I wanted to look away, but to do so was a weakness, and that was the worst thing I could show. “I hate you.” It seemed pointless to say that, but it made me feel better.

  He flinched, and when he spoke, his voice was barely above a whisper. “I hated lying to you, but I had no choice. Whatever I would’ve told you, you would’ve told Daemon and the other Luxen. And I couldn’t let that happen. Neither could Daedalus. But we aren’t the bad guys here.”

  I shook my head, dumbfounded and pissed beyond belief. “You are the bad guys! You set us up! From the very beginning. It was all leading to this. And you helped them. How could you?”

  “We needed to.”

  “This is my life.” Tears of anger swelled in my eyes because I had no control over my life now, partly thanks to him, and I struggled to keep my voice level. “Was any of it true? Chris? You wanting to get him out of here?”

  Blake didn’t say anything for a long moment. “They would’ve let Chris go at any time. The story of them holding him against his will was just that—a story to make you sympathize with me.”

  “Son. Of. A. Bitch,” I hissed.

  “I was sent to make sure the mutation held. They didn’t know what my uncle and Dr. Michaels were planning, but once they knew that the mutation had held, they needed t
o know who mutated you and how strong it was. That’s why I came back after the night…the night you and Daemon let me go.”

  Our compassion that night had been the final nail in our coffins. It was so ironically sad. I wanted to claw his eyes out.

  He let out a ragged breath. “We needed to make sure you were powerful enough for this. They knew Dawson would come back for Beth, but they wanted to see how far you’d get.”

  “This?” I whispered. “What is this?”

  “The truth, Katy, the real truth.”

  “Like you’re capable of telling the truth.” I rolled my body, trying to throw him off. Muttering another curse, he lifted up, still holding my wrists, and hauled me off the bed. My bare feet slid over the tile as he dragged me toward the bathroom. “What are you doing?”

  “I think you need to cool off,” he replied, jaw set.

  Digging in, all I managed to do was rub the bottoms of my feet raw. Once inside the bathroom, I threw my weight to the side, and he slammed into the sink. Before I could start whaling on him again, he thrust me backward.

  Arms spinning like wheels, I toppled over the short rim of the shower stall and landed inside on my butt. A sharp slice of pain shot up my spine.

  Blake bolted forward, one hand clamping down on my shoulder, the other reaching blindly to the side. An instant later, freezing water surged out of the showerhead.

  Shrieking, I clamored to stand up, but his other hand landed on my shoulder, holding me still as the icy water drenched me. I sputtered, arms flailing against the cold. “Let me out of here!”

  “Not until you’re ready to listen to me.”

  “There’s nothing you can say!” Soaked clothing clung to my skin. The steady stream of water plastered my hair to my face. Fearing he was trying to drown me, I went for his face, but he smacked my hands away.

  “Listen to me.” He grasped my chin, his fingers digging into my cheeks, forcing me to meet his eyes. “Blame me all you want, but do you think you wouldn’t be here even if you never met me? If so, you’re insane. The moment Daemon mutated you, your fate was sealed. If you want to get pissed at anyone, you need to get pissed at him. He put you in this situation.”

  Blake had stunned me into immobility. “You’re freaking nuts. You’re blaming Daemon for this? He saved my life. I would’ve—”

  “He mutated you, knowing that he was being watched. He’s not stupid. He had to know that the DOD would find out.”

  Actually, he and his family hadn’t known about hybrids until I turned into one. “It’s so typical of you, Blake. Everything is everyone else’s fault.”

  His eyes narrowed, and the green flecks deepened. “You don’t get it.”

  “You’re right.” I knocked his hands off my face. “I’ll never get it.”

  Backing off, he shook his head as I climbed out of the shower stall. He reached over, turned off the water, and grabbed a towel, tossing it toward me. “Don’t try to hit me again.”

  “Don’t tell me what to do.” Using the towel, I tried to dry off as best I could.

  He clenched his fists. “Look, I get it. You’re pissed at me. Great. Get over it, because there are more important things to focus on.”

  “Get over it?” I was going to choke him with this towel.

  “Yes.” He leaned against the closed door, eyeing me warily. “You really have no idea what’s going on, Kat.”

  “Don’t call me that.” I dabbed at my clothing angrily and uselessly.

  “Are you calmed down enough? I need to talk, and you need to listen. Things are not what you think. And I wish I could’ve told you the truth earlier. I couldn’t, but I am now.”

  A strangled laugh escaped me as I shook my head in disbelief.

  His eyes narrowed, and he stepped forward. My back straightened in warning, and he didn’t come any closer. “Let’s get one thing clear. If Daemon was locked up somewhere, you would’ve thrown everyone and baby Jesus under the bus to free him. That’s what you think I did. So don’t act like you’re better than me.”

  Would I? Yes, I would, but the difference between us was that Blake was looking for acceptance and forgiveness after he told more lies than truths. And to me, that was bat-shit crazy.

  “You think you can justify this? Well, you’re wrong. You can’t. You’re a monster, Blake. A real living and breathing monster. Nothing, no matter what your intentions are or what the real truth is, will ever change that.”

  A tiny flicker of unrest shone in his steady gaze.

  It took everything in me not to rip the towel rod off the wall and shove it through his eye. I tossed the towel aside, shaking more from anger than the wet coldness seeping through my clothes.

  He pushed off the door, and I took a step back, on guard. He frowned. “Daedalus aren’t the bad guys here.” Opening the bathroom door, he headed out. “That’s reality.”

  I followed him. “How can you even say that with a straight face?”

  He sat on my bed. “I know what you’re thinking. You want to fight them. I get that. I do. And I know I’ve lied to you about almost everything, but you wouldn’t believe the truth without seeing it. And once you do, things will be different.”

  There was nothing in this world that they could show me that would change my mind, but I also recognized the futility of fighting him on this. “I need to get dry clothes on.”

  “I’ll wait.”

  I stared at him. “You’re not staying in here while I get dressed.”

  He glared in annoyance. “Get changed in the bathroom. Close the door. Your virtue is safe from me.” And then he winked. “Unless you want that to change, and I’m so down for that. It does get boring around here.”

  My palm itched to wrap around a very unladylike place and twist. The words that came out of my mouth were my own. I felt them. I believed them.

  “I’m going to kill you one day,” I promised.

  A wry smile appeared on his face as he met my stare. “You’ve killed, Katy. You know how it feels to take a life, but you aren’t a murderer. You aren’t a killer.” He caught my sharp inhale with a knowing look. “Not yet, at least.”

  I turned away, curling my hands into fists.

  “Like I said, we aren’t the bad guys. The Luxen are, and you will see that I’m not lying. We are here to stop them from taking over.”

  Chapter 5

  Katy

  The moment Blake and I stepped out of my cell, two military guys surrounded us. One of them was Archer. Seeing his familiar face didn’t bring the warm fuzzies. He and the other guy were heavily armed.

  They ushered Blake and me toward the elevator, and I craned my neck, trying to see around them to get a grasp on my surroundings. There were several doors like mine, and it looked just like the corridor at Mount Weather. A heavy hand landed on the small of my back, startling me.

  It was Archer.

  He sent me a look I couldn’t decipher, and then I was in the elevator, squeezed between him and Blake. I couldn’t even lift my hand to brush away the damp, cold hair that clung to the back of my neck without knocking into them.

  Archer leaned forward, pushing a button I couldn’t see because of his mammoth body. I frowned, realizing I didn’t even know how many floors this place had.

  As if he were reading my mind, Blake looked down at me. “We’re underground right now. Most of the base is, with the exception of the two upper levels. You’re on the seventh floor. Floor seven and six are housing for…well, visitors.”

  I wondered why he was even telling me this. The layout had to be important information. It was like…like he trusted me with the knowledge, like I was already one of them. I shook the ridiculous notion out of my head. “You mean the prisoners?”

  Archer stiffened beside me.

  Blake ignored that. “The fifth floor houses Luxen who are being assimilated.”

  Since the last of the Luxen arrived when Daemon and his family did, more than eighteen years ago, I couldn’t imagine how they were still a
ssimilating any of them. My educated guess was that these were Luxen who they believed didn’t “fit” with the humans for one reason or another. I shuddered.

  And underground? I hated the idea of being underground. It was too much like being dead and buried.

  I wiggled my way out from between them, stepping back as I dragged in a deep breath. Blake eyed me curiously, but it was Archer who planted a hand on my shoulder, guiding me forward so I wasn’t behind them, like I was going to ninja-stab them in their backs with my invisible knife.

  The elevator came to a stop, and the doors slid open. Immediately I caught the scent of food—fresh bread and cooked meat. My stomach roared to life, grumbling like a troll.

  Archer’s brow went up.

  Blake laughed.

  My cheeks flamed. Good to know my sense of pride and embarrassment was still intact.

  “When was the last time you ate?” Archer asked. It was the first time he’d spoken since I’d been with him and Dr. Roth.

  I hesitated. “I…I don’t know.”

  He frowned, and I looked away as we stepped out into the wide, brightly lit hallway. I honestly had no idea what day it was or how many days I had been out of it. Up until when I smelled food, I hadn’t even been hungry.

  “You’re meeting with Dr. Roth,” Blake said, starting toward the left.

  The hand on my shoulder tightened, and even though I wanted to shove it off, I became very still. Archer looked like he knew how to break a neck in six seconds flat. Blake’s gaze went from Archer’s hand to the man’s face.

  “She’s going to get something to eat first,” Archer said.

  Blake protested. “The doctor is waiting. So is—”