Shame and anger swirled inside my mind. I was supposed to be stronger than this.
“I’m so sorry,” Emma whispered, her voice laced with worry and regret. Without looking at her I gave a curt nod letting her know that I didn’t hold anything against her. Everything that happened, happened because something was wrong with me.
“I’m sorry for that,” I whispered between gritted teeth.
“Why are you apologizing? Everyone in this room besides Rebecca was there when we found you. We may not know what all happened before that moment, but we saw the state you were in.” Luca spoke up for the first time, a mixture of understanding and anger flashing in his eyes.
“I’m broken.”
“A little cracked, but not broken.” The tenacity in Madison voice reverberated within me. “All of us here have our own share of cracks that threaten to break us, but we are a lucky bunch because together we make the glue that holds everyone together. No one can break us.”
Everyone nodded in agreement.
“And Sadie, you don’t have to tell us what happened. I get that, but let us know what we can do to help you.” Rebecca reached out for Luca’s hand for support. He readily laced his fingers with hers.
I smiled at her and the tension in the room lightened.
“The main two things are loud noises and white walls. Both cause severe reactions. Dr. Sokoloff says that new symptoms I’m unaware of can pop up, so right now anything could trigger the anxiety or severe anger.”
“So that explains why Mrs. LaMotte suddenly called for a remodel,” Lacy smiled. “We all figured it had something to do with that awful room we found you in.”
Chills shot down my spine at the mention of the white room and a sudden exhaustion pressed down upon me. I was done talking about myself, but wasn’t quite ready to finish visiting with my friends.
“Did you guys find Kian’s mom?” I voiced the question I’d been holding in all day. Kian shuffled his feet, digging his toe into the floor.
“Yeah,” he whispered. “She is with my dad now, barely hanging on.”
“I’m so sorry. I only saw her the one time and she had looked bad then.”
Kian nodded, his eyes wide with worry.
“The HPC left her behind once they realized that they were losing,” Luca added. “We were able to gather plenty of evidence of their crimes that the authorities won’t be able to ignore.”
“That’s good. I hope they get what they deserve.” Everyone nodded in agreement, not concerned with how my voice dripped with hatred for my captors. I cleared my throat, needing to steer the conversation away from those sensitive thoughts. “Did y’all happen to find a pre-teen Caelian girl with silver eyes and blue hair?”
“Yeah. She’s the one who led us to your room,” Lacy answered. “But once we had you and Mrs. Lane secured we went to look for her and she had disappeared.”
“I hope her father didn’t take her.” I shuddered at what Dean would do to Mae if he had known she led the rescue team right to my prison door.
“Who’s her father?” Madison asked.
“Dean Kerrington.”
Gasps followed my statement before a heavy silence fell as each of us became lost in our own thoughts. I could feel the mood of the room shift toward the negative.
“What happened with you guys while I was gone?” I asked, my voice bright like I had been vacationing in Europe instead of tortured and imprisoned.
The mood in the room shifted again, but this time the air felt light and airy. Everyone spoke about their lives while I was gone. Madison’s therapy was helping her tremendously. Her doctor suggested she find something fulfilling to do in her spare time. Rebecca introduced her to the director of the children’s wing of the infirmary and she spent most of her free time volunteering with the children.
Rebecca’s physical therapy was going well. Her customized prosthetic should be in any day and once it arrived she would begin with a new trainer who was experienced in adjusting fighting styles for the physically impaired. Luca had asked her out on a date the morning after I was captured – he was unaware of the situation at the time, but she refused until I was back and safe. Needless to say, they had gone on their first date the previous night.
Lacy’s medical training was going well and she had been training both Emma and Joshua in combat, so they could eventually be good enough to join the group classes.
When I began to struggle in order to stay awake, everyone left. Everyone except Kian. He was unusually distant and I knew if I pushed, he would clam up. Instead, I left him to brood while I took a shower and changed into my pajamas.
I walked out of the bathroom, steam rolling behind me like a warm fog. Kian was sitting on my bed, his back stiff as a board.
“I’m going to need you to move, so I can sleep. You can sit like a statue on your own cot.” I thumbed over to where his cot was folded and leaning against one of the walls.
“We need to talk.”
“Famous last words,” I said, as I released a long breath and wobbled over to my bed, plopping down next to him in a very unladylike manner.
“It’s not what you think.”
“I’m not really thinking anything.”
Kian half turned to where one knee was bent and resting against my hip. He took one of my hands in his and stared at our joined hands, lost in thought.
“You had asked me to look into the HPC to see if they knew about you and I did at first, but when nothing came out of it, I decided my efforts were best served looking into the Koenig family. I’m sorry I gave up too soon.”
“Really, Kian. All this worrying over that. From what I’ve heard no one could have known. It’s really okay. Now let’s go to bed. I’m exhausted.”
“That’s not what I need to tell you.”
“Okay, spill. In case you have forgotten, I have a big day tomorrow.”
“The council mediation,” he groaned.
“Yep.”
“I haven’t found out much about Miles or his hunters, but I do have some information on GenCorp. Some of it is new and some is information I’ve been keeping to myself for a while because it’s hard for me to talk about it.”
“Ooookay.” I released a slow breath. My mind was churning with thoughts, but my tired brain couldn’t center on anything in particular.
“… change the way you think about me.” Kian’s voice broke through my fuzzy mind. I blinked a few times, his face going in and out of focus. When did he start talking again?
I reached out and put my finger on his lips. “Babe, I’m exhausted. All of this can wait until tomorrow. We will talk about everything then, okay?”
“Yeah okay,” he looked both relieved and aggravated at my suggestion, but I didn’t care. Kian stood and I slid under the blanket. He turned to set up his own cot, but I grabbed his hand.
“Maybe, for tonight, you can sleep next to me.”
“You sure?”
“Get in my bed and spoon me,” I demanded with a yawn.
The bed pressed against his weight as he carefully crawled over my body and slid under my covers. His body molded against mine and I soaked in his delicious heat. When his arms wrapped around my waist, I pressed myself back against him, not allowing a single inch of space between our bodies. I bent my knees and squeezed my toes under one of his legs.
He hissed, “Your toes are like ice cubes!”
“Good thing I have my own personal heater to warm them.”
Kian brushed the hair off my neck and nuzzled the sensitive spot behind my ear with his soft lips before laying his head down.
“Good night, babe.”
“G’night.” My words were slurring and even though my mind was on the verge of shutting down, my body was buzzing with awareness of him lying in the bed with me. I could get used to lying next to Kian every night. There wasn’t much room for the both of us, but I was comfortable. His breath tickled my neck with each exhalation.
“It’s a two-person bed after al
l,” I heard myself mumble. Kian chuckled sleepily before I slipped into the darkness.
It was the first night after Michael died that I didn’t have nightmares.
Chapter 33
Kian’s voice coaxed me awake and for a moment, I had forgotten where I was. I lay in bed, my eyes shifting as I took in my environment. Logic and panic warred inside my mind. I knew where I was and that Kian was with me, but irrational fear was a white hot poker stabbing me in the chest.
I felt Kian’s large hands brushing against my head, reassuring me as I calmed myself, double checking that my Talent was in check. It was! When my eyes met his, I saw nothing but love and patience in return. Thank god that I have him to ground me.
“Good morning,” my voice sounded like I had swallowed gravel and it was then I realized how dry my mouth was. I opened and closed my mouth a few times trying to wet my tongue. “You look rested.”
“So do you. You went an entire night without waking up.” Kian chuckled. “And you snored like a freight train.”
“Did not!” I squealed, sitting up in a flash and wincing at the tightness in my side. It was much better than yesterday, but not ready for that type of movement.
“Don’t be embarrassed. You needed the rest and I had no problem falling asleep.”
I shoved his shoulder before turning to get off the bed. “What time is it?”
“You have an hour before the caravan leaves.”
“Caravan?”
“Yes, McCredie is taking no chances with both the Koenigs and what’s left of the HPC still active.” He handed me a muffin and a cup of coffee.
“Hmmm.” Dread set heavy in the pit of my stomach causing a sour feeling to rise into my throat until bile spilled into my mouth. I took a sip of coffee waiting for the queasy feeling to pass before even considering the muffin.
Today I would meet Miles face to face.
“Nervous?” Kian asked, grabbing my hand and brushing my jaw with a kiss. Then another. And another, working his way toward my mouth and distracting me from my building anxiety. The knot in my stomach released. He reached the corner of my mouth before I stopped him.
“Morning breath.” I took another sip of coffee to discourage him, but as soon as the cup left my lips, Kian pressed his against mine. I melted into his touch.
“Go on and get ready. I’ll be waiting.” Kian smiled a cocky half grin before stepping outside. It surprised me how a few kisses from the man I loved were able to release some of the heaviness weighing me down.
My stomach growled and I laughed before inhaling my breakfast and getting up to prepare for whatever was in store for me at the Caelian Council mediation.
“Where are we going?” I asked, fidgeting in my seat as the buildings outside the window of the black SUV got taller and closer together.
“Due to circumstances, the council has decided to meet in downtown for your safety,” Mrs. LaMotte answered from the front seat, her eyes watching me in the visor mirror. “We booked a hotel conference room that is suitably decorated so that you should be comfortable and not let certain people discover how much your time with the HPC affected you.”
“Thank you,” I answered and was genuinely thankful for her thoughtfulness. It would not be good for Miles Koenig to know of my current weaknesses.
The caravan pulled into the valet parking of a building downtown. The group in McCredie’s car was escorted to the door first. Norms and Caelians surrounded him, obscuring any view of his form as they rushed inside. Another group walked to our vehicle. Mrs. LaMotte, Kian, and I were rushed inside in the same manner and directed to the conference room, not allowing one second for me to truly take in the grandiose lobby.
Once inside the room, the guard detail disbanded save for one guard per person of interest. At Kian’s request, Luca and Lacy were our guards. The doors slammed with a sudden crash and my chest tightened instantly. My legs stopped moving and if it weren’t for Kian and Luca, I would have crashed into the ground with my face. Mrs. LaMotte, Kian, and my friends surrounded me, hiding me from prying eyes and giving me time to calm down.
“Please find your seats,” a no-nonsense voice called from the other side of the room. I peeked around Lacy’s shoulder and saw Marianna Moreau sitting at a long able with several others. The seat next to Marianna was empty and I knew that was where Kian’s mom should have been sitting. Next to her sat a handsome older gentleman with calculating dark eyes, almost black but with a purplish tint like spilled wine. His gaze was fixed on my group and a lazy grin spread across his face.
Miles Koenig. Without an introduction, I knew who he was. The anger that had been absent since my return to the Underground surged within me and it took every ounce of control to contain my Talent.
After nodding to the others to let them know I was ready, our little band moved to the front of the waiting crowd. Gasps sounded as people recognized me from the mall video and the leaked video that the HPC had released after my rescue.
Marianna nodded to me as I sat down in the empty seat next to Mrs. LaMotte. Before she spoke, her eyes narrowed for only a second at Mrs. LaMotte as if she recognized her before she schooled her features back. Her voice boomed over the growing noise of whispers. “Ladies and Gentlemen, our council has assembled today to mediate a serious complaint brought forth by Miles Koenig of the Koenig family against Sadie, former resident at St. Vincent’s orphanage, currently undedicated.”
She paused for a moment, her gaze flowing across the room as if she were looking each person in the eye. “Miles has brought to our attention that Sadie has a new, possibly dangerous Talent that has been left unchecked and untrained. One which the evidence shown able to end life. He has DNA proof that Sadie is the daughter of his son Adrian, her mother unknown.”
I scoffed in an unladylike huff. He knows who my mother was. The councilwoman didn’t take notice of my small outburst and continued, “He has requested that Sadie be temporarily remanded to his custody until her education is complete. He claims that even though she is an adult, she is dangerous to those around her and her current advisor, Mrs. Eleanor LaMotte, is not qualified to help Sadie with her Talent.”
Marianna looked at Mrs. LaMotte and pursed her lips before turning to look at me, “Sadie, yesterday we all heard from Miles and his witnesses, and thoroughly looked through his evidence. Today, we will hear from you and your witnesses. You may submit any physical evidence. It is our hope that you and Miles can come to an agreement without any rulings of the council. If not, then we will come to a conclusion that we think is best. Do you understand?”
“Yes, ma’am.” Surprisingly my voice didn’t crack under the stares of the council members.
“You may begin.”
I stood and started at the beginning of my story, not leaving out a single detail of how I felt living with no Talent to discovering that I had one all along, but that it was dormant. I spoke about my struggles to control my Talent and how unsure I felt about using it. I spoke of the kidnapping of my two friends and watching Miles’s right hand man murder one of them before my eyes. I spoke of the Underground and the training I had gone through with Mrs. LaMotte, but left out her real identity since she would be detained and exposed. Then I detailed my time with the HPC and how I wanted to stay with the Underground to continue my training.
“That is quite the tale,” Miles’s deep, slimy voice crawled over my skin. “Do you have proof of any of this?”
My mouth went dry as I nodded. Mrs. LaMotte stood and walked to the council table, taking over the proceedings, just as we had planned.
When all the evidence and witness testimonies had been presented, Marianna turned to Miles.
“Miles, do you change your position?” Marianna asked, her voice bored.
“No. She is a danger and I can help her.”
“How will you help her?” Mrs. LaMotte demanded while raising to her full height.
“We have the best Talent trainers on staff and if she cannot control herself, with GenC
orps labs we could find a way to lessen her Talent’s power,” Miles shrugged.
“You will experiment on her?” Kian asked.
“Kian. It has been a long time, how is the bounty hunting business?” Miles’s eyes sparkled with the knowledge that he was about to win.
“I don’t do that anymore.”
“Yes, I’ve heard you were shacking up with my granddaughter.” His lips sneered in mock disgust. I looked around the room and saw that the other council members and most of the audience was nodding in agreement. “Tell me boy, have you told her your dirty little secret?”
“What secret?” I whispered to Kian.
“I was trying to tell you last night,” he whispered, his lips brushing against my ear.
“This mediation is not a platform to discuss personal drama. Continue or we will come to a decision for you.” Marianna interrupted. Miles’s jaw snapped shut and his Adam’s apple bounced as he swallowed whatever he had been about to say.
“He wants me to go with him and I refuse. There is no solution that will appease both of us,” I stated.
Marianna nodded, “Well then, it is in my opinion that Sadie would benefit from training with her grandfather instead of her current instructor. All who agree?”
A symphony of opinions raised around her as council members voiced their agreement. Fear clutched at my throat as I realized that soon I would be forced to go with him. Miles’s grin widened with each councilmember’s agreement. His eyes locked with mine and they twinkled with victory.
“WAIT!” Mrs. LaMotte screamed.
The silence following her scream was deafening.
“Mrs. LaMotte, it is unethical to interrupt when a vote is in…”
“What if I can prove that Sadie has another living relative?” Miles’s face twisted into a scowl as Mrs. LaMotte continued. “One that will be a better option than the Koenig family?”
The Caelian Cycle Boxed Set Page 34
