CHAPTER FORTY
COLLIN’S ARMS REMAINED WRAPPED TIGHTLY AROUND ME, preventing me from lunging forward. Elite Force swarmed the room. His breath was warm on my neck, but his voice in my ear was emotionless. “You’re a spy, Emeline. I need to let go of you now.”
Numbly, I felt Collin’s arms leave me, and his hand captured mine in a death grip. He pulled me toward the door Hal had been taken through, stopping only briefly in front of Nora.
“Go home and do not leave there,” Collin commanded before he pulled me from the room into a hallway and up a set of stairs.
I heard voices that interrupted my silence.
A group of men and women dressed in black and white stood on the landing before a set of double doors.
The Illum were always talked about as one entity.
It was strange to see varying heights, skin tones, and hair colors.
Seeing them as individuals—as humans—felt wrong.
I tried to pull away as I saw Tabitha. Collin’s grip on my hand tightened, tugging me into him.
“Our hero of the evening,” Tabitha stated, looking at us.
I didn’t know if she meant me or Collin.
He came to a stop, bowing slightly. I hurried to follow suit.
As her gaze found me, she closed her eyes for a fraction too long to be a blink, as if she couldn’t bear to look at a Defect.
When she opened her eyes, she looked to Collin.
“We shall address the Elite, and then you are to take Emeline to the Capitol so we can discuss our next move.”
“You would like my Mate to join?” Collin asked.
“Oh yes, we have so much to discuss, your Mate and I.” Tabitha smiled, then turned toward the double doors that I hadn’t bothered to notice. “Bring him,” she called.
Terror closed my throat as two Elite Force soldiers dragged Hal forward. His face was bleeding profusely. He didn’t look at me. My heart pounded viciously.
“Come, little lamb,” Tabitha beckoned, reaching out her hand as the double doors opened. “We must tell them of our victory. The rest of you may leave us. Except of course Collin and Charles.” Tabitha watched Collin as she said it. The others in black and white left.
Collin pushed me forward, and I followed Tabitha onto a small balcony above the dance floor. The Elite gathered below. A cold sweat slicked my skin.
“Our dear Elite,” Tabitha began. The room quieted. “I would like to celebrate this moment with you. We have apprehended the Reaper.”
Below they gasped, and my breaths quickened. The soldiers slammed their weapons into the back of Hal’s legs, sending him to his knees before them all. Tabitha turned her head toward me, breathing deeply like she could sense my brokenness.
“There is so much to be thankful for as we restore our peace—to you all for your unwavering dedication. We are thankful. Without your cooperation, the Reaper’s plan for chaos might have been successful, upending our order.
Your presence here has shown your allegiance.
The same cannot be said to any Elite who declined this offer. They are being eliminated as we speak.
I couldn’t breathe. I stumbled back, colliding with the youngest Illum. Collin’s arm snaked around my middle as his hand sprawled across my stomach, digging into the crystals.
“We elders also thank our youngest Illum for this brilliant plan. As well as his Mate, Emeline. Her unwavering dedication is admirable. In unprecedented times, sometimes unprecedented measures must be taken. Unwavering loyalty is a gift. Before you all, the Illum have decided to do something that has never been done. We grant Emeline full Elite status. Effective immediately.”
Was that my heart or Collin’s that thundered through me as the declaration hung in the air? The silence in my mind leaked into the room as the Elite all fell quiet. Hal didn’t look my way.
Tabitha stepped toward the railing, peering down at the Elite—waiting. Applause began instantly. She grinned.
“Yes, yes, so rightfully earned and deserved. Emeline has been dedicated to our cause. Spying, gathering intel, and socializing with the defective. She deserves your respect and thanks. Without her, we would not have captured the Reaper.” Tabitha turned, locking eyes with me.
The coldness in her stare hollowed me out.
She drank it in. “His elimination is her doing. Hers alone.”
Collin’s fingers dug in hard enough to bruise me, but I didn’t care. I fell apart from the inside out, his hold the only thing keeping me upright. My legs trembled as Tabitha’s words crushed my heart in a vise grip.
“Not today, though,” Tabitha clarified. “Soon, in front of you all. Until then, dance. Enjoy this victory. It is as much yours as ours, faithful Elite.” Tabitha raised her hands. “To the prosperity of order.” She turned as music filled the room, drowning out the crowd below.
They hauled Hal away again. Tabitha beckoned to Collin and me as a man with a long black ponytail trailed after us.
My eyes focused only on those dark blond locks.
Where were Kane, Barrett, Bri, Gerald? They took down an entire building.
Where were they now? Who was coming for Hal? He was their leader.
“Take her to the Capitol. I shall be with you shortly,” Tabitha ordered Collin. “Oh, but first, bring him forward.”
They dragged Hal over. He didn’t fight them as they sent him to his knees again at my feet. He didn’t look up. The doors behind us closed loudly. Tabitha stepped forward as the man remained to observe.
“Don’t you want to look at her?” Tabitha cooed at Hal. My knees threatened to give out—to join him on the ground. “No? Are you sure? She can’t stop looking at you. Lift his head.”
The soldiers pulled Hal up by his hair. Those starburst eyes met mine. I stared at him, heartbreak, sorrow, terror, and rage blazing through me. There was no fear in his eyes, just resolute acceptance.
“Show her his wrist,” Tabitha demanded, still smiling. Somehow it was the cruelest thing I had ever seen. His left wrist was thrust forward. There was an angry red mark near the scar he always covered. “He fought rather hard, but he has a chip again. Isn’t it wonderful?”
“Tabitha, stop playing with your food,” the man with the ponytail said gravely.
“That is rich coming from you, Charles,” Tabitha claimed, walking away. “Cuff him.”
The soldiers holding him placed large metal cuffs on Hal’s wrists before yanking him to his feet as Tabitha and Charles walked away. Hal’s eyes drank me in, taking in every detail like he was committing me to memory. He held my gaze until he couldn’t as they carried him away.
I took a step toward him but was pulled back. Collin pushed me out, down the stairs, into the foyer, and onto a Pod. The calmness he had maintained flew into the sky. A cold fury leaked from him.
There was a familiar beep. The doors closed and, with them, all of Collin’s composure. Collin turned toward me, his polished exterior as shattered as my heart.
“Explain yourself, Emeline,” he demanded as my knees finally gave out. I fell into the seat.
“You organized tonight?” I asked as the crystals stabbed into me.
“I was told to host the ball. They had organized most of the plan while I was away,” Collin confessed. Away making sure I didn’t drown.
“I don’t believe you,” I said.
“I do not find that shocking with the lies you have told me.” Collin moved toward me. “Who knew about your involvement? Did you plan to join their cause?”
“Why would I tell you?” I responded.
“Did you plan to join?” Collin growled as the city proper engulfed the Pod, sending lights swirling past the glass at a dizzying speed. Collin remained standing, unaffected.
“My involvement with the Reaper is none of your business,” I snapped.
“It is entirely my business,” Collin seethed, as wickedly as they all claimed him to be. “So, what was the plan? Let me guess—spying on me to get information on the Illum? Infiltrate the Illum from within?”
“I don’t have to answer you.”
“I am your Mate. You do answer to me.”
“I won’t.”
“You will, but not to me. You have to answer to the Illum now. To Tabitha. You have no idea what you have gotten yourself into.”
“I don’t care,” I shouted, my rage matching his.
“She will make you care. It is your life we are talking about. Not just your life but the lives of those you care about. They will know about all of them. They will destroy them to destroy you. I have watched them do it, Emeline,” Collin thundered, stepping toward me, his anger encasing me.
“You mean helped them. You are an Illum,” I spat.
Collin stared at me, his face unreadable.
The Pod stopped—and his exterior re-formed before my eyes.
As the doors opened, Collin turned, grace and strength wrapping around him until he became a picture of power.
Collin offered me his hand like he hadn’t just screamed at me.
I hesitated, momentarily wondering what would happen if I didn’t take it.
His sapphire eyes flashed as he grabbed my hand and led me out.
Six soldiers waited just inside the door. Collin crossed the entrance, making his way to the door across the hall.
“Updates from the Capitol?” Collin asked the tallest soldier.
“The soldiers have entered the building,” he responded in a menacing voice I knew. “All of them.”
Collin nodded to him as he stood quietly. It grew too quiet. My gown suddenly felt too heavy as my mind became restless.
“She approaches,” the soldier said, breaking the silence.
“Which members of the Illum will be joining us?” Collin asked, blocking my view of the door.
“Charles isn’t with her. She comes alone.”
Collin’s shoulders sank for the space of a breath as the doors slid open and smoke slithered in.
“Tabitha,” Collin drawled. “What is the update?”
“The rest got away. We might have injured a few. The Force was following the blood trail, but it stopped abruptly.” Tabitha looked at me, half hidden behind Collin.
My heart squeezed as both disappointment and relief flooded me. It halted, though, as I looked at her white gown, blood spattered on its front.
“I am sure with some persuasion, we can convince the one to lead us to the others,” Collin suggested.
“Oh, I do not doubt it. We have all the persuasion we need.” Tabitha smiled at me, her perfect teeth gleaming, and it horrified me. She stepped closer. Everything inside me screamed to run.
Collin nodded. “Excellent. Shall we enter?” He turned to grab my hand. “There is so much to discuss and celebrate.”
“No, only her. As we speak, her living quarters are being emptied, and her belongings worth saving are being moved to your living quarters. You are to go oversee that,” Tabitha instructed. “Now.”
Collin hesitated, his eyes flickering between us. “As you wish. Shall I return to retrieve her?”
“Oh no, that will not be necessary, Collin. I will personally make sure your property makes it back to your living quarters in one piece.”
“Of course.” Collin turned, his eyes scanning my face. “I shall see you at our living quarters soon, Mate.”
“Collin,” Tabitha called, but she looked at me. “The one who actually informed us of the Reaper. She deserves an award. They shall fill you in on the way. You will oversee that. Ensure she gets what she wants. I daresay she’s been trying to achieve it for long enough.”
“It will be done.”
Dread filled me. My heart began to batter my insides relentlessly. Tabitha drank it all in.
“I understand your fondness for this Defect,” Tabitha mused. “She is rather reactive, is she not? How entertaining.”
“Fondness is generous. Like I have told you, she is an interesting specimen.”
“She is. As I was saying, while we will publicly acclaim your Mate, she shouldn’t be forgotten. If not for her, we wouldn’t be here. Well, your Mate did give us some insight with her spying.”
I grasped at the remains of myself. I refused to fall apart. Not yet.
“Of course.” Collin bowed. His hand seemed to hesitate for a fraction of a second, and he was gone.
I stood, staring at Tabitha. The doors opened.
“Come,” Tabitha ordered, walking in front of me. I followed, even as everything told me to run.