Chapter 41
41
C ass wakes up strapped to a cold metal table. It’s not the worst place he’s ever woken up?—that dubious honor goes to a sewer surrounded by enemy combatants during World War II?—but it’s certainly not the best, either.
His brain feels sticky. Sluggish. Even though the corrosion-imbued arrow is thankfully out of his side, he can still feel the aftereffects of the spell coiling through his veins, keeping him weak and unsteady.
But he’s nowhere near helpless. He takes a deep breath, subtly testing the strength of the straps tying him down. Not only do they hold depressingly well, but the moment he presses against them, searing pain bites through his skin in every place they’re touching him?—forehead, chest, wrists, hips, ankles.
And even though he can’t look down to check the damage, he knows the sting of corrosion burns when he feels them. “Genuine question,” he says out loud, glancing towards the one-way mirror to his left. “Do you use corrosion spells on your sheets and pillowcases, too? Because this is honestly excessive.”
For a few long minutes, silence is Cass’s only answer. He doesn’t let it bother him. After sending an entire strike force after him, there’s no way the Sanctum isn’t watching Cass’s every move from the other side of that glass right now.
He just needs to entice one of them to come inside. The quicker he figures out what they want from him, the quicker he can start to plan his escape.
And JJ’s, too. Anger festers behind Cass’s sternum. Roma probably had another strike force stationed at Lakeside, ready to attack JJ before he even knew he’d been double-crossed. Now, he must be in an interrogation room just like Cass’s, waiting for the torture to begin for the second time in two months.
But Cass got them both out of here once before. He can certainly do it again.
It’ll just take a few more steps this time.
At long last, there’s the soft click of a lock disengaging. Cass keeps his eyes fixed on the ceiling and his face expressionless as two hunters enter the room, shutting the door firmly behind them. One of them stays just out of Cass’s eyeshot, quiet and calculating; the other strides briskly towards him, pausing next to his table. “Mr. Chin,” she says crisply.
And Cass may claim that all hunters look the same to him, but he knows a member of the Sanctum’s Council when he sees one. “Tabitha Nasir,” he says neutrally, forcing down his temper.
JJ has told him stories about Nasir. Stories about how she talked down to him and manipulated him and made him feel worthless, no matter how hard he tried to earn her approval.
And while Cass would love to make her as miserable as she always made JJ, he has other priorities right now. “So let me get this straight,” he says without preamble. “You authorized an unprovoked attack on one of the most well-known demons in Redwater, hacked past defensive spells that obviously had alarm protocols attached, left my house trashed enough that even my human neighbors will realize something is wrong…” He raises his eyebrows. “And you’re expecting the Chain not to take that as a declaration of war?”
“From what I’ve heard,” Nasir says mildly, “you’ve been harboring both a hunter and an unregistered demon. I doubt the Chain looks too kindly on that.” Her lip curls. “And that hunter is one of ours. As we had reason to suspect he was being held against his will, our offensive was justified.”
Cass scoffs. “Please. That excuse might have worked without your very public kidnapping of him last month, but every civilian from Lakeside to the Courtyard knows that JJ defected?—and multiple members of the Chain can vouch for that, too. Try again.”
Nasir looks amused. “I appreciate your candor,” she says, “but we’re not looking to start a war. This is catch and release. All you have to do is tell us what we want to know about Julian, and we’ll drop you off right back where we found you.”
Irritation snaps through Cass. “Why do you call him that?”
Nasir arches an eyebrow. “Pardon?”
“‘Julian.’” Even saying JJ’s full first name?—the name that Cass uses whenever he wants JJ to feel particularly loved, the name that he whispered against JJ’s bare skin just this morning?—in this wretched place feels like sacrilege. “Why do you call him that? Is ‘JJ’ too affectionate for you? Is ‘Jackson’ not enough of an old hunting name?”
Nasir sighs. “Our original plan was to arrange a suitable marriage for Julian within the Sanctum. Obviously, he would’ve taken his spouse’s surname, making both his current last name and his nickname obsolete by default.”
Taking JJ’s last connection to his family away from him. Cass’s blood boils.
“Clearly,” she continues, “the situation has changed. The Council is torn about whether he’ll be allowed back into the hunting community at all, much less whether his bloodline will continue. The one thing we do agree on, however, is that we need to understand what went so catastrophically wrong with him before passing our final judgment.” She leans forward, eyes narrowed. “So where is he?”
All at once, relief floods through Cass. “You don’t have him?”
Nasir’s jaw twitches. She doesn’t answer.
And despite the fact that Cass is injured and restrained, despite the fact that the tight straps are still burning through his skin, despite the fact that Nasir is currently the only thing standing between Cass and an interrogator’s knife??—
Despite everything, Cass laughs. “Of course you don’t have him. He figured out Gutierrez’s game, didn’t he? Figured out her game and fought his way out.” He grins savagely up at her. “Good luck finding him, because you won’t. If anything, he’s going to find you.”
“I don’t doubt it.” Nasir’s voice is smooth as silk. “He knows exactly where to look, after all. We’re fully expecting a jailbreak attempt within the next twelve hours, and we’ve prepared for every eventuality.” Her smile is chilling. “You’re not bartering for your life right now, Chin. You’re bartering for his. If you cooperate, if you tell us what you did to him and where we can find him, then we’ll take that into consideration when deciding his final fate.”
“I’ll take my chances,” Cass says. “Partly because I know you’re not going to get your hands on JJ, and partly because there’s no way in hell I’d ever compromise him. You might as well get the gasoline.”
Nasir’s eyes flicker. “Julian said something very similar when he was in your position,” she says, and she looks towards the door. “Isn’t that right, Nostrand?”
“Yes, ma’am.” Cass twitches at the unfamiliar voice, his eyes flickering towards the door. The strap around his forehead keeps his head mostly immobile, but he catches a glimpse of a man in an interrogator’s uniform hovering just out of sight.
Even without a clear view, though, Cass recognizes the last name. If that’s Adrian Nostrand, then JJ has talked about him, too. Apparently, he’s a particularly nasty interrogator with a special hatred for neophyte hunters like JJ and Chester.
And, above all, he tortured JJ. That alone is enough to make Cass put Nostrand on his hit list.
“You have an hour to make him talk,” Nasir says, her voice curt and businesslike once again. “Get him to tell us where Julian is?—preferably the demon December, as well. After that, the spellcasters will be in for testing.”
Spellcasters? A chill runs down Cass’s spine. He was under the impression that “testing” was just a thinly veiled euphemism for “torture,” and JJ never made a distinction between the two, either. JJ certainly never mentioned spellcasters being involved.
What the hell are they actually doing to demons down here?
“Yes, ma’am,” Nostrand repeats.
With one last distasteful glance at Cass, Nasir strides away and disappears out the door. The locks reengage behind her with a resounding whirr, leaving Cass alone with the interrogator.
And Nostrand takes his time setting up his instruments, inspecting each one just long enough for Cass to get a good look. Another intimidation tactic, just like making Cass wait before he and Nasir first walked in.
Cass ignores him. After all, Nasir only gave Nostrand an hour to work. Every minute that Nostrand wastes trying?—and failing?—to scare Cass is another minute that he’s not actively torturing him.
And another minute that Ez, Obie, and JJ have to plan the jailbreak that Cass knows is coming.
Eventually, Nostrand decides on a knife. “You know,” he says conversationally, tracing the tip of his blade down the line of Cass’s ribs, “I cut open your boyfriend a few weeks ago, too. You should’ve heard how he screamed for me.”
Fury burns through Cass. “When I get out of here,” he says, smiling up at him with all his teeth, “I’m going to make it a point to skin you alive.”
“Oh, Chin. You’re never getting out of here,” Nostrand says, and he switches out the knife for a blowtorch.
Obie was right. The Sanctum never patched the loophole that Cass used to rift into the building. That means their initial move, the infiltration itself, goes off without a hitch: Ez wraps invisibility and soundproofing spells around the three of them, opens an invisible rift into the Sanctum’s main hall, and waits for JJ to get his bearings so he can guide them to the prison.
And being back here after all these weeks just feels wrong. The sterile hallways and endless locked doors are just as familiar to JJ as ever, hard and cold and filled with memories he can’t quite forget.
Like the time when ten-year-old Bryant grabbed his arm and gave him the grand tour of his new home, proudly showing her strike team partner everything from the locked purebreds’ floor to the expansive training grounds.
Like the time when twelve-year-old Roma showed him a secret corridor that she and Naomi found years earlier, and she and JJ sat there eating chips and talking for hours, laughing at how many hunters walked past without even noticing them.
Like the time when fourteen-year-old Chester snuck JJ down to the prison to explore long after they were supposed to be in bed, their first?—and one of their few?—acts of petty rebellion against the Sanctum.
It’s that last memory that JJ follows now, leading the way through the halls as Ez and Obie pad along behind him. It’s not even dusk yet, warm sunlight still streaming through the high-set windows, and JJ bitterly thinks that the weather itself is mocking him.
With Cass gone, there should be a roaring thunderstorm outside, a hurricane. That would be a better match for the screaming hole in JJ’s chest.
At last, they slip down the stairwell to the prison and settle into place next to the locked door. “We’ll need someone with a key card to open it,” JJ whispers. “If we try to brute-force it, we’ll show our hand too early.”
He senses more than sees Ez lean against the wall. “So we just have to stand here and wait?”
JJ checks his cell phone. Tries to ignore the one missed call from Cass. “It’s almost four p.m. If worst comes to worst, change of shift is at eight, but the interrogators usually start cycling out for their dinner breaks right around now. Hopefully, one of them will leave or come back soon, and??—?”
Even though Ez’s soundproofing spell hides their conversations from the rest of the world, JJ still cuts himself off when voices float down from the top of the steps. Two interrogators that JJ vaguely recognizes come into view, striding down the stairs to get back to work. JJ strains his ears, listens for anything about Cass??—
Nothing. Not even a passing mention of a high-priority demon in for testing. JJ isn’t surprised?—interrogators are trained to be discreet, especially outside of the prison?—but a trickle of dread seeps through him anyway.
They’re truly walking into this blind. At worst, it shouldn’t take more than an hour to scour the cells and interrogation rooms for Cass, but??—
But JJ knows firsthand how much damage an interrogator can do in an hour.
The first hunter swipes his key card and shoulders his way into the prison, pushing the door slightly wider for his coworker. JJ barely manages to squeeze in behind them, and he holds his breath until the locks reengage with a final-sounding whirr. “Ez? Obie?”
Obie’s voice is low. “Right behind you.”
JJ lets out a soft sigh of relief. “Good. Can either of you sense Cass from here?”
“They have spell work in place to prevent that.” There’s an edge to Ez’s voice. “Actually, there’s more spell work here than I expected. I can maintain our invisibility and soundproofing spells without too much trouble, and I can probably manage some basic offensive and defensive strikes, but beyond that…” She trails off. “It’s like my magic is handcuffed.”
JJ’s stomach lurches. Ez and Obie are powerful demons in their own rights, of course, but Ez’s spellcasting was one of the best weapons in their arsenal. “How about you, Obie?”
“My memory powers aren’t affected,” he says tightly, “but they’re not exactly honed for combat, either.”
“So we’ll just have to fight our way out,” Ez says grimly. “But we’ll worry about that after we find Cass. Jackson, lead the way.”
Silently, JJ complies. He edges slowly down the hallways, pressing himself against the wall whenever interrogators pass too close, checking each cell’s window as they walk by??—
No Cass. Either he’s in one of the cells farther down, or he’s being interrogated already. JJ’s skin crawls at the thought. “There’s a central break area with access to all the interrogation rooms,” he whispers. “It might be more crowded, so just stay sharp.”
“Always are.”
Another door that requires a key card. They don’t have to wait long before an interrogator swipes her way inside, and JJ, Ez, and Obie slip in just behind her. The interrogator strides directly down the rightmost hallway, and JJ pauses in the middle of the room, turning in a slow circle to get his bearings. There are eight identical halls leading away from here, each of them housing a handful of interrogation rooms.
Without knowing where Cass is, they’ll have to check them one at a time. JJ takes a deep breath, skirts down the leftmost hallway??—
And collides directly with someone leaving the first room on the right?—a collision that’s followed by a very familiar gasp. “What? ? —??”
JJ has just enough time to realize that the person is Chester before slamming a hand over his mouth, grabbing the back of his neck with his other hand, and forcing him back into the room. “Ez, expand the soundproofing spell!” he hisses, and he prays that she listened before shoving Chester against the nearest wall.
Chester fights back immediately, his long-honed instincts taking over. A punch to JJ’s ribs that nearly knocks the wind out of him, a hook to the jaw that he barely manages to dodge in time??—
Abruptly, Chester’s wrists snap back against the wall, like an invisible force is holding them there. His eyes widen with fear.
Guilt swims through JJ. “Ez, let me talk to him,” he says quietly.
The faintest tingling sensation sweeps over his skin as the invisibility and soundproofing spells release their hold on him. Chester goes utterly still. “JJ?” he mumbles against JJ’s palm.
JJ’s heart twists. “Hey, Chester,” he says, and he loosens his grip the slightest bit. “We’re not here to hurt anyone, okay? We just want Cassius Chin. Where is he?”
Chester’s eyes flicker down to the hand over his mouth. Reluctantly, JJ releases him, relieved when Chester’s voice is more of a hiss than a shout. “JJ, what the hell are you doing?”
“I’m getting Cass back,” JJ says, keeping his voice low. “Tell me where he is.”
There’s something like heartbreak in Chester’s eyes. Heartbreak, or maybe pity. “How badly did they get in your head?”
JJ’s stomach roils. “They didn’t. They just helped to undo all the damage the Sanctum did to me?—to us.” He leans forward. “They ruined our lives, Chester. You know that.”
Chester sets his jaw. Doesn’t answer.
“Chester?—?”
“Not for nothing, Jackson,” Ez cuts in, “but right now really isn’t the time to try and save your old buddy.”
Chester jerks towards her voice, eyes widening. “What? ? —??”
In a flash, Ez and Obie appear on either side of Chester, still pinning his wrists to the wall. “Listen to me very carefully,” Ez says, leaning in. “You’re going to tell us where Cass is, or Obie and I are going to hurt you really badly, and JJ isn’t going to be quick enough to stop us.”
Chester looks terrified, but he doesn’t say a word. Not trained to be in the field, but still trained to withstand torture. JJ’s chest aches.
“Don’t say I didn’t warn you,” Ez says, and she lifts her left hand, sparking and glowing with power.
JJ’s stomach drops. “Ez, wait? ? —?!”
Unperturbed, Obie swats Ez’s arm away. “There are easier ways to get information, Ez,” he says, and he narrows his eyes at Chester. “Do you even know where Cass is?”
The ghost of a smirk flickers across Chester’s lips. “Yes. But good luck beating that out of me. I can guarantee I’ve had worse.”
“I was hoping you’d say that. JJ, cover his mouth again,” Obie orders, and JJ barely has time to comply before Obie fastens his hand over Chester’s forehead, presses his thumb and middle finger against Chester’s temples, and squeezes.
Instantly, Chester’s face drains of all color. He lets out a strangled scream against JJ’s hand, trying to thrash out of Obie’s grip, trying to escape??—
All at once, JJ realizes what Obie is doing.
He’s digging through Chester’s memories against his will. Since when can he even do that? Cass has mentioned on multiple occasions that Obie needs permission to muck around in people’s heads, and Obie has never once contradicted him.
How powerful is he?
Seconds scrape by like nails on a chalkboard until Obie pulls his hand away. “I know where he is,” he says, gesturing back towards the break room. “Seventh hallway, third door on the left. Let’s go.”
Chester’s nose is bleeding and there’s a burst capillary in his left eye. However Obie yanked that information out of Chester’s head, it clearly hurt. “You shouldn’t be able to do that,” he rasps, staring at Obie with undisguised horror. “You shouldn’t be able to do that unless?— unless? ? —?”
Before Chester can finish his sentence, Obie slams his head against the wall. Chester crumples to the floor, motionless.
“Obie!” JJ hisses, aghast.
“He’s just concussed,” Obie says dismissively, and he nods at the interrogation table in the center of the room. “For now, just hide him behind there. They’re apparently expecting a jailbreak, so we need to move. Hopefully, we’ll be out of here before they find him.”
“Good enough for me,” Ez says, and she unceremoniously grabs under Chester’s arms and starts dragging him across the floor.
JJ swallows down the bile threatening to rise in his throat. Roma’s betrayal still feels like a fresh wound, but right now, he would give anything to get her, Chester, and Bryant out of this place.
Looks like that’s not in the cards for today, though. “Yeah, okay,” he agrees reluctantly, and he strides over to grab Chester’s legs and help Ez move him.
Obie only waits until Chester’s limp body is out of sight before nodding towards the door. “Let’s go,” he says, and he leads the way across the prison.