Chapter 17 #2
“Just followed the message trail. Unfortunately, it went cold when Samir’s team was ended. Had to find a different way to hunt, from the inside.”
Alison Mekray. One of the three military councilors on the royal advisory committee. A close friend of his mother’s, who had encouraged him and mentored him. She was responsible for the intelligence branch of their lightning teams.
She was also his soul-guardian.
He instinctively reached for the pendant that usually hung around his neck.
The one she’d given him long before his first mission.
Just a simple luck charm, but it had meant a great deal to him because his soul-guardian had given it to him.
A reminder of home, of what he was fighting to protect, she’d said.
The stone was now around Veda’s neck as a symbol of his care and protection for his own soul-daughter. His stomach rolled ominously.
Without a mother for most of his life, he’d relied on Alison for more than just military training. There was no way she was involved in something like this. He’d know. There. was. no. way.
“Betrayal hurts,” Devryn spat, touching the scars on his neck. “Trust me, I know.”
“Argh!” Connor let out an aggrieved yell, emotion pouring out of him.
The surrounding shadows pulsed and rippled, absorbing the excess energy flowing out of him into the earth and air. No. His heart was adamant that what Devryn said was impossible, even as his mind began to spin with questions and unpleasant thoughts.
Rescue the girls and go home. That’s all he’d planned. But this… this was too much. It wasn’t over. Not by a longshot. Hoping he wouldn’t regret the decision, he gestured to Devryn that he could get up. Ember screeched her disapproval.
“Truce,” he murmured, mostly to keep Ember from gouging the man with her talons.
Devryn pushed into a sitting position. He crooked his finger at Opal. “Come here, little one.”
A worried expression crossed her face as she came toward them. Connor tensed, ready to defend her if he’d been wrong.
“Don’t break the rules again. You don’t say a word about me, ever.” He tipped Opal’s head up and gave her a meaningful look until she nodded. Seemingly satisfied, he untied her bound hands and checked her wrists for injuries. “Go with Connor now. You can trust him. No one else.”
Opal nodded again. “Yes, sir.”
“Good girl.”
Picking up her tiny form, he lifted her from his far side and handed her over to Connor. “Take care of her. If you don’t, I will find a way to come back and kill you.”
Connor studied Opal’s eyes and saw they were clear and calm. He breathed a sigh of relief that she wasn’t too traumatized by his impromptu interrogation. He looked back to Devryn as he settled Opal more comfortably in his arms.
“What would you have done with her?”
“Dropped her in a safe place and continued my mission. Where I’m going is a one-way trip.”
A personal vendetta then. “I’d be grateful if you hadn’t planned to condemn the other five children.”
Devryn shrugged like it wasn’t of concern, but Connor didn’t buy it. Not with how gentle the man had been with Opal.
“Right. Well, it’s time we parted ways,” Connor said.
“I really don’t have time to waste tracking you down, so make good on your promise,” Devryn said, eyes on Opal.
“I will. She’s mine to guard.”
. Surging to his feet, Connor walked to the horses, who were waiting together a short distance away.
He stroked Midnight’s neck and murmured softly to him.
Regret and sadness rose as he said goodbye to the warhorse he considered a teammate.
And guilt that he was returning with Rogue and wouldn’t be bringing Midnight back to Ryan.
Opal laid her head against his neck. “He’ll miss you. And Ry. But he wants to go with Dev.”
Kavesh. Connor blinked the wetness out of his eyes. “Run with honor, my friend.” After a final pat, he turned and put Opal up on Rogue’s back.
If he didn’t hurry, he would change his mind about letting Devryn and Midnight go.
Even though Opal had been under Devryn’s protection and seemed reasonably unharmed, the others weren’t so lucky.
Veda had been terrorized and nearly died from the harsh conditions, and the oldest teen girl they’d found had been physically abused.
Though Connor was well-acquainted with the shadows of morality that pervaded deep cover missions, the treacherous lengths Devryn had gone to turned his stomach. His mind understood the situation to a certain extent, but his heart rebelled at being seeped in that level of darkness.
Mounting up, he wrapped one arm securely around Opal, who leaned back trustingly against him. He knew with certainty he was not made to be a soldier of war. The sacrifices often required for success were more than he could bear.
Devryn approached with stiff movements, hand clamped tightly over his wounded shoulder. He took Midnight’s reins and met Connor’s eyes after mounting up.
“Be careful around your commander. She’s dangerous to more than just your teams.” He nodded to Opal meaningfully. “Protect her.”
“Trust me, I will,” Connor vowed.
Devryn gave them a nod and rode into the shadow of trees.
Ember squawked at him, stretching her wings in a pre-flight movement from a branch in front of them where Ereven had been quietly observing the interactions.
“No, let him go. And not a word of this to anyone. That goes for you too, Opal. Not a word. All our lives depend on it—mine, Veda’s, the other children.
Even Rogue and Midnight’s.” He added the horses’ names for good measure since she was so connected to the animals.
“Never. No matter who asks you questions. Understand?”
“That was Dev’s rule, too. I won’t mess up again. Promise.”
He met Ember and then Ereven’s gaze to ensure Daya heard him and saw his seriousness as well. No doubt she’d been with them this whole time, but he trusted her to keep his secrets.