Only a few minutes passed before she left, the lights snapping off. I waited until the sound of her heels faded away, and then a few more beats. Silence. Utter and complete silence. I inhaled, then slowly released the breath. Close. That was too close. Carefully, I pulled the curtain away, wiping small beads of sweat from my forehead. I snitched a small first aid bag from a side cabinet and shoved bottles inside, picking from the back so they hopefully wouldn’t be missed. When the bag was full I crept for the door, my eyes sliding momentarily to the computer.
Jocelyn hadn’t logged Mordecai out. My heart skipped. Lingering any longer would be asking for trouble. I had already almost been caught. I moved to leave.
And turned at the last moment, making a beeline for the desktop.
My fingers flew over the keys, pulling files, searching for anything that would tell me what they were doing down here. At first, there wasn’t much related to the mines; shipping logs, trade deals for paper products, a map that showed an underground passage from the shifter district out past the city limits. That had to be how Mordecai imported goods; I had always been told that information wasn’t my business. I would have to look into it when I had more time.
I clicked a yellow envelope buried deep in the documents folder.
All the employee files popped up. Blood work, personal data. Original applications. Deeper in were the official announcements as well as detailed sheets filled with rules and expectations.
In a file of their own, tucked into a corner I almost missed, were a bunch of files detailing experiments Mordecai had done on himself. I didn’t have time to read them in depth but the notes I gathered from skimming were repulsive enough. They weren’t what I was looking for. I closed them out and continued on.
At the bottom, right as I was starting to think that what I needed wasn’t here, I clicked a lone folder.
Genesis Crystal—Trial One.
I skimmed the page, eyes widening the more I read. The details were horrifying. Outlines of lab procedures, tests meant to measure the effects of the Genesis Crystal in unwitting subjects after days of exposure to build their tolerance.
Mordecai was planning to trap the Fae he had hired. Cage them and experiment on them. My stomach twisted. Mordecai was a monster. An absolute monster. The brand on my neck twinged as if confirming the thought. Spreadsheets by the dozens filled the file, ready for the results of a multitude of blood tests, sample doses, and placebo scenarios. I swallowed. I had to tell Tarik.
He wanted this job.
I groaned in frustration. He didn’t want this. No one would. But would he listen if I told him?
None of that mattered if I didn’t get out of here. The longer I lingered the later I was going to be for my patrol. I was already late. If I didn’t take to the sky soon, Alec would report me. He enjoyed making sure I was doing my job. Enjoyed stalking me, more like. Stalker. My chest panged. I shoved that word and its association aside, clicking my way through a set of red x’s and signing Mordecai out.
You’re welcome, Jocelyn.
I climbed the spiral staircase, careful to lock the mine door behind me before I bolted out the rear door of the mansion. Shedding and abandoning my clothes in the bushes, I stretched into lion form. Clouds trailed lazily over the bright moon, already high in the dark sky. I was late, so late. Damnit.
My wings stretched wide as I took flight, the first aid bag clenched tightly between my teeth. I flew straight for Tarik’s apartment, glancing at his neighbor’s windows as I landed and slid into a shift. No sign of Benji. I groaned, my eyes carefully tracing each building.
Fine.
I twisted the handle on Tarik’s door, surprised when I heard the soft click and met no resistance. Yeah, that’s safe. My heart stuttered when I saw him splayed across his bed, like he had collapsed from exhaustion. I knew he had been tired. An apology bubbled up in my throat.
Then his lips moved, parted. The sight reignited the fury in my veins, reminded me of that particularly painful hurt. In a moment of haste, I dumped the bottles on his sleeping form, not at all surprised when he didn’t move. I threw the bag too and stormed out, taking to the sky.
Stupid, arrogant Fae prick.
—
Regret. I ached with regret.
I punched the shower tiles. Afternoon sun blazed through the bathroom window, meaning Tarik was already at work. Maybe today wasn’t the day Mordecai planned to trap them. Maybe I still had time to tell him. Sure, seeing him would rip my soul apart. Again. But I couldn’t keep letting him go into that mine without a proper warning, one based on evidence instead of vague concerns. My gut ached at the thought of facing him, but avoiding him would hurt more than my bruised heart—two dozen Fae would be condemned to a fate worse than death. I couldn’t let Mordecai’s twisted plans come to fruition.
Tarik had been right, though. If Mordecai was so willing to torture the Fae, I couldn’t imagine what he would be willing to do to me. I had no doubts now that he would follow through on his threat to Tarik; if he thought harming me would keep that temperamental Fae in line, boy was he wrong. Still, his obsession with the Fae had gone too far if he was willing to run experiments on them.
Arrogant prick he may be, but Tarik was right. I didn’t deserve the brand on my neck. Mordecai was abusive. Controlling.
I choked back a sob, but the tears fell anyway. Nevaeh would know what to do. I almost wanted to call her, but I knew what
