Page 129 of Scars Run Deep

How?

How could he love that?

That version of me, the dark and sadistic, brutal version I’d had to become to ensure our survival?

Was it because he knew that was why I’d done it?

Buzzing pulled me from my thoughts.

Incessant fucking buzzing, and I looked to see my phone flipping its shit on my nightstand.

I managed to extricate one arm from Jonah to snatch it up.

As I unlocked it, I took in the time. Barely three in the morning.

And then I saw the source of all the uproar.

Text messages from two sources and an alert.

I pulled up the alert first and tensed as I saw the motion sensors I’d planted at the final dollhouse site had been tripped.

All of them.

That signified a mass amount of movement.

Either an invasion or a mass exodus.

I needed to access the surveillance cameras to determine which, and what the fuck was going on.

As I pulled completely from Jonah and climbed out of bed, adjusting my boxers as I went, I opened the messages.

Caleb: Infidels just took preemptive action. Hostages moved. Call me.

Fuck.

I checked the timestamp of his message. He’d said just. It had just happened.

All right, he’d sent the message ten minutes ago, just after the alert. I had given him access to it too as a precaution.

So I’d woken up immediately then. Good. I hadn’t lost time.

I opened the other message, my muscles locking as I took it in.

Blocked ID: Site Lima hostages transported for auction. Hail Mary move from Infidels. Don’t know where. Need intel.

Lance.

Contacting me with another burner now it suited him.

Fucker.

Asher: How do you not know?

Lance was always ahead of us all, always watching, either personally or using his network of assets and plants to do so.

Blocked ID: Focused on keeping Heretics off your six, keeping you safe.

Asher: Or keeping you safe?

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