Page 41 of The Puppeteer and the Poisoned Pawn

I was an experiment.

“It worked on Scarlett. But suicide is a common side effect in female subjects.”

Female subjects. Scarlett. My sister died for an experiment. I remember the story about Val and Vinaley that Dessin told me one night. How he killed her and himself because that’s all she wanted, to end the pain and go home.

“What are you talking about?”

Aurick rubs a hand over his face. “Someone warned your parents about the experiments. That’s why they split you two up, to hide the fact that you were twins. But Vlademur, my father, found out and would regularly pump your parents full of Mind Phantoms… I believe you’re familiar with the substance.”

Bile creeps up my throat, and I’m sure I’m going to lose it. My parents were—forcedto hurt us? For an experiment? Their realities were distorted the way mine was in those four hours I had with Albatross.

“When you were fifteen, my father was furious that you hadn’t made any progress to letting the trauma corrupt your mind and expand its capabilities the way Kane’s had. So, he thought having Jack beat you to near death would make you finally snap. It was like you had a mental block that counteracted the pain, the trauma, the horrifying events he put you through.”

“He used my father—like a puppet,” I say.

My gut is burning with disgust, betrayal, and disbelief.

“He used Violet too. And they tried to fight back. But they were pumped with more Mind Phantoms each time they resisted. One hundred times the amount you were given.” He shakes his head.

“No more, please, no more!”I hear a woman’s voice shriek in my head. But it sounds like it’s coming from this room. What the fuck is happening to me?

I wrap my arms around my waist, unable to breathe normally. Pain is biting at my nerve endings. Our parents didn’t hate us? They didn’t abuse us out of cruelty? Violet… loved Scarlett?

“Why the fuck are you telling me all of this now?” I ask, shuddering like a leaf in the wind. “Does this mean I have a split personality too?”

Aurick shakes his head. “No, the mind of a female subject turns into something else entirely. A unique disorder. The subject has visual and auditory hallucinations. They’re able to use their mind in different ways than Dessin could. For example, I think we had one that could see traumatic memories from people around her. It scared her to death.”

“Vinaley,” I say.

He arches an eyebrow. “How’d you know that?”

“Dessin told me.” His name is a noose around my neck, tightening until I can barely breathe.

Aurick looks down. “That’s why I asked you about what you saw. I think losing him is what finally broke you.”

My eyes snap up. “That’s why you hit me, isn’t it? To see if domestic violence would break me?” I’m moments away from letting DaiSzek devour him.

“Yes,” he says, dropping his head in shame. “I was willing to do anything to end this war. Even recreate your trauma from your father.”

I am an experiment. Scarlett was an experiment. My pain. My heartache. Every moment of abuse was to turn us into something that could be deadly in war. To pair with Dessin’s skills.

“This has to be a joke.”

“The reason I didn’t tell you sooner is because the subject can’t know about the experiment. It’s proven not to work. Which is why I was so surprised that Dessin never told you about it. I figured he’d do everything in his power to corrupt it.”

But I’m broken now. I’m shattered. The strings can finally be cut from the puppet’s limbs. Why wouldn’t Dessin warn me? Tell me everything?

Skylenna, I’ve known you since you were two years old.

Kane’s known me my whole life. Which means he’s always known about the experiment. What was he up to?

“So what now?” I ask, unable to meet his eyes. “You hold me here, train me until I’m cold and capable like Dessin?”

But he was also warm, protective, and kind. No one will ever learn that about him again.

“And I’m supposed to believe he hadn’t already trained you?” Aurick laughs.

He taught me how to give a good right hook at the asylum. But that was mostly just a bonding moment for us. He didn’t actually succeed in teaching me, and I definitely wouldn’t call thattraining.

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