Page 4 of Interlude

“God, that must have been so incredibly lonely for you.” My mouth drops open at Cas’s words. Instead of focusing on how he betrayed us, he’s choosing to understand why he did. Everyone is taking this so much better than I thought. I’m almost tempted to have Xavier unfreeze the two terrors, but I’ll wait until we get to the orb part of the story. Saxon would probably be okay now that he heard about Brannock’s child, since he would do anything for ours, but Tirrian still might turn him into Aaz’axian BBQ.

“Unfortunately when Chloe changed forms, it was in a shopping mall. Although I wasn’t a hundred percent certain anyone noticed, I was quick to cover her up. I decided I wasn’t risking the EAA catching wind of it, so I sold my place and bought a cabin in the Alaskan wilderness, and we moved there. There wasn’t a soul around, and the only way we could get supplies was via float plane so I could hear them coming a mile away. There, she was free to just be, and I was able to teach her how to glamour. I didn’t learn to until I was in my teens, since there was no need, but I knew she would need to know sooner rather than later.”

“What happened?” Maxsim asks, completely engrossed with the tale.

“Her changing didn’t go unnoticed, but it took them a while to figure out where I moved to. You don’t spend seven hundred years changing identities without learning a thing or two, but it was much easier when technology was nonexistent on Earth. It got a lot harder the last thirty years. It was about eighteen months after we moved to Alaska, and I guess I had become complacent. I was invited to Vegas for a meet-up with the men from my old unit. It was something we did every year, but I hadn’t been since Chloe was born, and they were starting to get suspicious. Instead of blowing it off, we went. I stressed to Chloe how important it was to stay in her glamour, and she understood and was really good at holding it. I thought we’d be safe. I booked us a room at a hotel and hired a babysitter for the night. Chloe was going to bed, and the sitter was just going to be there in case she woke up.”

“You can hold your glamour in your sleep?” Xavier asks, and Brannock nods.

“Yeah. It’s easy to do, and we practiced for weeks. It’s only alcohol and extreme emotions that affect it, so I went to the bar and all hell broke loose. Betrayed by my own teammate, I was tranqued, and when I came to, they had Chloe and I had that collar on. There was nothing I could do but cooperate so they didn't hurt her, including deporting me so I could look for the orb. If I don't find it, they will start experimenting on her. In fact I wouldn’t put it past them to already be doing that now that I’m not on Earth to demand to see her.”

His anguish is bitter and unpleasant, and I wrinkle my nose, trying not to gag. Xavier waves a hand and frees our two frozen friends. Saxon immediately backs off, but smoke still continues to blow from Tirrian’s nose in agitation.

“You should have told us immediately.” He points a finger at Brannock.

“Yes, maybe then we could have helped you rescue your daughter immediately,” William agrees.

“You’ll have to forgive me for not thinking clearly. They have my child, and I knew nothing about any of you. For all I knew, you could have been as bad as they were.” Brannock’s form flashes, his body changing color, the normal opalescent shimmer bleeding to green while his shoulders, spikes, and head turn red.

“Whoa, settle down.” Eric leaps to his feet and holds out his hands. “It’s okay,” he reassures the angry alien. “We’re on your side.”

“Sit down, Tirrian,” Xavier orders. “You are setting off his berserker mode.”

I watch with fascination as Brannock’s body shudders, and his color flashes back and forth. Silac slowly slides us backward out of firing range, but Brannock manages to get himself under control, and his body changes back to normal. Silac relaxes slightly underneath me and moves me back to the table.

“Did Smith say why he thought we had the orb?” John has stayed relatively calm this whole time, tossing everything we learned around in his mind.

“Yes. Smith said the Syndicate had credible information from a source. When I questioned the reliability of the source, he bragged that it came directly from an Adams.”

A rush of fear flows through the room, and I see my grandpas’ faces turn ashen.

“Lily?” William asks, and Brannock shrugs.

“I’m assuming, but I can’t confirm either way. Smith said it took a long time for them to crack her, which is why they only had this information for the last few months.”

“God!” John gasps, horrified. “What have they done to her?”

“Why keep her alive and in stasis then? I would think they would dispose of her now that they have the information they need,” Tirrian asks without tact, but he’s not wrong.

“They didn’t want to risk the Adams brothers dying before they could locate the orb and in case they needed a hostage to exchange,” Brannock explains.

“You knew all this before we even went to Rilu?” Cas is the one who asks this, and I feel like I’ve been hit over the head. Did he know?

Brannock is quick to shake his head. “No, I was instructed to contact Smith while we were on Z68, before Lila’s meeting with the halla harvester. I demanded answers during the conversation. I told him I wanted to know why they think it’s on the ship, because I haven’t been able to feel or see any sign of it, and he was happy to gloat. He also provided my weekly check-in with Chloe so I know she’s still alive to encourage me to continue seeking the orb. I knew it was time to tell you all everything though. I’ve seen how you work so hard to help one another, and you’ve been nothing but kind to me.”

“Of course we will help you,” John replies, but he still looks distracted.

“Is it true?” Max suddenly breaks the silence, looking at my three grandpas.

“Is what true?” William hedges.

“Is the orb with the circus?”

John and William start to deny it, but Eric scoffs and holds up a hand. “Enough. People’s lives are on the line. It was different when it was just a rumor, but now we need to go into damage control.” He turns his attention to Xavier.

“Can you make it so nobody can talk about it, even under torture?” He looks green as he asks this. He must be thinking about what my grandma had been subjected to. I don’t know much about the galaxy yet, but I’m certain torture is a common and disturbingly creative process.

“Yes, absolutely.” He waves his hand in the air, a couple of my former marks lighting up on his body. He weaves a spell in front of us, one way more complicated than I know. Suddenly, he claps his hands together, and a blast of lavender light blasts out from the impact, the shockwave rolling through the dining room and covering everyone before pulsing through the walls. “That will carry to Echo, Ghosie, and the children, as well as Broderick,” Xavier assures my grandpas.

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