Page 46 of Hell Storm

I agreed and Felix set a time.

“One hour.”

CHAPTER FIFTEEN

Julian

“We’ll go alone. It was hard enough getting them to trustus. There’s no way they’ll go for my security detail tagging along.”

“Agreed,” Silas nodded, following as I raced from the study toward the front door.

Neither of us had stated the obvious, that we had clear indication of Corina and her friends being a part of something big, a major operation. Yes, we considered it long before now, but not with any solid evidence like we discovered tonight—the team’s access to Ianite tech, and the fact that they’d been able to hack in to view our strictly coded broadcasts. My father had thrown a lot of cash at the campaign to encrypt the vital information that passed through the airwaves. It was supposed to have ensured our people that humans could never tune in for easy access to the ins and outs of our world. Still, we now had proof that campaign hadn’t been successful.

And yet, with all we knew about them, Liv and Felix were willing to put their necks on the line for Corina.

It must have crossed their minds that this could have been an ambush. That we’d figured out what Corina was involved in, and were just tying up loose ends. However, they didn’t let that stop them from agreeing to meet. It was then that I realized the love Corina had for them ran both ways.

Brisk air swept in the moment I opened the front door to exit. Silas was quick to hop in on the passenger side, and we wasted no time exceeding the speed limit enforced on palace grounds.

“This is a huge stab in the dark,” Silas sighed. The statement left his mouth, sounding more like a warning than anything else. “I know you and Corina have bonded and the Claiming made that bond even stronger, so I just want to make sure you go into this with open eyes.”

I understood. He wanted me to prepare myself for the worst. It wasn’t lost on me that things might not go well, that we could arrive to discover something terrible had happened to Corina, to Levi.

“I’m fine,” I grumbled. “She hasn’t turned me into some lovesick child.”

I was painfully aware of how frustrated I must have sounded, which didn’t exactly help the point I was trying to make.

“That wasn’t what I meant to imply. I’m only saying, there are bound to be more surprises up ahead.” There was a long, loaded pause before Silas continued. “For instance, we’re on our way to meet two humans I think we both know are likely heavy into illegal activity. Which then, in turn, implicates Corina into those same illegal activities.”

“I’m aware.” My teeth were tightly gritted together, muffling the angry words.

“I’m sure you are. So, that admission of awareness begs the question: Is this who we are now? Are we these men? The future leaders of the free world who are officially turning a blind eye to this sort of thing?”

My grip tightened on the steering wheel, and I pressed the gas. My head was cloudy, which seemed to always be the case now days—cloudy with thoughts of her, thoughts of how I was singlehandedly ruining my own life, my father’s legacy.

“Silas, I … I can’t talk about this right now.”

My nerves were shot, and my tolerance was practically nonexistent. Three people I care for had gone missing, and I was completely powerless.

“Is that a hard question to answer?” he pressed.

“It is when I’m trying desperately not to think about how stupid and reckless I’ve been.”

His stare was heavy on me when he turned. “Or is it possible this question has gotten harder to answer because ofher?Or more specifically, because you’ve taken on a bit of her since the Claiming.”

I blinked hard and tried to only focus on the road. That thought had been on my mind all day, as we searched Corina’s room, while I tried to keep from going crazy as we waited for the com’s battery to charge. It was that longing for justice I absorbed from her. I never doubted it. And the part I wouldn’t admit out loud was that I was suspicious that this change had, possibly, softened me toward humans.

It was a crazy theory, yes, but during the verbal exchange with Liv and Felix, I found myself sympathizing with them in ways I never would have otherwise. I understood their distrust and secrecy even if it angered me. Even then, I only lost my temper because every second was another spent wondering whether Levi and Corina were safe.

There was even a brief moment I thought it perfectly fitting that they managed to find a way to breach our broadcast security. I’d never taken much time to consider their history, how they—generations later—still carried that brokenness and oppression as if they, themselves, had walked in their ancestors’ shoes. It was unnatural for people—human and Ianite alike—to live in bondage.

For the first time ever, I acknowledged the disparity.

Silas relaxed beside me when I didn’t answer. He was thoughtful as he gazed out the window, probably using his abilities to get a sense of the things I would never say out loud.

“You know … I wasn’t asking because I meant for you to choose,” he admitted. “The decision to bind ourselves to her has already been made, and I don’t intend to break that promise. I only think it’s healthier to own what it is we’re doing. Own that we’ve been aiding and abetting a fugitive, and acknowledge that we have no plans to change our course in the near future.”

I glanced at him as things began to make sense. He wasn’t pressing me with hopes of some epiphany changing my mind. His objective was to lift the veil, to give us both the opportunity to be honest about where our thoughts lied.

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