Page 226 of Silver Elite

Then I nod.

“Which is it?”

“I don’t know.” I drag both hands through my hair. I want to tear it out by the roots. “I incited her.”

He briefly closes his eyes.

“Cross.”

He doesn’t speak. Without a word, he examines our surroundings, scanning the room. His cheeks hollow as he sucks them in. Thinking.

Finally, he says, “Okay. I got this.”

“What do you mean you got this?”

He’s already pulling out his source. “Xavier,” he tells the screen, then brings the comm to his ear. There’s a pause. “I need you. I’ll send the grids.” Another pause. “Sanitation.”

As he slides the source into his pocket, I fix him with a stern look. “No. I’m not going to let you risk your life for something that I did.”

“My life is already at risk.” He stares at me. “She’s in my father’s inner circle. She’s a lieutenant colonel. She’s on the fucking Tribunal.”

“Cross—”

“I’ll take care of the cameras. Just go.”

“I’m not leaving you.”

“Go,” he growls. “I mean it, Wren. Go back to your quarters. Get ready for the party.”

I gape at him. “We’re not going to the party!”

“Yes. We are. You’re going to walk into that ballroom wearing your new dress, and you’re going to smile at all your superiors. You’re going to shake the General’s hand and tell him how much you love Silver Block. You’re going to congratulate him on twenty-five years of valiant, impeccable rule. Do you understand me?”

I clench my teeth.

“Do you understand me?”

“Yes.”

“Good. Now get the fuck out of here.”

As much as I don’t appreciate his tone, I know there’s no way I could’ve done this…sanitation…on my own.

I grab my pack from the floor. “Should I use my jammer?”

“Yes. Keep it activated until you’re back in your quarters. I don’t want a single camera picking you up. Go.”

With a weak nod, I leave him to clean up my mess.

—

My anxiety levels don’t wane in the slightest. If anything, they only skyrocket when I burst into my quarters, because now I have the privacy to let every turbulent emotion I’ve been feeling since I killed Jayde bubble to the surface.

How is Cross going to explain why Jayde Valence dropped off the face of the Continent? How? Cross has a brilliant mind when it comes to military maneuvers. But this is…

Suicide.

The word lingers in my mind, spurring me to link with him. I’m a little surprised when he lets me.

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