Page 51 of Warrior

“And those would be?”he asked, leaning forward slightly, trying to maintain the upper hand.

I twirled my braid again, feigning hesitation.“Hellhounds on the island, for one,” I said, rolling my eyes upward as if thinking hard about the question.“They also put a lot of time into agriculture, and it keeps them busy.I tend to forget they were once farmers.Working the land is very important to them.It seems to keep them tame.”

He shifted tactics, his tone more probing.“What do you estimate their numbers at?”His eyes were fixed on me, studying every nuance of my expression.

“I only saw about fifty, give or take ten or so.”I shrugged.“Honestly, they all looked alike.I didn’t know there were more until they sent a hundred with me.”I kept the words casual.“The longer I was there, the more relaxed they became about what they said to me.I can’t be completely sure, but I’d estimate their total number is around two hundred.They’re worried about an attack from us.No matter how much I reassured them, I don’t think they believed me.But really, what would we want with their island?We have everything we need here.”

There was barely time to take a breath before he fired off his next question.“And weapons?”

I looked up at the ceiling, pretending to count something, before finally answering.“Their guns are much older than ours, Russian-made, or at least the ones I saw were.Not that I knew what Russian firearms looked like, but that’s what they said.I think they’re in very short supply because most Shadow Warriors didn’t carry them.If you’ve checked the weapons they brought with them, you’ll see they’re in desperate need of replacing.”I added what I hoped was a pleading gaze, though inside, Ms.Beast was grumbling louder than ever, her irritation pressing hard against my ribs.“I told them, as a bargaining chip, that the U.S.would provide weapons if they helped us.I really hope we follow through.I don’t want them thinking I outright lied to them.”

He ignored that entirely and shifted gears without warning.“Did you have sexual relations with King?”

The question came out so casually, like my answer either way wouldn’t matter.My cheeks burned as Ms.Beast’s rumbling anger culminated in a sharp kick to my kidneys.I slowed my breathing, struggling to compensate, and covered my eyes slightly, pretending to be embarrassed.In reality, I was trying not to gasp for air.She was supposed to help me, not make this harder.

“King wanted to,” I said softly, my voice deliberately shaky.“And I know it was expected of me.I would do anything for my country, or at least I thought I would.”I lowered my voice further.“But he’s an animal, and I just couldn’t.I couldn’t be with him in that way.”

His expression remained utterly devoid of compassion.“Was he angry?”

I shrugged, adding a physical shiver.“Maybe a little at first.It delayed negotiations for a few weeks, but in the end, he seemed to stop caring.Honestly, it surprised me that I wasn’t forced.I barely slept most nights during that first month.”I wrapped my arms around myself and began rocking slightly, as though fear and worry were consuming me.It was the best I could do to sell the image of someone fragile and intimidated.

He tossed out the next question without missing a beat.“What about women?”

“On the island?”I asked, buying myself a second to prepare.King and I had anticipated this.They were bound to question me about everything.“I only saw a few, and most were older and used as servants.From conversations I overheard, there were maybe a hundred humans left on the island when the Shadow Warriors originally landed, and those same people are still there.They never spoke to me, and since I don’t understand Spanish, I couldn’t gather much.All I can say for certain is that they’re not a threat.The Shadow Warriors treated me well, but I don’t think the islanders received the same kindness.”I shrugged, keeping my tone casual.“That’s just the impression I got.”

Charles placed his hand on the file folder and drummed his fingers against it.Was he buying any of this?

“We may have more questions for you, Marinah,” he said finally, his tone shifting to something almost pleasant.“I hope you don’t mind if I call on you again?”

His sudden change in demeanor didn’t sit well with me, and I couldn’t shake the feeling I might’ve tipped him off about something.“No, of course not,” I said, shaking my head and forcing an apprehensive expression onto my face.“I just want to help the Federation.Spending time on that island made me see things differently.I think the Warriors can be trusted to a point.After that, the sooner we take care of the hellhounds and they return to their island, the better.”

The interview was over.Daniels met me outside the interrogation room, his expression unreadable, and escorted me back to my room in silence.It wasn’t until the door shut behind me that I finally let myself take a deep breath.

Chapter Eighteen

King

The cool night air rolled over me, its small bite unwelcome to Beast.I sat by a minuscule fire on a ledge in the hills, looking down about thirty feet from the edge of a cliff, with only one thought on my mind.

Marinah.

The separation had Beast boiling beneath the surface, clawing at my insides and squeezing my organs like a vise.I craved her like air, but I had to remind myself constantly that this was for the greater good.That so-calledgreater goodhad weighed heavily on me since Greystone’s death.I’d never felt I was good enough to take his place, but I also knew I was the only one who could.It had become my sacrifice.A sacrifice I now regretted every second I was apart from Marinah.

Movement in the distance pulled my attention, and I waited until they were closer before alerting the men that one of the other teams had arrived.It was Nokita and his group, looking worn and hungry after traveling a greater distance than we had.It took an hour to get them situated before I had the chance to speak with Nokita privately.

We walked to my fire and sat on the ground, taking a few moments to appreciate its warmth.

“The countryside to the south is mostly barren,” Nokita said at last.

“Humans?”I asked.

“A few,” he replied.“They stayed clear of us, didn’t follow, and caused no trouble.They didn’t even know we saw them.Federation troops were a bigger problem.They held about twenty human prisoners.”

“We saw the same,” I said with a sigh.“The humans are hiding from the Federation and dealing with hellhounds on top of it.”

He stared out over the valley, his expression troubled.“Yes, that is my view as well.”

We sat in silence, contemplating what we’d seen, the weight of it settling over us like a heavy shroud.After a while, I caught him up on everything I’d observed during our journey here.

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