Page 24 of Dark Gambit Reliance

MARCEL

The interrogation hadn't taken long, and Toven had exhausted everything the guards knew in less than an hour.

What had surprised Marcel was that Igor hadn't sounded like the evil monster dictator he'd imagined him to be. The compound was run efficiently and was guarded well, but their two captives had no horror stories to share. Evidently, they didn't know about the history of most of the pureblooded females and how they had ended up in the compound, and they didn't think that the human females' obligation to breed with hybrids was such a big deal either. To them, it was a cultural thing, and since they could point to many human cultures who still treated females as breeders with no rights, Marcel couldn't even fault them for thinking that.

Evil came in many shades of darkness and compared to some human dictators, even contemporary ones, Igor was only dark gray.

Most of the community members had no ability to communicate with the outside world, but Igor didn't limit access to information. They could place orders for any movie, book, or video game they wanted, and their allowance was small but sufficient for acquiring those and other small luxuries.

There were no official days off, but the guards had reported plenty of free time. They'd also confirmed what Sofia had said about the humans being pretty much left to their own devices. Those who didn't perform to the standards expected of them were punished by fines and lost privileges, but capital punishment of humans was so rare that the two guards hadn't heard of any in recent years. Igor was less lenient with the hybrids and the purebloods, though, ruling them with an iron fist. Then again, according to Jade's surviving tribe members, she had been tough on her people as well, so it might be the Kra-ell way.

"You will fall asleep and wake up in three hours in your car," Toven said to finish his thralling session.

When the hybrids' heads dropped over their chests, the god let out a breath. "That should be enough time for the grogginess of the tranquilizer to fade."

Toven had thralled the Kra-ell hybrids to forget that they had ever been captured, replacing those memories with them watching from afar as Sofia hobnobbed with a bunch of rich people in a secluded beach house.

They wouldn't even remember hiking up the mountain behind her.

"Let's take them back." Morgan unlocked Dima's chains.

"Don’t forget to clean their boots," Marcel said.

"Right." Morgan lifted the hybrid and draped him over his shoulder.

After Bradley did the same for Anton, Marcel called Asher to tell him that he and Eleanor could come up.

Following Turner's instructions, Asher had gone back to pick up the hybrids' Honda and had driven it to a spot overlooking the beach house. Then he and Eleanor had gone back for the other two vehicles.

When the door opened, and Eleanor walked in with Asher and Cecilia, the cat leaped out of her arms and ran into the bedroom where Sofia was resting.

"Those two have bonded." Eleanor walked over to the dining table. "Hello, Kian." She waved at the blank screen and then turned to Toven. "Did we learn anything useful?"

The god nodded. "We learned quite a lot from Dima and Anton."

As Marcel deactivated the earpiece and switched on the tablet's speaker, Kian turned his camera on.

"We know the schedules of the guards at the tunnel entrances and at what intervals they are required to call in," Kian said. "We also know the frequency of patrols in the hunting grounds and the way they monitor the waterways running through the area."

"We also learned a lot about how the compound is run," Marcel added.

"Can I come out now?" Sofia walked in with Cecilia in her arms.

"Of course." Marcel pulled out a chair for her.

She yawned. "How did it go?"

"Better than I expected," Toven said. "Anton and Dima might not know what Igor's agenda is, but they are very familiar with the day-to-day operations of the compound. They served as guards at the entrances to the tunnels, they also served in the office building, the security office, and a number of other stations, and they trained with the purebloods. They told us what weapons Igor has, how many times a week the purebloods go hunting and many other details that will help us plan our next step."

"Did they give you any trouble?"

Toven chuckled. "They are not fans of Igor. Dima was willing to switch masters in a heartbeat. Anton would have done so gladly as well, but he has a family to think of. Dima, for some reason, was not concerned with that. Do you know why?"

Sofia shook her head. "His father is a jerk like most of the purebloods, and his mother died a long time ago. Once the hybrids reach puberty, they leave the human quarters, so I didn't have much contact with him after that." She grimaced. "He wasn't nice to me when we were still kids, and he wasn't nice after he left either. Anton's mother married a human after she was released from her breeding duties, and he has a human sister that he's surprisingly close to. It's not common."

Mia shivered. "Being forced to breed is awful. I really want to free all those poor women."

Toven put a hand on her shoulder. "You will."

---