Does that mean Mori was able to get away?Hope fills my veins.
Several minutes pass before the door creaks open.
A slender male appearing to be in his fifties strides in. He wears a three-layer, polished navy blue suit and walks with a cane in his right hand. The handle is gilded and curved at the edge, forming a clawlike form. Sharp enough to kill. He doesn’t use it for weight bearing or an injury, it appears to be only for appearances. A symbol of power for him maybe.
Neither of us utters a word as he stops five feet away. He stares at me coldly. It’s not apparently clear to me who he is exactly. Reed’s words echo through my mind.Mavestelli.
This must be him.
“Em-Bee,” he says rigidly, like he doesn’t actually want to speak those words.
But they sink into me.
Em-Bee.Pressure surges behind my eyes again. It’s so intense that I clutch my head and grind my jaw.
Images of a young man resurface in my head. He’s a poisoner.Bryce.His eyes and gurgling when he was slain dash through my soul… He said the wordsEm-Beeto me and it proved that he worked for my father. Mavestelliismy father. Though I don’t remember him, it must be true. We look too similar.
The memories aren’t clear, but as the pain in my head fades, one question makes my stomach churn.
Who hit me across the head if it wasn’t Bryce?
My father levels his eyes with mine. “Emery, you’ve been through a lot, haven’t you?” He sits at the edge of the steel-framed bed and it creaks as he shifts to face me.
I hesitate to answer him. There are many fuzzy images living inside my head right now. “What happened to me? How did I end up here?” I finally manage to ask.
His dull brown eyes shift to the floor. “Well, that’s a long story. Did your partner not tell you himself? From what I’ve been informed, the two of you are quite close. I’m a bit surprised none of this came up.” His tone is scrutinizing.
I know what he’s doing. He’s putting doubt in my head, but he also has a point. Mori has refused to tell me much of anything, let alone his name.
Does he not trust me?
My chest swells with heaviness at the thought.
“He’s just giving me time,” I say unsurely, fisting the sheets at my sides.
My father’s eyes are dismissive and certain. Every moment spent in his presence brings more and more of my past to the surface. The cold childhood. The family business. My role as the executioner. Even Reed. I feel silly for not recognizing him. He’s my mentor, we’ve been through so much together over several years. I shut my eyes against the onslaught of memories.
“Who did he say gave you this?” Father brushes his fingers over the scar on my temple.
I swallow and shake my head. “It was…Bryce.” My voice wavers as the memory of the poisoner lying dead before me returns. It’s so vivid. I know if I push further I’ll find more, but part of me is reluctant to remember the rest.
My father laughs and grabs me by the wrist. The pressure alone tells me it’s enough to hurt if not for the death pills. My lungs seize.The death pills!I remember what I once called them. My heart starts to hammer in my chest as I refocus on my father’s eyes.
“You know who did it. It was Mori,” he says slowly.
Those three words bleed through me.
He’s lying.
“Liar.” My voice breaks. I try to move away from him, but the handcuff doesn’t let me go far.
He gives me a sinister smile and snaps his fingers at the guard. The man walks over and hands my father a phone.
“See for yourself.” He holds the phone to my face and makes me watch the footage.
Tears start spilling over my cheeks and drip onto my lap. I don’t understand why, but turmoil festers inside me. Betrayal and anguish. I watch anyway, through blurry vision and heartache as Mori chases me through the forest and pins me to the ground. I’m screaming his name over and over.Cameron.
Screaming for him to stop.
