He looks older once he steps away from the bright windows and into the shadows where he properly belongs. His hair has more gray streaks than I recall, and his eyes are dark with grim thoughts.
“Mori.” Nolan acknowledges me passively like he always does before taking a seat. Then he motions for me to sit down as well.
“General Nolan, it’s good to see you, sir,” I say mundanely.
“You know, I always thought you were just a pain in my ass.” I flinch at his crassness. “I can’t tell you how many times I told Captain Bridger to throw you away. Even if you were resilient to the drugs, something about you has always bothered me.” His voice is uncaring and cold.
My jaw feathers, but I keep my expression empty. I don’t know how the fuck I’m supposed to respond to that, so I remain quiet.
He leans forward in his seat and rests his elbows against his knees as he observes me closer, like I’m nothing more than a case study. He’s waiting for me to break, but he forgets where I came from. Where I was molded into who I am. The scar on my chest burns at the thought.
“But it would seem you’ve truly proven yourself, Mori. Against all the odds. Against my advice to terminate you long ago, Captain Bridger has decided to offer you a place among the officers. He’s proposing that you be promoted to Sergeant Mortem of the Hades Squad.” His beady eyes are like pits of darkness as they watch my expression morph with shock.Hades?That’s what Emery told me Mikah said she found intel on…the new squad to replace ours. And he wantsmeto be the sergeant?
“What?”A surprised breath escapes my lungs.
I wasn’t expecting him to say that. My throat tightens with emotion, being an officer in the Dark Forces has been my goal all this time. For seven grueling and merciless years, isn’t this what I worked so hard for? I know it’s not where my future lies anymore…so why does my heart ache at the prospect of it?
Is it because I know what it will cost? Or is it because I found something better?Emery.I gnash my teeth together and wrestle with the turmoil growing inside me.
I’ve wanted to beSergeant Mortemfor such a long time.
Nolan grins, and it is truly a wicked thing. He straightens in hischair and leans back to grab a piece of black paper, words written in gold on one side.
“There comes a time in every officer’s life where he must make a difficult decision, Mori. You see, to become a high-ranking soldier in the Dark Forces, you must prove yourself beyond the lengths you’ve already gone. We’ve all had to make these hard choices to get where we are. But Lieutenant Belerik highly recommended you.”
The ache spreads farther into my chest, infecting my lungs and making my breaths shorten. Because I know what he’s going to say next.
“What must I do?” I ask slowly and it sounds so quiet in this dusty, foreboding room. My gaze is hollow, the light has faded.
Nolan hands me the black paper. It looks like an order written by the captain himself.
Exterminate the Fury Squad after Mavestelli is dead. You alone will return a legend amongst the Dark Forces.
32
EMERY
Cameron strugglesto meet my gaze as he listens to Gage go on about how old a few of the plane models are in here. He’s been quieter after going on a walk with the lieutenant earlier. He hasn’t been entirely withdrawn, but there’s something he’s not telling me. He’s been holding his head lower and spacing out during the afternoon drills.
Damian pats my knee and drops some gloves on my lap. “To replace the ones I accidentally lit on fire yesterday,” he mumbles, still smiling about it, so I know he’s not actually sorry.
“Let’s just hope you figure out how to use the flares before the mission,” I tease. Apparently my little stunt in the Great Basin hideout was a hit. Cameron thinks it will come in handy when it’s time for us to make a break for it.
“Yeah, yeah.” Damian waves me off and plops down next to Wraith.
Our eyes connect and I flatten my gaze. Wraith smirks and mutters, “So are you ever going to tell us how you know this Reed guy?”
Damian perks up and nods his curiosity as well. “Come on, it’sournecks he’s going to be digging around in tonight. You owe us this much.”
I shrug. “I knew him from my time at the academy I was sent away to when I was twelve. He was in the same class as me, but his intelligence far exceeded mine.” It’s weird to talk about Reed, it makes me nostalgic. We were so close back then. Now we seem to be worlds apart, yet of course, he once again has a fierce grip on my fate. Just as he always has. “After he was moved up a few academic years, we stopped seeing each other as much. That was around the time my father had him recruited to his internal team. He took a liking to Reed, probably because he could see the evil that lurked within him. We all saw it, yet he’s so charismatic it’s hard to see sometimes.”
Damian looks worried, but Wraith only hardens his gaze.
“Don’t trust him too much. Let him extract your trackers, but don’t feed into his conversation tactics. Reed could get you to spill all your secrets in ten minutes if you’re not careful.”
Wraith snorts and looks back to the rest of our squad as they reconvene for dinner. Gage waves at us to join them.
“If I recall, you’re the one with loose lips, remember?” Damian jokes in an attempt to lighten the mood.
