"He's tall, has dark hair, and a lot of bulging muscles, but that could describe most of the immortal warriors on this island. His name doesn't sound unique either. He usually hangs out with four other immortals, but that's also not unusual. I don't want you to get the wrong man."
To that, Dave smiled, all eight of them. "You forget what we can do." He tapped his temple. "The Tarik who attacked you will confess his crime."
Mattie grimaced. "What if you force a false confession?"
"I won't." All eight of Dave turned toward the door. "You will not have to worry about that particular Tarik anymore."
As the door closed behind them, Mattie was left standing in the middle of the lab, the Brotherhood phone clutched in her hand, wondering what she had just set in motion.
"Sran' gospodnya!"Petrov exclaimed. He'd been so quiet during the exchange that Mattie had almost forgotten he was there. "What just happened?"
Mattie looked down at the phone in her hands. "Dave just gave me a way to contact him," she said. "And I think he's going to kill Tarik."
"Probably not just Tarik." Dimitri sounded more satisfied than grim. "I wouldn't be too surprised if the Eight eliminated the entire group."
"Because of me?"
Dimitri ran a hand through his hair. "Dave doesn't think the way we do, or even other immortals. He doesn't see individuals. He sees patterns, systems, and threats to be neutralized. Tarik attacked you. Tarik's friends are loyal to Tarik. Therefore, Tarik's friends are potential threats. To him, that makes perfect sense."
Mattie felt sick. She hadn't asked for this. She'd answered Dave's questions because he'd left her no choice, compelling her to tell him everything he wanted to know. And now people were going to die.
Did they deserve that for what they had almost done, but didn't?
Would it be better to eliminate them so they wouldn't do that to other helpless females?
Who was going to miss them?
They didn't have families.
And yet, she felt sick to her stomach knowing that she was the cause of their demise.
Or maybe not.
Dave hadn't said that he was going to kill Tarik. He'd only said that Tarik wouldn't bother her anymore. Perhaps he would just send him off island on some mission.
Yeah, that was what he'd probably meant. A mission somewhere far away from the island.
Which reminded her of what was clutched in her hand.
She held the phone out to Dimitri. "Maybe we can use it to contact someone on the outside?"
At his workstation, Petrov activated the portable speaker, and the lab filled with the blaring strains of Russian folk music.
Mattie flinched at the sudden noise, then understood. The cameras. The microphones. They were always watching, always listening.
Dimitri shook his head. "It's too late." He pitched his voice just loud enough to be heard over the music. "Whoever was watching the feed saw what Dave did. They saw him give you the phone. Besides, it's most likely restricted."
"So, what do we do?" she asked.
"I'll help you carry that furniture upstairs," Petrov said. "And if you want my decorating advice, I'll provide it free of charge." He winked.
There were no cameras upstairs.
What Petrov was offering wasn't help with furniture. He was offering them a private talk away from the surveillance that monitored the lab.
"That would be great," she said. "Thank you."
Petrov killed the music. "Let's get started, shall we?"
