“What do you mean?”
Before Surin could answer, Rui heard footsteps behind them.
Song Wei.
Surin acknowledged him with a bow. Rui followed suit, albeit unwillingly. He had fallen in her eyes, a false idol she no longer worshipped.
Song Wei wasted no time for pleasantries. “We meet again, Cadet Lin. I commend you for your actions last night,” he said. “Taking down a highly dangerous Revenant by yourself... impressive as always.”
Ironic how she’d spent years proving herself worthy of joining his elite ranks. Now his praise had no effect on her at all. Her heart pounded, but her voice rang loud and clear in the crisp mountain air. “It wasn’t a highly dangerous Revenant. It was a Hybrid, just like the one that killedmy mother four years ago. The Guild has been lying to everyone.”
Song Wei didn’t deny it. He stared at her with a shrewd expression, a powerful man with an even more powerful presence. Rui could feel his qi, the strength of it, as if he were sucking the life from the sun above and the very mountains and trees that rose behind him.
“Do you feel it, Rui?” he asked.
For a moment, she was confused. Then her senses focused. Shecouldfeel it.
This is a sacred place.
The qi she detected wasn’t Song Wei’s qi, but the vital force—theessence—of this place. It was full and vibrant, rolling with the breeze, leaping from the rocks and leaves and waterfalls. Unlike the layers of magic in The Reverie pressing down like a heavy shroud, this was light.
This waslife.
“You are standing in the birthplace of Exorcism,” Song Wei said, as Rui looked around in sudden awe. “Many, many years ago, a group of individuals came together here in secret to train their minds and bodies, honing their vital energy, forging weapons that allowed them to conduct their life force. They did all this to keep their villages safe from Revenants, and they made a pact to defend those who were not born with the same gifts as they had. But in those days, Exorcists moved in the shadows, no different from their enemy. Many generations ago, the Exorcists slowly moved out of the shadows, working to assimilate into normal society. Their wish then, as is ours now, is to be accepted. You may wonder why all of this isn’t public knowledge, why the Academy does not teach you this history. Our roots began in a secret society, and not everything is meant for the ears and eyes of others, especially those who do not possess the same gifts as we do.”
“Why are you telling me this now?”
“The time is right to offer you the courtesy of knowledge, Cadet Lin. The fact remains that although we have evolved, so has our enemy. You killed a Hybrid last night, and you did it easily.Thatis valuable to us. The first known encounter with a Hybrid occurred almost eighteen yearsago—we don’t believe they existed before. We have been trying to study them ever since—”
“Eighteen years?” Rui shouted, voice distorted, hands shaking. “You knew for eighteen years, and you kept it from everyone?”
“To minimize the impact on society.”
She stared at the old man in horror. At its heart, the Exorcist Guild was a shady, secretive society that pretended to be respectable. It didn’t care about others, only their own and their survival. No wonder Zizi hated them.
A dam broke. Fury gushed through her. Grief flooded her senses.The Hybrid’s face... His voice luring her in... Her mother pushing her away... The sudden bright flash of light...
Her mother was killed by a Hybrid four years ago. But the Guild had known for much longer. If only they had informed the public. If only they’d warned everyone.
If only Rui had known.
“How aboutme?” she screamed. “No one believed me, no one took me seriously when I told them how my mother died!” Hot, angry tears blurred her vision. “You were at my mother’s funeral. I saw you in your car. Why did you come? Were you feeling guilty?”
“I was not there for your mother or you,” Song Wei said without any hint of emotion. “And I will not regret a decision that was made for the greater good. Your mother was collateral damage—”
Snarling, Rui plunged forward, fingers clawing at Song Wei’s face.
Arms wrapped around her at once, yanking her back.
Surin hissed in her ear, “Control yourself.”
Rui kicked out. “She wasn’t collateral damage—she was mymother!”
“You will come around when you understand what is at stake,” Song Wei said coolly.
A throttled cry erupted from Rui’s throat. She struggled to break free, but Surin was too strong. Helplessly, she watched as Song Wei walked away with barely a glance at her.
The elevator doors closed, camouflaged against rock.
