“I am truly sorry it came to this,” Rami said. “I did everything I possibly could to help you, but I can’t override the governor’s orders.” His brown eyes held some of the kindness she remembered, but there was something off about the way he looked at her. Like she was now just a loyal subject who needed to follow orders, nothing more.
Gemma cast her gaze to the floor and nodded.
“I did, at least, get the clearance to hold you here until you’ve had a chance to speak with your sister.”
Her eyes widened, and she moved to sit on the edge of her cot. “Did you find her?” Her eyes found Rami’s again.
But he frowned. “Not yet. But the team is working tirelessly on it. We hope to have her in our custody soon.”
Gemma’s shoulders sank. At least he was holding to his promise to let Gemma see her sister one last time.
The formality in his stare gave way to the compassion she’d come to know. “Is there anything I can get you while you wait?”
Gemma shook her head. What could anyone possibly provide that would make this situation any better?
“What’s going to happen to me?” she couldn’t help but ask.
“You’ll be taken to Capital City to stand trial. After that, it’s up to the president and her council to determine what steps to take with you.”
It felt as if her breath had been sucked from her being. “You mean whether or not to kill me.”
Rami’s silence and sympathetic stare told her all she needed to know. The Systems truly did see her as a threat, and what did powerful governments do to their threats?
They eliminated them.
“Just . . . give me a chance to say goodbye to Christian, okay?” Her chin trembled.
A flicker of sadness passed across Rami’s face. “Of course.” He turned to leave. “Hang in there. And keep those powers under control. Don’t give the council any further evidence against you.”
After she nodded, Rami marched down the hall and out of the prison block.
Gemma held her breath, desperate to scream. She’d asked them to keep her somewhere she couldn’t hurt others, but she hadn’t wanted todie. She hadn’t wanted to be sent away, not just to another planet but to one of Illari’s sister solar systems. Even if the council didn’t sign her death warrant, Gemma would never see Imara or Hawk or her sister—or Christian—again.
She threw her pillow across the cell as a sob shattered her chest. But the cry was cut short and replaced by terror the moment her gaze dropped to her hands.
Her fingertips were glowing.
Mira sat cuffed in the same chair Cho had once occupied, in the middle of the makeshift prison in Gallowood House. More cuffs had been added to her ankles, and a small table sat in front of her. She looked no worse for wear from the chase, though her cropped hair was messy. Beneath the tattoo on her bronze neck, a faint bruise was forming.
Christian stood between Hawk and Imara as they watched the interrogation unfold on a large electroglass screen outside the holding cell. Claude and Yosef were next to them, taking notes. Philip stood behind them all, his brown eyes narrowed in quiet calculation.
Inside the room, Ahna paced a slow circle around Mira. Confident, precise, unapologetically in charge.
“You gave us quite the chase,” Ahna said, her voice calm but cutting. “I’d say you’re lucky you didn’t catch a grav pulse to the spine. My partner could’ve landed that shot in his sleep.”
Mira didn’t flinch. “I’ve been hit before.”
“Mm.” Ahna tapped once on the table. “Let’s skip the warmup, shall we? We know you’ve been running goods to the Dissent. We want locations, inventory, names. And if you lie to me again, you’ll wish you hadn’t.”
“I’m not a Systems citizen,” Mira said, blinking slowly. “You don’t have jurisdiction over me.”
“You’re on Systems-controlled territory,” Ahna replied cooly. “That makes you ours, whether you like it or not.”
Christian didn’t blink. He stood rooted in place, arms crossed tight against his chest, his jaw locked so hard it hurt.
“She’s way too confident,” Imara murmured under her breath.
She alwayshadbeen excellent at reading people. It’s what had made her an excellent thief and conwoman before she’d passed her Trials.
