He brings me into an office. One that I’ve never been in before. A dark mahogany table sits at the center, facing a pair of twin monitors. Tall shelves are placed in the corner, neatly arranged with heavy war books. Their spines are cracked and faded. The titles are engraved with pale gold lettering. Some look decades old, their pages swollen with age; others are new prints, glossy and meticulously aligned. Looks like some of them are from the Archives, where they keep the prohibited books.
The door shuts behind us, and a click sounds as he engages the lock.
Ender releases my arm and turns slowly.
“Sit,” he says.
I draw out the chair and settle into it. My back is ramrod straight. Ender doesn’t take the seat across from me. Instead, he leans against the desk, arms crossed, studying me with an intensity that frightens me.
“You’re shaking.” He observes.
“I just watched someone die,” I say. “It was horrifying.”
“How do you expect to kill rebels if you can’t handle the death of a single boy?” Ender asks.
I open my mouth to respond, but Ender continues speaking.
“I wonder why he waited till now to trigger his failsafe,” Ender says, slowly. “He had days to do it.”
“Maybe, he was scared you’d come back,” I say. “You’re intimidating.”
His muscles are bulging with his arms folded like that. I can see why someone would rather die than face him. The distance between us alarms me. I don’t want him to think I’m being shady. Even though it’sveryobvious that I am hiding something.
I stand and bridge the space between us. In the room, earlier, I got him to let me lead the interrogation by using my feminine wiles to soften him. It’s not a trick I’ve ever used before, but after it worked so successfully, I would be foolish not to use it again.
I don’t remember much from last night, but I remember bits and pieces. There was a heated moment when we kissed in his truck, and when I woke up, his scent was on the pillows.
“Sit, Warrick,” he says, between clenched teeth. “Don’t come any closer.”
“Vale,” I say softly. “I…I haven’t seen someone die so close to me. Not since my mother.”
His shoulders loosen, and I can tell he is struggling to remain indifferent.
“I didn’t mean to behave unprofessionally,” I lie. “Forgive me.”
I’m close to him now. I can count every dark, spidery lash on his eye. His arm unfolds, and I graze my fingers along his knuckles.
Ender steps away from me, walking behind the desk and using it as a shield. He swallows, staring at me heatedly.
“If you are being disloyal, Warrick, I will be forced to put you down,” he says. His voice turns pleading. “Don’t make me do that.”
My spine straightens. His tone surprises me. I don’t know why he is not shoving me into a room and torturing me for answers. Anyone else, and they would be dead by now.
I consider broaching the topic we are dancing around, but there are cameras here. I want to know if he will join me, if he wants to escape the shackles around him. The Supreme Director is not just a bad person; he is a terrible father. I remember that night at the party when he clasped Ender’s back jovially, fingers digging into the fabric of his coat. Nobody saw Ender wince, but I did. From the looks of it, it wasn’t the first time he had hurt him.
And then, there was the day Ender was implanted. They took away his powers and with it his freedom to escape to his secret world. It must have been bad over there for him to lose himself in an illusion.
“Vale,” I begin.
“I suggest you decide which side you’re on,” Ender cuts me off, “before I decide for you.”
He looks away, silently dismissing me. There is no convincing him. He has been on this path for so long, I don’tthink he even knows what he fights for anymore. And the thought saddens me.
I step into the hallway on shaky legs. And one truth settles like a fist in my chest: Ender knows that I am helping the rebels, but he doesn’t know that I am an Untamed. If he learns that I have powers, everything will make sense.
And he will have no choice but to kill me.
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