“But youweremarried?”
“Nearly. She left me after she discovered I was a Mod.”
My breath hitches. “Did you tell her, or did she discover it on her own?”
“She found out. I was in the Point at the time, working in Communications. We lived in separate quarters for most of our relationship, but she insisted we apply for a joint living assignment. I knew it was a bad idea. Hell, it’s a bad idea to get involved with a Prime to begin with. But I loved her. We got approved for cohabitation, and everything was perfect for almost a year. And then one night, when she was asleep, I used telepathy to check in with my Uprising handler.”
“But she wasn’t asleep.”
“No. She saw my veins and that was that. She decided I was a monster and left.”
“Did she report you?”
“I didn’t give her the chance. I was compromised, so the network extracted me and I moved to the Dagger. I was twenty-five.”
“What happened to her?”
“She married someone else.” He gives a knowing smile. “Andbefore you ask, yes, I’ve kept tabs on her, and yes, it’s probably not healthy.”
“No judgment. I would do the same. Especially if I really loved the person.”
“I loved her very much.” His voice is laced with regret.
After a short silence, I wearily get to my feet. “I should probably try to get some sleep. I’m working at the range tomorrow.”
Before I can reach the air lock, Kallister stops me, touching my arm.
“Come to my quarters in the morning. I have something you might like to see.”
I fall into a restless slumber. The sheets are a tangled mess by the time I wake up, and I don’t feel well rested in the slightest. Only more exhausted.
“Are we going to the range?” Xavier asks in a groggy voice. Bare-chested, he stretches and yawns as he sits up.
“Yes, but I need to check in with Kallister first.”
“Ah, our new master.”
I sigh.
Kallister’s quarters are in the same block as Adrienne’s. He welcomes me inside and offers me a coffee, which I gratefully accept, the hot liquid warming my throat and firing up my brain.
He gets right to it, saying, “What I’m going to show you can never leave this room.”
His quarters consist of several rooms, and curiosity sparks in my gut as he leads me into an office. It’s small, containing nothing more than a desk, a plush chair, a holoscreen, and a locked vault cabinet built into the wall.
Kallister approaches the cabinet and scans his retinas, triggering a flash of green light and the mechanical whir of a lock releasing. The metal door pops open, and as he reaches inside, I glimpse what looks like stacks of tablets. He grabs one and gestures to the desk chair.
“Have a seat.”
I sit, watching as he unlocks the tablet. I can’t see the screen yet, but when he finally walks over and hands it to me, I’m filled with shock.
It’s a digital file.
Subject:Marina Serrano
And judging by the index page, the dossier is a treasure trove of information. Excitement tickles my belly as I scan the various headings.
Biographies. Mission records. Interrogation transcripts. There are Serrano and Hess family trees. Marriage certificates. Death certificates. There’s even an entire directory for Valterra Ridge and the Sun Post bombing, including links to books and documents on the subjects.
