—The hound would never be able to carry off magnificent hair like mine—
I smile at Ludo’s words, then notice the child has finished her slice. Her eyes are sleepy and half-closed. “Let’s get her into bed,” I say softly.
“I’ll do it,” Willow replies, bending down and scooping the kid into her arms. “You all still have stuff to discuss.”
“Thanks.” She’s not wrong.
“What happened to you, Lu? How did you get out?”
Ludo gives me the mental run down of his escape with Cosmo’s aid, then I repeat it aloud.
“We have to hope none of this blows back on him,” Alexis sighs. “He took a large risk.”
“It was one hundred percent worth it,” I growl, taking Ludo’s hand in mine.
Alexis doesn’t reply, but instead directs a question to Ludo. “You got the little girl out, but did you see other prisoners down there? More children?”
Ludo shakes his head.
Hmm. I look between my janitor and my professor, two men I love, and pour Lumina into our telepathic connection.
—Try talking to each other—
Alexis raises an eyebrow. “Really?”
“Won’t know until you try.”
—Ludo?—
—Gryphon—
“Whoa,” the professor mouths. “Nice work,pulu.”
—There were only six cells in the facility. I overheard someone talking about how the girl was to be sold. They said someone called Regan Grieves was involved in the sale—
An involuntary shudder runs through my body. “So they sell the kids after they’ve used them for the fucked up ascension. But where are they kept before they’re turned into dark energy stores?”
“We’ll find wherever it is,” Alexis scowls. “I promise.”
“And we have to figure out what to do with our little guest,” I add, nodding towards the bedroom. “We can’t hide her away down here forever.”
And I’m supposed to play the docile little doll for the next few weeks. “It’s too much,” I murmur. “How are we supposed to do this? Gods, guys. Does anyone else feel like we are on a runaway train headed for a giant crash?”
I feel panic building up in my chest.
—Breathe, Nymph—
—Yeah, relax, my pulu. One thing at a time—
—Fine, so what first?—
“The girl,” Alexis says out loud. “Where can she go?”
Willow exits the bedroom, gently closing the door behind her. “Actually, I have a thought about that. My parents.”
“Huh?”
“My folks. They’re good eggs, honestly. And they’re not big Conclave fans. I think they’d leap at the chance to help the kidandstick it to the man in one go.”
