Dark Awakening: Echoes of Destiny (The Children Of The Gods #88)

49. The Saboteur

49

THE SABOTEUR

T he saboteur sat on the porch outside of Toven's home, her composed exterior belying the storm of anxiety brewing within.

Five folding chairs had been put out on the porch to accommodate the groups needing to show up at a certain time. The saboteur was the last one of her group, and the wait was nerve-racking.

Her turn for questioning was approaching, and despite her rigorous mental preparation, doubt had begun to creep in. Could she truly pull this off? Fool Toven? Especially when his compulsion ability was being reinforced by his mate?

The Clan Mother was supposedly the strongest compeller of the clan, which made sense. She was their leader. But with Mia's help, Toven was probably just as strong, if not more so.

But if she could pull it off with him, she would be bloody invincible.

The saboteur closed her eyes, forcing her mind to focus on her training sequences and to clear everything else. In her mind's eye, she saw herself moving through the familiar patterns, each movement precise and controlled. The mental exercise had always helped to center her before, but today, thoughts of her schemes kept intruding.

She had sent her three minions out again tonight, a decision she was now questioning. On the one hand, their activities could keep suspicion away from her, but on the other hand, they might get caught and her involvement discovered.

They would be much easier to break than she was.

Even having these thoughts could be her undoing. If she couldn't clear her mind of her plans and the actions of her subordinates, how could she hope to withstand Toven's questioning?

The front door opened, and Jade emerged, escorting the pureblood whose questioning had just ended. The saboteur studied him intently, searching for any sign of distress or manipulation. To her surprise and disappointment, he looked perfectly fine.

Jade's eyes met hers, and the saboteur felt a momentary pang. Once, she had looked up to Jade and admired her strength and resilience. But that was before she had truly understood that the Kra-ell had no place in this new world of immortals. They were not meant to be subservient, domesticated, or subsist on the blood of farm animals and rot from inactivity.

They were a warrior race. They were hunters. And they were not supposed to be locked inside a small village with a bunch of sanctimonious immortals who thought they could save the world.

Who had put them in charge and made them rulers over everyone else?

"Your turn," Jade said in her usual curt tone. "Remember, the less you resist, the easier and faster it will go."

Oh, how low had the great Jade fallen. She could be such a formidable leader, but she had sold out.

The saboteur nodded, keeping her face a mask of calm compliance. For now, no one could know what she was truly capable of. Not Jade, not Pavel, not even the god waiting behind that door.

But soon, they would all know and could do nothing about it because she could out-power them all.

Rising to her feet, she adopted her usual swagger as she approached the door. It wasn't an act, not really. This confidence, this defiance, was as much a part of her as her Kra-ell heritage.

She wouldn't let them strip that away.

Jade held the door open, and the saboteur strode in, her eyes quickly taking in the god's living room.

It was spacious and tastefully decorated in warm earth tones that were probably meant to be soothing, but it was not an abode worthy of a god.

Toven had sold out as well, accepting the pastoral lifestyle of a small village when he could be living like a king. The rumors were that he was rich beyond measure and had more gold than the entire great nation of the United States of America and even the entire world.

He had been collecting his gold for the past seven thousand years, so it was possible.

Toven sat on a couch, his presence commanding and a little intimidating, but not to her. No one intimidated the saboteur. Beside him sat his mate, Mia, the enhancer.

"Please, have a seat." Toven gestured to the armchair facing the couch they were sitting on.

The saboteur complied, settling into the chair with an air of nonchalance she didn't entirely feel. She met Toven's gaze steadily, refusing to show any sign of intimidation.

"Thank you, Jade," Toven said, dismissing the Kra-ell leader like she was some lowly assistant.

Jade inclined her head before exiting and closing the door behind her.

Mia offered the saboteur a friendly smile that was probably meant to be reassuring. "There's nothing to be afraid of," she said. "Just answer a few questions, and you can go."

The saboteur nodded, assuming an expression of no care in the world.

Fatigue was evident on both Mia and Toven's faces. They had been at it for hours, which meant that they weren't at the top of their game.

Good .

"Let's begin," Toven said, his voice taking on a resonant quality that the saboteur recognized as the precursor to compulsion. She steeled herself, drawing on her mental discipline to fortify her defenses.

"Did you take anything from the mailroom that didn't belong to you?" Toven asked, his eyes locked on hers.

The saboteur felt the push of his will against her mind, a subtle pressure seeking entry. But her barriers held firm, invisible, and impenetrable, especially since the question allowed for an easy loophole that reinforced her conviction. "I did not," she answered, her voice steady and clear.

The village was a sort of commune, so everything belonged to everyone. There was nothing she could have taken that did not belong to her.

She'd expected the god to be smarter than that.

His expression didn't change, but she thought she detected a flicker of...something in his eyes. Surprise? Confusion? It was gone too quickly for her to be sure, and she shouldn't focus on that.

"Did you take anything that did not belong to you from anywhere else in the village?" he asked.

Again, that push against her mind, stronger this time. Again, her defenses held perfectly. "I did not," she repeated, allowing just the right amount of indignation to color her tone.

"Did you cause malfunctions to any of the shutters or trash incinerators in the village?"

This time, the pressure of his compulsion was intense, like a wave crashing against the shores of her mind. But her mental walls still stood firm. "I did not," she said, meeting his gaze without flinching.

For a long moment, Toven simply stared at her, his intense eyes burrowing into hers.

Was he trying to enter her mind with a thrall?

The saboteur wanted to laugh. If his compulsion had not worked, how could he expect his thrall to penetrate?

The god glanced at his mate, a silent communication passing between them.

The saboteur watched, outwardly impassive but inwardly alert to every nuance of their interaction.

"Thank you for your cooperation," Toven said. "Just a few more questions, if you don't mind."

The interrogation continued in directions she hadn't anticipated, but her shields held, and she was careful to answer them as close to the truth as possible.

The god was trying to assess her ability to withstand his compulsion but asking intrusive questions that she might hesitate to answer if she was free not to. But she was onto him, and he couldn't outsmart her.

She could see the frustration building in his eyes and the growing tension in Mia's shoulders.

Through it all, she maintained her fa?ade of innocent cooperation, but inside, a fierce joy was building. She was doing it. She was resisting the god's compulsion. Every question she deflected, every probe she rebuffed, was a victory, not just for her but for all Kra-ell.

Finally, after what felt like hours but was probably no more than fifteen or twenty minutes, Toven let out a breath. "Thank you. That will be all for now."

The saboteur rose, inclining her head in a show of respect she didn't feel. "I'm glad I could be of assistance," she said, unable to completely keep the hint of irony from her voice.

As she walked out, the saboteur allowed herself a small, triumphant smile. She had faced a god's compulsion and emerged unscathed, her secrets intact.

The game was far from over, though.

In fact, it was just beginning. And she, with her hidden strength and unbreakable will, would be the one to change all the rules. The clan thought they had domesticated the Kra-ell, but they were mistaken.

Soon, they would learn just how wrong they were.