whole planet if Destiny was still here. She could do that for humanity if nothing else.
“I’ll contact Dr. Yang,” she said.
“I’ll start scoping out possible sites,” Dylan added.
Rico grinned. “At least it’s not boring. I’m on my way. See you soon, children.”
Beside her, Dylan blew out his breath. “The shit is about to hit the fan. Kinross doesn’t know what’s heading his way.”
“Neither do I,” Destiny said. “Should I be worried?”
The glance he gave her held more than a hint of pity. “Hell, yes.”
…
The metallic stench of blood hung on the air.
Keeping her mind as blank as she could, Elvira checked Milo’s vital statistics. His head hung to his chest, but his pulse was strong, heartbeat and blood pressure normal. It was unbelievable considering…
As soon as she could, Elvira tuned away from the unconscious man and retreated to the far corner of the room. She wanted away from this place so much it was a physical pain in her chest. But Luther had ordered her to stay—probably because he could see how badly she wanted out. He had a cruel streak and an eye for a person’s weakness.
“He’s not going to break,” Silas said, his tone reasonable.
“Everyone breaks,” Luther snapped. “You just haven’t found his weakness yet.”
Silas shook his head. “Some people just get more stubborn. We’ll lose him if we push much harder.” He gave a shrug. “Maybe that doesn’t matter. You were willing to blow him up in the shuttle.”
“That was before we knew he had the woman.” Luther jumped to his feet and paced the room. “Do whatever you need but break him.”
Luther’s color was high. He needed to sit down, relax. Right now, he was stable, but Elvira had no clue how long that would last.
The sick feeling in her stomach was a constant companion. She had no doubt that he’d told the truth—she’d seen enough evidence that his influence extended far beyond Trakis Four—and if he died, then her daughters were as good as dead as well. When Milo had contacted her, she’d considered going along with him, giving him what he wanted, but not for long. She didn’t believe he could keep her family safe from Luther. She just couldn’t risk it.
Her only hope was to find Destiny. At least now, they knew she was still alive. Or had been yesterday. How had she ended up wherever it was she was hiding? In the company of the representatives from Trakis Two, who as far as she was aware, Destiny had never even spoken to. Her mind flashed back to that morning Destiny had gone out with Silas. They’d encountered Milo. Had there been a connection?
They had people and drones searching the forests on the other side of the lake, but so far there was no sign of either Destiny or the other representative from Trakis Two.
And Milo hadn’t spoken. Despite what they had done to him.
She’d known Luther was ruthless, but she could have done without seeing the evidence for herself. She wasn’t sure how Milo had survived this long.
“Wake him up,” Luther said, and she realized he was talking to her.
Her heart sank and she swallowed the bitter taste in her mouth. “It’s dangerous. I don’t think he—”
“I don’t care what you think. Wake him up.”
Her hands trembled as she filled the syringe. Just get through this, and she could put it all behind her. Once her daughters were with her safe, she could forget the things she had done to get them there. They were innocent and they were worth it. But a little voice whispered that maybe nothing was worth this, and while she had no religious beliefs, she suspected that if she had a soul, it was damned.
As she approached the unconscious man, he slowly raised his head. His eyes glittered silver behind his swollen lids, filled with a dark malevolence that sent ice trickling through her veins. She licked her dry lips and cleared her throat. “He’s already awake,” she said, backing off.
“He’s a tough fucking bastard.” Silas sighed.
She had an idea that he was as eager for this to end as she was, but his loyalty to Luther was firm.
As she turned away, the comm unit on her wrist beeped. She glanced down. The caller ID was unknown, but she swiped her finger to accept.
“Dr. Yang?”
Dear lord, it was Destiny. She closed her eyes for a moment and took a deep breath. Said a silent prayer to a god she didn’t believe in. Everyone in the room had