Trace and Axton followed me, and I felt the chaotic emotions leaking from them. I wanted to stop and discuss what happened, what it meant, but first, I needed to deal with Con.
“Your fuse is going out. Again,” I warned. “Fix it.”
Con scratched the back of his neck with his free hand and looked away. “I don’t have a replacement,” he said so quietly that I almost didn’t hear him.
My advance halted. Surely, I misheard him.
“What did you say?” I asked, but it sounded more like a demand.
“I don’t have a replacement,” he repeated, finally looking at me.
I stalked forward, yanking the container out of his loose grip. The lid twisted off easily, and I palmed three of them. Con caught the rattling container when I threw it at his head. Opening my hand, I peered down in interest. Pale orange. Why does Con need to focus right now?
“Where is the last one I sent you?” I tossed the tabs in my mouth, chewing them as I studied Con.
He shifted, rotating away from me slightly, and his fingers rubbed the container I’d returned. He’s about to lie to me. My gut warmed, my face grew hot, and my monster perked up.
They always lie, whispered through my head.
“We had to use it already,” Con said in a voice pitched too high.
“Oh?” I asked, raising one eyebrow. “And when was this? Why didn’t you tell me so I could order another one?”
He hadn’t replaced anything. The trio used the portal nearly every binal, and none reported anything unusual. After their initial experiences with Con’s portal, back when it was so broken that it practically killed us, they knew what to watch for. They would have mentioned something.
“Not long ago,” Con hedged. “Just a few binals ago, in fact. Right, Prin?”
He looked down at the Tech, who was watching with rapt attention. Prin’s dark yellow face flushed, and she stared at my waist as she nodded.
Lies.
“That is a load of tig shit,” I growled, scowling. “What did you do with it, Con?”
He sighed, his eyes flicking between the two Reapers that suddenly appeared at my shoulders. “Fine. I sold it. There. Are you happy now?” he asked, throwing his hands in the air and sending the container flying.
We all watched it arch and come tumbling down before it smacked on the hard ground.
I refocused on Con. “No, I’m not happy,” I spat. “Every time I requisition anything for you, it puts me, you, the operation, and now the Office at risk. You know we need this portal, Con.”
He stared down at his shifting feet and rubbed the back of his neck again, an attempt to appear sheepish. I didn’t believe him.
“I know,” he started.
I lurched forward, startling him and forcing him to look up.
With a stony stare, I ground out, “No, you don’t.”
I took another step towards him. This is what happens when you’re kind to others, whispered in my head, sounding oddly gleeful.
“You can’t possibly know. And now you’re lying to me, which means I can’t trust you.”
Con’s face morphed into a mix of shame and pleading, but his voice wavered as he said, “You can. Of course, you can.”
I tsked, clicking my tongue. “Do you remember what I told you when we first met?”
He blanched and opened his mouth.
Before he could speak, I cut him off. “I don’t have time to deal with this now, but be aware that I keep my promises, Con. I’ll get another fuse sent through the usual channels, but until then, anyone who uses this portal will be bound to endure the pain that comes with landing here.”
I spun, ready to leave before I did something that I couldn’t take back. As angry as I was with Con, I needed him right then. Sure, someone would have taken his spot as controller of the portal, but would they have kept the Street Kings away from the decent Soulless? Would they be able to coordinate their half of the operation that kept many Soulless fed and clothed? I wasn’t sure, and that stayed my hand.
“Zella?” Con called hesitantly.
Without turning back, I asked, “Yes?”
“I’ve heard a few things that might interest you,” he answered.
My heart leapt in my chest. The Soulless that he’d sent out at my request, the ones that nobody paid much attention to, must have found some secrets.
“Let’s talk in the kitchen,” I said and waited until Trace and Axton started before me.