More than Truth (Arcane Crossbreeds) Read Free Page B

been acquired, my lady. I feel compelled to warn you proceeding with this course of action will make retaining him impossible. Once he discovers we’ve reacquired her, he will come for her. Nothing will stop him.”
    “Then we will have to be sure he doesn’t find out, won’t we, Irial.” The voice was cold and condescending. “Now do your job and deliver the good doctor to the GenTest facility in Death Valley. Dr. Rupple is waiting for her. He has his orders.”
    As he listened to his orders being obtusely reiterated, he glanced down at the photo on the seat next to him. He lifted it again and stared at the image. Katya. Smiling. She was smiling. Happy. Dying. “As you wish, my lady. I will see it done.”
    Irial disconnected the call and slid the secure phone back into his jacket. The door of the sedan opened, and he stepped out into the fresh dawn, the watery yellow light emphasizing every line of the picture. One of his men stood nearby. “See that our guest is made comfortable on the plane.”
    The Triumvirate had to be aware their trials with the ARSA research hadn’t been successful, or reacquiring Katya wouldn’t have become such a priority. They wanted Dr. Mahoney to do what all others had been unable to thus far—finish the research. Make it a reality. The efficacy of her research was the pivot point in this entire game. Without it, the Triumvirate didn’t have a chance.
    He glanced down at the image again. Katya. When he looked at her, he could see their parents, remember their faces when he’d thought every trace of them had disappeared, leaving only this husk, dry and brittle. Cold. Yet one look at her white-blonde hair and pale blue eyes, he could almost hear the sound of their laughter.
    “Sir?” A man stood facing him, brow creased with a subtle question. This was one of his, not the Triumvirate’s. This man knew their objectives, their real objectives. Irial trusted him.
    “Make sure Dr. Jennings is notified that the pretty doctor is back in custody. I’m sure he’ll find the information very”—Irial’s smile was slow and calculated—“motivating.”
    “Sir,” he said and nodded.
    Irial looked down at the image once again, the ghostly echo of the past surrounding him for one brief moment. He closed his fingers around the paper, letting the energy pulse in his chest and flow down his arm to his fingers. The paper ignited in a flash of ethereal blue, and he opened his hand. The wind lifted the ash into the air, and he watched it scatter until nothing remained.
    Shrugging his shoulders beneath his jacket, Irial pulled it together and buttoned it before ducking onto the private jet.

Chapter Two
    Triumvirate Citadel, Ireland
    The door to the lab slid open with a hiss, but Dr. Vincent Jennings didn’t acknowledge the visitor. He continued to look through the lens of the microscope. He knew who it was. After years in this place, he could recognize the scent of every guard that patrolled his prison. Hell, he could recognize the sound of their footfalls.
    The guard dumped a stack of files on the counter next to Vin’s microscope.
    “The files you requested, Doc.”
    Vin frowned and lifted his head just enough to cast a narrowed eye on the plain white files. “Excellent.”
    “Just following orders, Doc.”
    This time Vin straightened to his full height and turned to study the guard. The man was nearly a half foot shorter and fifty pounds lighter. The guard’s gaze was steady, but his pupils were dilated, nostrils flared, his stance defensive, and muscles clearly contracted. The guard was expecting a reaction, his body already preparing for battle.
    Vin glanced speculatively back at the files he hadn’t requested. With a suppressed sigh of irritation, he lifted the flap of the file with one finger. On the top was a small sheet of paper with four words scrawled across it.
    She has been reacquired.
    Vin stiffened, and his heart surged violently. For one moment, his daemos shifted, rising