Chapter Two
Trunk
Ileave the annoying and yet fantastically beautiful human journalist in her room and head straight for the common area where my brothers have gathered. I do my best to forget about the shiny curls on her head or the pout of her lips.
I tug at my green gloves, irritated that I have to wear these in my own home simply because we have a guest I didn’t even want.
The other females and a few of my brothers are still at work but will be returning very soon. Lila wrangles the little ones in the back rooms. I can hear Zora’s high-pitched shriek of laughter followed by Lia’s bossy toddler voice telling her to share. Normal chaos.
What I’m not used to is a journalist sleeping under our roof.
My brothers look up when I enter the main room at the front of our compound. Cannibal, Claws and Hook still remain at the mine, finishing up a stress test. The rest of us are home early today, having met our quota early. Chief adds logs to the fire.Heavy leans against the wall with his arms crossed, scowling. Scar sits in the corner, watching everything with those too-sharp eyes. Rook lounges on the couch like he doesn’t have a care in the universe.
“She admitted it to you,” I confront without preamble. “On the transport. She’s not just here for a story about the brides.”
Chief stands and inclines his head. “Yes, the female was honest about her intentions. More than I expected.”
“Honest?” I can’t keep the growl out of my voice. “That human got on this planet under false pretenses. She pitched a fluff story to Grytel to get her credentials approved. That’s manipulation, not honesty.”
“She got through layers of bureaucracy,” Scar says quietly. “I have to admit I’m impressed with her resourcefulness.”
Another growl rumbles in my chest. “I looked into her.” I pull up the research I gathered on my tablet before she arrived and read it outloud, “Ines Vieira, investigative journalist, Singapore, New Earth. Yes, she has written other celebrity interviews and puff pieces but her most recent were exposés of corrupt, human housing officials, medical supply scams and a cover-up at a children’s facility. She doesn’t only write feel-good content. She digs up secrets and destroys reputations.”
“It doesn’t sound like she solely destroys reputations,” Chief mutters. “She’s also taking down bad humans.”
I toss the tablet onto the table. “She told Grytel what he wanted to hear to get through the door. Now she’s here offering to ‘help’ us.” I say the word like the curse it is. “She’s already proven she’ll deceive to get what she wants. And you’ve invited her to sleep in the room next to mine.”
Heavy shifts against the wall. “I don’t trust her either.”
Finally. Someone with sense.
“But,” my brother continues, “Jana pointed out, refusing her looks worse, as if we’re hiding something.” He shrugs thosemassive shoulders. “We can’t stop her from being on the planet, so we’ve chosen to have her here so we can watch her and control what she sees. Your concerns are valid, Trunk. But we’re already doing what we can to keep this contained.”
“Keep your enemies close,” Chief adds.
“She’s not our enemy,” Rook says. “She’s a journalist.”
“Same thing,” I snap.
Rook rolls his eyes. The youngest of us still has the optimism I lost long ago. “She didn’t lie about her true intentions for being here. We don’t know yet if she’s here for bad or good. Let’s wait and find out. Maybe she actually does want to help find the truth about what happened to mom and dad.”
I round on him. “Journalists don’t help. They take. They called Daxon a murderer and spread that across every feed in the Four Sectors while we buried our parents.”
The room goes quiet.
I don’t normally talk about this, none of us do, but the memories are there, fresh as the day they happened, no matter how many rotations pass. Reporters from all over the Four Sectors had arrived in Timbur, shoving recording devices in our faces, asking us how it felt to have our parents slaughtered in their beds. Asking if we thought our brother did it.
I remember Scar’s face when he saw the headlines. He hasn’t smiled since.
“I won’t let that happen again,” I say, my voice rough. “I won’t let another journalist destroy this family.”
Chief studies me for a long moment. “The vote was seven to one, Trunk. It’s done.”
“And I’m the one stuck watching her every move.”
“You know the mines best. And you’ll spot lies faster than any of us.”
I cross my arms and nod in agreement. “Because I trust no one.”
