"No promises," Kylian replies.
"Yes promises," I retort and instantly regret it because that doesn't sound like something a guy would say at all.
And while we only have a few outsiders still with us, that's not a good look for Ted.
I blow out a breath and shake it off. I have bigger issues to worry about.
Much bigger.
When Stefan walks out with his younger brothers, I realize how big. They're both ogre-sized, and while they all share pitch-black hair, the second-born—Zion—has his shorn close to his head so that the tattoos that wrap up his neck and onto his skull are on display.
The youngest prince, Troy, has a freckled face and such even features that he'd look beautiful as a man or a woman. But right now, those features are clenched tight. His nostrils flare as he scans my men with their guns, and I take note of the fact that his eyes are slightly brighter blue than his brothers’.
"You've all been infected?" I ask.
Stefan nods.
I saw my jaw back and forth as I glance at the three men standing shoulder to shoulder, big as a mountain range. As intimidating. Probably as deadly.
But I take a step closer and deliberately turn my back to them, because before I speak further, I need Alpha Team X to stand down.
"Give us a minute," I tell them.
"Negative," Ridge responds immediately.
"That's an order, Ridge," I say.
"You can't…" My alpha's nostrils start to flare, and I can see he's fighting the urge to grab me and pull me over his knee.
But he can't reveal Ted's secret. Not with another of our soldiers present. Not with the Noth princes.
He tries another tactic. "You promised not to put yourself in danger."
"I'm not." I lift my own weapon. "I won't go any closer. And neither will they. But we need a moment to speak openly." And what I'm about to ask would set my men off. "Thirty feet back should do. You can still keep rifles on them."
Ridge's face contorts like he’s swallowing every curse word he knows. He's furious with me, and he's going to take it out on me later. That's fine. I'll even look forward to it.
But I will never have an opportunity like this again, and I can't squander away the chance to get answers.
Luka is the first to nod at me and move. The others slowly follow his lead, one by one. Colter moves last, taking the opportunity to eye the princes through his mask and point a single warning finger in their direction.
I wait until their footsteps fade.
“Why have I never heard of this before?” I demand.
Surely I would’ve heard rumors. Saw something on the news.
Troy curls his upper lip in disgust. “Who do you think runs your media?”
I digest that information, flipping it over and studying it from every angle.
Of fucking course.
If my mom’s willing to attack entire cities full of innocents, then she certainly would have no qualms about hiding it from the population. I doubt anyone except her highest generals are aware of what she did.
Does my dad know? Teddie certainly doesn’t.
Just how far up does this conspiracy go?
