Page 190 of Stormbreaker

The general gestures to someone, and then two of her Circle Guards appear. One approaches the Guard who was standing watch over Raine and blasts him in the stomach, killing him instantly. I gasp and cover my mouth as the general reaches down and snuffs out the sparks clinging to my brother’s body.

When she’s finished, she nods, and her Guards take him by the wrists and ankles before they carry him away. The general stares at the spot where he was lying and then looks at the sky and the rolling clouds flashing with light.

A moment later, she also walks away.

The feed cuts off, and I stare at the blank screen, trying to comprehend everything I just witnessed.

My head is spinning, a wave of dizziness making me stumble into the wall. I lean one hand against it, letting it hold me up as my legs threaten to give out. My brother wasn’t dead. The Solitudes didn’t take his body.

The general knew what he was, and she took him. Why didn’t she call the Extinguishers?

It was never the Solitudes.

And Rook . . .

Rook, who lied about his intentions tonight, was there the night my brother was taken.

That’s when the office door bursts open and a Circle Guard enters, pointing his stunner at us.

“Get your hands up!” he shouts.

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Edward and I both spin around.

“Hands up where I can see them!” the Guard repeats, training his stun gun on me. “Who are you, and what are you doing here?”

I stagger on my feet as he aims his weapon at Edward, who slowly lifts his hands off the keyboard.

His gaze flicks to me.

He saw everything, too. He also knows what Raine was.

“Who are you?” the Guard asks again.

I don’t know how to answer his question. Who am I? An hour ago, I was Poet Graves. Storm Guard cadet who thought she was figuring out her life.

And now? I have no fucking clue.

The Guard reaches for the comms pinned to his uniform to call for backup. The only way out of here is through the door he’s currently blocking.

“Attention, Circle Guard,” he says. “I have two break-in suspects on thirty-two in quadrant five.”

Edward is side-eyeing his monitor, where the video of Raine has looped back to the beginning. With a quick glance in my direction, he lunges for the keyboard, striking a key before the screen goes dark, wiping away the evidence of our investigation. I hope.

“I said don’t move!” the Guard shouts as he fires his stunner. A bolt of light strikes Edward in the chest. He goes flying, crashing into the bank of computers and slumping to the floor in a shower of glass and sparks.

I scream. At least I think I do. Someone is screaming, and my throat is raw. I dive for Edward, but the Guard shouts again, “Don’t move!”

I stop, raising my hands as I stare helplessly at Edward. At least he wasn’t blitzed. Blood trickles down his temple, but he’s still breathing.

The Guard approaches on careful steps, his weapon pointed at my chest.

“Who are you, girl? Why are you here?” he asks with a snarl.

I back up, hitting the window until he’s almost on me.

Then something knocks him from behind, and he trips forward. I manage to sidestep out of the way as he crashes into the window.