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“He has the final say on everything that happens here, as well as any other Resistance safegrounds. This means that he already knows who you are, and I have the okay to let you in. I just have to let him know what you’ll contribute while here. He doesn’t need your money, he wants your time and talent.”
“I’m an architect,” Johnny started. “If you need anything where I’m concerned, point me in the right direction.”
Neo shrugged. “Anywhere there are children, I can help. The little buggers love me.”
“Me, too,” I said, eyeing Sariel as he considered the Director’s words.
“I’m a jack of all trades. Put me anywhere,” he finally settled on.
“A lab, a pharmacy, a kitchen….” Reese trailed off. “I like to cook. I don’t mind cooking for large numbers, either.”
“And you, Marilyn? Where do you fit in?” the Director asked, but I felt he already knew the answer.
“The training grounds,” she answered with an eye roll.
“Good. Now that that’s out of the way…” Director Kiyomasa clapped, and the tea tray vanished; he sat up to settle his black-and-white gaze on us. “I have a delicate matter to discuss with you all. Something I’m not sure Mr. Ambrose would like to be here for.”
“If you’re about to talk shit about my father, Director, I can assure you that I‘m exactly where I would like to be,” Sariel said.
The Director observed him for a few moments before he continued. “Have you heard about the Black Market?”
Neo sat up straight and leaned forward in his seat. Marilyn followed. “You found it?” “So it does exist?” both asked at the same time.
“Yes,” he answered. He closed his eyes just before saying his next words. “We lost three children about four months ago. The youngest was six, and the eldest was ten. They were siblings, all fallen-blood wolves. Their parents were killed, after which one of our patrollers found them.
“They settled in fine at first, but the youngest always had nightmares. We have a child psychologist here, Diana; she tried to help, but the little girl kept being terrified of vampires. So, I gave it a try myself. It was working while I received tips from Diana. We played for a little while, and then one day, the girl told me she had to ‘go back,’ because she’d left a doll back at her old pack and wasn’t sleeping well without it. We tried offering her new ones, but none were the same. You know how children are with their toys.
“So, I gathered a couple of the older blessed-blood wolves and a few witches. I asked them to take them home to collect some of the things they left. The eldest told us the place had to be abandoned because everyone had been killed. I thought it was safe.”
I hated where this was going. I grabbed Sariel’s arm tightly. Meanwhile, the Director sighed and looked off to the side where a window was, allowing him an unhindered view of the side of the property and the people as they gathered their kids up, prepared to take them inside.
“It was not abandoned,” he continued. “There were wolves there cutting up the dead. Only one of our people came back, and he didn’t return to us whole.”
I let out a shuddering breath.
Marilyn’s lips pursed. “Poachers,” she filled in.
“Yes. They were collecting the parts to sell on the black market. The witch who returned said they thought he had died from having his eyes cut out and hadn’t bothered to check. They were amateurs, but they were many in number, which is why my people didn’t make it out.”
The Director frowned. “He overheard a lot. Apparently, not only are the parts advertised on the dark web, but they’re even auctioned off. Wings from an angel are highly sought after—” Neo tensed, and the hairs on my arms stood on end at his expression. This was obviously a sore spot. “—and half-breed blood is second, followed by any supernatural woman that is untouched.”
The Director removed his glasses to rub the bridge of his nose. “The Black Market and the dark web are interconnected.”
“The witches run the Black Market,” Sariel supplied. “They’re the best at covert shit, and they probably disguise it as one of their many rituals.”
Marilyn added, “During important awakenings—a witch's sixteenth birthday, when they come into their power—many dignitaries, special guests, and important people are invited to watch the whole thing. Afterwards, there’s always an after-party for adults only, where even the sixteen-year-old witch in question isn’t invited. I’m sure you can imagine how many witches turn sixteen a year, and how many opportunities there would be to exchange products and payment?”
“Almost every day,” Neo answered. “But they could also control the dark web. Maybe not—”
“The Council controls the dark web,” the Director interrupted. “The dark web isn’t just the place to shop for illegal things. There are hit lists with names, ages, species, and addresses, where every successful sale or hit funds the Upper Council. They receive a portion, which is a hefty chunk of their revenue. It’s not even hush money; we think the Upper Council controls the people running it.”
Ice sludged through my veins, replacing my warm blood. I knew the Council was powerful, but it hadn’t occurred to me that they could holdthismuch power, enough to control the entire dark web.
“What’s the likelihood that our names are on a hitlist right now?” Neo wondered aloud.
“One-hundred percent,” Johnny answered.
“I better be worth more than you fuckers. I’m pretty and I have the white wings,” Neo joked.
