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“We leave in five minutes.” I gave the male a look warning him not to disappoint me. That he’d only be able to trick me in such a way once. Oozed threat that I was far more than he could handle.
“You will follow me closely and obey every command I give?”
“I will.”
Quickly, I saw to my body’s needs, dressing in one of Cyderial’s uniform shirts found tucked away in his storage compartment. It went to my knees and offered modesty enough once buttoned.
“You understand what Cyderial will do to me for this?” Murdoch added, glaring.
“You’ll live. And I will remember you were a friend and thoughtful of the children. That will be worth whatever violence he might enact.” Just so we were on the same page, I offered a soft reminder. “I will have more influence over my daughter’s choice than you are currently giving me credit for. Would you rather her hear of kind General Murdoch, who helped me comfort little ones, or the evil bastard who thought to hogtie and force-feed me?”
From the growing glow in his eyes, he realized my favor would go far when it was my daughter he ultimately craved. “Come.”
The door was unlocked. Arms full of blankets I had taken from my nest, I trailed closely behind the highly trained soldier. Swiftly, we moved through the shuddering halls until we came to one large underground gathering space full of the youngest recruits. Their little bodies huddled together, wide-eyed and frightened.
Tending to them were the older female recruits, yet no boy over ten was to be seen.
Frowning, counting at least a hundred heads were missing, I asked, “Where are the rest of them?”
“In the field, guarding the academy from human assault. We cannot spare the watchers, and to mix genders without heavy supervision would end in disaster. The academy is in lockdown, and the older males will remain outside.”
“That is barbaric! They’re barely more than children!” I snarled.
“Hybrid males are dangerous!” Tacking on an insult, Murdoch spoke so that only I would hear, “You should know that by now, my queen.”
Bristling at his nerve, I ground my teeth. “Fine.”
I knew every last face in that room, found all their little eyes had discovered me, round as I was. Yet it was the older girls, the missing faces, that set my hearts to double their rhythm. “Where is Maeve? Where are the others?”
“Do not expect me to explain things you already know the answer to.” Adjusting the weight of his weapon, Murdoch scowled. “You were in estrous for a week. Graduation took place.”
So… my sisters were gone. Taken by God only knew who.
“Are they safe?” Could the males have prepared for them? Was Maeve okay after Thayer…?
Murdoch waved it off. “They are in the care of their mates.”
On a sigh, I said, “Maeve would want to be here.”
“Thayer is not Cyderial. Do not anticipate that you will be granted access to her anytime soon. He will submit her and may not allow her freedom until she too is pregnant. That, you must take some responsibility for. Your public chemical switch sent half our population into the rut. Your pheromones snowballed out of the courtyard very quickly.”
No. Females chose to enter estrous.
Right?
But his words frightened me. Nothing so far had been straightforward since I learned of the world outside the academy. “A man cannot make a woman enter estrous.”
“A mated male can rut her as if she is. Encourage estrous, one might say.” Said as if it were nothing, as if it were obvious. “Mated males were driven into season that night, which implies estrous can be coerced as well.”
That is not what I had been told!
Cyderial had been very rough with me in the rut, but I had wanted it, needed it. Maeve would be crushed under Thayer if he rode her unrestrained.
“Oh my God….”
General Murdoch cut me a glance. “Most males who were denied estrous from their partners were motivated to procreate and have resorted to reestablishing the captivity of their mates. Considering we went to war days later, it would seem a wise choice. Our females are safe this way.”
“That’s monstrous.” And not at all what I had intended.
