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Ella let Vadimlead her toward the immobile Adam. Beyond him lay the rubble of the arena and a neatly stacked pile of dead bodies. She’d heard the explosion of Vadim’s power and felt it within her, but missed the visual as she was crawling on the floor. Looking at the remains of the explosion, she was glad she’d skipped it. She was totally happy that the sect members were dead, though.

Adam radiated a strange mixture of power and anxiety that drew her empath senses like a strong cup of black coffee.

“Do you feel it too?”

She wasn’t sure whether she wanted to reply to her mate at this moment. He was being far too arrogant and possessive for her liking. On the other hand, he had just killed three males for her and threatened to wipe out a whole bunch of his superpowerful family… She couldn’t buy devotion like that for all the money in the world. Such immense power was curiously addictive, which explained a lot about the lure of elderly politicians for younger women.

“Will the net hold?”

Vadim ran an experienced eye over it. “I think so. We can’t make it too strong, or we won’t be able to penetrate it.”

“Makes sense.” Ella reached out her hand and gently probed between the strands until she touched Adam’s arm. He hissed a curse and tried to shift away from her, but his bonds wouldn’t allow it.

“Wow. There’s a lot going on in there.”

“I noticed that too.” Vadim came up behind her and put his hand on her shoulder, strengthening their bond with his physical presence. “He’s full of shit.”

She wanted to grin at his cool tone.“Where’s everyone else?”

He glanced over his shoulder.“Right behind us, why?”

“We should put a guard on your father, and a couple on the other side of Adam in case he manages to break free of us.”

“I had the same thought.”She felt the quick rush of him communicating with someone else.“My mother will watch my father and will command the guards to move into place.”

Ella nodded, her senses already engaged with the delicate task of feeling her way into another sentient being’s mind. With a male as old as Adam, it wasn’t easy. He was fighting her at every turn. But if she took a more direct route, she might inadvertently damage his memories and destroy the very information she wanted.

“Even if I find something,how am I going to make this work?”

“Remember, we all have a familial link. You relay the information to me, and I’ll amplify it and send it onward. They can’t accuse us of lying, then.”

“True. Where do you want to start?”

“Home in on his guilt and his fear.”

She probed deeper and felt Vadim’s power and physical presence steadying and supporting her. Being inside Adam’s head was like splashing around in a sewer. His delusions of grandeur, arrogance and his obsession with magical power made him a fearsome enemy and one who, despite his current position, still hadn’t conceded defeat.

She’d dealt with enough monsters to know to seek the most heavily protected areas of his mind, to pick and probe until the walls crumbled and the intent behind the thought was revealed. Ah, there it was…

“Here you go.”

Like a skilled weaver extracting a single, delicate thread, she removed the memories and thoughts and spun them into Vadim’s mind. Images of his three dark-haired victims were followed by those of Brad Dailey, Ms. Phelps and herself. Each memory was as clear as a diamond and saturated with satisfaction. Adam thrived on their terror and loved pushing them to take that final step and kill themselves. Shielded behind his enjoyment of his trophies’ pain, she discovered his pure loathing for the Fae family who currently surrounded him.

* * *

Adam made a gurgling sound,but Ella and Vadim’s magical hold on him was too powerful to allow him to speak.

“Keep going, Ella.”

She plunged deeper and relayed Adam’s agreement to aid the Fae king in his vendetta against his son, his satisfaction at the ending of the trial and his conviction that he and his fellow sect members would finally be strong enough to overthrow not only Death Bringer, but also his entire family.

“Ah, the Soul Sucker finds the truth.” The older queen’s voice sounded far away. “Adamisguilty. He truly wished to destroy us all.”

A flash of bright, bitter anger seared Ella’s senses, and she flinched as she saw the moment Adam had stolen her face. He hadn’t reckoned on her coming after Vadim or expected the depth of power a bond between a dark Fae prince and a human empath would deliver. His hatred for her was a clear, shining blade.

“That’s enough, Soul Sucker.”