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“Council, we are adjourned. Please enjoy the rest of your day. I believe a much-deserved break is in order.” The room remained quiet, but the individuals around the table shifted their chairs and left.

“Ma’am,” Matias called, “Would you like me to remain, or shall I step out?”

“Please, why don’t the three of you join me.” She motioned for us to take a seat at the table, and not knowing what else to do, I complied. “Allow me to begin by introducing myself. My name is Sasha De’vor, the leader of this rebellion. As of now, I am currently serving as the Commander in Chief, but I’m not a fan of titles. You may call me Sasha.”

I wasn’t sure what to say. This was all too crazy for me. My silence must have told her to keep going because she began speaking again. “You probably have many questions, and I’m happy to answer all of them as best as I can. Why don’t you tell me what you already know?”

I stayed quiet. All I knew was, if I wanted to escape, I was going to have to play along for now. I started with the first question I had when I first woke up. “Where am I?”

“The mountains. This encampment is the primary location for the resistance.”

“Are we close to home?” Maybe I could find a way back.

“Yes…and no.” She clasped her hands together as she continued. “We’re close enough to Telvia to allow my troops to conduct business within Telvian borders, but far enough away that we seldom have interference from Telvian scouts.”

“Uh huh…” I mumbled. Well, that wouldn’t work. I grimaced. “So, what’s your plan? To hold me for ransom?”

Sasha laughed. “Goodnessno. You’re not a hostage nor prisoner. As I mentioned before, we are glad to have you. And, from what I’ve been told, we saved you.”

My breath caught in my throat. She was right. They did save me. So where did that leave me now? I brought my fingers to my temples. “God, this is too crazy.”

“I understand how overwhelming this must be for you, child.”

I closed my eyes for a moment and took a deep breath. I was in deep shit, and I knew it. I was at the rebel camp with no clue where to go or how to escape. And even if I escaped, I had nowhere to go. I was soscrewed. I took another deep breath to calm my nerves as a question came to mind.

“If I’m not your prisoner and you’re not using me as some sort of bargaining chip, then why the hell did you guys save me? What’s the point?”

A somber look came over Sasha’s eyes, and a gentle smile told me she was empathetic to my experience. “Dear Mara, I’m so sorry. I suppose I forgot that they have hidden the truth from you for so long.”

“What truth?”

The President watched me silently before sighing. “Mara, you have grown up as a member of the Telvian presidential family. But you know that this isn’t the entire truth of the matter, correct?” I narrowed my eyes, crossing my arms while tipping my head to one side. This ought to be interesting. Nobody knew about my dad’s indiscretion except for my family. As far as the rest of Telvia knew, I was Belinda’s daughter just as much as Jacob was. “What do you know of your parents?”

Licking my lips, I weighed my options. What was the right answer here? The truth or the lie?

I went with the obvious. “I know Raúl is my dad.”

“Yes. And what of your mother?”

I hesitated.

Sasha watched me, and when I didn’t respond, she finally asked, “Do you know that Belinda is not your mother?”

My chest tightened like a vice.She knows. This woman knows…but how?I nodded.

“Good,” she confirmed. “And what do you know of your real mother?”

That was a good question…a painful question. I knew nothing about my real mom. Belinda forbade it. “Not much,” I answered honestly.

“Do you know that Raúl was unfaithful to his wife?”

I nodded. There was no sense in lying. This woman clearly knew the truth, so what would I gain from playing dumb? Nothing. “Yes, and I know that I was the product of that.” I shuffled my feet. It felt weird talking aloud about this, especially to a stranger. Saying it aloud—admitting that I was an illegitimate child—it made me feel gross and disgusting on the inside. As much as I disliked admitting it, I couldn’t blame Belinda for hating me.

Sasha stared at me, face twisted in contemplation. Bringing a finger to her lips, she tapped them, considering what to say next. The silence made my skin crawl. Just as I was about to say something, she finally spoke.

“What if I were to tell you that I knew your mother very well?”

My heart seized. “What?”