Page 62 of Kingdom of Tomorrow (Book of Arden #1)

Tell the others.

We were frisked, our weapons taken—though not Cyrus’s necklace, I noticed.

A guard gave me a little push toward a fancy limousine, earning him a much stronger push from Cyrus.

I climbed inside the vehicle. Cyrus entered after me and eased my sleeping mother into the spot on his other side.

His father claimed the seat across from us and poured himself a glass of iced amber liquid as the guard closed the door.

Despite the man’s words, or maybe because of them, I clutched Cyrus’s hand and signed, I trust you. And I did. As if I would ever again believe a known liar over the one who’d constantly guarded my back.

He kept his attention on our adversary, but much of his tension drained.

A dark partition divided us from the driver and guard up front. We sat quietly until the sun rose on the horizon, casting muted rays of light over the landscape. The maddened who’d wandered the streets, on the prowl for helpless victims, rushed to shadowy hideaways.

Our little trio didn’t speak until we bumped along the roads, making our way ... somewhere.

“You have questions, I’m sure,” Tagin said.

“And comments,” Cyrus quipped. “I never promised you a thing.”

“What else was I supposed to say to convince the guards you aren’t a traitor of the highest order?” Tagin snapped. “This woman you refuse to discard is now a Soalian. She partners with glowers, and you are helping her.”

“You planned to break her mother, just as you did her friend,” Cyrus snapped back, and I stiffened.

Was he guessing, fishing, or had he found evidence?

“Something else you should be thanking me for.” Fury danced in the older man’s eyes.

“You wanted her, so I gave her to you. I took out the medic digging around where he shouldn’t, undermining years of work, research, and planning.

Finally, I stood at the ledge of success, and he attempted to sow dissent while his sister was doing everything in her power to recruit the person who has an unnatural hold on you. Not on my watch.”

Well, here it was. Proof of guilt. A full-on confession. With my free hand, I gripped my knee, my nails digging into my skin.

“You were supposed to win her over,” Tagin snarled, “yet she pulled you further and further away from our cause. Astan isn’t happy with you.

” His narrowed gaze slid to me. “If you had stuck around after watching the video of my son killing the lord, whatever his name was, I intended to offer you a job with Jade at the Center for Agriculture. But we’re past that now. ”

“I desire nothing from you,” I said, fighting for calm. “What’s your new plan? Take me in for treatment I don’t need? Because we both know I’m free for the first time in my life.”

A muscle jumped beneath his eye. “Like all glowers, you will be strapped to a table, cut open time and time again, and used as a pritis factory until you die.”

Choking sounds left me. Pritis really were cut out of Soalians.

Ice clinked as Tagin drained his glass. “Son, I’m sorry to say you must be reeducated.”

“I’m past reeducation.” Cyrus smiled at the man responsible for his conception. “I’m a glower myself.”

Tagin blinked twice. With a roar, he tossed his glass at me. Cyrus dove in front of me, letting the missile slap into his chest. Ice cubes went flying. Cold liquid dots splashed my face. Tagin leveled his fiery gaze on me as his son straightened. “I will kill you with my own hands.”

“You can try,” I said simply.

“She didn’t recruit me,” Cyrus announced, shocking me further. “I recruited her. I’m Unicorn, and I arranged for you to read the messages about Arden, knowing you would recruit me for the job. I read the strategy in my book.”

Denial roared from Tagin. But as he glanced between us, hatred contorted his face. His nostrils flared with every labored breath. Suddenly he exploded, pounding a fist on the partition and shouting, “Stop the car.”

The vehicle halted with a screech.

Tagin withdrew a gun from a holster at his ankle. “Get out,” he commanded.

I looked to Cyrus, who nodded. My legs shook as we exited. When Tagin followed us out, leaving my mother in her seat, I exhaled with relief.

A field of weeds and sand surrounded us. There were no trees or buildings. But there were two SUVs parked in front of the limo and two parked behind it, each filled with guards.

Those guards emerged, three familiar faces among them. Titus, Lark, and Juniper. I groaned. The trio was very clearly infected, worms already slithering from their scalps, ruffling what remained of their hair.

Sorrow and dread collided. They didn’t appear to be mindless, on the hunt for pain and violence, like the maddened in Theirland. Rather, they seemed as blank as a fresh canvas. Metal collars were cinched to their necks.

“The glowers may have taken out half my forces this morning, but I still have my pride and joy,” Tagin said. “They are proof we have created a Madness of our own.”

He truly believed Soal created the first Madness. Didn’t connect the dots and see his god lied to him as much as he lied to people. “No longer pretending to care about the greater good, I see.”

“We’re past appearances and pretenses, Miss Roosa.

But what we’ve crafted isn’t a disease but a privilege.

These soldiers are ... enhanced.” Tagin motioned to the group, and they quickly formed a circle around us.

“I command, and they obey. That makes them a treasure. But I’m willing to part with them to teach you a lesson.

Titus,” he called, glaring at me. “Shoot Juniper Henrick in the head.”

I shouted, “No!”

My denial didn’t matter. Titus lifted his gun, aimed, and squeezed the trigger, putting a bullet in her brain.

Acid filled my stomach when she toppled. As if he’d done nothing wrong, Titus returned to his ready stance.

“Enough,” Cyrus bellowed.

“I could’ve made you a god,” Tagin shouted at his son, “and this is how you repay me?”

“Your question highlights the biggest difference between us.” Sadness drenched his tone. “I’m in control of my own life. I don’t need to control others to feel powerful.”

Tagin popped his jaw. “Titus, shoot Lark Foster in the head.”

“No,” I gasped out, but it was too late. Titus aimed and pulled the trigger, and Lark fell, blood gushing from a hole in her temple. The unmaddened guards watched, letting it happen, doing nothing when they could have changed everything.

Tears welled, and I couldn’t stop them.

“This is my son,” Tagin announced. “A traitor to Cured . He chose a Soalian and joined the enemy. They hope to destroy us from the inside out.”

Fury pulsed from our audience. Everyone but the maddened; they remained blank, and my heart ached for them. This could have been me.

Tagin pointed a finger at Cyrus. “Strangle Arden before these witnesses and renounce all ties to Soal, and you’ll be pardoned.

” He cocked his gun. “Refuse, and I’ll kill her myself.

Then her mother. Then I’ll bury you deep in the mines with their corpses.

You’ll have the girl with you, just as you wanted, but you’ll never experience happiness. You’ll know only suffering and sorrow.”

Cyrus stepped in front of me and rolled his shoulders back. “Astan is destroying your life, filling you with his thirst for power. But you can be freed.”

“You will kill her, or you will die. Decide!” Tagin shouted, spittle flying from the corners of his mouth. “Put your hands around her throat and squeeze. It’s not hard. Doesn’t take long.”

“I’m begging you to let us go. End this now, before I’m forced to do something that will haunt me for the rest of my life.” The two stared at each other, neither rendering the final blow.

Had he foreseen more than he’d admitted? The pain Cyrus projected threatened to undo me.

“I’ll give you one last chance, son.” Tagin clearly loved his child. And I hadn’t forgotten Cyrus’s profession of love for his father. I couldn’t let him hurt the man to save me. And that’s what he planned, judging by his reaction and his words.

With the realization, I found my key. A ray of light beamed from deep within me, penetrating my mind. Any apprehension over my path burned to ash. I knew what to do without a shadow of a doubt.

I’d vowed to face my nightmare and stop running, and now I must keep my promise. Today, I had the opportunity to do it. And I would.

A panting Tagin aimed at Cyrus. His nostrils flared. I prepared to act. But, in a blaze of motion, he swung the gun to a guard and squeezed the trigger. He aimed and squeezed again and again and again, eliminating each soldier with a single shot. One by one they crashed to the ground, even Titus.

“They’ll be no witnesses to our dealings,” he announced when he finished.

I peered at Juniper’s, Titus’s, and Lark’s fallen forms, feeling raw inside. “It’s okay, Cyrus. Do what he told you. Put your hands around my neck.”

“See! She wants you to do it,” Tagin demanded, aiming at Cyrus once again. “No one will know you were once a Soalian. You’ll be reeducated but then we can go on as if this episode never happened.”

Cyrus didn’t hesitate. “I will not.”

Tagin’s breathing grew more ragged. “Don’t make me do this, son.”

“He’s not making you do anything,” I said, drawing his aim my way as hoped.

“This is your choice, Tagin, and yours alone.” I wouldn’t let Cyrus die or kill for me.

My play was simple. Ensure he lived his best life, even if I had to die in the process.

I wasn’t afraid of pain. Not anymore. I wasn’t even afraid of death.

I’d do what needed doing, no matter the consequences.

“Shut up,” the older man commanded. “You’re going to die one way or the other. What happens to Cyrus afterward is up to him.”

“Do it,” I told the high prince. “But kiss me first.”

He drew in a deep breath, held ... held ... then nodded, as if he’d reached a grave decision. “Let me say goodbye,” he croaked. He waited for his father’s stiff approval before turning to face me.