Page 321 of The Curse Trilogy

He sighs out as if he doesn’t want to leave me, but his soft, cool lips stroke my forehead as he gives me a kiss of defeat there instead of the lips he originally planned to target.

“I’ll see you soon. Call me if you need anything… anything at all.”

“Thank you,” I gently murmur.

Marching feet outside draws my attention to the door. I’m sure they’ll be going with him. He starts to leave, and suddenly the doors burst open as fully armed men carry electrical guns and charge in with malicious intent.

“What the hell do you think you’re doing?” Brazen barks. “Lower those weapons now!”

“I’m sorry, Captain, but we’ve been made aware of some things involving Ms. Crush, Captain Banner, Commander Jude, and yourself. We’ll be taking all of you into custody along with the two corporals, Angelica Hawkins and Grayson Morris. You’ve all been accused of high treason, and based on the evidence which implicates you, we have to take you into custody until we know for sure.”

“You really think I’m going to let you do that?” Brazen snarls as he places his hand on the weapon holstered at his hip.

Suddenly a whistling zip rattles the air before Brazen is struck by a tranquilizer dart. His eyes roll back in his head, and I growl at the men as he collapses to the ground.

“If you use your gift, we have permission to shoot to kill,” one shakily utters while all their eyes grow worried.

“You have no idea what fools you are.”

They swallow hard, their guns shaking in their hands. The electrical pulses set to full blast stare me in the face, warning me of my weakness.

My baby. I can’t let them shoot to kill. They could hurt my baby, and they have electrical guns ready to render my invincibility useless and me helpless.

“What have you done to Hale and the others?” I demand, keeping my fearless demeanor.

“They’re in custody. If you cooperate, we can hopefully disprove this whole thing and all will be well.”

“What are we being accused of?” I growl as my purple eyes threaten to burn through the blue contacts.

They know about my baby.

“We can discuss that when we take you to be with the others,” Captain Germaine asserts.

“Fine, but if Brazen is hurt, you’re going to have one hell of a reckoning,” I threaten.

“He’ll be fine. We were just keeping him from doing something foolish so we didn’t have to hurt him.”

I take in a calming breath before walking over to Brazen’s body, and a man scoops him up to hoist him over his shoulder. I take the cool hand of the unconscious Brazen dripping helplessly as I follow behind the man carrying him.

All the doors are closed as if a lockdown has been secretly asserted. The steel door to the hybrid room is waiting for us. Captain Germaine opens it to let me walk in first, and I release Brazen’s hand to do as prompted. I watch as Brazen’s sleeping body is laid across the table, and then my eyes fall on my hybrid family. Clay is cuffed to the post in the center of the room, his eyes glaring at the men who have disrespected his title.

“Araya,” Hale gushes guiltily.

I rush over to him, and my lips fall on his as I start pulling him free from the binding chains strapping him against the damn wall like a hostile suspect. Grayson and Angelica are holding onto each other in the corner, neither of them chained up or strapped down. Apparently, these men have never seen what the two of them can do or they wouldn’t have let them sit by like they weren’t a threat.

“Why the fuck are they chained up?” I scold.

“Captain Banner threatened to use his gifts. Again, we were trying to keep any foolish play out of the mix. We really don’t want to hurt anyone until we sort this out,” the formal captain murmurs. “I hope this information is false.”

“What information, and where did it come from?” Clay growls.

“We received an anonymous tip that-”

“An anonymous tip?” Clay scoffs in angry disbelief. “You’ve imprisoned two captains, your commander, and three other United officers based on an anonymous tip? Do you realize the severity of the consequences that will follow this? Without any valid evidence, you can’t take us into custody - not with our ranks. You realize you could be tried for treason now?” he admonishes. “Release us this instant.”

“I’m sorry, Sir, but due to the allegations made, we have to insist on checking it out. It has been brought to our attention Araya Crush is the daughter of an emergent killed years ago, and all of you have been said to have known about this. If this is the case, you know what has to be done. Under the United law, section twenty-seven, we have the right to take blood from anyone accused of unlawful living.”

“Unlawful living? That’s an archaic rule put in place to test humans who could be carrying the infected virus,” I snarl out.