Page 29 of The Tree of Spirits (Paragons #2)

POWER & POLITICS

I spent over an hour waiting inside a stale interrogation room in the Black Obelisk, trying really hard to sit still and not fidget.

Ultimately, I had to sit on my hands to keep them still.

That’s about the time the General finally showed his face.

He took a seat across from me at the white table, folded his hands together, and just waited.

I met his stare, smiling. The General was playing a power game, but I wasn’t going to be intimidated by him. I wasn’t going to let him scare me into saying something foolish. At least not this time.

“Well?” he finally said, frowning. He’d lost the staring contest.

I kept on smiling, even though my cheeks hurt. “How may I be of service, General?”

“What do you know about this?” He retrieved a slim tablet from his jacket and slid it across the table to me.

I glanced down at the image on the screen. It featured a large figure outfitted in a familiar suit of black armor. “That’s a techno suit, made by the Brotherhood of Earth,” I said, careful to keep my tone level, even though my heart was rattling like a broken ceiling fan.

The General’s lips thinned. “This is a frame from a security camera inside the jewelry store.”

“The thieves were wearing techno suits. They must have stolen them from the Brotherhood.”

“They stole one from me ,” he said tightly. “The suit was in transit to the Black Obelisk. But the truck went missing. The suit never made it to its destination. It simply disappeared.”

“That’s unfortunate,” I replied. What else was I supposed to say when he was glaring at me like this was all my fault?

The General retrieved his tablet and tucked it back inside his jacket. Then, braiding his fingers together, he hit me with a granite stare. “Tell me about the Rebels.”

“There’s nothing for me to tell. I don’t know much about them.”

“That is a lie .”

“It’s not, I swear. I’ve never even talked to them. I just saw them a few times when I was out with my team in the Emporium. They were helping people?—”

“The Rebels do not help anyone except themselves.” The General’s words sliced through mine.

“They do not care about anyone except themselves. They do not respect the rules and they certainly do not ever follow them.” His nose twitched, like he’d smelled something rotten. “Just like you , Miss Winters.”

“I am not a Rebel.”

He ignored me. “The Rebels are criminals, Miss Winters. They’re spoiled children who could have been heroes, but instead they turned their backs on the Government, spitting in the face of the spirits’ gifts.

Such a waste.” He shook his head. “These gifts could have been given to other people, people who would have stayed to protect their own kind, not abandoned their posts in pursuit of their own selfish desires.”

He looked at me, inviting me to say something. But there was nothing I could say that wouldn’t make this situation worse.

“For too long, people have seen these miscreants as heroes of the common folk. Finally, yesterday, the truth came out, and it’s undeniable. The Rebels kidnapped four Apprentices. They aren’t the heroes of this story. They are the villains.”

“How do you know the Rebels were under those suits?” I countered. “No one ever saw their faces.”

“Nice try,” he said with a dry chuckle. “But there’s no talking yourself out of this one, Miss Winters. Your only chance is to confess. Confess and all will be forgiven.”

“Confess?” I stared into his cold, dark eyes. “Confess to what?”

“To working with the Rebels. To helping them get their hands on the armor they used to kidnap four Apprentices.”

“But I’m not working with the Rebels! And I didn’t help them steal any armor!”

His brows drew together. “Do you actually expect me to believe that?”

“Uh, yeah. Because it’s the truth!”

“You were present when Daykan said my courier was bringing the armor back to the Black Obelisk. And you passed that information along to the Rebels, allowing them to steal it.”

“I didn’t do anything of the sort!” I jumped to my feet.

“Sit. Down,” he said icily.

I lowered myself back into my chair. Slowly. Meeting his stare the whole way down.

“You seem to be confused, Miss Winters. Like too many other teenagers, you think magic makes you special. You think it means you’re above the rules.”

“I don’t.”

“Silence,” he hissed. He waited a few moments, and when I didn’t say anything, his lips curled up into something that might have been a smile on anyone else.

But on him it was an ugly sneer. “You need to understand something, Miss Winters, and you need to understand it now. Before the spirits gave you magic, you were nothing. There was nothing remarkable or special about you. There was nothing that made you worthy of these powers. You are a liar and a cheat, and you stole magic that was never meant for you.”

I was so angry that I was half-tempted to shout out that I hadn’t stolen anything. I’d always had magic. But confessing that was a very bad idea. So I gripped the desk tightly, funneling my frustration into that single, simple action.

The General’s gaze dipped to my white knuckles and, misinterpreting my anger and the reason for it, he nodded.

“Yes, the truth hurts. But if you can simply accept it, that’s your path out of this situation.

I’m offering you a fresh start, all past wrongs forgiven and forgotten.

All you have to do is testify that the Rebels tricked you, that they mesmerized you into helping them steal the armor.

Then they used that armor to kidnap four Apprentices.

Condemn their actions, Miss Winters. If you discredit the Rebels, then their fans, those fools who romanticize them, will have no choice but to see them for what they truly are: villains. ”

“So that’s what this is about,” I said quietly. “You want to use me to turn everyone against the Rebels. This isn’t about the truth. And it sure isn’t about getting those four Apprentices back. It’s about politics.”

“Everything is about politics.”

“No,” I told him, shaking my head. “Being a Knight isn’t about politics. It’s not about spreading the lies that you feed me. Being a Knight is about doing the right thing, no matter the cost.”

His nostrils flared. “You won’t ever be a Knight, Miss Winters. Not if you don’t obey me.”

“Perhaps not,” I sighed. “But I’ll remain a Knight at heart.”

“You stupid girl,” he snapped, standing. “You are blinded by your admiration for the Rebels.”

“And you’re blinded by your hatred for them.” I hit him with my most defiant stare.

“You are making a mistake.” He moved toward the door, his heels clicking against the dark, soulless tiles. Just before he reached the door, he pivoted around to face me. “Sooner or later, Miss Winters, I will capture the Rebels. You have until then to decide which side you’re on.”

“I’ve already picked my side,” I told him. “I’m on the side of truth.”

The General opened the door. “You will remain in this room until you’re ready to confess.”

The door clicked shut behind him.

I waited a few minutes before I got up and tugged on the handle. Of course it was locked.

I wandered over to the window. A set of thick shutters smothered out any outside light. I wedged a finger between two strips, prying them open just wide enough to peek outside.

Far below, past the grassy lawns, beyond the gates of the Black Obelisk, swarms of happy shoppers browsed the Magic Emporium, totally unaware that I was watching them from all the way up here, at the top of the highest tower in the Fortress.

Startled shouts cut through the Black Obelisk’s sterile silence. The pounding of marching boots. The rattle of gunfire. The singing of steel. The shattering of glass. And—I gasped into my hand—the thumps of falling bodies.

And then all the lights in the room went out. A moment later, I heard the door creak open, but it was too dark to see anything.

“Who’s there?” I rasped, gripping the shutters.

“We are,” a deep voice echoed, like it was speaking through something mostly solid.

I whipped around but got tangled up in the arms that grabbed me.

“Who are you?” I demanded as I felt a bag drop over my head.

They hefted me up in the air.

“We’re the Rebels.”