Page 14 of Victorious: Part 3

The soldier’s smile slips, just a little. His eyes flicker like he wants to stop talking, but the serum won’t let him. “They bring in men,” he says softly. “Powerful ones. Politicians. CEOs. Judges. Big names. They all pay Javier to gain access to women. To… impregnate them.”

Clover shifts in my arms, frowning in her hazed-out state.

“What the fuck did you just say?” My stomach turns.

He breathes out a laugh that sounds closer to a sob. “It’s an organized breeding program. The inmates are kept drugged so they’re easier to manipulate. Rhonda oversees the logistics. Tracks who’s pregnant. Then the babies are taken.”

“To who?” I ask through gritted teeth.

He looks at me like I’m missing the obvious. “To The Nest…dah!”

Sin stiffens beside me, at the same time I go completely still.

“They only want the females,” the man continues, the words coming too easily now. “They’re taken at birth. Sent to the camps. Raised in isolation. Conditioned for obedience. Submission. Total control.”

“And the male children?” I ask, though I am pretty sure I already know.

His voice is barely audible as he sinks against the wall. “They’re useless to the system. They don’t get trained. They get… disposed of.”

His smile flickers again, but he can’t hold back his laugh. “Fuck! Why am I saying this? I don’t want to say this. But it just keeps coming. I can’t stop. And it feelsso fucking good.I’ve been holding this in for years, and now it’s just pouring out.”

“You’re confessing to a nightmare,” I snap. “And laughing through it.”

“I k-know,” he says, his voice cracking. “I hate it. I hate myself. But it’s so light, like my chest is hollow. Like I can breathe for the first time in years.”

Sin steps forward, expression unreadable. “Is that everything? Everything we need to know about the prison? Is there anything else we need to know about Javier?”

“I told you everything I know,” the soldier says, nodding rapidly. “I swear. It’s all true. Atlas started it. Rhonda runs it. The Nest profits from it. It’s all there. Hidden in plain sight.”

I rise to my feet slowly, shifting Clover higher in my arms. “Then you’re done.”

Sin doesn’t say a word. He simply raises his pistol, aims cleanly, and pulls the trigger. The sound is quick and sharp, then the soldier’s body slumps to the side. Blood pools beneath him.

Clover giggles in my arms, her voice skittish, but sweet. “Whoa. That was so loud. Did his brain just pop?”

Sin glances at me, his brow raising. “She’s still high.”

“Yeah,” I mutter, adjusting my grip on her. “We need to get out of here before she starts asking to keep a body as a souvenir.”

“Phoenix?” she whispers, her voice curling up like cotton candy. “Can you carry me forever? This is super cozy.”

Sin exhales and pulls out his phone. “You call Maverick yet?”

I wince. “Not yet.”

“You might want to rip that Band-Aid off fast.”

I nod, knowing that my cell has been blowing up for the last hour with a crazy amount of missed calls from Maverick. So I swipe to return his call. Sin steps closer and hits the speaker button before I can stop him.

It rings once.

Twice.

Then Maverick answers, “Phoenix,” he snaps, his voice already tight. “What the fuck happened?” he growls. “Clover’s heart rate’s been spiking for hours. The tracker went crazy. I’ve been calling nonstop. What thehellis going on?”

Letting out a long breath, I figure it’s best to just tell him straight. “She was taken from the hotel this morning. The Cartel… Javier’s guys. They drugged and grabbed her while I was out getting us breakfast. So, I called Sin. We handled it.”

“Youhandled it?”Maverick explodes, his voice thundering through the speaker. “You’re telling me someone kidnapped my sister,my fucking sister, and instead of calling me, you played goddamn vigilante? Are you out of yourfucking mind?”