Page 29 of Dark Rebel's Mystery

Taking a deep breath, he nodded. "I'll try."

He focused on the photograph, directing his death wish toward the man it depicted. Nothing felt different, though. There was no surge of power and no burning in the back of his eyes like when he'd killed that attacker in the alley. He knew even before Onegus's voice sounded in his earpieces that it hadn't worked.

"No effect," the chief said.

"Try again," Kian instructed. "This time, think about what he's done. The children he's hurt. The innocent lives he's ruined all for his sick pleasure."

Ell-rom closed his eyes, trying to summon righteous anger and channel it toward the photograph.

Still, he felt nothing.

"Nothing," Onegus confirmed.

Suddenly, fear gripped Ell-rom. "What if I accidentally killed someone else? Can we check the other prisoners?"

He hadn't felt anything, so probably nothing happened to anyone, but he couldn't be sure that the same reaction would take place each time he used his talent. He didn't remember feeling anything special when he'd killed that first guard, but then he still didn't remember anything from his life in the temple, only the bits and pieces he'd seen in his dreams and what Morelle had told him.

Luckily, she'd retained all of her memories.

"No one died," Onegus confirmed after a moment.

It was both a relief and a frustration. Why wasn't his ability working?

"Let's try something more direct," Kian said, leading him toward one of the heavy metal doors lining the corridor.

When the door opened, and Ell-rom got a look at the interior, it was nothing like he'd imagined. Instead of the dark, dank dungeon he'd expected, the cell was clean and modern, with cream-colored walls and new fixtures. The prisoner lay on a bed, lightly sedated and shackled.

"Tell us about the children you molested," Kian commanded, then turned to Ell-rom. "Look into his mind and see for yourself."

As the guy mumbled incoherent words, Ell-rom approached the bed hesitantly, looked down at the portly human, and reached out with his mind to access his memories.

The images that flooded his consciousness were worse than anything he could have imagined, and as bile rose in his throat, he yanked himself out of the monster's mind and struck with his death wish without giving it a second thought.

The man's eyes went blank, his body slack.

Dead.

Ell-rom felt no remorse, only a cold satisfaction that shocked him. Was this what Max had meant about becoming a blade?

"Damn it," Kian muttered. "I wanted you to try it from a distance first. Come on." He guided Ell-rom to another cell. "You need to control your temper."

Outside, Kian put his hand on Ell-rom's shoulder. "I'm sorry. I shouldn't have snapped at you. How are you feeling? Are you okay?"

"Yes. Surprisingly. I can kill monsters like him all day long and feel only satisfaction."

"Good." Kian clapped his shoulder. "Then let's continue, but this time, let's test the distance."

Ell-rom nodded. "I'll do my best to control the death ray."

The next prisoner looked equally ordinary and equally human. Regrettably, monsters didn't come with horns or with a tattoo on their forehead proclaiming them demon-spawned.

Ell-rom wouldn't have given the man a second glance on the street.

When Kian ordered the man to talk, Ell-rom hesitated before entering his mind, the horror of the previous one's memories still fresh in his mind. But he had to do this.

As he reached out again, accessing the human's memories, the flood of them hit him like a physical blow, and as the bile rose in his throat again and he yanked himself out of that cesspool, he couldn't hold it back this time.

Doubling over, he vomited onto the floor but managed to keep his death wish from striking.

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