Page 55 of Dark Rebel's Mystery

The problem was that they might get rid of the prisoners by killing them instead of shipping them out. She prayed they would keep the woman alive for the same reason they'd once kept Kyra: to harness her potential and use her however they wanted.

The drugs, the beatings, and the violations were meant to break Twelve's spirit so she would obey them, but it seemed like she was holding on. The question was how long they would keep trying before deciding she would never break and then disposing of her.

37

KYRA

When the guards' shift change approached the outer gates, it was time for Kyra to leave. She silently pulled off her apron and folded it neatly, placing it in the supply closet for tomorrow's use. Then, head bowed, she slipped out into the open air. The sky burned gold as the sun prepared to set, and dust swirled around her boots, the same dust she'd spent all day wiping from the compound's floors.

She kept her shoulders hunched as she approached the perimeter checkpoint, offering a small nod to the guard who waved her through. It was much easier to get out than it was to get in, and for a moment, she entertained the idea of smuggling Twelve out of there by trading places with her. If she did that near the end of her shift, no one would notice until the next day when the sadist came to take his twisted pleasure from the woman again and realized it wasn't the same one.

To anyone else, they would look similar enough to avoid notice.

Getting into the cell shouldn't be too tricky, and sabotaging the surveillance cameras was as easy as disrupting the compound's internet connection. Their system was simple, the kind anyone could buy in a store or order online. The more she thought about it, the more sense it made to her, except for the detail of her taking Twelve's place. Her people would never agree, and she couldn't pull this off alone.

Someone had to disable the internet just long enough for the switch, and someone also needed to meet Twelve outside the gate and lead her to the camp.

She could lie to them and omit the part about taking Twelve's place, but after working with these people for so long, Kyra wouldn't betray their trust.

Was there another way to do it?

The guard recognized her because she wore the same clothes each time she passed through his checkpoint, walked with the same shuffle, and gave him the same timid hand wave. That was why he'd let her through without verifying her identity. Another guard would not do that.

Still, Twelve looked a lot like her, so even if he asked to see her ID, he would probably not notice the difference. Then again, if the same guard was manning the checkpoint, he would notice Twelve's shorter stature and her different posture and gait.

When Kyra arrived back at camp, she found Zara, Rashid, and Soran waiting in her tent. Zara looked exasperated, standing with her arms crossed over her chest, while Soran wore his usual slightly worried expression, and Rashid was frowning.

"What's going on?" She removed her headscarf and tossed it on her cot.

"We have intelligence from Erbiz," Zara said.

"And?" Kyra pulled out a chair and sat down. "What's the intel?"

"The Revolutionary Guard Corps is building an encampment on the hills south of there."

"I'm surprised that they didn't just evacuate the people of Erbiz from their homes and take over. That's what they usually do."

"What are we going to do about it?" Soran asked.

"What do you think we should do?"

"Question the workers they hired or send one of ours undercover," he answered without pause, as if he expected her to ask him exactly that.

"There you go." Kyra waved a hand. "You know what to do and can handle it without me."

"That's not the point." Zara's voice trembled with barely suppressed anger. "We need you. You're our leader."

Kyra closed her eyes, struggling to maintain calm. "We are all in this together, and no one appointed me as your leader. I just took control when Dosdan was killed. Any one of you could have done that." She turned to Soran. "I was thrown headfirst into the water without knowing how to swim, but you have the benefit of stepping up with me still around to guide you."

"Why are you talking like that?" Zara squeaked. "Are you dying or something?"

"Not as far as I know." Kyra pulled the pendant from inside her blouse where it had been warming her skin. "I'm guided by intuition as much as strategic thinking, and both agree with my decision to accelerate Soran's training as my replacement. Weare not the military and don't follow strict protocol, but I don't appreciate you three questioning my decisions."

Soran raked a hand through his hair. "People look up to you."

"They also look up to you." She cast the three a hard look. "Unless you have anything of substance to report, this meeting is over."

Rashid winced. "We can't afford to lose you."

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