Page 67 of Warrior

Smyth wasn’t the sissy Daniels had been, and his closed fist connected with my jaw, sending me sprawling to the floor.The pain radiated like fire through my face.Blood trickled from my lips as I flicked my tongue around to check my teeth.Intact, thankfully.

Ms.Beast growled softly in the background of my mind but stayed remarkably restrained after the attack.She understood the danger we were in.

Wait,I told her silently.

I knew she sensed my fury, and the fact that I wasn’t fighting back gave her pause.

Smyth loomed over me, his laugh mocking.“Like father, like daughter,” he sneered.

I cradled my jaw, squinting up at him through the pain.“I’ll take that as a compliment,” I said and spat blood on his boots.

One of the bloodied boots struck my side, the force like a sledgehammer, driving the air from my lungs.Pain exploded in my ribs, and I fought the instinct to gasp for air, knowing it would only make the agony worse.I focused on staying still, waiting for my breath to return, even as every fiber of my being screamed for retaliation.

Smyth dropped to one knee beside me, his face inches from mine, his voice low.

“Pull yourself out of this mess and live,” he hissed.“There are no rules here.I can do anything, kill you, save you, it doesn’t matter.You’re a traitor to your country, and no one will care that you’re gone.When they find out you sided with animals to overthrow us, they’ll care even less.The people might not be loyal to the Federation, but they hate those monsters even more.”

His words were laced with pure hatred, but beneath it, I heard the desperation.

He knew.

He knew the people were ready to rise and rebel against the Federation.

I gathered myself, spitting more blood, this time into his face.

His eyes flared with fury, but I didn’t care.

It was the last thing I saw before blinding pain consumed me, dragging me into darkness.

Chapter Twenty-Four

King

Our sentries detected movement around two in the morning.Over five hundred Federation red stripes were headed our way.

My worry for Marinah intensified to straight-up fear.

Within fifteen minutes, we were on the move, shifting into beast form and putting as much distance as possible between us and the soldiers.

By sunrise, it was clear they were tracking us.

Nokita approached with the latest update.“They’re heavily armed and have three tanks with them.We can win this fight if that’s what you want.”

This meant Marinah and Labyrinth were compromised, and while wecouldwin, the cost would be steep for our Warriors.I also knew many of the Federation soldiers were fighting under duress.Killing them should only be a last resort.

I made my decision.

“Send five groups of five to disrupt their ranks and keep them nervous,” I said.“I’ll lead the rest of our forces closer to Washington.Keep their soldiers busy as long as you can, but don’t kill unless it’s necessary.Our people come first.If you have to take down red stripes, don’t hesitate.”

Four hours later, we were a mile from where I had met up with Marinah.

Close.

Yes, and we’ll find her.

Yesterday, Oscar, the Cuban man who had been living with other humans inside the walled city brought troubling news.He told me heavily armed guards had removed Labyrinth and his men from their quarters.

The moment I learned this, I ordered my men to gather their gear.That preparation allowed us to move quickly when the red stripes were spotted.

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