Page 47 of Princess

“You can’t do this,” she screamed.

“It will be over in a few seconds if you’ll simply relax.You know how this goes.One injection, and we’re done.At least for the foreseeable future.”

“Noooo.”This scream was so intense I wanted to cover my ears.I shouldn’t be getting enjoyment out of this, but she deserved the same nightmare she’d given others.Amy had been held down too.I had no sympathy for the president’s wife.

She tried to twist, but she couldn’t escape the piercing of her skin and the cool liquid that entered the vein at the bend of her arm.Her screams turned into sobs.

“What have you done?”she finally whispered.

“Your husband holds two of our men.One is being returned in exchange for you, and the other will receive the injection you were given.He will be killed shortly after and become one of the monsters you are so afraid of becoming yourself.”

We released her, and she curled into a ball, putting her back to us.

“During the exchange, we will have a sniper focused on you,” I continued.“If anything goes wrong, you will receive a bullet to the chest.It will tear you apart, but leave your head intact so you will become a monster.We also have something you don’t.”

She lifted her head slightly, and she looked at me.

“An antidote.It’s taken us months, and we have only a very small amount.If both our Warriors are returned, we will give you enough to reverse the effects.”

“I will see you and that demon inside you dead before this is over,” Lesley hissed in a voice filled with pure hatred.

Gone was the poor misunderstood woman she had been over the past few months.This was the real Lesley Barnes, wife to the president, scientist, and a monster in her own right.I resisted the urge to wrap my fingers around her throat and squeeze until she no longer breathed.

King lay a hand on my arm, and I gained back the control I was losing.Leslie wouldn’t help herself to save our Warrior.

“The handoff is in a few hours.Until then, you’ll remain here,” I said, somehow keeping the fury from my tone.

We left.Alden and Rodrigo stayed to guard her.We would take no chances.

The others waited in the argument room.

“She knew,” King said as soon as we’d taken our seats.

I looked at him.“She’s a scientist like her husband.The two of them are responsible for this.They will ultimately pay with their lives.That is a promise.”

Chapter Twenty-One

Marinah

We were dealing with several scenarios.While King and I faced what was happening at the docks, attacks at different locations on the island were a huge threat.At any other time, I would have sent King to the southern island to lead the men there.My pregnancy would turn the order into a full-out argument because, without even asking, I knew he wouldn’t leave me.

Trusting anything the Federation said was suicide, and we had to be prepared on all fronts.Even with the entire island on high alert, we were vulnerable due to Knet.It all came down to how long he’d been on the island and what he’d seen.Could his new form even decipher what happened around him?I had so many questions, and we were out of time.

Ace and Trevor were the two Warriors being held.My stomach clenched when I thought about them.Both were good men whom I trusted implicitly.My heart felt like it weighed a hundred pounds.

Thankfully, after a restless morning, the prince had decided to sleep.King didn’t want me at the exchange, but I’d vetoed him.Lesley would tell the Federation about my pregnancy, and there was no use hiding it.

We’d had to quickly implement safety measures for the shipyard.Eagle set snipers up in key locations the evening before.He left Elright in charge because he was acting as my personal sniper and he would take out any threat to me.The group with Elright was far enough away and was hard to spot.One of the old steel ships closest to dry land would be our fallback point if needed.The ship’s hull, even rusted, could take a lot of damage.

The moment I saw Lesley trussed and carried to the dock with duct tape circling her head, a bit of evil glee entered the dark chaos filling my mind.The duct tape would be a bitch to get out of her hair.Her eyes locked on me, and they promised retribution.Bring it, I thought to myself.My hands hitched to end her miserable life right now.

I didn’t take my eyes off hers, and slowly something else entered her gaze.Smugness?Maybe she was thinking that if we had an antidote, the Federation could make one too.Hell, they might already have one, and our plans were for nothing.Her reaction to the shot had been pure terror, so I doubted they had anything to counteract the serum.Our lie was a long shot, and getting both our Warriors back nearly impossible, but I wasn’t giving up.

We had changed our mind about using the submarine to blow theirs out of the water.We knew Ace and Trevor would rather be dead than turned into hellhounds, but it didn’t make it easier.I finally decided that giving away the fact we had a sub could hurt us more in the long game.When Knet was with us, the old sub hadn’t been a consideration, and we’d done what we could to keep the secret intact.I hated these decisions, and I questioned myself continuously.

Beck hadn’t been himself since his son was born and he barely argued with me.I wasn’t sure about this calmer Beck, but I would take it while it lasted.

Ruth had been unusually quiet before I left.She seemed to understand the gravity of what was happening, even if she didn’t have the specifics.I left her with Desmond and Julia.It was good for her to be around people her age who understood how she felt.Hopefully, they would guide her and not cause additional trouble.For now, all civilians at the citadel were below ground.We were taking fifty Shadow Warriors with us.Warriors were stationed at the citadel, and another group at the southern part of the island.Caleb had gone there to take command.

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