Page 73 of The Stone Survival
He lowered me to my feet, and we both moved closer to the window to watch the figure running toward the tower.
Serath grabbed the telescope and tracked it. “What the…”
“What? Who is it?”
He stared at me in confusion. “It’s Flora.”
We hurried down the stairs to let her in, almost knocking Levi on his ass along the way.
“What’s happening?” He hurried after us.
“Flora’s outside,” Serath said.
We made it to the main entrance, and Serath hauled it open before Flora could buzz.
She stood wide-eyed, mouth trembling. “Help me. You have to help me.”
“What’s happened?” Serath asked “Flora, what’s wrong?”
“He’s gone…Yarrow. Someone took him. I found…I found blood, and this…” She held a note out to Serath. A blood-smeared note.
Serath’s frown deepened as he read it. “Fuck.”
“What is it?” Levi asked. “What does it say?”
“It says that the faction has Yarrow, and if we want him back, then Cameron and I need to come to them. Alone.”
Once again,we all gathered in the lounge. Touron carried Selas down and set her on the sofa, and the twins huddled by the media unit, wrapped in robes, feet clad in slippers.
Shar stood with her back against Derek’s chest, his arms loosely around her waist. Her hair was mussed, her lips swollen. It didn’t take much to guess what they’d been up to. I hated that we’d interrupted them.
Orix paced, hands on hips as Curi read the faction note that Flora had brought.
He finished, and I held out my hand for it, needing to read it one more time.
We have your brother. If you want to see him alive, then go straight to the tower and tell Serath Halle and Cameron Basque to come to the coordinates below. Tell them to come alone. If the council finds out, or if they bring any reinforcements, then we will kill your brother. Once we have the two gargoyles, your brother will be returned safely to you.
The Faction.
They wanted me and Serath. And they were done messing around.
“No,” Orix said finally. “We are not doing this. Letting you both walk into an obvious trap. It’s suicide.”
“I’m not sure they’re bluffing,” Levi said. “This faction hasn’t had an issue with doing whatever it takes to get what they want.They failed to get Serath at the facility, and so they’ve turned to cruder methods.”
“But why Yarrow?” Shar asked. “I mean, yes, he’s a friend of the elite, but if they wanted to blackmail, why not take one of the elite, or Touron, or the twins?”
“We’re always together,” Touron said. “In pairs or trios, and when we’re not, then we’re here. Together again.”
“Good point,” Shar said. “Not easy kidnapping targets.” She chewed on her cheeks.
“What if they heard us last night?” Palia said, her eyes darting about the room. “What if this place is bugged?”
“And how would they have gotten in to bug the place?” Curi asked.
“Prasan lived here,” Palia replied. “He was working for them.”
“Fuck,” Curi said.
