Page 89 of Lies That Bleed
She was pissed, seething really. The word Luskin had lit something within her.
“Several hours. We?—”
“Severalhours? It would have only taken you a few hours to fly here on Onyx and report the attack. Why didn’t you?” she asked, and I realized now she was peering at him with suspicion.
“I… it didn’t even cross my mind. I wouldn’t have wanted to leave my team behind.”
She stared at me. “Same excuse?” She glanced up at Liana as if the firebird should have known better.
“We experienced some trauma, ma’am. I wasn’t thinking clearly.” It was the truth. My wrist, the dead Luskin girl, so many injured—I wasn’t thinking.
Ashendell sighed. She glanced at my wrist and then straight into my eyes. “Next time, call for backup,” she snapped. “When you didn’t show to our attack point, we found the derailed train and I assumed you were kidnapped. I have half the country looking for the emperor’s daughter right now!” She then walked away.
Crap.
My father must be so pissed. I couldn’t wait for that conversation.
“We brought the payload! Does that mean we graduate?” Kohen asked.
She stopped and turned around, heaving a big sigh. “That’s what you’re worried about right now? You get attacked by Luskins and you want to you know if you still graduate?”
Kohen nodded, and Ashendell couldn’t help but shake her head.
“Yes, you all graduate.”
Cheers and whoops rang throughout our little circle.
“Who should we get this to? It must be important.” I tapped the giant steel container we’d pulled off of Liana’s back.
Ashendell walked over, produced a key from her pocket, and opened the lock. When she flicked the lid open, I peered inside and held my breath.
“Are you serious?” I asked her.
“Rocks!” Kohen said, peeking over my shoulder.
A giant pile of dull gray boulders sat inside the steel case. It was worthless.
“You think we would trust rookies with something valuable?” Instructor Ashendell asked.
Again, she turned, and this time jogged back to the command tent, probably to get word to my father that I wasn’t kidnapped.
Rocks.
A handful of medics ran up to us then carrying triage bags and called us over to a temporary tent thatwas set up in the east corner of the base. We lined up the wounded in order of most severely injured to least injured, and I took the time to look around at the famed headquarters that stood at The Wall. It was dark now, so I couldn’t see the looming stone structure like I would in the daytime. I’d been here before with my father when I was sixteen and he’d begun to train me to take over for him in case he was assassinated. Yes, my father being murdered was something I’d had to contend with at a young age.
At the back-right section of the twenty-acre base were multiple redbrick apartment buildings, where the men and women were segregated. They held about a thousand soldiers in all if I remembered correctly. In the middle and towards the front gate was the command center, where Ashendell was right now. I hadn’t been there in a few years, but I remembered it as a giant room with maps and radios and tables and chairs. There was also a mess hall, a gym, and a massive barn for creatures. This was one of the bigger bases, holding a thousand full-time soldiers in all.
Just as I was looking at the barn, about two dozen creatures bolted outside, and then their adjoining soldier bondeds burst out from the door of the command center.
They piled into trucks and then sped off out the open gates.
“Probably going on mission to findthe people who attacked us,” I mused to Tetra, who stood on my right. Though one was already dead and one got away.
“Can I talk to you, Aisling?” Kohen’s voice was like butter as it smoothed its way over me.
Tetra hobbled away to get into the end of the triage line, and I turned to face him.
Stars, he was good looking. He was one of those guys that was so handsome that you found yourself staring at him—like watching a piece of art and finding new beauty in it every time.
