CASSANDRA
It wasn’t a joke.
| knew it in my bones
Raven''s expression had given it away the moment she’d been caught.
The storm clouds that had gued my mind felt as if they''d cleared away, and the puzzle pieces felt as if they''d been pu
together.
Mind control.
Sorcery.
Weapon.
That’s what Kaleb wanted, to turn the poor, diseased people into his weapon. Though it sounded utterly insane, this spection
seemed more usible as Raven fidgeted and kept telling me what she had told me wasn’t a fact.
“| shouldn’t make jokes like that,” she said, her tone jittery and nervous. “Roxy would kill me if she’d heard that.”
The dark-haired sorceress offered me a dry smile, and for a moment, | debated on pestering her further, but instead, | decided to
bide my time. It was best to go along with things for my safety, so 1 offered Raven a smile back.
“Don''t worry,” | assured her warmly. “I know you were kidding, Raven.”
She nodded and seemed to soften up a bit. “If you want to know more about the research, Cassandra, you could ask Kaleb
Without his permission, I’m afraid | can’t share very much with you.”
| wanted tough but forced myself to keep a straight face. As if merely asking the king of Yurene would be enough for him to let
me know what he was doing here in this prison tower. Surely, Raven thought we were far closer than we were, or else she would
know better than to suggest something like that.
| expected something else toe up about the matter, but instead, Raven fellpletely silent and began to take my blood. |
cooperated well and didn’t fidget, though my mind ran in circles the entire time. Once she finished, she ced the tube of blood
in a device I''d never seen before. It was both technologically advanced and a little archaic, and | wanted to ask what it was or
what its function was, but | knew how that would go.
So, instead. | asked some of the questions | knew she would be able to answer.
“Raven, what''s the difference between Inferno and ck Marks? | wondered, and | made sure to sound as innocently curious as
possible | wasn’t a fan of maniption, but | was learning that here in this Northern country, it was necessary to
sunive
Ravenidered the question for a moment, her dark eyebrows drawing together.
“It''s veryplicated” she said carefully, seemingly more prudent this time, as if she were weighing her words. “But the
that Inferno wasn’t intended to destroy the body physically. In fact, it''s supposed to enhance one’s
raking them stronger and more. vital”
physical
“Vital | repeated bark
the go-tol. “Thoir infected with the pesu korp then, youth. Meanwhile the scholiest ck Marks quickly. That’s why Kalchi wasn’t
susteak an
they deteriorate
90Upstodatee from Novel(D)ra/m/a.O(r)g
11:49 Fri, Feb 23.
“Do you mean immortal?” | asked as | stared at her in disbelief, unable to contain my shock at the idea
“That’s the word,” Raven said with enthusiasm, and then she nodded. “Inferno can turn someone immortal... theoretically. It''s
just an assumption since no one has actually seen Inferno or used it. Between us, | doubt if Emmett Keller was actually able to
make something so potent. I’ve never understood why Kaleb was so persistent in trying to replicate it if there was no evidence of
its existence. Anyway, I''ve done my best and | don’t think Kaleb should expect more, you know?”
When her rambling came to an end, her lips curled into a smirk, and | took a moment to absorb this information.
Immortality.
To suggest that a poison could alter the body and keep it from suffering the effects of aging was not only unheard of, but also
impossible. It seemed that the only thing in the head of these men in power was continuing their life spans.
Of course, I’d seen many things that should have been impossible. Was there some merit in what Inferno was capable of?
Though there was plenty | wanted to say to the sorceress, | couldn’t speak a word. My head screamed as | pondered all of the
secrets | had to keep. | felt like a pawn on Emmett and Kaleb’s chess table, with Asher and the old king as additional pieces.
Was that all we were to them? Pawns and yers to be shifted about to further their ongoing agendas and lust for power?
Though | was usually rational and collected. | wanted to rip my hair out and scream from frustration. This wasn’t the life I''d
wanted for myself, and as | pondered the web that we''d all be tangled in. | thought of Emmett and his part in the situation. |
wished | could meet him in my dreams again and tell him that | knew what he’d done. | wanted to confront him and ask what he
had wanted exactly, why he’d done all of these things to me and the people | knew. Was it all just for revenge! For something that
Asher and | had nothing to do with
Why were we being punished for the crimes of others?”
| knew in the back of my mind that even if | was able to see Emmett in my dreams again, | wouldn’t be able to get clear answers
from him. Besides, I’d attempted to reach him for days, even weeks, to no avail. | had no idea how to make another meeting
happen.
As | considered all of these things, | noticed that Raven was studying me. Her lovely blue-green eyes nervously observed me. as
if she wanted to make sure that she hadn''t said something wrong again.
| wanted to use her, to tell her that though she was kind enough, she was involved in this twisted game as well. But instead. |
decided to further bide my time and fake a smile.
“| agree, | lied pleasantly. “Inferno sounds too good to be true.
The sorceress face rxed and she seemed relieved. Though she didn’t speak. | could tell that I’d said the right things to
convince her all was well
We trashed my physical exam soon after, and Raven offered to escort me back | didn’t protest, and as we walked through the
dark corridor, | did my best not to stare at the so-called “guinea pigs, though it made my heart ache to do so. Meanwhile when |
nced at Raven, her expression was emotionless She didn’t seem to care about those prisoners and esenined to the
guard about the smell
“literate the dead gura pas un tune she ordered with a pitched expression “It smells terrible it here”
The guard worded and
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11:49 Fri, Feb 23.
Raven shifted her gaze away from me, avoiding eye contact. It depends on your physical condition. Of c me. Kaleb will be
making the final decision about what to do with your
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