The conversation dwindled. So did her anger. Belatedly, it dawned that it was his purpose, and she gave him an exasperated look. Movement from the screen had her glancing. Then she was locked in when a willowy woman sauntered closer to Sam and bowed before him. Another memory fluttered in: this woman peering at them from a tree branch seconds before Anne was battered with pain.
“I know her,” Anne blurted out.
“Is it done?” Sam asked.
The woman nodded. “Your father’s business lands are being transferred under your name. You are getting favorable reviews from the rest as they have come to accept your new role.”
“There’s the answer to my question,” Nico muttered. “The bastard’s the leader now.”
Anne scanned her head, trying to remember another power figure and failing. “He headed the attack before.”
“Maybe an order.”
That she couldn’t put a face to whoever had ordered it frustrated her and she wished she had answers. The woman stepped closer when Sam gestured.
“They will become more agreeable when they learn what I will build here. What about you? Are you agreeable to putting a rest to this tension between us?”
“I’m your stepsister,” the woman replied. “Your father adopted me and made me kin.”
“It doesn’t matter now. The old man’s gone.”
There was touching, reluctant on the woman’s part every time she faced away from Sam. But she also looked resigned. Nico’s face shuttered, not liking what he was seeing, so she took his fisted hand. He shook his head.
“I’m not going to barge in there,” he assured.
They turned away from the screen as the two lay on the floor and Sam got what he wanted, interrupted only once when Jay appeared in the doorway. Sam snapped at him to leave and the thumping sounds continued amid the work activity surrounding them. A sick feeling entered her stomach when the man finished inside the woman, then stood up and brushed his pants.
“I knew you were agreeable. Clean yourself up. We have work to do.”
Quietly, the woman got dressed. Now it was Nico holding on to her fist as she battled with the desire to wipe the smug look off his face, preferably with claws. One thing became urgent, though.
“Nico, we have to get out of here. Before they discover this exists.”
“I know.”
***
They didn’t get to leave that day as the construction continued, and the group stayed through the night, with Sam taking over the hut. The woman didn’t stay with him but Jay kept appearing to talk about the layout, prompting her to check downstairs for food. She found it and more, gawking at the box before Nico spotted it, too.
“It’s not enough for them if that’s your plan.”
“It’s not my plan.” She picked up the wirings, the gunpowder, and all the other items that could be assembled. “Do you know how to make bombs?”
“The basic ones we put in some traps, triggered when someone passes them. We use them to stun our enemies so we can ambush them.”
“Then maybe we can make sure that they don’t get to use this place if they end up discovering it.” She mulled over it. “Can we make sticky bombs?”
He nodded, and that gave her relief. They worked together to find the underground’s most vulnerable spots and set their traps, then made sticky bombs with the rest of their materials. They caught up on a few hours of sleep, then woke up just before the sun was up. When the hut was empty, and no noise came from outside, Anne led the way as they crept out through the tile, armed to the teeth and ready for a confrontation—
A shadow stood from a corner, then whipped around to face them. She met the woman’s gaze, as unprepared as Anne was. She was certain they mirrored each other’s shock, but it was the shift to horror and the soundless gasp that rose higher. The woman knew. The woman remembered her, and seeing Anne again had the woman trembling before she visibly steadied.
The woman straightened, scales glissading in place. The glint of a reptile came into view and trepidation slid in as Anne braced for the scream.
“They are waiting for sunset outside. It’s a ritual we have. You need to leave before they come.”
Anne straightened, too, as astonishment hit her hard. She moved at the nudge below until Nico shimmied out of the hole, looked at the woman, then took her hand. The message was clear.
We need to go.