Saven Disclosure (The Saven Series Book 2) (37 page)

“Very well,” Logan says, standing beside him. “I will speak to the Saven here and secure their support. We’ll also touch base with our rebel contact and see if they are prepared to help.”

“I never thought the day would come when I’d be appealing for help to those opposed to my regime—the very people who have been plotting against me for years.” He sadly shakes his head. “But circumstances mean we must lay our differences aside for the sake of humanity. I’m man enough to agree to it, but I wonder if G is.”

“I don’t know him personally, so I cannot predict how he will react. But I do know his son, and he is an honorable man. I genuinely believe he wants to do the right thing. Whether he can convince his father is another matter entirely. I will let you know as soon as I have word,” Logan promises.

“Thank you.”

Haydn and I stand up. I take a stabilizing breath. “Mr. President? I wonder if it might be a good idea to allow the individuals in Sector Twenty to decide for themselves if they wish to remain in the compound or go home. If the Amaretti attack, and people are away from their loved ones, it will cause more panic in Sector Twenty and in those sectors where people have missing family and friends. Perhaps a coordinated transportation effort can be organized to transfer those who wish to return to their sectors?”

The president reviews me carefully. “Ms. Owens, I must formally apologize for my lack of manners. I should have properly introduced myself at the outset of this meeting. Perhaps you will understand if I say I was more than a little taken aback by the surprise party.” He smiles wanly. “It is delightful to finally make your acquaintance, though I wish it was under better circumstances.”

“Me too, sir.”

“I understand why you would make that request, but I’m concerned if we start moving large groups of people that it offers an easy target. Let me take it under consideration, and I will see what I can do.”

“Thank you, sir.” His logic is sound, but I still think my proposal is the option most likely to cause the least panic, though I could be splitting hairs. Once the public is aware of this new threat of invasion, mass hysteria will be the order of the day. “Will you make a public announcement?”

“I will also have to take that under consideration. For now, I will be notifying all sectors of a blanket curfew. It’s safer if people stay in their h—”

The TV powers to life behind us, commanding our attention. Dante’s solemn features stare out of the screen. Tension radiates off Logan in powerful waves, and apprehension knots my stomach. “My dear comrades,” Dante begins. “I present to you today with some very distressing news. Our beloved king has been cruelly taken from us.” Logan gasps, plopping down onto the couch, a hand covering his mouth. I reach out and take his hand, as I remain focused on the screen. “Ripped from our world by the very species he had committed to helping. Yes, you heard me correctly. Our esteemed sovereign, my father, was killed by a human. And not any ordinary human.”

Haydn draws a sharp intake of breath as my image fills the width of the screen. “Behold the girl who has killed our king.”

I flop down on the couch beside Logan, copying his stunned expression. Haydn lets loose a colorful string of cusses. I shush him as Dante spews his vitriol. “Those of you who reside on Earth will recognize this girl. Her name is Sadie Owens, and she is the crown prince’s intended Eterno. Yes, it’s true: My brother is betrothed to a human. A human who cannot be trusted to preside over our planet. A human who clearly has ulterior motives and does not have our best interests at heart. Before his death, my father pleaded with my brother to cut all ties with this girl. He arranged a fine pairing with Princess Dalitza of Amara, but Logan refused the marriage, choosing instead to bind himself to this human girl. For that reason, in what turned out to be his final act, my father appointed me as crown prince and his future successor.” Dante holds up an official-looking document, pointing at the signature on the bottom. The royal crest is stamped across the center of the page.

“That slimy, lying, good-for-nothing son of a bitch,” Haydn fumes.

Logan and I stare, shell-shocked, at the screen. “From our intelligence, we believe the human girl was acting on instructions from her president. Concerned that the Saven were becoming too influential on Earth, he demanded she kill our adored king.” He briefly hangs his head, doing a pretty good impression of someone who cares. “It is with a heavy heart that I ascend the throne. But know this, good people of Saven, I will honor my father’s legacy and serve you as the leader you deserve.” His defiant eyes burn with malicious intent. “Effective immediately, my brother is banished. Should he dare to step foot on Saven, he will be eliminated. The human girl will be hunted down like the scum she is. And the human race?”

He wickedly grins. “They will get their comeuppance. I hope you are watching this, Mr. President, because we are coming. And we won’t be alone.” His arrogant grin is the last thing we see as the screen dies.

Flashing lights and insistent alarms ring out in the office. The president holds up a hand as he clicks on his comm-clip. “Yes, yes. Do that. I’ll meet you there.”

He ends the call, snagging his jacket off the back of the couch. “I need to meet with my team. Expedite your part of the plan. Go now, and stay in regular contact with me.” He runs to the door, stopping abruptly at the last minute. Whipping his head around, his expression is sincere as he tells Logan, “I’m very sorry for your loss.”

Logan rises on shaky legs, and the anguish in his eyes guts me. His heartfelt pain shoots through me. I wrap myself around him, hugging him tight. “I’m so sorry, Logan.” Slowly, his arms go around me, and he buries his head in my hair. Haydn looks down at his feet.

Logan taps Haydn on the arm. “I need to meet with Rylan. Follow me.” Haydn nods in agreement. I squeeze my eyes shut as Logan teleports us there. You’d think I would be well used to the sensation by now, but it still turns my insides upside down and scares the ever-living crap out of me.

Fern shrieks when we appear out of thin air in Rylan’s apartment. Rylan stands up and bows. “Crown Prince. Ala Cinerva. Etu sedento.”

“Thank you, my friend.” Logan claps him on the shoulder. “And it’s simply Logan now.”

“You will always be my prince, and I am not the only one unhappy at Dante’s ascension. You have way more support than you think.”

Fern yanks me into a quick hug. “Neve told us about Ella. Are you okay?” she whispers.

“Barely,” I admit truthfully. “Perhaps Dante outing me was a blessing in disguise,” I whisper in her ear. I don’t wish to seem disrespectful in front of Logan or Rylan, but the fact is this might actually help me get Ella back. The VP wanted the king dead and now he is, apparently at my hands. Is it wrong to allow him to believe it so? I don’t think so, and I don’t think Logan would have any issue with it either, but the news is too raw, and I don’t want to appear insensitive, so I make the decision myself. “Can I borrow your D-pad?”

“Of course. It’s in the bedroom.” I follow her into the room and tap out a quick message to the VP, asking to meet so he can return my sister to me. I also send a message to Vin confirming that the president is halting the experiments in Sector Twenty.

Rylan, Haydn, and Logan are locked in conversation when we return to the sitting room. Fern goes to fetch some drinks. “Rylan is going to set up a meeting in Sector Twenty with the Saven,” Logan explains as I take a seat beside him.

I drape my arm casually around him. “Will we be facing a lynch mob?” I peer around Logan at Rylan.

“On the contrary, I think the prince will be surprised at the extent of his support. I was just explaining how there’s been a considerable shift on the ground.”

“How so?” I thank Fern as she hands me a cappuccino.

Rylan gives her a quick kiss as he accepts a steaming hot mug. “I’ve been spending a lot of time there in the last few weeks, and the change in our people is astounding.” Putting down his coffee, he inclines toward me, excitement skittering over his face. “Some of our people have a conscience now, and the irony is that more and more of them are increasingly opposed to the way in which the conscience transfer process is being conducted and the enslavement of the humans. Calls for an alternative are becoming more commonplace, more insistent. The prince was outlining some of his ideas, and I think they need to hear it. It will help sway them to the cause. But not only that. They care about humans. Most of the Saven I’ve spoken with are very fond of their preferred earthens. I’d go as far as saying many of them are genuinely in love.” He gazes adoringly at Fern, and I get a warm, gooey feeling inside.

I kiss Logan, my heart overflowing with emotion.
“I love you.”
I don’t know why I felt a compelling urge to tell him that, but I did, so I told him, and I still marvel at my ability to freely express the sentiment.

“I can relate,” Logan responds to Rylan’s statement while steadfastly looking at me. Holding my face, he delicately molds his lips to mine.

“I, uh, need to use the bathroom,” Haydn says, climbing urgently to his feet. Our previous conversation resurrects in my mind. It’s so wrong that he’s not allowed to love. If we survive these next few weeks, I fully intend to address it with Logan.

“How soon can you get the meeting arranged,” Logan asks, all business-like again.

“Let me make some calls.” Rylan strides into the other room with rigorous purpose.

Fern takes his place on the couch as Neve and Alex materialize in the room. Fern shrieks again and I chuckle. “Good God,” she says, slapping a hand over her chest. “One of these days I am seriously going to have a coronary. Can you not like, ring a bell or something?”

Neve ignores Fern, heading straight for Logan. She plonks onto his lap and hugs him. I get up, walking to where the others stand, affording them some privacy. Sorrow pools in her eyes as they silently converse. “She’s been so upset since the broadcast,” Alex quietly explains. Neve is blatantly crying now, tears cascading down her face.

“Who killed him?” Fern asks in a hushed voice. Haydn steps into the room, his eyes at once finding mine.

“I’m fairly certain it was my brother,” Logan replies, picking up on her question. We all turn and face him.

“I know he’s more than capable of it, but would he actually stoop that low? It could be the Amaretti,” I gently suggest.

Neve slips off Logan’s lap and walks to Alex, linking her arm in his. I sit back down beside Logan. He fidgets with my hair as he talks. “I had contacted my father when we were escaping Saven. While he was furious with me for reneging on the marriage arrangement, he told me point blank that he was not going to replace me with Dante. He was keen to find a mutual compromise, and he’d agreed to meet me to thrash things out. There was nothing about our conversation that leads me to believe he was deceiving me. He spoke the truth.”

No one replies, because in all honesty, how can you respond to that? Knowing it was his last conversation with his father must be destroying him. I thread my fingers in his, squeezing firmly.

Rylan bounds into the room, a mass of jittery nervousness. His timing is pretty spot-on. “Okay. It’s all set up. You’re on in two hours. My contacts on the ground will round up as many of the Saven as they can.”

“What’s set up?” Neve asks, obviously confused. Haydn updates her and includes Rylan’s observation that the conscience transfer has altered the Saven’ mindset. Her gaze bounces among us. “It may be more than that.”

“More than what?” Logan asks, suddenly alert.

“Don’t freak out, okay?” She levels a look in my direction. “Not until I’ve fully explained.”

I’m figuring we’re about to be hit with another curveball, and I’m not sure how much more I can deal with. “Go ahead, but I’m making no promises.”

She rolls her eyes, and I resist the urge to throw something at her. “I don’t think sex is the key. It revolves around love. Love is the answer.” She catches a few incredulous looks. “Well, they do say love conquers all.” She aligns her shoulders defensively.

Ignoring her cheesy throwaway, I stare at Logan, remembering how we’d come to the same sort of conclusion a matter of days ago. Tilting my chin, I look up at her. “What makes you say that?”

She blushes to the roots of her hair, and I stare at my friend like there’s an imposter in her body. One by one, the dots connect in my head. Her odd behavior around Alex. Their mutual grabby hands. Her heightened emotions. Her newly discovered sensitivity. “No way!” Her blush darkens. “How could you take such a risk?!” My eyes pop wide as I stare at Alex. “How could you let her?! Stars!” I melt into the couch, totally flabbergasted. Logan beams at me. “What?”

“For one, you just said stars.” He grins even wider. “And if Alex and Neve are in love, and they had sex, and,” he says, smirking at both of them, “they both look fine and healthy, then it means we were right in our thinking. And if that’s the case, then we can Eterno connect without any fear of you losing your conscience.” My blush now mirrors Neve’s. “But most importantly,” he adds, more solemn now, “it’s the perfect way to effect the conscience transfer without taking anyone’s freedom. We need to verify this.” He tweaks my nose and winks. I bump him with my shoulder.

“Am I the only one who’s completely lost?” Fern asks, her forehead puckered in confusion.

A flurry of chuckles echoes in the room. “Honey,” Rylan says, fighting a smile. “Alex and Neve have had sex, and he didn’t lose his conscience though she’s clearly gained one. They love each other, and that’s what matters, what’s made the difference. This could be a game-changer.” He winks suggestively, and her entire face enflames.

“Please tell me we’re done talking about my sex life …” Neve’s skin is about ten different shades of red. Another raucous round of hilarity rings out, everyone’s lips curved up in a smile.

All except one.

Haydn’s tormented gaze haunts me. The need to comfort him is overwhelming, but I can’t very well get up in the middle of all this and hug him. It would only generate inaccurate speculation. Suddenly, Logan pins me in close to his body, pressing fierce lips to my temple. It feels like a branding.