When Quinton gently touches her arm, she whirls on him. “Gregory tells me you interviewed him. How dare you scan my grandson’s mind without my permission.”

“Gloria, dear. I know you are upset, but let us take this conversation next door and leave the major to conduct the test.” He takes her arm, but she’s not moving.

“I want an explanation, Crispin. You interviewed him alone. Against protocol.”

Quinton tilts his head, his charm cooling a few degrees. “I was simply minimizing your grandson’s distress, my dear. The incident happened inside Blackriver. Therefore the only permission I needed was the commander’s.”

She spears a plum-painted nail in my direction. “Have you interviewed that? Scanned its mind? Exposed its lies about my grandson?”

Lies? I lunge forward, mouth open to lay on the heat, but Flanagan steps in my way. He blocks my view and raises my chin with a finger.

“What did I ask you?”

“Fuck’s sake, she’s—”

“What did I ask you?”

I take long breaths. Try to calm the fire churning in my stomach. I want to give her a piece of my mind, but a tiny voice of reason urges me to follow Flanagan’s lead. I grit my teeth and nod.

He strokes my jaw with his thumb. “Trust me.”

“There is no need to be so unkind, Gloria,” Quinton says. “Michael is not responsible for the circumstances of his birth.”

“The creature is clearly an anomaly. He should have been taken to Longreach and locked down for containment and study. Why wasn’t he?”

“The commander and I decided it would be safer if Michael stay within reach of a Grounder strong enough to assist him. And now, alas, the facilities at Longreach are no more.”

“Yes,” she says, eyes narrowing. “His prince made sure of that.”

Flanagan calmly turns to address her, his deep voice echoing off the walls. “I did not invite you to this test, Councilor Belanger. You will need to leave before we proceed.”

Her mouth falls open, but she soon recovers. “Have you seen my grandson? His fellow soldiers? The young men you have handcuffed to hospital beds, even though they can barely walk. This”—she points at me again—“this thing nearly killed them. While in irons and a suppressing collar. It has done something to them even the doctors don’t understand. I want its mind scanned. Then it should be moved to Headquarters, where my son can adequately contain it.”

It? I grit my teeth and swallow the hot lump of expletives burning a hole in my throat. Not going to help.

Flanagan stalks past her to the door without sparing her a glance. He holds it open. “Michael acted in self-defense. Your grandson suffers the consequences of his actions. I’d like you to leave the room now, please.”