Page 116 of Crimson Moon Falling

“If you still have doubts, you can see that the Northwestern Mountain States Pack sent identification requests to the International Energy Signature Database shortly after Conall met me on campus, and before the ApGen facility in Santa Barbara was raided. I collected those signatures.”

Fernanda stared at me as her brain processed the information, then she turned to the cameraman. “Hit pause, then go tell my assistant to research Ms. Blackthorne’s claim. Tell Charlene I’m sending her a follow-up email. And hurry.”

While we waited, Fernanda opened her laptop and started furiously typing. “What other proof can you give me?”

“Drew Turner, Conall’s tech admin, will be sending you images in the next few hours. Madison Castillo of the Southwestern States Pack can also send you documentation.”

She nodded without looking up. “Text them both and have them send it to this email address.” I pulled out my phone, and she rattled off an encrypted email address.

When the cameraman returned, I discussed in detail what we’d found at Mary Mountain. “The facility sits atop a massive power source of thermal energy and volcanic activity.” My implant kept my voice and thoughts analytical and precise. “Apex Mentis, and specifically General Wilson, deny any involvement. They’re working to distance Apex, and claim they had no knowledge of the Chimera Project. But what this is all leading to, and what they are planning, is a government takeover through a military coup. That’s why they are creating operatives, or soldiers.”

Fernanda’s eyes went wide, and the cameraman stared at us. Mangus sensed the tension in the air and came over to sit by me, his head nudging my shoulder.

“You are stating that General Wilson of Apex Mentis is organizing a coup of our Central Federal Government.”

“I am. I went back to the facility after General Wilson’s press conference, and I Spooled a strand of energy there. Wilson states he’s never been to that facility before, but he’s lying. I pulled his energy signature from an office there. I also Spooled a signature that I believe is Senator White’s.”

“How do you know General Wilson’s energy signature? Did you send it in to the Energy Signature Database?” Fernanda asked.

“Yes.” I reached down and pulled up my pant legs. The burns were angry red and blistered. My skin wept in places where the bandages had rubbed.

“I also felt his energy in person when he kidnapped me. He discussed Apex’s involvement openly at the Apex facility in Las Vegas. This was after Director Langston’s FBCI agents kidnapped me from a pediatrician’s office in Springdale, Utah. They took me to the Apex site next to Nellis Air Force Base, questioned me, catheterized and restrained me, and let a doctor sexually assault me while they stood and watched.”

Fernanda eyed the fading bruise on my cheek that I hadn’t tried to hide. “When exactly was this?”

I gave her the dates. “Wilson admitted everything and said no one would believe my word against his. Men like him tend to enjoy bragging, for some reason. He’s using the shifter registration vote as cover for something bigger. There’s footage verifying that Apex kidnapped me. Drew Turner, the Northwestern Pack’s technology strategist, has it.”

Fernanda stared at me. For the first time since we’d sat down, her composure cracked. Something raw moved across her face. Not just shock, but a deeper, colder understanding of what I was telling her, and what it meant.

Over the next hour, Fernanda asked me dozens of questions. I couldn’t or wouldn’t answer a few, but in the end I gave her more than enough to verify my story.

“Is there anything else you wish to say before we conclude the interview?” Fernanda asked.

I turned and looked directly into the camera. “You were right, General. I did go back to Mary Mountain to search for more than an insignificant missing park ranger. In the end, a few of those insignificant park rangers are the ones who exposed you and Apex. I hope you think about that when they come for you.”

When I stopped speaking, Fernanda turned to the cameraman. “Cut.” The red light blinked off.

I reached up and unclipped the mic, setting it on the table. My fingers were ice-cold.

“You need to release this story as soon as possible,” I warned her.

Fernanda stared at me. “You realize what’s going to happen when the public finds out you can Spool.”

“I know, but this way we can expose them and their conspiracy before it happens. Not that the current Administration is much better.”

She smiled humorlessly. “Better the devil you know. I took a crew to the holding facility in Trenton to meet a few of the operatives they had modified. They scare me. When I looked into their eyes, it felt like staring into my own death.”

“They scare me too, but most of those people were kidnapped and tortured. They aren’t that way because they want to be. Please remember that.”

Fernanda nodded. “I need to verify and corroborate your story.”

“Do it quickly.”

Ash moved toward us, his jaw clenched. The calm, steady energy I associated with him had vanished, replaced by something sharp and urgent.

“We need to go. Now.” He took my arm, his grip firm but careful, avoiding the bandages. The hellhounds surged to their feet, Mangus letting out a low, rumbling growl that vibrated through the room.

Ash hustled me toward the elevator, the hellhounds flanking us, Mangus’s massive body barely fitting. He stepped inside, pulled out his phone, and texted our driver. Then he made a call.