The Blood of Kanta by Marlena Frank

Author:Marlena Frank
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Marlena Frank

PART 2

THE SCIENTIST

7

THE MORAL CHOICE

AT ONE TIME Mercy feared being swallowed whole by the behemoth of Farrell Mill, but now she welcomed it. The place felt more like home than her own house had felt living with Dad. There she had felt more like a maid than a member of the household. She had more independence here than she ever did there.

Normally the front gates were wide open during the day, allowing plenty of room for werewolf cages to be brought in. But at night they were closed and the smaller door was the only way inside. She knocked on the door, the metal cold against her knuckles. The door opened a crack and a man appeared. He had scruffy brown hair, pale skin, and a thick mustache. One long scar stretched across his left jaw. She didn’t recognize him, but he must be the new guard who replaced Mitchell. She wondered if he knew that Mitchell had been slaughtered on the floor of the tower just a few weeks ago. He narrowed his eyes, probably surprised to see a girl at the door in the middle of the night.

She cleared her throat, but her throat still wavered. “Please, I need to come in. I’m—”

“Please, no names.” He held up a gloved hand to stop her, lifting an oil lantern in his other hand to illuminate her. He gave a short nod, his gaze turning hard. “You work here, don’t you?”

How did he know that? He had clearly seen her but she had never seen him before. A chill went down her spine, but she nodded.

He pulled the door back so she could enter.

“Thank you,” she muttered. She stepped inside and heard him close the door behind her. She didn’t stay to chat. The thought of getting to know the new guard that had taken Mitchell’s position made her feel icky. He might be a very nice person, the very opposite of Mitchell and Carter, but she couldn’t risk it. She needed to put as much distance between herself and him as possible. Besides, she knew where she needed to go.

The waiting room for the werewolves was completely dark and empty. Newly caught werewolves weren’t normally accepted until dawn. Through the door and across the metal catwalks above the grinders, her footsteps echoed off the metal in the large empty chambers. Even at night, the grinders turned. The steam was thick in the air and filled her lungs. She dragged her fingers across the cold metal of the railing, feeling places where the paint had flecked off. She leaned over the edge, rested her elbows on the railing, and stared down at the armless werewolves below. All of them had names, backgrounds, families, histories, but none of it would ever be known. They were lost causes now, failed experiments, captured souls lost to the shallow cruelty of Kanta.

She breathed in the thick air and let it back out slowly. She needed to collect herself, to prepare herself. Anxious, she needed to do something but she couldn’t figure out what.

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