Invaded (Alienated, #2)(59)

At least that’s what she thought until she saw the blood.

A slick smear of burgundy stood in stark contrast against the tile floor, winding a macabre trail that led from the far hallway to the lobby.

What had happened in here?

“Try it,” Skall said in L’eihr as he brushed past her. “I’ll be ready for you.”

Try what? Before she could bring the question to her lips, he strode away with his friends. The clones stole glances at her over their shoulders. Fear darkened their gazes, despite the fact that each of the boys outweighed her by fifty pounds of solid muscle. They were scared of her, though she couldn’t imagine why.

“Sweeeeeney.” Satan had caught up with her. “Please to say you not do this.”

Cara recalled the stolen tablet beneath her pillow and the false accusation in the dining hall. She had a feeling Dahla had framed her for something a lot more serious than tampering with her food this time.

“Do what?” she asked, glancing at the blood. “I don’t know what happened here.”

Instead of telling her, the guard demanded to know her whereabouts as of thirty minutes ago. Cara told him the truth—that she’d spent most of the day in the nursery before practicing on the outdoor track. Then he asked if she’d seen Dahla today.

“I see her every day,” Cara said. “In the washroom and in our classes.”

Satan interrupted the interrogation and took her gently by the shoulders. “You have much fights with this girl, yes?”

“Is that what she told you?” Cara swallowed a lump. She reminded herself that L’eihrs couldn’t lie through Silent Speech, so there was no way Dahla could hurt herself and blame Cara for it. “Because I think she’s been trying to get me in trouble. Whatever she said—”

“She tell us nothing,” Satan said. “Girl is barely alive, getting new blood from clinic.”

Cara stopped breathing.

“There you are.” Aisly strode in the front door with Jaxen and the headmaster at her heels. “We’ve been searching for you. Why didn’t you answer your sphere?”

Still in a daze, Cara stammered a few times before getting the words out. “It never rang. Or buzzed, or whatever.” She pointed at the bloody trail and tried not to let her voice crack. “I didn’t do that.”

“Of course you didn’t,” Jaxen said. But he dropped his gaze to the floor and puckered his brow. “Now that you’re here, you can help us understand.”

“Understand what?”

“During the last class change,” Aisly said, “two clones found Dahla brutally stabbed, along with a message scrawled in blood.” Her gaze flickered to Jaxen’s. “It said, I’ll come for you next. But it was written in English.”

“That doesn’t prove anything,” Cara argued. “Lots of people here speak English.”

Jaxen hesitated twice before telling her, “The boys claim they had a feud with your brother—and that you and Dahla have had several altercations.”

Cara closed her eyes and tried to think. Someone was still trying to frame her, but it couldn’t be Dahla. Maybe Odom and Skall were to blame. Both boys had access to Dahla’s breakfast that day in the dining hall. “I’ll bet one of them attacked her and wrote that message.”

“But the guard searched your room,” Aisly said. “And found a bloody kitchen blade.”

“Along with several decapitated animals and a h’urr blossom,” Jaxen added softly.

“No,” Cara whispered. She didn’t even know what a h’urr blossom looked like, let alone how to extract a neurotoxin from it. “I swear I didn’t do it.”

Jaxen took a tentative step toward her, holding both hands forward like a crossing guard. “You’ve been under a lot of pressure, Cah-ra. You’re alone and worried for your people. If you feel hopeless or depressed, perhaps you require…help. We can provide that for you.”

So now they thought she was criminally insane? “I don’t need help,” she cried. “Someone planted the knife and blossom, and Vero put dead animals in my room as a present.”

Apparently, that was the wrong thing to say if she wanted to avoid sounding crazy.

The group exchanged worried glances and began using Silent Speech to cut her out of the conversation. A vise tightened around Cara’s lungs. She could use Silent Speech to clear her name, but her instincts begged her not to let Jaxen and Aisly find out she could communicate with her mind.

But what choice did she have? The siblings were in control here. One word from either of them would deem her innocent beyond reproach. As members of The Way, their decree was law.

Wait.

There were ten members of The Way, and even Jaxen and Aisly answered to a higher power. Cara had one other option to save herself. It meant putting her trust in an Elder she barely knew, but she’d gladly take the risk. Cara licked her lips and stood tall, faking a confidence she didn’t possess.

“I held a Sh’ovah,” she declared. “I’m a citizen and I have rights.”

Aisly tipped her head in confusion. “Of course you do.”

“Then I request a private audience with Alona,” Cara said. “And only her. I want to go to the capital.”