Page 35 of Dark Gambit: The Play

"Do the females get to leave the compound at all?" Toven asked.

"They have to. They need to go hunting."

That was a good morsel of information. Maybe they could save Jade by waiting for her to go on a hunt and pluck her from outside the compound.

Kian silenced the microphone. "That's how we will get her out. We just need a tech guy to remove the collar. It's probably booby-trapped."

Turner nodded. "I hope it's not some alien technology we can't handle. The compulsion is another issue. If we remove the collar, she will still resist us because of the compulsion. We will have to knock her out."

"I don't have a problem with that. Although given that it took three immortal males, two of them Guardians, to take one hybrid female down, we will need to tranq her." Kian reactivated the microphone. "Ask her if the females are escorted by guards when they go hunting."

"Are the females allowed to hunt without an escort?" Julian asked.

"They need to get a pass," Sofia said. "This informs security that they are out, and if they don't come back, I guess guards are sent after them. But I've never heard of something like that happening. They all come back." She rubbed a hand over the side of her neck. "Maybe there is something in those collars that forces them to return, or maybe Igor's compulsion is enough."

From what Kian had heard so far, he was convinced it was both. Igor didn't leave anything to chance.

"How come you got to leave and attend university?" Mia asked.

"For some reason, Igor is much laxer with the humans living in the compound. He either feels sorry for us because of our short lifespans, or because his control over us is even stronger than the control he has over the purebloods and hybrids. Some of the human descendants of the Kra-ell are sent to study all kinds of subjects. I thought that the compulsion was enough to keep track of us, but evidently I underestimated Igor's paranoia." She huffed out a breath. "As if I would voluntarily endanger my family." She chuckled bitterly. "He obviously didn't expect me to encounter a compeller who was more powerful than him."

"What about the close-circle females?" Toven asked. "I'm sure his original cell had some females in it."

"I don't know. I wasn't told. All the females have collars."

Toven nodded. "The Kra-ell are a traditionally female-ruled society. The females in his cell were supposed to be the leaders. When he chose to make his community patriarchal, he subdued all the females."

"So the rumors were true," Sofia whispered.

"Where did you hear the rumors?" Marcel asked.

She shrugged. "Here and there."

Obviously, she was trying to protect whoever she'd heard it from, but she shouldn't worry about them using that information against her source. She was most likely protecting them from Igor.

"Is it against the rules to spread rumors like that?" Toven asked.

She snorted out a laugh. "What do you think? Igor is the undisputed ruler of the compound. Even to suggest that he's not supposed to be is considered treason."

"Makes sense." Toven crossed his arms over his chest. "That's why Navuh keeps his mate hidden. He doesn't want anyone to know that she outranks him."

"Is Navuh a Kra-ell?" Sofia asked.

"He's not, but he has a lot in common with your Igor."

"He's not mine," she hissed.

"Ask her about their training," Kian told Julian.

"How well are the purebloods and the hybrids trained?" The doctor repeated the question. "And do the females get training too?"

"The males train a lot, and the females train as well, but not officially. Igor allows it because they need an outlet for their natural aggression, but he never takes them out on missions."

"Finally, we are getting somewhere," Kian murmured. "Ask her about those missions."

"What missions do Igor and his males go on?" Julian asked.

"I don't know. I don't even know when they leave and when they return or what their objectives are. It's not like he makes it official."