Page 45 of Dark Gambit: The Play

Nodding, she rose to her feet. "Where is the washroom?"

"I'll show you." Eleanor handed the cat to Emmett, who immediately transferred it back to Leon.

"He's not a cat person, is he?"

Eleanor laughed. "He only likes animals he can drink from."

32

MARCEL

Marcel was sure that Eleanor's comment would clue Sofia in to Emmett's real identity, but she just smiled and followed Eleanor out of the room.

She knew what hybrids looked like, and she should have figured it out by now. But the truth was that Emmett looked human, even more so than Vrog. Only Aliya looked alien. Perhaps the hybrids in Igor's compound looked more like Aliya than Vrog and Emmett.

"Should we tell her?" Marcel asked Leon.

"Tell her what?"

"That Emmett is a hybrid, and that he's the reason Jade has been spending time on the Safe Haven website."

"First, let's see how she does with the story we want her to tell and how well it is received. If all goes well, we can tell her, but I don't really see the need. It doesn't make a difference to her one way or another. She's human, and her affinity is with the other humans in the compound. She hates her hybrid mother."

That was true. During all of their conversations and the many times she'd mentioned all the people she would miss, Sofia hadn't said a thing about her mother. The female was like a stranger to her.

When Sofia and Eleanor returned, Sofia put in the earpieces with Eleanor's help and tapped them to activate.

Leon checked her ears. "You need to push them more firmly inside."

When she did, he motioned for Eleanor to test it.

"Sofia. Stand on one foot and touch your nose with your finger."

A wide grin spread over Sofia's face. "You sound like a different person, and no, I will not stand on one foot."

"Awesome." Eleanor smiled. "Now take them out, and we will repeat the test. Maybe I'm just not strong enough of a compeller."

When the test was repeated without the earpieces, Sofia obeyed the command with a grimace. "I hate compulsion. It's really vile."

"I won't argue with you on that," Eleanor said. "Put the earpieces in the case, and let's rehearse your story."

For the next hour, Emmett and Eleanor refined the story and made comments about Sofia's acting, or rather her overacting. She sounded rehearsed, and no matter how many times she tried to get better, she still sounded as if she was reading a script.

She was either a really bad actress or an excellent one who was trying to convince them that she was bad.

"It's no use." She threw her hands in the air. "He's never going to buy my story."

"I have an idea." Marcel got to his feet. "Pretend that you are trying to convince me of your story. Talk to me as if I’m Valstar or Igor."

Sofia took in a deep breath, and as she looked at him, her expression sent chills down his spine. She seemed frightened and unsure, and as she spoke again, she sounded like a scared child who'd been summoned to the principal's office, or worse, a prisoner facing her prosecutor.

He hated to see her like that, especially since she was talking to him, but her performance was much better. She'd still mumbled and got lost for words several times, but that could be explained away by her anxiety.

"That might pass," Eleanor said. "I wish we had more time, but the longer he doesn't hear from you, the more difficult it will be to convince him that everything is back to normal and that you are no longer a suspect."

Sofia sighed. "Let's do this." She reached for the cat and cradled Cecilia in her arms. "She will give me courage." She kissed the cat's head. "Won't you, sweetie?"

Marcel felt his heart squeeze. The poor girl had no one to turn to for comfort other than the cat, and he was a jerk for not being more supportive of her.