She sucked in a breath and spun around. “Where?”
“Sandhaven,” he growled.
Dark storm clouds roiled in Ryker’s eyes, and a pit formed in Brynleigh’s stomach. This was bad. She could already tell.
Even though she didn’t want to know the answer, she asked, “What happened?”
The temperature dropped in the kitchen.
“There was another bomb.” He dropped his phone on the counter and curled his fists. “The Black Night hit a fucking boarding school.”
Brynleigh recoiled, her vision clouding. Attacking the Choosing was one thing, but this…
“You mean… they went after children?” she asked, her throat dry.
Some things in life were off-limits. There were unspoken rules that even killers like Brynleigh followed, and staying away from children was one of them. Children were the fucking future of the Republic. No one touched them. Except now, the rebels had done just that.
Ryker raked a hand through his hair. “Some were injured, but none of them died.”
Relief rushed through Brynleigh, and her legs knocked together.
She gripped the counter. “Thank Isvana for small mercies. How old were they?”
“Teenagers, mostly.” He looked as distraught as she felt. “The students of Jade Academy were putting on a concert for their parents.”
“Oh, gods. So young.” She swayed, the counter the only thing keeping her upright.
How could the rebels do that?
“They’re insane, that’s how,” Ryker growled.
Brynleigh hadn’t realized she had spoken the last part out loud. He was right, though.
The rebels had officially lost their minds. There was no other reason anyone would attack youth. The Representatives were terrible, but this…
This was no way to go about forcing change.
Fuck them all.
Fury replaced the horror running through Brynleigh’s veins, and her grip tightened on the countertop. “You said it was a boarding school?”
He nodded grimly.
“Most of the Southern Representatives send their younglings to Jade Academy. It’s the most prestigious finishing school in the Southern Region, and it’s safe.” Another growl rumbled through Ryker’s chest. “Or it was before the Black Night showed up.”
“You’re certain it was them?” Although, how many rebel groups were there in the Republic anyway?
“Yes.” The word was guttural, and it sent shivers down her spine. “Bomb makers leave signatures, just like artists on paintings. This one was identical to the one that blew up the Masked Ball.”
“Oh.”
Brynleigh rubbed a phantom pain on her neck where she’d been injured during the masquerade.
Back when she thought revenge was the extent of her problems. Back when things had been simple. Back when she hadn’t known the depth of her Maker’s lies.
“I have to go.” Ryker’s hand brushed against Brynleigh’s wrist. “The vampires from the Night Corps are shadowing soldiers to Sandhaven to help with the investigation. I’ll be there for a few days, at least. The timing is horrible.”
Especially considering what they’d been about to do.