Lavender & Fire

51. The Truth Revealed

Inside the bunker, Niva gave Butok an antidote to counteract the drug. "Come on, wake up." She smacked him across the face.

Butok drew in a deep breath and searched the room with wide eyes. Soon his gaze landed on his captor. "Niva." He said weakly as he shook his head to clear it. "What are you doing?"

"Getting revenge on the real people responsible for my sister's death. Something you should have done years ago."

"Niva..." Butok said as he blinked his eyes to try and clear his vision as the drug wore off. "You know your sister wouldn't want this."

"She was blind to the truth. Just as you are. That organization never cared about her. They don't care about anyone. They just want to be in control and have power. Lives don't matter to them. My sister and my precious niece died and they didn't care! And you!!" She turned and pointed her finger at him. "You just went right back working for them as if they hadn't caused the brutal murder of your wife and child."

"Sial believed in our cause! It is what she wanted!" He drew in a deep breath to calm himself. "I tracked down the male who did that to them and made him pay for it. After that, I had no choice but to continue living in a world without the two most important people to me in it. How dare you accuse me of not caring!" Butok fought against the restraints on his hands, which were attached to a steel pipe on the wall. "I wish I died instead of them. Every day. The only reason I had the strength to walk out of that house and not let the flames consume me is because she asked me to! With her dying breath she asked me to avenge our daughter's death and I did. That murderer suffered days of pain inflicted by these two hands." He held out his bound hands before fisting them angrily.

After a short moment of silence he spoke more softly. "Your sister wholeheartedly believed in what she was doing. The only way I could think to honor her was to continue on for her. It is what she would have wanted."

"You don't know what she would want." Niva replied angrily, shaking her head.

"I know she wouldn't have wanted this. She would be heartbroken to see the organization dismantled and humiliated. And all of its secrets revealed. She would be thoroughly disappointed and angry with you."

"No!" Niva yelled, pure anger coursing through her. "Just tell me where to find Plar and the others, so I can finish this." She seethed.

Butok just sighed and shook his head. "You know I won't do that, Niva."

"I spent years planning this." She paced in front of him. "For years I worked to befriend and manipulate and coax that idiot Daielle until he was putty in my hands, just so he could bring the downfall of this entire organization. But you and that guard had to ruin everything!"

"You are the reason Daielle went rogue?" Butok said in disbelief.

"He was already not right in the mind, Butok. I simply recognized my opportunity to use that to my advantage. I let him do his silly initiation tests and play his games. I built up his confidence and his anger. I had him so thirsty for power and convinced he was the homelands savior that he was completely blind to the gaping holes in my plans that would lead to his failures. He thought he was invincible. It was all too easy after I got rid of Tog and Meita."

"That was you?! We knew both of them dying was suspicious." Butok growled.

"I was too careful for you to figure it out. I waited an entire year in between their deaths and made sure they were completely different. One an accident and one to look like natural causes." Niva smirked. "I couldn't manage to get to Plar, but with her standing alone it was all too easy to have Daielle begin implementing the changes I needed."