Instead of joining us at the table for a civilized discussion, however, Cavazos leaned against the back of the couch, where he could see the three of us, the front door and the hallway, with nothing more than a glance in one of three directions. “First, the facts,” he said, evidently under the impression that he was in charge. Rumor had it he lived his whole life under that delusion. “Why does Tower want my daughter’s blood?”

“It’s not just hers,” Liv said. “He’s collecting Skilled blood samples—or maybe Skilled people, we’re not entirely sure about that—like Noah collecting for the arc. Minus the apocalyptic flood.”

“Interesting recruiting technique…” Cavazos said, as if he might consider something similar, and I wanted to punch him. “But taking children is way over the line.”

I huffed in disgust. “And enslaving teenagers as prostitutes isn’t?”

Cavazos turned to me slowly and the slightly deepened lines on his forehead hinted of caution—not guilt, not regret and certainly not denial—and that pissed me off even more. “I have no moral objection to the skin trade,” he said. “If someone wants to sell his or her body, who am I to object? Beyond that, I’m perfectly willing to profit from the sale, should someone wish to use my contacts to establish a reliable customer base. But I neither sanction nor participate in the binding of minors, for a variety of reasons.”

“Whether you ‘sanction’ it or not, it’s being done in your name, and you’re profiting from it, so don’t start talking like the horse you ride is any higher than Tower’s when the truth is that neither of you would recognize morality if it punched you in the face.”

“Cam…” Liv began, as Cavazos flushed with anger beneath a fragile facade of calm.

“Fine.” I held up both hands, palms out. “I’m done.” I’d had my say, and pissing him off would only hamper our efforts on Hadley’s behalf. “But once this is over, he will answer for what he did to Van and those other girls.”

“And when will you answer for what you did to them?” Cavazos returned, infuriatingly calm and smug, and for one long moment, I was at a loss for words, caught somewhere between guilt and righteous anger. “I know you killed my Binder, and the only reason you survived such an affront is that I wanted your services. Though I must say I’ve benefited from Olivia’s offer of an exchange.”

She bristled over his invasive gaze, and my own anger flared hotter. But Cavazos wasn’t done. “You didn’t free those poor girls from indentured servitude. You merely exchanged one master for another.”

“I was following orders—I had no choice. But they did. I didn’t make them sign, and none of those who did were underage,” I insisted, drowning in my ow guilt even as I tried to justify my actions, speared by the disgust clear on Anne’s face.

She hadn’t known what I’d done.

“I didn’t solicit their services, nor did I seal their bindings,” Cavazos said. “I didn’t even know some of them were bound as minors until the report came in that you’d recruited them for Tower.” He paused to let that hang in the air, and I couldn’t even deny the accusation. “When you get the chance, please extend my apologies to your friend Vanessa and assure her that the men who conscripted her have since met with a rather prolonged and painful end, befitting their crimes.”

“Do not say her name.” Names were power, and that bastard had no right to wield any power over Van—not ever again.

“Okay…” Liv stepped between us, as if she’d play mediator, and I read tension in every taut line in her body. “If we could get back to the point, the fact is that Tower’s not recruiting. He’s kidnapping people and stealing their blood, then selling it in the form of transfusions, to give temporary Skills to previous unSkilled people. For profit. For a huge profit, presumably.”

Cavazos blinked. Then he blinked again, and I found his complete ignorance of the issue incredibly satisfying. Especially considering I’d been in the same position only hours before.

He crossed his arms over his chest, and the effect was like watching a spring coil tighter, knowing it would soon explode from the tension. “Are you telling me that Jake Tower is selling Skills? To the general populace?”

“Yes.” I took almost perverse pleasure in confirming that. “And he’s obviously decided that your daughter’s blood should be part of his inventory.”

“What’s her Skill? I assume she’s either a Seer or a Binder?”

“We don’t know yet.” Anne played nervously with the cap from a bottle of water. “She’s only seven. Most people don’t know their Skill until closer to puberty.”

“But for Hadley, that may not be the case,” I pointed out. “Elle knew much earlier, right?”

“How could Tower know that?” Liv asked, and they all three turned to me.

I sighed and crossed my arms over my chest. “You said Elle’s brother’s name is Harrison, right?” I asked, and Anne nodded. “Well, there’s a Sonny Maddox working for Tower. One chain link—he’s about three years in. If Sonny is actually Harrison, my guess is that he’s how Tower found out about Elle and Hadley.”

“That son of a bitch!” Anne shouted.

I shrugged. “He may not have had any choice.”