Smoked

by Mari Mancusi

  “Sorry,” Trin amended quickly. “I’m just a little on edge right now. Go ahead. We’ll be right behind you.”

  Scarlet nodded, pushing past her to exit the cell and head down the hallway. Trinity and Connor followed close behind, stopping only to drag the unconscious guard into Scarlet’s cell, closing the door behind him. They didn’t need any evidence lying around for others to find.

  “Come on,” Trinity urged. “We’ve got to hurry.”

  They picked up their pace, making their way down the elevator, through the halls, trying to be as quiet as possible. For all they knew, there could be a hundred armed guards lying in wait around any corner, and Trin’s adrenaline spiked at every turn.

  Suddenly Nate’s voice crackled over the walkie-talkie. “Are you guys almost done? It’s getting pretty hairy down here. I’m not sure how long I’ll be able to stay in this box.”

  “We’re on our way to Emmy now,” Trin told him. “Just hang in there, okay?” She could feel Connor giving her a look but refused to turn to meet his eyes. No way was she going to bail now—not when they were so close. She reached for the walkie again. “If you need to get out, take the truck with you,” she told Nate. “We’ll have Emmy fly us over to the rendezvous spot once we get her out, and we can regroup from there.”

  “Roger that,” Nate said, sounding relieved. “See you on the flip side.”

  Trin stuffed the walkie back in her pocket as they reached the end of the corridor, blocked by a heavy metal door. Scarlet grabbed Trinity’s arm, stopping her in her tracks. “There,” she whispered. “That’s the testing facility. That’s where they keep her locked up.”

  “Hey! What are you doing in here?”

  The three of them whirled around at the sound of the gruff voice. A man dressed in a scientist’s white lab coat stormed toward them, fury on his face. “Scarlet? Why aren’t you in your cell? And who are these people?”

  Crap. They were totally busted. Trinity shot a look at Connor, then stepped into the guy’s path. “We’re no one,” she told him, using her gift to push him as hard as she could. “No one at all. Maybe you should just walk away.”

  Walk away, walk away, walk away, she chanted in her head. She could feel Connor, joining her in the push. We are no one. Just walk away.

  But unlike the guard down at the loading dock, the scientist didn’t seem phased by the attempted mind manipulation. Trinity creased her brow, worry threading through her. Some people were natural resisters—or maybe the Dracken, Mara, who was currently working with the government had trained him somehow.

  “You can’t be here,” the scientist continued. “This is a highly classified area. I’m going to have to call security.”

  He stalked over to a control panel by the far wall, where an intercom blinked green. Trin watched in horror as he made to press the button that would bring on the reinforcements. Her heart pounded.

  They’d be discovered.

  They’d be caught.

  They’d be killed.

  They’d fail Emmy one last time…not to mention the rest of the world.

  No. This time it had to work. It had to.

  Trinity dove for Connor’s pistol, grabbing it from the holster and squeezing the trigger as hard as she could.

  The bullet sang true—torpedoing into the scientist’s back—and he staggered backward, a crimson stain spreading across his lab coat at an alarming rate. Screaming, he made one last-ditch effort to reach the intercom, but Connor grabbed him, wrestling him away and shoving him to the ground. There, the man writhed in agony, gasping for breath as blood dripped from his mouth. With a grim face, Connor put him out of his misery.

  Trinity turned away, her stomach wrenching, the gun falling from her hand and clattering to the floor. Connor scooped it up, stuffing it back in its holster. Then he grabbed her by the shoulders, shaking her until he held her attention.

  “You did what had to be done,” he told her in a gruff voice. “You very well might have just saved the world.”

  She forced herself to nod, swallowing the bile that had risen to her throat. She didn’t want Connor’s worry for her to interfere with the mission. But as he turned away from her to concentrate on the door lock, she was forced to grab on to a nearby counter for support.

  He was right, she tried to tell herself. This one death could lead to millions of lives saved. Millions of innocent lives. Emmy’s life.

  And yet—her stomach roiled again—could there have been another way? From the very start, from that first day Emmy’s egg had arrived at the museum, there had been so much death. So much pain and suffering—so many on both sides lost. Was this scientist an evil man who deserved death? Or just an innocent researcher caught in the wrong place at the wrong time? Was he out to destroy the world? Or just put food on the table for his wife and kids?

  She stifled a sob, remembering Connor’s repeated mantra from the very beginning. Sacrifice one to save the world. But how much more would have to be sacrificed—how much more blood would have to be spilled—before this world would actually be saved?

  Connor rose from inspecting the man’s pockets. “No key,” he said.

  “They use fingerprint locks down here,” Scarlet squeaked out in a terrified voice. She’d retreated to the corner of the room, and Trinity found she couldn’t meet her eyes. “You’ll have to cut off his thumb.”

  The nausea rose to Trinity’s throat again. She tried to tell herself he was already dead—he didn’t need thumbs anymore anyway—but when Connor knelt down to work, she found she couldn’t watch the operation. Instead, she walked over to the door, peering through the window, trying to regulate her breathing.

  The room inside was eerily familiar. Cages stacked from floor to ceiling, filled with mostly primates and pigs. Trinity couldn’t help but think back to the vision she’d been shown by Caleb long ago, before Emmy had hatched from her shell—of her dragon, locked in a government cage. This government cage, she realized, the revulsion rising again. The very same place as the first time around.

  Had they managed to change any history at all?

  She thought about mentioning this little déjà vu to Connor, then bit her tongue instead. He didn’t need any more reminders that this rescue mission was all too similar to the last one. Instead, she squinted into the room, focusing on the cage in the very back.

  The giant cage. With a giant dragon inside of it.

  She gasped. Was that really Emmy? The last time she’d seen her, Emmy had been the size of a Labrador retriever. Now she was the size of an elephant. In fact, the cage she was in could barely contain her massive girth.

  “Emmy?” she whispered. “Is that really you?”

  “There,” Connor announced, rising to his feet. He walked over to the door and pressed the severed digit against the sensor. A moment later, the LED light above the panel blinked green, followed by a loud click as the door unlocked.

  Trinity didn’t wait for a second invitation. She dove through the door, running toward Emmy as fast as she could—without bothering to check whether there was any more security inside. Her ears caught the cries of the room’s other animal occupants, whooping and wailing and rattling their cages in protest of the strangers’ presence, but she tuned them all out. At that very moment, nothing else in the world mattered but the dragon in front of her.

  When she reached Emmy, her legs gave out from under her, and she dropped to her knees, unable this time to stop the vomit from rising to her throat as she looked at her dragon.

  At what remained of her dragon.

  Emmy. Beautiful Emmy—the gentlest, sweetest, kindest creature to ever live—now lay listlessly in her cage, her once brilliant-emerald flanks faded to a dull gray, checkerboarded with ugly scars and pus-filled sores. One wing hung oddly at her side, as if it had been broken and not set correctly. And her shorn claws were caked with sinew and blood.r />
  But it was her eyes that were the most troubling. Those beautiful blue eyes that set Emmy apart from the rest of her kind, eyes that had once sparkled like so many sapphires. Now they were colorless, translucent, vacant. Empty eyes drained of all spark and life.

  Suddenly Trinity had the urge to go kill that scientist all over again.

  “Emmy!” she cried, hating the fact that she was forced to speak out loud in order for the dragon to hear her. “Emmy, it’s me! Trinity! We’re here to rescue you.”

  Slowly, Emmy rolled over, a groan escaping her mouth, gagged by a metal binding, as if even this slight movement caused her pain. She stared at Trin dully, with absolutely no recognition in her eyes.

  Oh God.

  “Emmy, do you hear me? It’s Trinity.” She turned to Scarlet, grabbing her by the shoulders and shaking her. “Tell her it’s me! Tell her we’re here to rescue her.”

  “I can tell her,” Scarlet replied, her voice once again filled with her earlier reluctance. “But to be honest, I’m not sure she’ll care.”

  Fury rose inside Trinity like lava from a volcano. “What the hell is that supposed to mean?”

  Scarlet looked away, her eyes filled with guilt. “I did try to warn you,” she said. “She’s…different now. She’s changed.” She looked back at Trinity. “I mean, don’t take it personally. She’s hasn’t spoken to me for months now.”

  Trinity’s anger combusted into sheer horror. She looked from Scarlet to her dragon and then to Scarlet again. “You were supposed to protect her,” she whispered hoarsely, unable to stop the words spilling from her lips. Oh, Emmy. Poor, poor Emmy. “That was the whole reason I sent you here. To keep Emmy safe!”

  But even as she spoke the words, she realized how useless they were. How could Scarlet have protected Emmy in this place? She’d been a prisoner too.

  No. This was all Trin’s fault. She was the only one to blame.

  I’m so sorry, Emmy. I should have gotten here sooner. Somehow. Someway.

  Emmy had chosen her—not Scarlet, not anyone else in the world—to be her Fire Kissed. And long ago, they’d made a dragon/guardian pact to keep one another safe.

  Trust me, little one, I’ll never let you fall.

  Six months ago, Emmy had lived up to her end of the bargain, sacrificing her own happiness, her own safety, her own future, to save the boy Trinity loved—putting her life in jeopardy without a single pause for consideration.

  And in return, Trinity had let her down. Allowed her to be captured and taken away. Now, here was her dragon—so filled with life and laughter once—just a shell of her former self. And it was all Trinity’s fault.

  Her mind swarmed with horrifying visions—of Emmy arriving at the lab, shivering and afraid. Of Scarlet trying her best to comfort her, promising her that the Fire Kissed was certainly on her way. Of Emmy’s hopeful face fading to despair as the days passed slowly, with no sign of rescue. Until the dragon was curled up into a ball at the back of her cage, refusing to listen to any more of Scarlet’s rescue fairy tales.

  “I’m sorry,” Trin whispered, her heart breaking into a thousand pieces. “I tried. I really did.”

  But she hadn’t tried hard enough. Emmy had depended on her, and she’d let the dragon down. In some ways, Trin was more to blame for this whole mess than the scientists themselves. And now that she was finally here, was it simply too late?

  “Look, there will be time for apologies later,” Connor broke in, putting a hand on her shoulder. “Right now, we need to figure out how to get her out of here.”

  Trinity watched, scarcely able to move, as he ran to the control panel, using the bloody thumb to unlock the cage. When the lock clicked, she grabbed the cell door with both hands, trying with all her strength to pull it open. At first, it didn’t budge, and her heart flip-flopped with fear that they might have failed once again. But then Connor and Scarlet joined her efforts, and the three of them were able to widen it enough for Emmy to step through.

  But Emmy didn’t step through. Not even a glance to the open door to acknowledge her freedom.

  “Come on, Emmy!” Trinity begged, yanking off the dragon’s gag. “You’re free. We need to get you out of here.”

  But the dragon only blinked dully at her before lowering her head to the ground. Then she closed her eyes. She was so still that only the small twines of smoke drifting from her nostrils gave any clue she was even alive.

  This was not good. This was so not good.

  “Come on!” Trinity tried again. Desperate. Frightened. Her gaze shot to the back door. Connor had jammed it with a few pieces of heavy equipment, but it wouldn’t take long for the guards to break it down if they tried. “They’re going to figure out we’re in here. We need to leave now. Before it’s too late.”

  Her pulse was skyrocketing now. If Emmy didn’t move on her own, what were they going to do? She was too big to carry. She had to weigh at least a couple tons. The only way she was getting out of here was if she walked or flew herself.

  And if she refused to do that…

  “Emmy, listen to me!” Scarlet broke in. “This is your rescue. Do you understand that? This is the happily ever after I’ve been promising you.”

  Emmy opened one eye but made no effort to move.

  Suddenly Trinity could feel Connor grabbing her arm, trying to drag her backward. “It’s no use,” he told her in a tight voice. “They’ve broken her spirit. I’ve seen it before, and dragons don’t recover from it. It’s over, Trin. There’s nothing we can do.”

  “No!” She jerked his hand away, running to Emmy. She dropped to her knees again before the mighty beast, throwing her arms around her neck and squeezing her as tightly as she could. Emmy was so big, so beautiful, even with all her afflictions. And Trin’s tears rained down, wetting Emmy’s dull scales.

  “Emmy, I know you’re hurting. And I know you’re scared,” she whispered to the dragon, her voice so choked at this point she could barely form the words. “And I know you’re probably mad at me for taking so long to come. But I’m here now, Emmy. And I’m going to get you out of here. I made a promise to you long ago, and I’m not going to break it now.”

  She looked up at Connor. “Get Scarlet out of here,” she told him. “I’m going to stay with her.”

  Connor’s face paled. “No.” He shook his head. “They’ll kill you if they find you in here.”

  “Then they’ll kill me,” she replied, her resolve firming. “And I’ll die with my dragon. I should have never let her go in the first place. And I will never leave her again.” She rose, giving him her most defiant look. “Now go.”

  Connor hedged, looking torn. Trinity opened her mouth to tell him again but was interrupted as Emmy suddenly jerked her head—violently—in her direction. Caught off guard, she lost her balance and went sprawling to the floor, yelping in pain as her ankle jarred from the impact.

  What the…? She scrambled back to her feet, turning questioningly to the dragon. Emmy glared back at her. For the first time since they’d arrived in the lab, she thought she saw something in the beast’s eyes. And crazy hope stirred within her.

  “You don’t want me to stay, do you?” she challenged the dragon. “You want me to leave you here and save myself.” She crossed her arms over her chest and stared the beast down. “Well, sorry, Ems, that’s not going to happen. I’m your Fire Kissed—I don’t care if we’ve been de-bonded. You stay here, I’m staying here. End of story.”

  Emmy’s eyes narrowed. Steam hissed from her nostrils.

  “Come on, Trin,” Connor begged. “She clearly does not want to go.”

  “Then neither do I,” Trin replied flatly. She planted her feet firmly on the floor, directly in front of the dragon. “You want to die in here, Emmy? No problem. But we’ll die together. Sound like a plan?”

  Emmy tossed her head angrily, pawing the ground with
her foot. Her mouth was slightly open, and Trin could see the warning sparks of fire dancing on her tongue. The dragon took a couple threatening steps toward her, but she held her ground.

  That’s right, Emmy. Get mad. Get furious. Just don’t let them win.

  Suddenly she felt Connor at her side. “You know what?” he asked, shooting Trinity a look. “I think I’m going to stay too.”

  “Me too,” Scarlet added, also crossing her arms over her chest as she stepped into line between the two of them. She flashed the dragon a fierce look that sent a thrill up Trinity’s spine.

  Yeah, baby. Team Dragon represent.

  “Sorry, Ems,” Trinity said, forcing back a smug smile. “But it looks like you’re stuck with us.”

  Emmy opened her mouth, probably to protest, but a sudden banging at the entryway interrupted her, followed by angry shouting just behind the door. Trinity’s heart jolted in her chest. Crap. They’d been found out. And she knew it wouldn’t take them long to break down the doors and through Connor’s hastily assembled barricade.

  Team Dragon’s bluff was about to be called, big time.

  She turned back to Emmy, trying not to let her fear show. “Your move,” she said to the dragon. “Are you going to let us all die here? You gonna just let them win? Or should we live to fight another day and take down the bastards who did this to you?”

  For a moment, Emmy stood perfectly still. Then, out of nowhere, she let out a loud roar. Charging out of her cage, she grabbed Trin in her mouth and tossed her onto her back as if she were a sack of potatoes. Trin landed hard and tears stung her eyes. But the pain was nothing compared to the joy rising within her.

  She was going to do it! Emmy was going to break free.

  Scarlet and Connor joined her a moment later, scaling Emmy’s wings until they were sitting behind her. There was barely room for all three of them, and Trin prayed Emmy—in her wounded state—would have the strength to get airborne with the added weight.

  But before she could raise the question, the lab’s doors burst open. Guards rushed in, guns locked and loaded, barking orders and preparing to open fire. Chaos erupted as the primates and pigs squealed and screamed and rattled their cages in protest to the invasion, but the guards ignored them, their eyes on Emmy and her team of rescuers.