by Sophie Davis
I hadn’t taken stock of the small closet in the main room, the night before, so that next. Inside, I discovered a handful of plain cotton dresses, fashioned in the nondescript style that was common in Las Vegas since the Coalition’s takeover. The floor of the closet held three pairs of identical leather sandals, very similar to the ones that I wore around Headquarters. Unlike Penny, clothes held very little interest to me. The dresses were much like my own everyday wardrobe – boring.
I hadn’t been truly on my own since . . . well, ever. Loneliness and longing for Headquarters engulfed me. The sight of the familiar leather sandals comforted me slightly. Running my fingers across the stiff material, I reminded myself that the sooner I completed this Mission, the sooner I could go home. Hopefully I’d find Crane in the process.
After I had my fill of dried foods, I made my way to the shower. It was still pretty early, and I hadn’t gotten much sleep, but I really wanted to get started right away.
After my shower I selected a sleeveless navy dress from the closet, paired with a thin, brown leather belt and brown leather sandals. I piled my curls on top of my head in a loose bun, and popped in the facial-recognition eyeball lenses. I stared at myself in the small mirror over the sink in the bathroom. The lenses masked the purple of my eyes, making them appear to be murky-brown.
I laughed at my reflection. I couldn’t count the number of times that I’d wished I didn’t bear such an obvious Talent mark, but now as I saw myself, looking “normal,” I realized that my purple eyes were just as much a part of my identity as my Mental Manipulation. Even though I still looked like myself for the most part, I felt completely different.
I packed a small bag with the necessary imagers and communication devices, and set off towards the Strip. There were several nearby bars that Ian Crane’s men frequented, but it was too early for that. I decided that I would wander around the city, to familiarize myself with my new surroundings.
Leisurely, I strolled the streets. Uniformed Coalition men littered every corner. I had expected as much, but now that I was actually here, witnessing it firsthand, I realized that I’d vastly underestimated the danger I was facing. My arrogance from the day before vanished. With my facial recognition lenses, I scanned every man bearing the Coalition insignia that I passed, hoping to get a hit.
Around dinnertime I made my way to a pub on the first level of the Bally’s complex; the intel listed the bar as a known hangout for Crane’s men. I hesitated outside the doors, my pulse quickening. Crane might be inside. I’d played this scene in my head countless times over the past seven years, but now that I might really come face-to-face with my parents’ murderer . . . I was scared. I was still the little girl in the closet, just a child. The speech that I’d revised in my head numerous times that I had for Crane before I killed him, suddenly seemed inadequate. Maybe Henri had been right; maybe this Hunt was too much for me.
No, no, I chastised myself. I was strong. I was brave. I could do this. My combat skills might not be as developed as Erik’s, and my analytical abilities might not be as strong as Henri’s, but my Talents, my mental abilities, were second to none. I’d learned early-on to control my powers; Mac had worked tirelessly to harness my raw power, and convert it to controlled energy. I had been chosen for this Hunt not because it coincided with my graduation from school, but because I was the only Toxic member with a chance of success.
With my inner strength reinstated, I entered the pub, my head high as the glass doors slid apart. The interior was dark, and smelled of beer and stale cigarette smoke. Quickly I shut down my sense of smell, before disgust could show on my face. I forced myself to walk slowly and confidently up to the low bar. I pulled out a wooden stool and carefully perched on the edge. I crossed one leg over the other, allowing my dress to ride up my leg far enough to attract attention, but not far enough to give away the muscles resulting from my daily physical training. I spent so much time trying to blend in, that it felt odd to purposely draw attention to myself.
I caught the eye of a young guy sitting at the other end of the bar. He wasn’t overly unfortunate looking, so I gave him the most dazzling smile I could muster. Either he rarely saw girls, or Penny’s flirting lessons were paying off, because he returned my smile with one of his own.
My left eye lens scrolled quickly through Toxic’s facial database. My right lens displayed the man’s bio in barely-distinguishable print. I focused on the feel of the lens in my eye, until it right brought the words into sharper focus. I found what I was looking for. He was definitely one of Crane’s men.
Buy me a drink, I ordered, not breaking eye contact. He signaled for the bartender without taking his eyes off me, and ordered a fruity alcohol drink that I wasn’t familiar with. The bartender wasted no time filling the man’s order.
Bring it to me yourself, I mentally barked, when the bartender set the drink in front of him. Nerves made my commands stronger than I intended, but that probably wasn’t a bad thing. The man slid off the edge of his stool with his drink in one hand and mine in the other, making his way over to me. I kept my smile firmly in place as anxiety twisted my insides.
“You look thirsty,” he quipped, handing me the fruity drink.
“Parched,” I replied, reaching for the glass.
“Kyle,” he introduced himself. Up close, I noticed how young he was; Kyle couldn’t have been more than a couple years older than I was. His blonde hair was in need of a good shampooing and his clothes were slightly rumpled, but his amber eyes were friendly and inviting.
“Anna,” I offered my free hand and he took it delicately in his. I swallowed the urge to flinch and withdraw from his touch. Instead, I plastered a smile on my face.
“Mind if I sit with you?” he asked shyly.
“Be my guest,” I squeaked, all traces of my earlier composure gone. Sure, I was still confident in my ability to control him. Now I just wasn’t sure that I wanted to.
Kyle climbed onto the stool next to me. I pulled my dress down, covering the leg that I’d exposed in hopes of attracting attention. I wasn’t sure that I could mentally handle more than one of Crane’s men.
Kyle and I chatted easily over dinner and several more drinks. I used my Talents to convince him that he needed to frequent the restroom, giving me opportunities to pour my drinks out on the grimy floor. I tried my best to act drunk, but I wasn’t really sure that it mattered, since Kyle was actually drunk. He didn’t even need any encouragement from me.
Several of Kyle associates – also Crane’s men – stopped by to introduce themselves to me. I did my best, appearing to be a young, drunk girl new that was to the city. I chanced peeking in to several of their minds to confirm they were buying my act; none were overly suspicious.
Offer to walk me home, I demanded, as the night wound down.
“Can I walk you home?” Kyle slurred.
“Thanks, I’d like that,” I trilled, in my best drunk girl voice. Kyle shot me a genuine smile, and I almost felt guilty. He paid our bill and stumbled off of his stool, offering me his arm. I grit my teeth and looped my arm underneath his. Flirting with him was bad enough; touching him wasn’t really something that I wanted to do. We walked towards the exit to the pub, in a cacophony of catcalls from his cohorts. I resisted the urge to turn around and attack.
My apartment was several blocks away. Kyle rambled drunkenly the entire walk.
Ask to see me tomorrow, I ordered when we reached the street-level door to my apartment. I doubted that any of Crane’s men were watching, but I didn’t want to make any mistakes.
“Anna, I would love to see you tomorrow,” Kyle stated.
“I’d like that too,” I smiled back at him. He leaned in as if to kiss me, and I recoiled, waves of disgust washing over me. He drew back, shocked at my refusal. Crap.
Realizing my mistake, I went with the first thought that popped into my head. I envisioned kissing Erik. I summoned the feelings that his lips on mine evoked, and then projected those feelings towards
Kyle.
The sides of his mouth curled in to a dopey grin, and his amber eyes had a faraway look. His body gave a silent shudder, as a small moan escaped his lips. I really hoped that I didn’t actually look like that when Erik kissed me.
“That was awesome,” he muttered, brushing his fingertips across his bottom lip.
“I thought so too,” I replied quietly.
“I’ll see you tomorrow? Seven at the pub?” he asked, without prompting.
“Sure,” I whispered.
“’Night.” He stood there a moment longer. I wanted to leave. I needed him to leave. I’d been biting back tears since I’d conjured the mental image of kissing Erik, and the associated feelings.
“Leave,” I finally ordered, when it became obvious that he wasn’t going to on his own.
With that, he stumbled down the street without looking back. I hurried up the stairs to my apartment, mentally pushing open the door to my unit and rushing through. I ran straight for the bedroom, slamming the front door behind me as I went.
Collapsing on the bed, I hugged my knees to my chest and rocked back and forth. Tears leaked around the eye lenses, pooling in the corners of my eyes before falling in tiny streams down my cheeks. Physically and mentally, I could do this. All night I’d easily controlled Kyle, bending and twisting his will like a pretzel. I’d also established tenuous connections with several of Crane’s other men – just enough of a link for a quick swipe of their thoughts. I barely even felt tired from my efforts.
Emotionally? I couldn’t have been further away. I wasn’t sure how I had managed to get through the last several hours. I hated the way that I was acting, hated what I was doing. I reminded myself that it was all just a means to an end, and the end was very important.
I sat, curled in a ball on the bed, until the lenses began to burn in my eyes reminding me they needed to come out. Unfolding my legs, I fished out my bag of gadgets from under the bed. I popped each lens out and placed them in their designated compartment in my communicator. I turned the communicator on and searched for an Agency frequency to transmit the facial information I’d collected. In seconds, I was connected. I uploaded the images and reached to disconnect the devices. My index finger hovered over the terminate button for a moment longer than it should have.
“I know you won’t be able to hear or see me, but I’ll be on the other end of every communication,” Penny had said to me. I hoped that was true.
I pulled my dress off, disgusted by the beer and grease stains from where Kyle had touched me. I threw it in a crumpled heap in the corner of the tiny bedroom. The apartment was so hot, that I decided against wearing anything to bed. Instead, I stretched out on the mattress and tried to clear my mind so I could fall asleep. When that didn’t work, I reached in my bag and pulled out Erik’s note.
I ran my fingers over the tightly folded white square, tracing the letters of my name with the ragged nail of my right index finger. I chewed nervously on the corner of my bottom lip.
“For when you’re ready to hear it,” I whispered, reading Erik’s words out loud.
I had no idea what to expect when I finally found the courage to unfold the paper. How would I know when I was ready? What about Erik’s childhood was so bad that I had to ready myself to hear it? My parents were murdered in front of me, how much worse could it get?
I flipped the note over and over in my hands. I straightened the intricately folded paper triangles that threaded into one another – securing Erik’s secrets inside. I couldn’t muster the strength to smooth the crinkles and read their contents; I guess I wasn’t ready.
Laying his letter on the pillow next to my head, I stared at the small shape until my eyelids were too heavy to hold up.
I woke up with the sun the next morning. I tried to fall back asleep since I had no reason to get up so early, but the morning sun had kicked up the temperature in the apartment, until it was uncomfortably hot. Dragging myself to the bathroom, I turned only the cold water knob in the shower. The bite of the frigid water abruptly woke my senses.
I fished a purple dress, much like the blue one that was still crumpled on the apartment floor, out of the small closet and quickly dressed. I wanted to leave my curls loose around my face, but knew I’d be too hot. I settled for piling my hair into a messy up-do on the top of my head. Today I selected the camera eye lenses, and popped them in one-at-a time. I debated strapping a knife belt to my waist, just in case, but decided against it, opting for just one blade fastened to my left thigh.
Today my goal was to get ground images of the outside Crane’s compound. I had all of the aerial images and floor plans that the Cryptos had compiled, but I figured that more intel could never hurt. There was always a possibility that I’d learn something new.
Crane’s residence was set several miles back from the strip, surrounded by yards of metal fencing. There wasn’t much around the home, so I needed to be careful to remain unseen.
My dress clung to my sweaty skin as I approached the gates to the Crane place. There were no guards stationed outside, but the fence surrounding the property was likely charged with electricity. I blinked furiously as I strolled the length of the metal cage, my eyes trying taking in every inch of the exterior. The house itself was a stone architectural masterpiece. It stood four stories high and stretched the length of three average-sized houses. Ornately carved double wooden doors marked the main entrance to the home, and large glass windows with dark curtains dotted the front face.
I opened my mind as I walked and felt a buzz of activity from within. There were so many people inside that I couldn’t get an exact count, but I estimated somewhere between twenty and thirty. I was able to determine that no humans were patrolling the exterior, but I could feel animal minds. I’m not as good with animal minds as I am with human ones; I could determine the general location of the animals but nothing exact. Pretty much all that I knew was they were behind the back of the house and they were all real animals – no Morphers. I wanted to get images of the back and sides of the house, but the animals might give me away.
Heading back to my apartment, I felt somewhat dejected. The images that I’d actually been able to get didn’t give me any new or different information.
I flopped onto the uncomfortable blue couch in the living room/kitchen area with several handfuls of dried beef jerky and crystallized purple plums. The food was dry and unappetizing, but I was starving and would have eaten twigs if they were put in front of me just then. I uploaded the images to my communicator, only to confirm that none were useful and my morning had been a waste. I groaned in frustration.
After I ate, I still had several hours until I was supposed to meet Kyle. I spread out on the bed and tried not to move too much; I didn’t want to sweat any more than absolutely necessary. I pulled out Erik’s letter again. Staring at his familiar handwriting, I felt a little less lonely. My sweaty fingers smudged the ink as I traced the letters of my name.
An hour before I was due to meet Kyle I showered again, partially to calm my nerves and partially to get the salty layer of sweat off my body. The sun had already set, and the temperature had cooled slightly, but it was still warmer than I was accustomed to. I opted for another dress, even though I knew that if things went south, the dress was likely to hamper my movements. I selected a relatively short, loose-fitting dress from the closet, in the hopes I wouldn’t get tripped up in the skirt part. I elected to go with the weapons belt this time, feeling immediately safer once it was slung across my hips. The dress had pockets in the folds of the skirt, and I cut the lining open, so when I reached into the dress through the pockets, I could easily grab the blades from my belt. I still had the camera lenses in my eyes, but just in case I needed the others I stuffed them in the small bag I’d carried last night. Erik’s letter, still sitting on the bed, caught my attention. On impulse I grabbed it and threw it in too. Having it close to me almost made me feel like he was here with me. I took a last deep, calming breath before heading out the d
oor to meet Kyle.
The pub was crawling with Coalition men when I arrived. I immediately went on high-alert. Two Coalition men were stationed by the glass doors, searching everyone before they entered. Crap. No way could I let them search me. I could convince them not to, but if other’s noticed, the situation could get out of control quickly. I started to panic. What to do, what to do?
“Anna!” Kyle called, walking through the door and pulling me out of the line. “She’s with me,” he said to his cohorts. The guards each gave me a curt nod, I gave them a thin smile in return, being sure to blink as I looked at each man. Kyle led me to a small table along the wall farthest from the bar. He even pulled out the chair for me. His small, gentlemanly gesture sent a pang of guilt through me. I hated using him; even if he was the enemy, he’d been so nice to me. I surveyed my surroundings, blinking as quickly as I could in order to get as many pictures as were feasible.
“What’s going on? Why all the security?” I asked innocently. I already knew the answer; Ian Crane was either here or on his way here.
“President Crane is here,” he nodded to something behind my left shoulder.
Snapping my head around, I searched for him, seeking him out. Finally, I locked eyes with him. The room seemed to go silent, as if the only two people who occupied the room were Crane and me. A tidal wave of rage nearly consumed me. I felt rabid, and the only conscious thought I could form was “attack.” I felt my nose twitch as my lips curled into a snarl. Clenching my fists at my sides, I dug my fingernails sharply into the fleshiest part of my palms. The pain brought me back to reality. Focus, I ordered myself. Killing Crane in front of all these people is a bad idea.
I blinked slowly, hoping to get a clear picture of his face. My eyes were dry from wearing the lenses all day, and I felt the one in my right eye slip. I froze.
