Unless he’d been really and truly killed. The Emporium hit team definitely meant business and their swords weren’t just for looks. The idea sent a wave of nausea careening through my stomach. No, I won’t believe that. Delia had said Ritter was headed to the room. Both he and Jace had to be okay.
Faint steps outside what I assumed was the door urged me to my feet. I needed to be ready for whatever happened. Too soon for a rescue, I thought, but that didn’t stop me from wanting it to be one.
Patrick also climbed to his feet, his hand brushing mine like a kiss of frozen snow. “Probably just the food.”
“No, there’re four people out there, plus the guard.”
“How do you know?”
“Later.” I was suddenly trying not to panic because I’d only sensed three people out there but I had seen from the guard’s mind that Delia and Lew were also present. And now that she was this close, I could feel her impressive shield. Her mental signature screamed out to me. Instinctively, my hands ran over my body, but all my weapons were long gone.
“If they take you,” Patrick whispered in my ear, his voice low and urgent, “don’t believe anything, even your own thoughts. Some of them can see inside your brain. Not every thought, but they get enough to manipulate you. They push in their own thoughts until you believe they’re yours. If I grit my teeth and tense my head until I feel a rushing sound, sometimes I can hide from them—for a while anyway.” He was doing it now, and his shield was stronger than many I’d seen. I was sure I could get in, once I was more rested, but it was interesting that he could keep Delia out.
I nodded, though he wasn’t able to see me in the dark. I couldn’t even be amused at his telling me information about creating shields that I already knew. “Thanks.”
Light sliced across the carpet as the door opened, revealing not a room with bars like the one the other prisoners shared, but a simple room with no furniture. The overhead light switched on a heartbeat later, and a tall black man peered in, an assault rifle in his hands. I knew him at once. He was Edgel, the man who blamed me for his mortal daughter’s death. When he determined we weren’t a threat, he signaled his companions and came all the way through the door, moving to the side of the room, his weapon still ready.
The light was dim enough that it didn’t take long for my eyes to adjust, but next to me Patrick was still blinking and squinting. He had healing greenish bruises on his face, which I assumed were from his “therapy.” Obviously they’d given up trying to convince him and were now focused on ferreting out any last information about his life that he’d been able to withhold. He did look like his impersonator, but the blue eyes lacked the coldness of the imposter’s and his mouth was slightly more generous. It was a mouth that had laughed a lot. He was gentler all around, despite his long internment, and it made him more appealing.
Delia slid into the room as graceful as the first time we’d met, her customary gray dress flowing like a robe around her. Large brown eyes dominated her narrow face. She was a striking woman with a regal carriage even for an Unbounded, but the soft light couldn’t hide the age creeping into her skin. The strong smell of an herb came with her, scratching at my nose and permeating the room. I’d forgotten to emulate the aroma when I’d impersonated her, and it felt so strong to me that it was a wonder Dr. Tunns hadn’t suspected. Terror bounced off the walls, radiating from not only Patrick but also from the guard still in the hallway.
Lew came in behind Delia, his brown eyes glistening almost as darkly as his mental shield. He’d lost the ridiculous clothing from the hotel, and now wore black slacks and a shirt, the buttons open at the collar. Dr. Tunns followed Lew into the room, her aging face impassive.
“Hello, Erin.” Delia smiled and I felt Patrick tremble slightly beside me. I understood exactly what he felt. She frightened me worse than anything I’d ever faced. However, I’d always known this day would come, that she and I would do battle. I’d prepared myself, but I didn’t feel ready. I didn’t know if I’d ever feel ready, no matter how I reinforced my mental barrier.
“Hello, Delia.” I made my voice light. “How nice to see you again. Well, actually, it’s not really nice at all, but I tend to lie under stress.”
She gave me a thin smile. “Still not ready to accept your fate? It was sealed the moment you walked into your father’s office three months ago.”
“My father? Are you still propagating that story? I guess lying is something you also do well.”
Her lips pursed. “As Stefan’s daughter, you are safe in the Emporium until he gives the word. I can use that.” She took another step toward me, her straight posture loosening. “Look, I realize we didn’t get off to a very good start, but you are young and you will have a lot of years to learn that we are doing what is best for all our people, both ours and yours.”
“What about the mortals?” I felt her push against my fragile shield and clenched my fists, fleetingly wondering if I could smash one into her face before Edgel shot me. Thankfully, my shield held. Good, she couldn’t get inside, not as long as I concentrated.
She waved my words aside. “They will soon know their place.”
“You mean when your fake Patrick Mann assumes the vice president’s identity after he steps in for the president?” Let her worry about how much we actually knew—not that there was much we could do to stop her.
“I see you’ve done your homework.” Delia permitted herself a small smile. “When I think what we could do together, Erin, it astounds me. You are the only Unbounded alive besides me and Lew who has taken your ability to the next level. I believe it’s only the beginning. With study and alterations, we’ll be able to make everyone use their abilities to benefit the cause.”
Should I lead her on or tell her where she could shove her false camaraderie? The latter was really tempting, but probably not wise given my position. Better to keep quiet. Besides, I found her comment about making people use their abilities interesting. What she talked about was easily attainable to me since Mexico, not by using someone’s body and forcing them to act for me as she did, but by channeling their talent and using it as my own. Was she unaware of the possibility? Or maybe it was something she couldn’t do. Hope flared through me. I wasn’t as strong as she was in mentally controlling someone’s physical body, but what if I broke through her shield and channeled her ability? Could I be a match for her?
“It’s time to announce to the world that we exist,” Delia went on, unfazed by my lack of response. “No more hiding in the dark or pretending to be our own descendants. No more planting drugs to hide our battles or mourning our dead in secret. No more worrying about identification software that could ruin our lives.”
Something in my heart twisted at her words. No leaving our mortal families or visiting them in secret to avoid suspicion when neighbors finally notice you don’t age. No worrying about the Emporium slaughtering your family.
“We want that as much as you do,” I said, “but not at the expense of the mortals. They aren’t ready.” What I really meant but wouldn’t admit was that the Renegades weren’t ready to protect mortals from an Emporium suddenly unleashed upon the world. And I was beginning to see that coming out wouldn’t make Renegades any safer from Emporium attacks, not if people like Delia and Stefan were in charge. “We won’t let you hurt them.”
She let out a sigh of exasperation. “Don’t you understand yet? They don’t have the right to decide anything. We inherit the world, not them. In a hundred years every one of them will be dead. They are already halfway to dust. Inconsequential.”
“In three hundred years you’ll be dead as well,” I retorted.
Her eyes glittered dangerously, and I knew I’d hit a sore spot. “My legacy will thrive. I have earned rights because of my centuries of hard work, the devotion I have given to our kind. We are gods to the mortals. It is time we take our rightful place as their rulers.”
I remembered Keene’s statement about the mortals not giving in so easily. “They�
��ll fight.”
“Oh, I’m not saying there won’t be uprisings. The discovery of that drug in Mexico could have helped us control the rest of the world, but the delay your interference cost us there shouldn’t be too detrimental in the overall picture. It’s only a matter of a few careful changes in the law, a few more appointments of our people to certain positions. Once we’ve completely disarmed the mortals and secured our own rights, we’ll be ready to make the announcement. We have already invested billions in school education and in medications that will both ease our entry into society and give us a way to control the population. It will only be rough for a short time.” She offered a mirthless smile that made me shudder. “Then they will cease to matter. As for overseas, it is high time to use some of that good old American muscle. Mortals are always so willing to waste their short lives on a cause.”
She meant war. And not just war but global war, with mortal lives thrown away to further Emporium rule.
Dr. Tunns, who up until now I’d only given cursory notice, pushed past Lew to stand beside Delia. “Are we about done here?” There was no fear in her, but her voice was carefully modulated to show no expression.
“Director Tunns is right,” I said. “There must be a reason you came to talk to me, unless you’ve suddenly gained a conscience and plan to let me go. Let’s get on with it already. Why are you here? If you don’t have a good reason, maybe I can find a comfy spot on this low-grade carpet and have a nice cold nap while you work it all out.”
Delia eyes narrowed. “Oh, I have a reason. You will come with us. Now.”
“And if I refuse?” I couldn’t resist saying.
“Then I will have Edgel shoot you and drag you to the lab.” Her eyes almost begged me to resist.
Dr. Tunns gave an impatient grunt. “Come on.”
“Leave her alone!” Patrick stepped forward, finding his voice and his courage. His mind shield was tight, but fear oozed from him so tangibly I was sure everyone in the room felt it, sensing or no.
I hadn’t liked the vice president before, but I had to admit that since this whole thing began, I’d changed my mind. Anyone who could raise a man like the real Patrick couldn’t be all bad. I put a hand on his. “Thank you, but I want to go. I need to talk with her. Delia and I go way back.” Well, as far back as anything I knew about the Unboundaried, or Unbounded as we now termed ourselves. “I will be back for you, I promise.”
I felt rather like an idiot making any promise at all, but I couldn’t help the assertion. The arrogance was in my genes.
He glared at the others, nostrils flared, resembling the fake Patrick Mann more than he had before. “Okay, but remember what I told you.”
“I will. Thanks.”
I moved forward as Delia stepped aside to allow me to leave. Dr. Tunns and Lew followed, while Delia and Edgel took up the rear. In the hallway Delia paused and said to the guard who had stayed in the hall during our conversation, “Shoot him.” When he didn’t move fast enough, she pushed the guard closer to the still-open door. “I don’t care where, just shoot him. He needs to learn a lesson.”
“No!” I stepped toward the guard, only to have him level his rifle at me. Edgel did the same.
“Lew,” Delia said calmly.
In a fluid motion, the slender Lew drew out a pistol and fired through the door. I tossed out a shield in Patrick’s direction, but he collapsed, hands gripping his chest. I was too late or too weak. I’d never know which.
And just that quickly I’m inside you again, Delia said in my mind.
I CURSED HER UNDER MY breath and struggled to push her out and repair the damage she’d done to my shield while I’d been distracted, already knowing I was too weak because of the mental explosion at the hotel.
Wait, I didn’t have to be strong, not if I used her ability. Unless she could keep me out of her mind altogether. I hadn’t been able to get inside Lew’s shield at Emerson’s, but maybe Delia’s connection to me left her vulnerable. Even as the thought came, I pushed it away, replacing it with others. Anger, worry about my brother. Patrick being shot. If I didn’t focus too closely on any one idea for long, she wouldn’t be able to tell the important ideas from any others in the sand stream of my thoughts.
“After you,” Delia said with a laugh.
Against my will, I started walking. My first urge was to fight her compulsion as I’d done the first time we’d talked privately, but I needed to reserve my strength so I let her force me onward.
Delia turned to the guard. “Bandage our guest and give him some tonic. I’ll need him well tomorrow.”
Anger grew inside me, but I didn’t let it take over. Concentrate, I told myself. I knew from my own experience that she couldn’t see my ideas unless they were passing in my current thought stream so I was careful not to think about anything that might endanger our rescue plan for the prisoners. Then again, she might try to mess with the stream, forcing it to go as she wanted, to rip the information from me. I had to get her out sooner rather than later.
Her shield glistened like polished black agate, pristine and impenetrable, but there had to be some way in. We were already nearing the lab when I found it, a tiny, almost imperceptible flatness in her shield where part of her consciousness stretched toward mine. A thrust of my mental machete weakened it further, but I still couldn’t get inside. Delia didn’t react to my efforts, though I knew she must feel them.
“When we brought you here earlier today,” she said as we entered the lab, “Dr. Tunns took the liberty of doing a few tests. We now have the results and we’re going ahead with a procedure. It will be more comfortable if you don’t fight us.”
“What procedure?” I glanced between her and the doctor.
Delia looked at Lew and back at me. “We need more sensing Unbounded, Erin. With careful genetic experimentation, we may eventually be able to bring back some of the lost gifts, which has been a goal of ours for decades. In fact, we have experienced a few successes so far.”
I was aware of that. Brody Emerson was a prime example, but as far as I knew the Emporium was unaware of his exact ability. “Like what?” I asked, not letting my thoughts dwell on Brody.
Delia only smiled. “This procedure will help us move closer to our goals. Are you ready?” She gestured to a gurney in the corner of the lab that had shackles on the armrests. The end of the bed was lowered as though in preparation for an internal examination. “Lie down.”
I fought her now, every step, absorbing from the air as I pushed. One step and then another. One more. Panic filled me. They weren’t telling me what they planned to do, but I had a good idea. I felt almost naked in the blouse and knee-length skirt of the hotel uniform.
“I’ll just give you something to help you relax.” Dr. Tunns plunged a needle into a vial and filled the syringe. Beyond her, I noticed Edgel had taken up position by the door.
I reached out to Dr. Tunns, pushing easily past her shield, and saw what wasn’t being said. The solution in the vial wasn’t just something to help me relax but to put me out completely, and the procedure was insemination. Lew had received treatments that gave his sperm a higher possibility of engendering Unbounded, and he’d also been taking injections that would enhance the sensing ability in his offspring. More enhancements had been made in the lab and now his genetic material was ready for use.
“I wish we had more time to discuss this,” Delia said, compelling me forward, “but Stefan has heard about your capture and wishes to see you tonight.” She cast a dark look in Edgel’s direction that told me he’d had something to do with informing Stefan. Could it be he didn’t want to see me tortured as I’d assumed? “We need to finish this and get you ready to leave,” Delia continued. “Don’t worry. It’s just a little biopsy.”
I knew the truth, even if I couldn’t sense the lie in her voice. She probably saw in my thoughts that I’d discovered exactly what they intended, but she wanted deniability and unconscious I wouldn’t be able to accuse anyone. Even if Dr. Tunns
became the scapegoat, Delia’s power would protect her. Besides, Stefan wanted more sensing Unbounded, and I had the sick feeling that he’d look the other way, especially in light of how I continued to fight him. The Emporium’s breeding program was the reason they were so strong now, and every Emporium member was required to be a part of it.
Delia mentally forced me the few more feet to the bed. Sweat beaded on my forehead as I tried to resist. Dr. Tunns pushed me back onto the mattress, pulling my left arm into the first shackle and clamping it shut. After all the time I’d resisted my attraction to Ritter, in large part because I wasn’t ready for the commitment of a family, and here I was about to be forced. By the door, Edgel looked away, no expression on his face. I knew him well enough that even if he didn’t agree with what they were doing, his loyalty to the Emporium was unshakable.
A slow smile covered Lew’s crunched face, and I could see how much he was enjoying my helplessness. “We could let her stay awake,” he said. “She’d prefer that, I think.”
“No.” Delia’s voice was hard.
I scanned the room frantically, searching for anything to save myself. I saw my confiscated weapons on the desk, including Keene’s switchblade and Ritter’s ballistic knife. Close but too far away to do any good. Even my cell phone was there. Useless now as its self-destruct would have activated the minute they’d tried to turn it on without my fingerprints and the proper codes.
Dr. Tunns neared me with the needle, and I slapped her away. The mental pressure to lay my other arm in the shackle increased. And why not set it down? It was after all, only a small procedure that would be over in a little while, and it would benefit everyone, maybe even the whole world by helping to usher in an era of utopia.
Vomit rose in my throat as I shoved the thoughts away. Not mine, but Delia’s, so skillfully put inside my thought stream that they felt like mine. I pushed harder against her.
The Escape Page 25
