Our kiss ended abruptly when Brad opened the door. "Sorry. Didn't know you were awake."
Drake pulled back slightly, but wrapped his hands around mine. "It's okay, come in."
Brad closed the door behind him. "You look terrible."
"Gee, thanks. Just what every girl wants to hear."
"So what happened?" Brad sat in a chair in the corner.
"I think I was mind-jacked."
Brad's brow wrinkled in confusion. "Mind-jacked? Is that even a real thing?"
"It is now. Someone hijacked my mind, tried to spy on us from my eyes."
"Shit, man, that is seriously messed up." He leaned forward in the chair, his hands clenching and unclenching. "Are we in danger? Do they know where we are?"
I shifted under my blankets. "I don't think so. I pushed them out before I fainted. They didn't see much, but they might have gotten something from my memory. Depends on how powerful they are. Then again, I don't know the address here, so maybe they can't find us anyway. I just don't know."
"Maybe we should leave," Drake said.
Brad crossed and uncrossed his feet. "Where else could we go at this point? We still need to get our story out and find some help. Bernard is helping me with that. Maybe we should talk to him and see what he thinks."
"See what I think about what?" Bernard stood in the doorway, his face etched with worry lines. "I'm glad to see you conscious again. These boys have been running around like headless chickens. We were all very concerned for you."
Drake helped me sit up again so I could see everyone while I explained what happened to the professor.
"This is concerning," he said. "They have some pretty heavy para-powers on their side if they were able to get into your brain. We'll have to give this more thought. In the meantime, I have some information you might find interesting."
He sat down in a chair opposite Brad and crossed his legs. "I got an email about the hair sample I sent in for testing. You had copious amounts of drugs in your system—a designer drug, actually, that is a blend of several narcotics. The length of your hair showed that the drugs have been in your system for years. Your entire hair follicle had traces of it."
"So that means they've been feeding me drugs for as long as I've had my hair?"
"Basically, yes."
"What drugs?"
"It looks like a blend of opiates, something resembling meth, and something else the lab has never seen. I speculate the effects of this drug would create a slight euphoria, augmenting the organization's ability to use subtle coercion, and perhaps environmental controls, to keep all of you kids happy and unquestioning about your circumstances."
Brad cleared his throat. "So, in plain English, what you're saying is they drugged the kids to keep them happy and complacent, right?"
The professor mock-scowled at Brad. "More or less, yes."
His words relieved a guilt that I didn't realize I'd been carrying. "So I'm not just a gullible idiot for believing them all these years?"
"You were never that, even without the drugs."
"Then why did I believe Drake when he started questioning things about my life?"
"I thought about that, and I suspect it is a combination of the hormones released in your system from the pregnancy and good old-fashioned love. The chemical and emotional connection you and Drake formed likely changed your physiology enough that you were able to think through the drugs. It looks like the vitamins you received every three months were really drugs, and they probably wore off around the time you went into withdrawals."
"That means all my friends are still getting drugged up." I placed a hand over my belly. "What about the baby? Wouldn't this be bad for the baby too? Drake, we need to link to Lucy and Luke and tell them what's happening. We can't put this off anymore, not even for my health."
He frowned, but didn't argue. Smart man.
The professor gave a pointed look to Brad and walked out of the room.
Brad jumped up from the chair. "Right, we'll just go work on the blog some more. You two talk to your friends."
He closed the door behind him, leaving Drake and me alone.
Drake brushed stray strands of hair from my forehead. "Are you sure about this? Opening yourself up could give whoever is tracking you more access."
"I hadn't thought of that, but you'll be in there with me. Together we're pretty strong."
"Okay, but if anything goes wrong, we get out and shut down the link. Agreed?"
"Agreed."
We held hands and closed our eyes. The physical contact helped strengthen our focus, making the link more powerful.
The universe expanded and time stood still. Drake and I merged into one thought, one heartbeat, one breath. At this level of connection, direct thoughts were no more necessary than they would be with one's self. Every secret, every hidden corner, every nuance of memory lay open and transparent. This level of intimacy required complete trust—nothing could be held back.
Our collective mind pulled from memory the mental signatures of Luke and Lucy, as distinct as fingerprints, as familiar to me as their voices. We slid in gently; unlike my mind assault on Kylie, this wouldn't hurt them. It merely expanded their capacity to "hear" beyond the range of their ears.
'Sam? Is that you?' Lucy's mental voice carried her signature enthusiasm for life. I had missed her more than I allowed myself to acknowledge. All my love for her and Luke carried forward in my thoughts as images, emotions, memories.
Just as all their worry and fear crashed into me.
Luke and Lucy were in trouble.
Chapter 13 – Lucy
It didn't take as long as Lucy expected to fill Sam and Drake in on the changes at Rent-A-Kid. Rather, the shock on both ends took the most time to process.
Lucy's skin crawled at the thought that the school had force-fed her and Luke and everyone here drugs their whole lives. What kind of long-term damage would their bodies suffer? And poor Sam, going through detox and withdrawal while pregnant—how awful! Lucy wished more than anything she could be there for her friend during all this, instead of stuck planning a rebellion.
Luke's mental voice broke through her thoughts. 'So what do we do about this Seeker dude?'
"Drake and I will need to figure out a way to track him. He must be somehow connected to your power problems. Nothing else makes sense at this point. When you go on your assignment, can you figure out a way to email us photos and a layout of the security at the school? Mark off which buildings are off-limits, where the soldiers are stationed, that kind of thing. We'll find a way in as you guys plan a way out. A two-pronged attack on them may be our best bet. Lucy, can you hack into the school and see if you can find anything useful?"
'I can try. Security is pretty tight these days. We'll do our best to get that information to you while we're on assignment. It's going to be risky, but we can't sit around waiting for them to do more experiments on us.'
"I have to go now. My body is still weak, but I'll check back in with you guys as soon as I can. Be safe. I love you both."
'Love you too, Sam. Drake, take care of her.'
'I will,' Drake said.
They were gone. Lucy's head suddenly felt light after sharing it with three other people. She didn't know how Sam survived it, bumping into every thought someone else had. Lucy would have gone crazy and started slapping people to get them to mentally shut up.
She sat up straighter on the couch in their suite, and reached for a glass of water. "This just gets better and better, doesn't it, Bro?"
Luke stood and paced the room, his brow furrowed in worry. "Still think the Freedom Fighters group is worthless?"
"I don't know. I can't see it working, but it doesn’t look like we can totally count on Sam either. We may have to do something, but I'm not sure the Freedom Fighters are the way to go." The campus loudspeaker buzzed. "Oh, crap. We're late for class. Hurry!"
They grabbed their book bags and raced from the room before the hall monitors could cite them f
or tardiness.
Outside, a crowd had formed around the center circle, where punishments were handed out for citations. In the past, Higgins handled these issues privately in his office, not as a public display of power like this.
Luke and Lucy paused to see what the commotion was about.
The voice of their new god, Mr. Black, boomed from a megaphone. "Classes have been postponed in order to mete out punishment to a student who felt he was above the rules. Assemble at the circle as witness to his crimes, or suffer your own consequence."
One of the Freedom Fighters stood bound and gagged in the center.
Lucy couldn't remember his name, but recognized him from the meeting. She hoped they hadn't snagged him for rebel-related infractions.
Mr. Black continued. "This boy was caught using his powers in an improper location without permission. Punishment has been set at five lashes to the back."
The crowd gasped. First, no one had ever prevented students from using their para-powers anywhere they liked, as long as they didn't hurt anyone else. Second, the punishments for citations had usually been some kind of manual labor. One girl had been forced to clean a bathroom with a toothbrush when she was caught making out with her boyfriend behind the bleachers, but nothing like this....
Mr. Black set the megaphone down and stood before the crowd with a whip in hand. An evil smile curled up his face.
Silence descended on them as everyone held their breath, waiting to see what would happen next.
He flicked the whip and a scream filled the air around them.
Lucy imagined wild animals made a similar sound when caught in traps.
The entire crowd of students shuddered with each lash. Guys who never showed emotion in public wiped tears from their eyes. Girls sobbed.
Lucy got angry. Really angry. So angry she would have given anything in that moment to have a more proactive power, like fire or telekinesis. A human lie detector was only useful in certain circumstances. Right now, she wanted to hurt them in a more immediate way.
Gary had been right. She might not want the death of students on her conscience, but she couldn't allow this to happen either. Many would fight whether she and Luke helped or not, but maybe with their knowledge and training, more would survive.
It was time for another Freedom Fighters meeting.
***
That night, Lucy stood in front of a different crowd. The brutal punishment, rather than force obedience, had inspired more rebellion. More students than ever had joined the Freedom Fighters. Lucy vetted each one with questions, designed to make sure there were no spies in the ranks, and that each person was prepared for what might come.
Namely, death.
"Has anyone heard how Mike is doing? I can't believe they beat him like that."
A girl, Desirai, raised her hand. "I slipped into his dreams before I came here. He's in a lot of pain but he'll be okay."
Ah yes, a dreamwalker. Lucy made a note to talk to her soon. They could use someone with her gifts to weaken the enemies for the main assault, and to coordinate plans with Sam and Drake.
"Thank you, Desirai. Please, keep an eye on him. And see me later, if you're free. I have some ideas I'd like to talk to you about."
The girl's large eyes glowed with pride. She'd probably never been on assignment. Most of their group had no field experience at all, but it didn't matter; they would have to learn now, or die.
"Luke and I are being sent on assignment. I don't know why, but we shouldn't be long. In the meantime, catalogue every power we have access to. Recruit new members, but carefully! We don't want anyone getting caught at this stage. As soon as Luke and I are back, we'll attack."
***
Three days and two parkas later, Lucy and Luke got the call.
Next stop: Russia.
Chapter 14 – Drake
Sam's words floated in and out of Drake's head like feathers—important feathers, he knew—but still... the curve of her lips seduced him more powerfully than the sounds coming out of them.
"Drake, you're not listening." Sam pulled away and adjusted her shirt to cover her belly.
"I'm sorry. You're just too distracting." He pulled her close and kissed her again, hungry for her touch.
She pushed him away and got out of bed.
"Come back. I'll behave."
"That doesn't appear to be possible for you right now. Besides, I promised Brad we'd do his video today. I have to get ready."
Drake clamped down on the prick of jealousy that insinuated itself into his heart like a virus. First, Brad had slept with Kylie. Now, Brad spent more time with Drake's girlfriend than he did.
His pregnant, virgin girlfriend.
He loved her like no one else in the world could, and he trusted her—having access to her thoughts made that a no-brainer. Right now, they needed to focus on getting their story out to the world—an enraged group of citizens could effect a lot of change, and give them the edge they needed over Rent-A-Kid. This organization flourished in the shadows, but Drake bet they wouldn't be so cocky when the spotlight of the world shown on them.
They also needed to find the Seeker and rescue Sam's friends.
She'd never agree to stay at the cabin, in safety, while he tracked the Seeker. That didn't mean he wouldn't push for it, but he needed another plan in case she didn't let him go. He needed to keep her and his unborn child safe.
He rose from bed and stretched his long form, then dropped to do some push-ups and sit-ups. His super strength didn't mean he had a get-out-of-working-out-free card. He still had to stay in shape and keep up his endurance. After all, Sam may have been eating for two, but Drake was fighting for three.
After a quick shower, Drake joined Bernard, Brad and Sam in the living room.
The professor had set up some impressive video equipment and a mock stage on which to film.
"What's all this?" Drake asked.
Brad checked the lighting and adjusted some settings on the camera. "We want it to look professional. Okay, here's the plan. It'll be hard to do a mind-reading test with Sam, because that's too easy to fake. Instead, you're going to do a strength demonstration, Drake."
Sam's long hair flowed down her back in curly waves, and a red blouse brought out the color in her cheeks and lips. Her blue eyes popped with whatever makeup she used. Drake preferred her without all that face paint, but he had to admit she rocked the look.
He kissed the top of her head. "You look great, Babe."
Brad took his place on the other side of Drake, and left the professor behind the camera. "Drake, you need to lift us both, and make it look easy."
"It is easy, Dude. Lifting you two isn't the problem. I just have to be careful not to hurt Sam."
Brad scowled. "Or me, I hope."
"Or you. But she's carrying my child, so if one of you has to get dropped on your ass, guess who it'll be?"
"Yeah, I get it. I'd drop me too if I had to choose."
He tinkered with a few more settings. "Good. Okay. Ready? Action."
Brad posed in front of the camera and stared at the little green light blinking on and off. "Is it working?"
The professor chuckled. "Yes, go ahead."
Brad cleared his throat and fidgeted with his hands. "Right. Okay. Um. So, if you've been following my blog lately, you know I've made some pretty wild claims about some friends of mine who escaped a secret organization using paranormal powers. I have here Sam and Drake. Sam can read minds, but how do you prove that on air? But Drake here, he can not only control minds, but is ridiculously strong. That's much easier to demonstrate, so here we go."
Drake looked to Brad for the go-ahead, then put his hands out for each of them to step onto. When they had their feet on his palms and their arms on his shoulders, he lifted them from the ground until they had to bend over to keep from hitting their heads on the ceiling.
The professor sucked in his breath. "Astonishing."
Drake didn't break a sweat. He lowered his arms slowl
y to keep them from toppling off, and reached for Sam to steady her once back on the ground.
Brad stepped forward with wobbly legs. "There you have it, folks. What normal man could do that without so much as a blink? Want to see more? Follow us."
Brad walked around and took the camera off the stand, and ushered Drake outside. Everyone else trailed after the camera.
"Now Drake will do another demonstration of his inhuman strength. Drake, can you please go lift that car?"
Drake's mouth curved into a half smile. Would Brad think of nothing to challenge him?
He reached under the belly of the Ford Taurus and lifted it as anyone else might lift a skateboard. Even Sam stared wide-eyed, mouth agape, as he stood there holding the car over his head.
After the strength demonstration, Brad interviewed Sam and focused on the pregnancy and her escape. Drake sat next to her and held her hand, but had little to contribute to the conversation until the end.
"And Drake, when you and Sam were finally about to escape, what made you decide to use mind control on Sam?"
Drake's blood pressure shot through the roof. Was Brad trying to start a fight?
"I had to protect her and our baby. I had no other choice."
The interview ended.
Drake stood and clenched his fists. "Brad. Kitchen. Now."
They faced each other over the center island where knives and a cutting board lay. Brad eyed them warily, but he must've known Drake didn't need weapons to eviscerate him.
"What the hell, man? Are you trying to drive a wedge between Sam and me? Trying to get us to fight so you can swoop in on another one of my girlfriends?"
Brad took a step back and raised his arms in retreat. "What are you talking about? Of course not. I love you and Sam. No way do I want to cause problems."
Drake's blood surged in his veins. He slammed his fist down on the island, scattering the knives. "You slept with Kylie. She may not have been the love of my life, but what were you thinking?"
Brad's mouth dropped. "How do you even know about that?"
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