Born Bad

by Sarah Noffke

  “Nice blanket, Little Red,” Kaleb said, strolling into the conference room three minutes late, as usual.

  “Nice crooked nose,” Adelaide said, throwing her chin up in the air.

  Kaleb covered his nose, which he’d broken when he was eleven falling off his skateboard. That’s when he decided that being firmly planted on the ground was for the best. Adelaide had learned of this memory when she’d been practicing hypnosis on Kaleb. Apparently he’d been filtering through different long-ago memories, probably a result of the therapy which was supposed to help him come to terms with his father’s death and his mother being relocated to protective services. This kid hadn’t had an easy time since he entered the Lucidite Institute, but he hadn’t given up and Adelaide respected that.

  “Well, now that the runt has made it to the party, let’s get started,” Adelaide said, standing at the head of the conference table. She tapped the clicker in her hand and an image projected itself on the back glass wall. “Here we have the list of details that Connor organized based on what he learned using his psychometry. It’s not really enough, but we can’t expect great things from him so try not to hate Connor for being so worthless.”

  “It’s because of Connor that we have a location for Olento Research,” Rio said, clapping a hand on the shoulder of Connor, who sat next to him.

  “She knows I’m incredibly valuable and is just pushing me away, afraid of losing me,” Connor said to Rio, a sideways smile on his face.

  “Yes, he told us where the sinister lab is located, which is something Kris and you could have also done, since you two broke out of there. But Connor is so worthless that he also supplied us with enough information to tell us that it is impossible to get in there without a blood bath,” Adelaide said, ignoring Connor, her eyes on Rio, who had a fidget spinner pressed between his thumb and pointer finger. Apparently he had ADD tendencies. Shocking.

  “Isn’t she adorable?” Connor said, tapping Clay on the arm on his other side. The newbie sat straight, his eyes not nervous, but more contemplative. He was quiet, but not like David had been. Clay seemed to be always calculating, at least that’s what his intense eyes told Adelaide.

  “As adorable as a feral cat covered with fleas and mange,” Rox said, her gladiator heels resting on the conference room table. No one in the fucking pack knew how to sit right in a chair.

  “Aren’t you supposed to be fixing up your new brothel?” Adelaide said to her.

  “I took a break to offer you my expertise on this,” Rox said, turning her focus to study the bulleted list projected on the wall.

  “Well, those red lights aren’t going to hang themselves, Stripper Purse,” Adelaide said.

  “My concern isn’t taking out the two dozen guards stationed in and around Olento Research,” Zephyr said, earning everyone’s attention as he steered the meeting back on track. “It’s getting in there undetected. We need to be inside the bowels of the facility before anyone suspects we’re there, then we can fight our way out. However, if they suspect us before that, then Mika has a chance to get away with Derek and Malcolm.”

  “And whatever other goblin he has created,” Kris said. “But to be honest, Mika isn’t the run type. He’d have you all taken down, and if he’s alerted then I do believe he has the method to do it.”

  “Kris, I reviewed the notes you supplied,” Adelaide said from the front of the room. “Here they are.” She tapped the clicker in her hand and the projection on the wall changed. “These were much more helpful than Connor’s.”

  “Well, she does have the advantage of being invisible. I’m so sorry that my information had to be pulled from the consciousness left behind on a handkerchief,” Connor said, his voice oozing with sarcasm.

  “Apology not accepted. There’s no excuse for your incompetence,” Adelaide said, careful to keep the smile simmering under the surface from showing.

  “I was able to provide unique information that was only known by the director of security,” Connor said, his voice protective.

  “It’s true. I didn’t know about the lockdown protocol,” Kris said.

  “Which is why we all need to get in there undetected before that’s triggered,” Zephyr said. “Kris, how many people can you make invisible?”

  “Probably only one. It would be too clunky to hold hands with two people,” she said.

  “Not to mention gross,” Adelaide said.

  “However, the problem there is with the infrared surveillance,” Zephyr said, studying the notes on the wall.

  “It’s not a problem if she slips in and travels through the building in routes not supervised,” Rox said, a file sliding back and forth across one of her nails.

  “You mean like a duct system?” Adelaide asked, her eyes narrowed on the girl who thought this was a beauty parlor.

  “Why can’t we just dream travel in there and disable the infrared surveillance or loop the screens?” Rio asked.

  “Because, MacGyver,” Adelaide said, “Mika has technology that prevents dream traveling inside of Olento Research. We have the same technology here.”

  “He probably stole it from the Lucidites,” Connor said.

  “Probably,” Adelaide said, thinking of Drake, who she knew had been central to Mika’s success in all of this. However, she also knew from when he touched her, having been apprehended at Parantaa Research, that the scientist despised his boss. His thoughts were surrounded by a disdain for Mika that was rare in its intensity. Still, he was working for the evil mastermind.

  In the dark conference room the alert that lit up Adelaide’s phone caught most people’s attention. She reached for the device that sat on her leather-bound book, which rested on the table. A quick glance at the phone made her eyes light up. “Good news. Roya just had a report on Cole Cosgrove. We have a location, but no other details,” she said.

  “That’s all we need,” Zephyr said, standing at once. Rio stood too, probably because the alpha wolf had his eyes on him. “Rio and Rox, I want you going with me. Connor, you and Adelaide review these details. I want a strategy for breaking into Olento Research. This is our last pack member to get, which means we need to go after Mika next.”

  “You got it,” Connor said, looking a bit too happy with this assignment to be cooped up with Adelaide strategizing.

  “Kaleb and Kris, you two get back to completing agent training. I’m going to need both of you in the field soon,” Adelaide said to the pair, who often sat together at meetings. “Clay, read the Dream Traveler Codex. You have a worthy talent, moving the earth, but it does no good until you master your skill dream traveling. That’s how you charge your powers, as well as get around this bloody planet.”

  “Okay,” Clay said. Why couldn’t all the dogs be as concise as him when talking, Adelaide mused.

  “All right, we’ll be back in twenty-four hours,” Zephyr said, turning to leave, flanked by Rio and Rox.

  Chapter Twenty-Seven

  “Dream Travelers are immune to a host of different diseases and ailments that affect Middlings.”

  - Dream Traveler Codex

  Cole froze, like he was suddenly glued to the earth. His eyes roamed over his campground. Something is out of place. The pile of wood that had been stacked neatly had tumbled flat. That could have been a raccoon or a squirrel; however, that didn’t explain why his hunting knife was missing. Yes, a raccoon could have stolen it and those pesky creatures were known for doing that, but they wouldn’t be out during the daylight hours.

  “Damn it,” Cole said under his breath, aware that someone could be close by listening. “Why don’t you keep that knife on you, you dumb jerk.”

  The trees surrounding the camp area looked the same, but something felt off. It could be hunters or kids, but he was deep in the Everglades and hadn’t seen anyone in this area since he set up camp. How many times had he hoped to see another person, longed for the possibility? But now, this invasion felt peculiar, like someone was looking for him in particular.

&nbs
p; “You’re being paranoid,” Cole said to himself.

  Silence followed by the rustling of leaves met his ears. Unsticking himself from his spot, Cole approached the camp, not seeing any place where someone could be hiding nearby.

  “Paranoid, really?” he said, scanning the area for another place that his hunting knife could be. “Someone stole my knife. My main source for survival.”

  He rotated in a full circle, not finding a single place where he misplaced the knife. “Really, but who is the loser who is always misplacing stuff? Don’t blame an imaginary person for your incompetence,” he said, frustration growing in his head like mold on old cheese.

  Cole was just about to admit that it was more likely that he dropped the knife while poorly stacking wood when in the distance he heard the sound of footsteps crunching leaves and twigs. He straightened. Froze. He thought that running was the best plan, but then changed his mind. Human contact sounded better than avoiding potential danger.

  Since Zephyr had been dream traveling regularly and working with Adelaide, he’d been able to increase his skill using his X-ray vision. That’s why he could now see farther, telling him the placement of everyone in the forest within a hundred-yard radius. The effort would cost him, but it was worth it. He and his team were able to enter the forest on the opposite side as Mika’s team, meaning that they still had the element of surprise.

  Drawing in a cleansing breath to refill his reserves, he turned off the X-ray vision. “Cole is roughly fifty yards in that direction,” he said, pointing to the east. “There’s two men approaching him.”

  “Mika’s men?” Rio said, his forehead creasing with worry.

  “I think so, but I also have a mixed feeling about them,” Zephyr said.

  “Then that means they are Derek and Malcolm,” Rox said, as intuitive as ever.

  “That’s what I think,” Zephyr said. “There’s also another group that way.” He pointed to the north. “A few guards, judging by what I guess are tranquilizer guns strapped to their backs.”

  “Oh, they always make this more fun,” Rox said, her blue eyes lighting up like she’d just been told there was a sale on slutty clothes.

  “This might be our chance to bring in three weres, instead of just one,” Zephyr said. “Rox, you cover our back by taking out those guards. I can’t have them intervening and ruining this like they did with Malcolm.”

  Rox saluted, looking much too happy with the prospect of fighting a handful of armed guards.

  “Rio, you and I are going to approach Cole. I think we want to keep him calm, as well as Malcolm and Derek. So let’s get in there quietly and try to pick up as much information from eavesdropping as we can. If those other two weres are doing this for Mika then they’re under his control. I’m going to need to know how to undo that before we act,” Zephyr said.

  “Sounds good, boss,” Rio said.

  “All right, let’s split,” Zephyr said, turning back to Rox one last time. “You know the signal if you’re in danger?”

  “Yeah, I scream like hell,” Rox said.

  “Exactly,” he said, winking at her.

  Haiku lowered the binoculars. “Just as the clairvoyant foretold,” he said to the man standing at his back. “The FBI agent is going to try and take us out.”

  “She probably would have if we hadn’t been prepared,” the guard said.

  “Not true. I don’t need to the see the future to prevent it,” Haiku said, resentful that this woman approaching was considered a match for his six men. However, Haiku was savvy where most were strong. He’d planned for this FBI agent. And he was about to make Mika an extremely happy man. “Get into position,” he called to the men splayed out around him.

  A small, unassuming man was the first one to come into view. Behind him was a man with dark skin and a serious expression on his face. These men had their eyes locked on Cole. This was no doubt a meeting, although he hadn’t gotten the memo.

  “What do you want?” Cole asked from across the fifteen feet that separated them. He’d learned to be on guard since the lab in a way he never had to be in his old life.

  “We just want to talk,” the taller man said, still marching forward. “We are werewolves like you and have been looking for members from our pack.” The man’s voice was robotic, almost rehearsed, but it was a voice. These two men were humans and the actual contact with another person almost made Cole cry right there. It was such a silly thing, but then again, isn’t our connection to others the thing that makes us whole, and its absence that which breaks us?

  “How’d you find me?” Cole said.

  “We sniffed you out,” the smaller man said, his answer coming on the heels of Cole’s question.

  That sounded strange to Cole, but if these guys were truly werewolves like him then it wasn’t such a hard reality to believe. Werewolves. Like him. This could be a dream, it felt so surreal. As they approached, he knew what they meant. He could smell them; they had a scent that felt like home to him, like the way the blanket on his couch that he curled up in at the end of the day smelled. But there was something else. Other smells. He needed time to process this all. To understand what was happening too quickly.

  “We want you to come with us,” the guy with the skin the color of coffee said. It was a request, but also felt like an order. “There are men, bad men, stalking you right now. We were lucky enough to get to you first, but they could try and intervene. That’s what our source tells us.”

  “Source?” Cole said, rotating to check the area at his back only to find more trees.

  “I’m clairvoyant,” the smaller man said. He had the same distant expression as the other guy, like they were robots.

  “Oh, you have a skill too? I can heal,” Cole said, almost feeling a smile at the edge of his mouth. People. With the same strange kind of powers as him. Was this too good to be true? Was he about to move out of the woods? Be with men like him?

  “I’m telekinetic,” the other man said. “We all have talents as werewolves.”

  “All? What do you mean? You’ve found the others too?” Cole said.

  “Yes, the other men from the lab have been rescued. We’re all at a government facility where we are safe. But if you don’t come with us then those people who abducted you the first time will get you. There’s only so much we can do to protect you,” the taller man said, his eyes skirting over Cole’s shoulder.

  This seemed wrong, but maybe it was just the strangeness of the situation. It was a brand new experience for him. He just thought that there should be more of an introduction. Something was off.... Or you’re just being a stupid paranoid, he thought.

  At his back, he heard another set of footsteps. Cole spun around, conscious that he was trusting his back to these new men. What he saw filled him with a rush of emotions. He wanted to run to the man he saw before him, but based on what he’d just heard that man was the enemy. None of this made sense.

  “Well, fuck,” Zephyr said. “They just set us up as the bad guys.” Malcolm and Derek stood in the distance, but their words to Cole were easy for him to hear.

  “What do we do now, boss? Just approaching will put Cole on the defense,” Rio said.

  “We’re going to have to rely on my influence. Maybe I can knock the brainwashing out of the other two,” he said.

  “Or if all else fails then I’ll knock them out,” Rio said with a grin that made his dimple pop onto his cheek.

  “Let’s try and avoid that,” Zephyr said, knowing Rio wasn’t being serious. He stepped out from behind the tree, roughly twenty yards from the group.

  Cole turned, putting his back to Malcolm and Derek as he did. Zephyr felt the draw of the three werewolves before him, although the connection to the ones brainwashed by Olento Research was diminished slightly. This was Mika’s work and he’d pay.

  “I’m not the bad guy,” Zephyr called through the forest, aware that his voice echoed off the trees. “Neither are they, but they’re working for Olento Research because
they’re under its control. That’s the place that abducted and made us.”

  Cole’s head tilted, his eyes on Zephyr and then Rio at his back. “That’s what they said you’d say,” he said, a strange look on his face. Was it possible that he recognized them? Rio had been the one who broke everyone out of the lab; well, except for Connor. Cole shook his head just then, like shaking off the rational thoughts dawning on him. Everything had been such a blur at the labs, he could be dismissing it.

  “Don’t go with them,” Zephyr said, approaching gradually. “Actually, Malcolm and Derek, you should come with us too. Mika has you brainwashed, but I can help you.”

  “He said you’d say that,” Derek said, spouting out the phrase, a bit of emotion finally showing in him. Good, that meant he was breaking free, doubting the programming.

  “See, he just admitted that he’s working with the mastermind behind this,” Zephyr said to Cole. “Mika Lenna is the man who had us made. He’s evil and they’re trying to take you to him.”

  “Who do I believe?” Cole asked out loud, but the question almost seemed like he was talking to himself. Zephyr noticed the trees around him and had the strange impulse of the wolf course through him. The wolf loved being in the woods. It stirred something in it that was so satisfyingly primal it felt like the bliss of breathing. The ease of sleeping. The refreshment of drinking and eating. The wolf appreciated the smallest of things, because in truth the wolf only knew the simple parts of life. It made Zephyr appreciate them.