Mason bit his lip as he absorbed the information. As hard as it was to believe, it helped clarify a few things—like why they had to have embedded microchips, and why the whole thing was such a blasted secret, and why Theo would shoot him when they were supposedly on the same team. “How did you find all of this out?”
“Torin,” her face lit up as she spoke his name, “he was the one who told me. He reached out to me in the middle of training—”
A surge of jealousy raged through him. “Wait, you were talking to Torin the whole time during training?”
A shade of scarlet crept across her cheeks. “Well, not the whole time—”
“You were talking to him and you decided it’d be best not to share it with anyone?” His words came out far harsher than he’d intended. “Not even me?”
Emery’s face paled. “Who could I share it with, Mason? I had no idea you were a part of the initiative and vice versa. And, even if I had known and had decided to tell you, my memory would have been wiped clean and we wouldn’t even be having this conversation right now.” She crossed her arms defiantly. “My hands were tied.”
“You could have told me once we’d been deployed, right?”
“Well, maybe, but—”
“So, why didn’t you?” he pressed.
Emery stared at him, her mouth agape. She struggled to find her words. “That was such a whirlwind and you know it. I had no idea we were going to be deployed right after we received our final judgments. Hell, I didn’t even know that you were a part of the initiative until you materialized right in front of me in the middle of downtown Chicago!”
Mason bolted upright from the bench. Control yourself. He began to pace back and forth, hoping that the movement would calm him down—he couldn’t allow his temper to get the best of him. Not right now.
He took a deep breath before saying, “You’re right. I’m sorry.” He sat back down on the bench and ran a hand through his golden hair. “We shouldn’t focus on that. We need to move past it.” As the words left his mouth, he knew that he was trying to convince himself more so than her. “So tell me what’s happened since we’ve been here.”
Her mouth pressed into a grim line. “Long story short, I need to retrieve something from Dormance. Somehow, that world is still active, but I can’t seem to find a way back in.”
Mason scratched his head, trying to follow her train of thought. “Retrieve something? What did you leave there?”
“A present from my mom.” She kicked a small rock with the toe of her boot. The pebble catapulted through the air like a bomb from a cannon. “It’s a fish-shaped ring, like an alpha symbol, embedded with tiny diamonds.”
Mason raised an eyebrow. “That sounds like a nice keepsake and all, but do you really want to risk going back there for it?” She shot him a look that made him quickly add, “I mean, do you really need it?”
“I do. The symbol on that ring and this one,” she pulled out the omega pendant for him to see, “were both on the mainframe in Dormance.”
“The same mainframe you thought you’d deactivated?”
She nodded as she tucked the pendant back underneath her shirt. “There were indentations in the control station, like it was a sign to place the ring and the pendant there. Almost like keys or something. But I don’t know what it is the ring and pendant do. They could unlock something. Blow up something. Who knows?” She looked at him hopefully, her irises engulfed in a haze of grey.
“Well, if your mom is the one who gave you the alpha ring, then she ought to be able to help, right?”
A sigh escaped from her lips. “That’s why I spent the past two weeks at my house. I’d hoped that she and my sister would come home, but they never did. I searched the house for clues, for a sign, for anything—but there was nothing.” Her head dropped as she kicked another pebble into the air. “I failed.”
“Don’t talk like that. You didn’t fail. Just think of it as a minor bump in the road,” he said as optimistically as he could. “Remember, behind every dark cloud is a ray of sunlight waiting to shine through.”
A hint of a smile touched her lips. “I suppose you’re right. Thanks.”
“No problem. So, what else did I miss?” he teased in hopes of lightening the mood.
Emery cocked her head. “Well, my dad’s the Commander in Chief of the Seventh Sanctum.”
“Seriously? This whole time?”
“Yep.”
“And you didn’t know?”
“Nope. The last time I saw him was when I was six years old. I really thought I’d never see him again.” She bit her lower lip as a flash of pain darted across her eyes. “It’s strange though. He said he wanted to talk to me, but when I went to visit him this morning, he waved it off like it was nothing.”
“Maybe it was nothing.”
Emery shrugged. “I’m not so sure.”
The pieces were finally coming together. “Are you thinking that what he wanted to tell you has something to do with the ring your mom gave you?”
“I don’t know,” she sighed. “And now I’m not sure I ever will.”
Those last words hung thick in the air. They sat in silence for a few minutes. As much as Mason wanted to help Emery and give his full, undivided attention to her problems, there was only one person repeatedly infiltrating his thoughts: Torin.
Maybe Torin has something to do with this.
Just as he opened his mouth to express his concern, Emery rose from the bench. “I should get going,” she said as she threw her bag over her shoulder. “Thanks for listening and for talking me through everything.”
Mason swallowed, his mouth going dry. He smiled in an attempt to mask his disappointment. Don’t let her go. Not yet. He cleared his throat as she turned to leave. “Hey, Em?”
She turned back around, her face filled with mixed emotions. Loneliness? Hope? Confusion? He couldn’t tell. “I don’t want you to be alone right now. Not after everything you just told me.”
Emery cast her eyes toward the ground.
“Let’s go do something. Grab a bite. See a movie,” he offered. “Let me be there for you.”
At this, Emery’s head popped up. “You always have been.”
A swell of warmth filled his chest like a rolling tide on a warm summer day.
She took a step closer to him and grabbed his hand, her fingers looping with his. “Come on, I know a great Italian place that’s just around the corner.”
Relief set in as Mason followed her to the restaurant. She was okay. They were okay. He held onto the feeling for as long as he could, trying to be present in that moment for as long as possible. If experience was any indicator, their time together was bound to be cut short far too soon.
12
It was eleven o’clock in the evening and Emery was wide awake. She’d been trying to doze off for at least an hour, but the thoughts in her head wouldn’t keep quiet. She gently brought herself upright and tapped her feet on the floor.
Faint snoring caught her attention. Mason was fast asleep on the couch, his arm thrown over the back and his leg dangling off the end. She scooted to the edge of the bed and stood up, her knees cracking in the process. She froze, hoping that the sound wouldn’t disturb him, or worse, wake him up, but his soft snoring continued.
After their conversation earlier that day, Mason had insisted that they spend the evening together. The Seventh Sanctum had provided both Mason and Warren with accommodations at the hotel that was connected to headquarters. The guilt piled up every time she thought about the way she’d ditched him over the past two weeks, so she’d obliged to his request in hopes that spending some time together would eradicate any tension or negative feelings he had toward her. She knew that opening up to him would be a step in the right direction, so that’s exactly what she’d done. She’d told him about everything that had happened last year, from starting school at Darden, to Theo calling her and inviting her to join the Alpha Drive, to her interactions with
Torin in the 7S world. For the most part, her opening up seemed to have eased the tension, and they were almost back to how they’d been before, but it was clear they still had a long way to go. She could tell that Mason was still upset she’d invited Torin to go back home with her instead of him. For some strange reason, he seemed to want to hold onto it with no sign of ever letting go. Getting back to the place they were at before wasn’t impossible; it would just take time.
Even though her day had been consumed by Mason, Emery found that Torin was never far from her mind. The one thing Torin provided her with that Mason didn’t was a feeling of security. While this had been evident for a while, her feelings had been solidified just a few hours prior.
She and Mason had just finished a meal at an Italian restaurant and as they were exiting the establishment, a man had suddenly grabbed her arm and pulled her toward him. Caught completely off-guard, Emery had yelped as she was pulled toward the stranger, her eyes honing in on Mason’s panicked expression. Instead of coming after her immediately, Mason had just stood there.
Frozen. In shock.
Fortunately, she knew how to take care of herself, and she’d broken away from the man’s grip. The owner of the restaurant had gotten involved shortly thereafter and had escorted the persecutor off the premises. They’d left the restaurant in silence and it was then that all she could think about was Torin and what he would have done in that situation. He wouldn’t have hesitated, not even for a second. He would have gone after that man with fire in his eyes and more rage than a bull seeing red.
Then again, Torin did have his faults. For starters, he was incredibly closed off and a difficult egg to crack. Every time she gazed into those aquamarine eyes, she couldn’t help but feel like there were oceans between them—a separation so vast and so deep, they’d never be able to land on the same shore.
In the end, what it really came down to was trust. Mason had been her friend long before Torin and yet, there was just something about Torin she was naturally drawn to.
But what exactly? Was it the air of mystery surrounding him? Or something more surface-level, like the fact that he was from a completely different world than she was?
The more she got to know Torin, the more she felt as though she’d known him forever—yet there was still so much he seemed to keep hidden. And that right there was the fatal attraction.
Can Torin be trusted?
True, he’d singlehandedly helped her defeat the Federal Commonwealth, and he hadn’t lied to her as of yet, at least not that she was aware of. To her, Torin felt like a partner, a trustworthy companion. So why am I doubting him?
An idea came to her so quickly that it almost felt like she’d gotten the wind knocked out of her. She pulled the omega pendant out from underneath her shirt, admiring the emeralds embedded within the shape. She ran her thumb on the outer edge of the pendant. “I need answers,” she murmured. “Alpha and Omega.” She took a deep breath and closed her eyes. Silence surrounded her for a long moment. Then, a familiar voice filled the airwaves.
Naia’s voice.
Emery’s eyes shot open. She gasped as she took in the scene before her. She was in Dormance. Or was she? It was hard to tell.
Naia sat at her desk, busily typing away onto the control station. “Hey, Naia,” Emery said with a wave. When Naia didn’t turn around, she took a step forward and tried again. Still nothing.
She walked to the side of the chair and leaned directly into Naia’s view, but her eyes seemed to look straight through her, like she wasn’t there.
Like she was invisible.
In my previous flashbacks, they could see me. Why can’t Naia see me?
Emery noticed that on one of the monitors was her picture, on another, lines and lines of text and dates. My candidate file. She watched as Naia pulled a highly recognizable item, a small sphere, from her pocket, then released a drawer holding Emery’s black training clothes. That’s the device I used to launch the sanaré.
Naia sifted through the pants and shirt, checking the pockets and turning them inside out. Emery’s eyes landed on the combat boots she’d grown to love. She continued to watch Naia closely when a deafening clatter sounded, making both of them jump. With a panicked expression, Naia dropped the device into one of the boots, then quickly stood up and circled the table as Theo strode into the room.
The sight of him made Emery want to gag and cry at the same time. Feelings of betrayal rose up in her throat. She gulped them down as a heavy cloud of guilt took its place. Even though Theo was the enemy, she couldn’t deny the fact that she’d had a soft spot for him. In the beginning, he was someone she’d trusted wholeheartedly.
How foolish she’d been.
Theo’s sultry tone interrupted her thoughts. “Ready?” he asked, the question directed at Naia.
“Let’s go,” Naia said ever so calmly.
Within a single blink, the scene before her faded into black. Okay, well that could have been a fluke. Maybe she just dropped it in my boot because she had nowhere else to put it.
Surrounded by darkness, Emery fiddled with the pendant. A few seconds passed. Her heart pounded as she remained engulfed in a shadowed world. Why haven’t I been taken back to reality yet?
Suddenly, black turned to technicolor, which then turned to white, as if she’d just hurtled through space in a time-traveling machine. She blinked a few times, trying to focus on the setting before her. It wasn’t even the slightest bit familiar. From the looks of things, it appeared she was still in Dormance in the underground quarters, but in a room she hadn’t ventured into.
Naia sat at an oversized desk, murmuring to herself, with her head in her hands. Emery called out her name, just to confirm that she was still in her invisible state. When Naia didn’t answer, she hastily approached the desk, her eyes focusing on the monitors. Naia lifted her head from the surface, mumbling to herself as she adjusted the images on the monitor. Swiping left and right, the holographic images appeared, then disappeared. Her search for the right one seemed insurmountable. A deep blue filled the screen, and she could hear Naia muttering under her breath. Something about placement?
Whatever that means.
After five minutes of Naia murmuring and nothing of significance happening, Emery turned to walk to the back of the room. “The capsule isn’t enough,” Naia said aloud, although no one else was in the room. “It needs to be meaningful or else she won’t get it.”
Slowly, Emery turned around, her interest piqued. “I won’t get what?” Emery asked, even though she knew Naia couldn’t hear her. “Show me something. Anything.” She folded her arms, waiting patiently for whatever it was Naia was about to do.
And then the unexpected happened.
An image of her lifeless mother, underwater, appeared on the screen. Emery’s jaw went slack as she witnessed Naia orchestrate the placement of her mother and the capsule. The orange capsule from her first training session.
It was her after all.
Naia was on 7S’s side the whole time. But what had she been trying to tell her? And why include her mother? Before Emery could come to a conclusion, the scene in front of her went black.
Her breath caught as the next location came into focus. Brick lined the walls with no doors on either side. A gigantic steel door, the very one Rhea had been standing in front of, loomed before her. Teasing her. Taunting her.
Emery squeezed her eyes shut, as tightly as she could, hoping that the images would fall away. A door creaked. She gave in, her curiosity getting the better of her, and opened her eyes one at a time. She jogged over to the door, shuddering as she walked by the pods within the enormous control room, forcing herself to look up at the ceiling. Kneeling underneath a sign labeled SANARÉ was Naia, her fingers shaking as she fidgeted with the dial to the safe. An orange capsule sat next to her, the contents glowing like a beacon of light.
It really was her. Naia was the one helping me and guiding me all this time.
The realization was enough to make her stumble over her own two feet. Their last connection played over and over again in her head. I should have just listened to her. Why did I hang up?
With a heavy heart, Emery closed her eyes, trying to convince herself that it was an honest mistake. And it truly had been. So why did she feel like such a failure?
Upon opening her eyes, she found herself standing in a green haze in the middle of downtown Chicago. She looked down at her now blood-stained hands. A gun clicked into place. She turned around slowly, knowing that she was about to face her worst nightmare. Again.
No. I can’t do this again.
Theo’s eyes met hers. Bile rose in her throat.
Do something.
“I understand!” she shouted into the universe. “Please take me out of this flashback and back to reality! I understand, I really do!” She dropped to her knees, covering her head with her hands. “Take me back, take me back,” she murmured to herself.
Emery wasn’t sure how long she remained in her cradle-like position, but when she brought herself upright, she was both surprised and relieved to find herself back in the hotel room, where everything was just as she’d left it. Shaken, she walked over to the bathroom and closed the door softly behind her.
Gripping the edge of the sink, she turned the faucet on, watching the smooth stream of water as it circled down the drain. Her hands dove under the steady flow, cool water splashing onto her face. She reached for a towel and dried her hands, then patted her face dry.
Her gaze met the distraught figure in the mirror. Dirt and ash matted her once rich auburn hair, and the dark circles under her eyes had shifted from a faint purple to a deep violet.
How did I get here?
She sighed, breaking eye contact with the pitiful image before her. Her knees buckled as she collapsed onto the frigid tile, the towel falling to the floor.
How did I let this happen?
Her head fell into her hands, fingers drumming against her temples in rhythm with her accelerating heartbeat. She focused on slowing her breathing.
The Order of Omega (The Alpha Drive Book 2) Page 7
