by Elodie Colt
Too much. It was too much. I wouldn’t survive this motherfucking day. First Lisa shocked me to death and now Cassie. “What now?”
“Now nothing. I’m going back to my old life as a trainer and as part of the team. I’d appreciate it if you could keep my secret to yourself for now, though.”
I nodded slowly but more to myself, still deeply lost in thought. ‘Cassie’ and ‘pregnant’ were two words I’d never have expected to use in the same sentence. It was just too weird.
“I’ve still got some things to do,” she mumbled, opening the door, and I took the hint. I stepped out, but before Cassie could shut the door again in my face, I faced her a second time.
“I know we didn’t get along so well the last few months, but I just want you to know, I’m here if you need anyone,” I offered.
Cassie nodded slightly, but her eyes were averted when she closed the door shut. I didn’t know how long I stood there, dumbfounded, before being able to move my feet again in the direction of the main quarters.
From all the things I’d considered to be wrong with Cassie, it had least of all been this.
Exhausted, I slumped in my office chair. One thing was for sure, women were making my life hell on earth.
Scott spun around in his chair, eyebrows raised in question, but I only shook my head, silently communicating that Cassie’s problem was not an illness as he’d suspected. Scott’s brows furrowed further, but I would make good on my promise not to tell anyone until Cassie was ready to reveal her secret.
Who was the guy who knocked her up? My thing with Cassie was over, but I still felt the urge to find the motherfucker and teach him a lesson. I couldn’t stop wondering when it happened. In all my hours during surveillance duty, I hadn’t seen Cassie leave the compound. Had someone visited her?
My eyes darted up as Haylie entered the main quarters, a few sheets of paper in her hand.
“Hey, Haylie,” Scott called, “I’ve collected some scientific texts about the physics of gravity. Have a quick look at them. I think they could be helpful.”
“Sure,” she said, giving me one of her breathtaking smiles in passing. My heart skipped a beat at seeing her full, red lips curling for me. I remembered seeing her nervous and uncomfortable whenever we saw each other. Not so anymore.
I refocused on the monitors in front of me before risking my thoughts to wander back to my conversation with Lisa earlier this morning. I needed a time-out.
One of the monitors showed Chris and Lauren striding down the aisles. Chris was heavily gesturing with his hands, showing Lauren a defensive move she tried to imitate. Chris nodded in approval, and Lauren beamed up at him. Well, at least Chris’ attention found another female target.
My fingers tapped restlessly on the computer mouse. I wanted to find some information about Cassie, so I typed on my keyboard to check some older footage. Collecting the files from the weekends, I filtered the ones from during the week from six in the evening until three in the morning. As Cassie had training duties on weekdays from morning until afternoon, that would be a wide enough timeframe to find out when Cassie had snuck out.
Nearly three hours later, I’d gone through every recording of the last months, some of them even twice, but there was no proof Cassie had left the compound, except for the one time she’d joined Jimmy on his mission to get Haylie here.
Thus, that left two options. One, she’d changed her appearance to sneak out, which wouldn’t make any sense. Or two, the most likely option, she’d had sex with someone inside the compound, which left me curious about who—
A sudden beep sounded behind me coming from Phil’s computer.
“They’re here,” Phil said, the announcement apparently directed at Jimmy, as I had no clue who he was talking about.
“Excellent,” Jimmy replied in excitement, folding the newspapers he’d been reading. “Phil, show them the way, please.” Phil nodded and left.
“Who’s here?” Scott asked, still going through several textbooks with Haylie sitting next to him. She looked as if she understood only half of what she was reading, her hands covered with streaks from neon markers.
“The guards I requested from Serena.”
Ah yes. We’d agreed to ask for external security guards from Serena’s Department of Roe Security. Hopefully, they’d fill in the holes of the areas where cameras couldn’t cover the grounds.
“How many did she send us?” I wanted to know.
“Seven in total. Six, plus a supervisor.”
Good. Seven pairs of eyes more wouldn’t harm. “Abilities?” I hoped Serena had sent us some skilled Racers. Usually, Watchers and Catchers were assigned for guard duties, but if you asked me, Racers were more practical.
“We’re about to find out,” Jimmy said before the door opened, and Phil entered, followed by a few unfamiliar faces—male and female.
One of them was familiar, though. In fact, it was a face I wouldn’t forget so fast, and one I definitely hadn’t expected to ever see again.
It seemed like Serena had granted my wish. She’d sent us at least one powerful Racer, only he was the last one I would want close, least of all inside this compound.
“You,” I fumed, slowly rising from my chair. The guy who was the same height as me grinned at seeing my shocked face.
“My, my… That’s not how you greet an old friend,” he mocked, taking a step forward. “You’re not still holding a grudge against me, are you?”
My hand itched to smack that asshole’s face, but Jimmy was suddenly next to me. His eyes flicked between the two of us, trying to figure out what was going on.
“I take it you know each other,” Jimmy stated with a dry undertone, apparently sensing the building tension.
The entire room had gone so silent, you could have heard a pin drop. All eyes were directed at us, our own still riveted on each other. At that moment, I wished for the ability to shoot laser rays with my eyes and burn the man standing opposite me to ashes.
“Oh, I think that’s an understatement. I mean, we practically lived together for years,” he replied with a mischievous grin, which only enraged me further.
Before I could fire back a witty retort, Jimmy intervened, clearly sensing an escalation. “Alright, let’s leave this for later, okay?”
“Sure. Cole Thompson, Racer.” He stretched out his hand, which Jimmy took in greeting. “Serena sent me with my team to help you out. We’re at your service,” he added with a tiny bow.
I nearly choked on my tongue. His team? No way was Cole working for the government. This must have been a cruel joke.
“Nice to meet you,” Jimmy replied. “Mind introducing the others?”
“Not at all. Patricia, Racer. Kim, Regenerator. Tamara, Tracer.”
The one named Patricia could have been mistaken for Cassie if it weren’t for the height difference. She had the same blonde, shoulder-length hair and similar features, but she was at least one head shorter. The second one, Kim, had a sweet face framed with a sleek brown bob. She cast fearful glances at me, clearly intimidated. The last female, Tamara, was the exact opposite. She stood with self-confidence, her dark brown hair hanging like a straight curtain over one shoulder, one side shaved in a brutal side-cut. Her face was all sharp angles and high cheekbones, making her look scarier than the rest of them.
Then Cole introduced the men. “Harvey, Catcher. Ian, Shifter. And Xanders, Catcher.”
Harvey seemed to be the oldest, probably near in his forties. His mouse-brown hair was cut short, but what caught my attention was his scarred face. Half of it was marked with wax-like skin—definitely burns. The second guy, Ian, was bold, small, and chubby. He looked completely out of place. And the third, Xanders, was all long and thin limbs. His platinum blond, curly hair nearly blended with his white skin.
I skeptically eyed each of them. Some didn’t even look old enough to be through the Awakening. It seemed like Serena had sent us the most disposable ones. Figures.
“Status?” Jimmy
wanted to know.
“Patricia, Tamara, and Harvey are Professionals. Kim and Xanders are Intermediates, and Ian is still Freshman.”
This time, I couldn’t refrain from snorting. A Freshman, really? Ian shot me a dark look, his feelings clearly hurt.
“You would be surprised at what he’s able to do,” Cole said with an edge to his voice. “He may still be at the beginning of training, but he’s skilled nonetheless.”
“You’re training him?” I asked, my jaw tight.
Cole nodded. “I am.”
“In what? How to stab someone in the back?” I snapped, taking a warning step closer.
Cole chuckled, scratching over the dark stubble on his chin. His leather jacket crunched with the movement. “Still the same old Dylan as the first time we met. Did you get your rage attacks under control? Or are you still touchy about… uh… what was her name…” Cole muttered, clicking with his fingers a few times and acting as if trying hard to remember. “Jay… Jen… Ah, Jenna, it was, right?”
That made my control snap. With an outcry of rage, I dove forward, determined to crush Cole’s skull to pieces for even thinking her name, but a hand on my shoulder froze me in place.
“Dylan,” a calm voice cautioned.
It was funny how my name on her lips eased the fury consuming me within the fracture of a second. I so badly wanted to teach Cole a lesson, but I held back—for Haylie’s sake.
“Oh, what do we have here?” Cole drawled, his eyes suddenly riveted on her, hungrily eyeing her up and down. It made my rage resurface a second time, but Haylie had her fingers clawed warningly into the muscles between my neck and shoulders, sensing what was going on in my head and silently telling me to stay put.
“I’ve heard so much about you. The Natural with the power to defy gravity. It’s nice to see different eyes with the Flare, for once.” Cole’s grin was so wide, it seemed to be permanently plastered on his too handsome face. If that guy only touched her once… “And you’re even more beautiful than I—”
“Yes, and she’s off limits,” came a sharp voice from behind us.
I would have worded it differently, most likely adding a few more profanities and threats of murder, but Chris beat me to it. I hadn’t even noticed him enter.
Looking bored, Cole turned to see who had spoken to him. “And you are?”
“A Fighter who could snap your jaw in two before your Racer brain even registers it.”
I grinned smugly at Chris’ reply. At least I could count on Chris when it came to Haylie’s protection.
“Alright, guys. I have no idea what’s going on here, but we should all take a breather for a sec. Phil, why don’t you show Cole and his team around?”
Phil nodded and gestured for the others to follow. Cole was the last one to trail behind, making sure to give Chris a hostile glare and Haylie a wink before walking out. As soon as the door shut behind him, I let out a breath in relief. I couldn’t stand to be in the same room with Cole.
“Okay, what’s going on?” Jimmy demanded to know, stepping up to me. Now that the immediate danger was over, Haylie’s hand slipped away, and the warmth of it disappeared. She stood next to me with concern edging her features.
“Cole and I have a past.”
“No shit,” Jimmy retorted, clearly pissed. He barely ever cursed. “What did he mean you ‘lived together for years?’”
Putting two fingers on the bridge of my nose, I tried my best to keep my composure. I was beyond exhausted. Every hour of this damned day seemed to be more torturous than the last. “We shared the same cell,” I revealed finally. I sensed Haylie gulp, but Jimmy stayed unfazed.
“And?”
“And he can’t be trusted. He can’t stay here.”
“Serena told me he was one of her best Racers. I trust her on this. I won’t send him away just because you have a problem with it.”
“You don’t know him.”
“I don’t need to. He’s not part of my team, he has his own. He’s here to do his job, nothing more.”
“Didn’t you hear what he—”
“I don’t care about your issues with him, Dylan,” Jimmy interrupted, his patience slipping away, and his voice getting slightly louder. “You’ll sort this out. You already did once,” he said, eyeing Haylie knowingly. I huffed. That was so not comparable. I was about to retort, but Haylie put her hand on my shoulder again.
“Why don’t we go outside for a few? We could both use some air,” she suggested, tugging on my sweater. As usual, I got lost in her mesmerizing eyes for a second. They were staring back at me pleadingly. I needed a break, so I agreed, and we both made our way through the main hall and the tunnels to exit the compound to the cemetery.
The bright sky blinded me momentarily. The rain had stopped, and as the sun was setting, she threw her last rays on the glistening grass and trees. Then, a different light caught my eye—the sun lighting up Haylie’s hair. The orange glow made a particular thick strand next to her cheekbone shine in a fiery gold, throwing streaks of amber over her soft features.
I’d never seen her in the sun. I swear, the shades in her eyes were suddenly coming to life as if the sunrays had flipped a switch to activate them. She nearly took my breath away, she was that beautiful.
“What happened between you and him?” Haylie asked when she turned to look at me. The question immediately soured my mood again.
“I’d rather not talk about him right now.” I dragged a hand over my jaw in frustration. “It’s been a shitty day. I can’t wait for it to be over.”
“Okay,” Haylie said quietly, a tiny amount of disappointment showing on her face. After a few seconds of collective silence, she broke it. “Wanna know what I learned about my ability yesterday?”
Prying my eyes away from Ricky’s grave, I focused on Haylie. “What?”
“I’m still not very good at it. It’s like a totally new part of my ability,” she excused and stretched out her hand to let it hover palm down in front of her.
At first, I had no idea what she was up to, but after following her gaze to a fist-sized stone on the ground, I noticed it starting to vibrate. The tremors increased until the stone flipped over its axis. Then, it began to hover an inch above the grass, slipping dangerously low a few times until falling back to the ground.
Haylie huffed in annoyance. “I’d like to make an object fly into my hand, but I’m always losing the grip.”
“Hey, that was great. I didn’t know you could wield gravity in the other direction already,” I complimented.
“Yeah, I had a bit of enlightenment in my last lesson with Lisa,” Haylie explained with a smile. “I became a little more aware of what the ability in my center looks like. It’s like tiny particles of pyramids always pointing downward with the tip, an indication of gravity naturally flowing in that direction. I figured out I was able to flip these particles over so the tips are directed upward, which would reduce gravity—technically, that is. In fact, I can flip them in any direction I want with enough practice.”
Fascinating. Her ability consisted of so much more complexity than mine. I gave her a reassuring smile. “I’m sure you’ll get the hang of it soon.”
“Well, I do have more struggles with this side of gravity.”
“Why? Shouldn’t it be same, only the other way around?”
“No, because it’s not just reducing gravity, it’s flipping the scales completely.”
“What do you mean?” I asked curiously, completely lost in her and hanging on to every word coming from her lips.
“Well, Scott explained it to me like this… Compare it to swimming in a river. The river naturally flows in one direction, just like gravity does. If I increase gravity, I’m swimming downstream faster. If I want to swim upstream, though, I need double the amount of energy to get in the other direction. So, if I switch on my power and tackle you to the ground, like I did last time,” when you were lying on top of me, and I couldn’t think of anything except ravishing you
, I added mentally, “then that’s easier. But when I’m doing it the other way around, like making that stone hover in the air, it requires a lot more energy.”
Made sense. Her body wasn’t the center of gravity, it was still Earth’s core, so it naturally flew in one direction—downward. Pulling it the other way required more strength. Making things heavier was easier than making them lighter, so to speak.
Haylie kicked at the stone with the top of her boot, and we watched it bounce over gravel and earth.
I threw Haylie a sideways glance. If only for a minute, she had taken a burden off my shoulders. She’d tried to get me to talk to her, to open up to her, but I’d turned her down. Why?
“I shared a cell with Cole during my entire stay in prison,” I explained, causing Haylie’s head to snap in my direction. I could see a hundred questions burning on her tongue, but she waited for me to tell the story. “We were cell buddies for nearly two years and close friends for a long time.” I heaved a sigh. “That was, until he turned against me.”
“He turned against you?”
I tapped the tip of my boot on the muddy earth beneath me just for something to do. “Cole is a Racer and a damn good one on top. They nicked him because he robbed a dozen casinos.”
“Really? He didn’t strike me as that type of guy. What happened?” she asked, trying again to move a branch with her outstretched hand. It began to hover in the air, but it slipped and fell to the ground. She started with the task again.
“He forged weapons with some screws from the metal frame of his bed and handles from plastic spoons, but he was careless. The guards checked our cell, and before they could find the weapons sticking under the duckboard of his bed, he’d made some use of his power and palmed it off on me, hiding them under my pillow without anyone noticing. No chance to persuade the guards of my innocence, of course, and I nearly got a few more years added to my sentence because of Cole’s shit.”
“Shit. How did you get out of it?”
This time, the branch flew closer to Haylie’s hand, but it lowered again. Her face contorted in concentration and with a twitch of her fingers, she prevented the branch from dropping back down, making it stop mid-air and hovering an inch above the grass.
