by Jeff Sampson
“Hey! What’s going on? I’ve been getting noise complaints.”
Mr. McKinney stormed across the grass, glaring, grimacing. It wasn’t until he caught sight of me, wearing nothing but wrinkled jeans and a T-shirt, barefoot and bloody, my hair a tangled mess, that he stopped.
“W-what—” he stammered.
“This is what your son did,” I said, staring deep into him. “This is what you made him and let him become. Secrets tend to bite you in the ass, Mr. McKinney.”
“Where’s Dalton?” he said. “Where’s my son?”
I blinked at him. Smiled. I’m sure my white teeth were quite a contrast to the red blood that had spattered across my cheeks.
“They took him, Mr. McKinney. Those shadowmen. I don’t know what they are. But I bet you do.”
He lunged forward as if to jump into the van. “What do you know?” he demanded. “What are you talking about?”
I reached forward and pulled the door shut before he could get inside. Through the tinted window, I said, “I know more than you think. And I lost a lot to find it. Now it’s your turn to figure things out.”
Megan stirred on the seat. I gestured for Spencer to go. He gunned it, and we left a gaping Mr. McKinney in the dust.
Deep inside, daytime me felt guilty for mocking a man whose son had just been stolen. But as Nighttime? I didn’t care.
If people like him were going to mess with me, try to direct how I was going to live my life, send killers after me, and keep me in the dark as I tried to handle it all?
Then they deserved everything they were going to get.
24
PROJECT LEAD
Spencer pulled us right up to the emergency room door. The nurses at the front desk took one look at me and Megan and ushered us in right away. While Spencer was told to wait in the lobby, Megan was placed on one of those rolling beds and was rushed to be looked at. Once I was examined and they determined I had no injuries of my own, I was allowed to wash up in a bathroom.
The bathroom was small, sparkling white. There were instructions near the toilet on how to take a pee sample to give to the nurses. I leaned over the sink, letting the water run warm, staring at myself in the mirror. I was still Nighttime at this point, with my blood-red war paint on my cheeks and nose where I’d absently rubbed myself while taking care of Megan. I splashed my face and watched the water swirl pink down the drain. I splashed again and let myself recede into the hybrid. Once more and I was normal me again.
The last splash was more for the tears that threatened to burst from my eyes than the blood.
I dried my face, then pulled my glasses from my pocket and put them on my nose so I could see clearly. I’d rescued them from my hoodie before Megan had been carted off.
I was still numb, I think. The shadowmen were more dangerous than I’d ever imagined, even when terrified out of my mind. The cheerleaders knew secrets. One of my pack had disappeared into the ether. The only really good thing I had to cling to was the ease of my transformations now.
It had started before we’d smashed the machine in BioZenith, but I guessed the hybrid became easier after that. I wasn’t sure entirely how I knew, but I could control this now. Control when and how I changed. Maybe there were limits; in fact, there had to be, because I hadn’t been able to slip into the hybrid state right away when I was chasing after Megan.
But at least all these sides of me were at last coming together. I could teach it to Spencer and Tracie and Dalt…
I closed my eyes, took in a shuddering breath. He couldn’t be gone. Not forever. I’d saved Megan because she wasn’t like us. Wherever Dalton had been taken, I would save him. I would save him.
More or less composed, I left the washroom to discover a kind nurse had left me a pair of booties to walk around in. I found Spencer in the waiting room, absently watching a TV he couldn’t hear, a stack of papers on a clipboard next to him. Seeing me emerge, one of the nurses came to ask me details on what had happened, who the girl who’d been attacked was, if there were people we needed to call. I gave them Megan’s parents’ numbers, as well as my own.
And then, I sat next to Spencer. Curled my legs up underneath me and leaned into him. I inhaled his pheromones and felt myself relax.
“Hey,” he whispered at me. “What happened back there? For real?”
I moaned, content. “I’ll tell you later. For now, I just want to sit here like this. With you. Okay?”
“Okay.”
I decided then, so what if these pheromones had been programmed into us? So were the changes in general. If they were there, I was going to take advantage of them.
Especially since I was quite certain in that moment that it wasn’t just the musky scent that made me feel so comfortable around Spencer. As he leaned his head against mine, I took his hand in my own, linking our fingers together. I could see us together like this, even if we were never werewolves.
It wasn’t long before Megan’s parents and brother showed up and were ushered through to see her. And then my dad and stepmom were there, pulling me into hugs, asking me if I was okay, telling me they were so glad I was safe, expressing how lucky it was I’d been there to keep Megan from getting hurt worse than she had by those damn feral dogs plaguing the neighborhood.
An hour or two passed before Lucas came out from the emergency room and into the waiting area. He assured us that Megan was all right. She was being given blood transfusions and treated preemptively for common diseases like rabies, just in case. She had been awake long enough to say hello to her family.
“Do you think I can see her?” I asked him.
He grimaced and looked down at his shoes awkwardly. “I don’t think so, Emily. She … she said she doesn’t want to see you right now.”
It was getting late. I wanted to wait longer, just to make sure she was truly, one hundred percent all right. But I knew, deep down, things were fractured between me and Megan. It would take more than a few hours to bridge the rift that had come between us.
So I said my good-byes to Lucas and Spencer, and my dad and Katherine drove us all home.
That night, I managed to go to sleep without the use of any sleeping pills. I simply told Nighttime I needed the rest. She didn’t argue.
I didn’t dream of dead Dr. Elliott. Those memories were faded and distant now. Instead, I saw the shadowmen. I saw their strange, spindly cities. Saw Dalton huddled and alone, surrounded by creatures he didn’t understand.
Not exactly a step up. But at least these dreams weren’t all bloody.
The next day, we got a call from Megan’s mother. Megan was indeed all right. Not wanting visitors, but all right just the same.
I had breakfast with the family, though I was basically Debbie Downer the whole time. They didn’t need to question why. The rest of my Sunday was spent up in my bedroom, staring blankly at the files we’d managed to steal from BioZenith.
BioZenith. It was strange, their lax security. A lot of this was strange. Mr. McKinney hadn’t gone to the police about Dalton, not that I’d heard of anyway. Neither had any of the cheerleaders. They were keeping what happened at Dalton’s house quiet.
Which meant they were all hiding something. Together, maybe?
I got an email midday from Tracie, basically telling me once more to leave her alone. I was happy to oblige. I’d already lost Dalton. The thought of losing her, too…
At least Spencer still texted me. Still trusted me.
So this was what it was like to be an alpha, huh? Leader of the pack. The head honcho. All the weight of the supernatural world on your narrow shoulders. No map to guide your way. You know how some people complained Buffy was all super bitchy sometimes? Let me tell you, folks: Walk a few feet in her shoes, and you will absolutely get it.
I suppose at least I’d gained some ground. I’d uncovered a few mysteries. I’d learned more about how I worked. I forgave myself for Dr. Elliott. That’s something.
It still didn’t bring back Dalton.
Musing on all I’d seen, I decided I knew what those shadowmen were. Beings from another world. Not quite aliens, not really. Other-dimensional beings. What they wanted from me? Who knows. But it had to involve what I’d seen with Megan, the way the shadowman had climbed into her, invaded her body….
I shuddered. I figured the best way to distract myself was to see if I could find anything in the files about the shadowmen. Maybe that portal in the BioZenith labs was some way into the shadowmen’s world? If so, maybe I could use it to get to Dalton.
Clinging to that idea, I clicked through file after file, scanning for any relevant info. I didn’t get very far before someone knocked on my door.
“I’m busy!” I called.
The door creaked open anyway. I spun in my desk chair, prepared to politely tell whichever family member was currently concerned about me that I was fine.
Instead, I found Casey Delgado.
She offered me a weak smile. “Um, hi. Do you think we can talk?”
Biting my lip, I thought for a moment. These girls obviously knew something about what was going on, but they hadn’t exactly been forthcoming with the info. They had attacked me. Prevented me from keeping Megan and Dalton safe.
Or at least, the others had. I remember Casey at Megan’s side, holding back the flow of blood while I tried to call for help.
“Sure,” I finally said. “Come in.”
Straightening out my comforter, she took a seat, then smiled at me again. “So. I suppose we have a lot to talk about.”
“I’d say that’s just a tad of an understatement.”
She laughed politely, then went serious. “My sisters don’t know I’m here,” she said softly. “But I think you deserve to know what’s going on. Especially after what happened behind Dalton’s house.”
Leaning forward, I motioned for her to continue.
Her hand fluttered to her chest. “I mean, I don’t want you to think we know everything, either. Just … Okay. The beginning. Nikki, Amy, Brittany, and I have known we have these … abilities since we were very young. Our parents trained us how to use them. I guess you didn’t know about your own abilities?”
I shook my head. “Not a clue. I only just found out two weeks ago that I was even like this. I’ve been stumbling to find out why ever since.”
Her eyes fell, sad. “Oh. We didn’t … Well, okay. Recently our parents told us to look out for other kids at school, like you, who started to act strangely. They didn’t tell us exactly what that meant, but I at least kind of got the hint when you started going nuts at Mikey’s party.”
“Yeah,” I muttered. “I guess that’d do it.”
Again Casey laughed politely. “Um, but we weren’t sure if you were just acting that way for attention or what. Which is why my sisters have been kind of … mean. But anyway, all we were told was that once we knew who you were, we were supposed to keep you safe from … something. We didn’t know entirely what that something was. I don’t know why, but Amy and Nikki got it in their heads that Dalton was who we were supposed to protect, and you were what was after him. But that’s not right, is it?”
Sighing, I leaned back into my chair. “Yeah, not quite. I don’t know exactly what all you saw, but me and Dalton, and Spencer and Tracie for that matter, we were made into werewolves. By some company called BioZenith. You know about them?”
Casey shook her head. “No. But maybe I can ask my parents. So, but okay, you and all of them are … werewolves? That’s what we were looking out for?”
I shrugged. “Guess so.”
Crossing her legs at the ankle, Casey looked down. “Anyway, I came here because yesterday I saw a friend of mine disappear into thin air. I don’t know what exactly we were supposed to protect him from, but clearly we … clearly we failed.” She took in a sharp breath, then met my eyes. “So I guess I thought I should come talk to you, since it seemed like Spencer and Tracie were listening to you at the party. I’m guessing something bigger is going on than what our parents told us. And maybe together, all of us, we can stop it.”
I met Casey’s eyes. They were earnest, or at least they appeared to be. After the way her sisters had treated me, I wasn’t sure if I could trust anyone.
But if she was telling the whole truth, if she’d come to me in good faith, then I couldn’t say no. I may have been designated an alpha for whatever reason, but clearly I couldn’t figure all of this out alone. And you know what? I didn’t want to. The idea of us werewolves and a bunch of psychic cheerleaders taking on some crazy scientists…
Well, frankly, the idea seemed straight out of a Syfy channel original movie. But that was my life now. And I liked the notion.
I stood up and offered Casey my hand. She stood and shook it.
“You know what, Casey?” I asked. “I wouldn’t mind having some help.”
She smiled at me. “Well, good! Now we just have to convince my sisters and Nikki.”
Sitting back down in my chair, I tilted my head at Casey, suddenly full of questions. “So your sisters and Nikki, you knew about yourselves all your lives? Your parents trained you guys how to use your abilities? How? Are they telekinetic too?”
Casey shook her head. “No. My parents and Nikki’s dad were all scientists years ago, so they observed us and helped us along.”
“Scientists like Dalton’s dad,” I said. “And Emily Cooke’s.”
Cocking an eyebrow at me, Casey tilted her head. “Oh? I didn’t know that.”
“Yeah. Sounds like a pattern. I’m learning lately that patterns usually mean something.”
Biting my lip, I spun my chair toward my computer, then clicked open the files from the thumb drive Spencer had given me. Casey watched silently as I opened up the HAVOC folder and found a document called “Project Mission Statement and Personnel.”
“What is that?” Casey asked as I scanned through the document.
“We got all these files from BioZenith, where Dalton’s dad works,” I explained as I read. “We’ve barely had a chance to go through any of them.”
“Is there anything interesting in the file you just opened?”
I shook my head, but didn’t say anything. I wasn’t entirely sure what I expected to find, just that I had this nagging little idea in the back of my head telling me to start here if I really wanted answers.
I held my breath and scrolled through. The first several pages were a bunch of densely overwritten scientific explanations about the project. There was discussion about the goal—to create hybrid human and animal “vespers,” whatever that meant, which would experience the world on a different level and be able to help with … something. It wasn’t entirely clear. I kept seeing a word I didn’t recognize pop up: Akhakhu. Mostly as part of the phrase “Akhakhu technology.”
There were links to further documents going into greater detail about the project, code-named HAVOC, but I didn’t want to read that now. Instead, I scrolled down to the names of the people who were involved in the experiments.
Several familiar last names were there. Holt. McKinney. Cooke. Townsend.
And, under the heading “Project Lead”: Caroline Webb.
My mother. My mother, who I was told died when I was two, whose job was at Microsoft, not a bioengineering laboratory.
My hands went limp, and I could not look away from the screen. I’d suspected it, vaguely, but I’d hoped I wouldn’t see her name there. Wouldn’t see what was written beneath it.
“What is it?” Casey asked, placing a hand on my shoulder. “What does it say?”
I didn’t answer. I was too busy scanning the notes under her name. Her contributions to the project. Her spearheading of the initial experiments using the “Akhakhu technology.” Her volunteering to carry to term the first “vesper” they would create.
Me.
And, at the very end, there was something more than I ever expected to see.
“Emily, what is it?” Casey asked again.
I turned to her, my eyes wide. “I
think I just found out who made me like this,” I said.
Casey’s eyes went wide. “Who?”
I could barely say the words. “My mother.” I paused as I turned back to the monitor. “And this says that she went … there, Casey. To the same place where Dalton was taken.”
“There?” Casey asked. “Where’s there?”
I couldn’t tear my eyes away from the document in front of me. “This is going to sound totally crazy,” I said, my voice hushed. “But I think there is another world, where we saw Dalton get taken. Another dimension.”
Casey blinked at me. “Another … dimension? You’re right. That does sound crazy.”
Meeting Casey’s eyes, I whispered, “I know. But over there my mother and Dalton might still be alive. If we can get there, we can save Dalton, and we can get some answers from the woman behind all of this.”
Leaning forward, Casey said, “You think we can go over there?” she asked. “To another world? How?”
I shook my head, my confusion fading to be replaced by a pounding anger at all the lies and deception that had apparently surrounded me my whole life.
“I don’t know, Casey. But you, me, the werewolves, and the cheerleaders, we’ll figure it out.” My eyes leaped back to the monitor, rereading the words Project Lead: Caroline Webb over and over again. “If she can find a way over there, then her daughter will, too.”
Internal Document #6
The Vesper Company
“Envisioning the brightest stars, to lead our way.”
- Internal Document, Do Not Reproduce –
Details of Video Footage Recorded Oct. 31, 2010,
Part 6
21:37:23 PST—Hall 7, Sublevel Sector E
With Vesper 1(B) in the lead, Vesper 2.1(A) and Vesper 4(B) storm the hallway, taking the guards by surprise. They are easily crippled by a combination of the two Branch B Deviants, while Vesper 2.1(A) uses her telekinesis to smash the Sentinels against a wall.
I have to recommend that these transcripts and the related video footage not get released to anyone who might spread this information to our clients. I can’t imagine it would be good for our reputation.
