by Sophie Davis
Cressa was in a physician’s office, perched on the edge of a hard chair with severe angles, after being booted from the Dame’s lair. Once she’d given the order to open the prison’s doors, Gretchen hadn’t turned away from the hologram. Not even when Tate called for someone to escort Cressa and Kev out of the room. Instead, her eyes had been glued to the mayhem playing out on the enormous model once the cell doors of Vault were opened simultaneously. At first, only a head had popped out, or a waving arm. Slowly, the prisoners had emerged from their cells to see the Privileged agents.
The individuals melded into chaotic huddles. Shoving and cheering, they’d dashed to the staircases that led to freedom. When violence erupted on the lowest levels, the Privileged quickly moved to break it up. Stunners held high, the agents repeatedly zapped a group they were supposed to be saving.
“You two are dismissed,” Gretchen had said without turning.
Tate had pressed a button and barked for escorts, but Cressa’s attention remained glued to the feeds from Vault. The stunner attacks had sent several prisoners running for the stairs with their hands up, but others weren’t giving up so easily. An enormous man had one brawny arm wrapped around the neck of a Privileged. His other hand gripped the agent’s stunner and aimed it at the ceiling. Even as the Privileged’s face turned a sickly shade of purple, he tried to wrestle the weapon free. After a few long seconds, the man’s body slumped like a rag doll. The former prisoner grinned. Kicking the white-clad form to the side, the man scooped up the fallen stunner.
Kev had tugged Cressa’s hand, tearing her eyes from the horror. Two attendants in silver suits were trying to usher the cadets out without drawing attention from the woman in charge. The enormous man bellowed something the silent feed didn’t register, and Cressa had been dragged from the room.
As the door had slid closed behind them, the Dame barked an order.
“Lethal force authorized, shoot at will.”
Cressa had barely noticed when Kev brushed his lips over her cheek.
“I will find you. Just wait for me,” he whispered before pulling away.
It seemed like exactly the wrong moment for a romantic interlude, but she’d realized what he was doing as the escorts pulled them apart.
“Come on, lover boy,” a tall Privileged with a full beard said, rolling his eyes.
Cressa hadn’t even registered what was happening before she’d been guided down one of the sterile corridors and Kev down another. She’d been taken to a medical office with a plaque reading Dr. Masterson on the door and led to the highly uncomfortable chair. Then the doctor asked if she wanted to go home, like there was a chance that wasn’t precisely all she wanted.
So, yeah, maybe she did want to leave. Away from the fear and the violence. Every time she thought she had a handle on what was happening, something had been thrown at her from nowhere. The 180-degree turns were causing mental whiplash. Cressa wanted to be left alone, that’s all.
The Doctor stood, drawing her thoughts back to the plush modern office she’d been dumped within. “It’s truly your decision, Cressa,” she said. “I know Kev will miss you, along with the Dame and all the rest of us. But I do understand if you are scared and cannot go forward.”
Did the elegant doctor just call me a wuss? Cressa wondered.
Still, Kev’s glittering eyes came to her mind, soulful and kind.
“What do you need from me?”
“Tell me what you can do.” The older woman leaned back in her seat and leveled a glare. “Better yet, show me.”
Chapter Seven
Talia
Maybe it was because we shared a connection that went beyond even our understanding, but I was able to see the shimmery blur of invisible-Erik as it sped toward the hangar at lightning speed.
Fully visible and feeling vulnerable, I darted between two administrative buildings. From there, I had a clear view of the hangar and Erik’s translucent form. He was halfway to Alex and his father when I focused my mental talents on a hideous fountain that Mac had received as a gift from some foreign dignitary. The statue’s bulbous head exploded, the shards flying skyward before raining marble all over the ground.
“Nice,” Erik sent.
For my next trick, I sent the dingy water from the basin dancing into the air as the statue’s midsection burst open. By the time I set my sights on the little marble guy’s legs, three people burst from the hangar to investigate the commotion.
“I thought you said the area was clear,” snapped a woman with a pink ponytail. Two men rushed out behind her, and she leveled them with a glare.
Just behind the group, the blur of Erik slipped through the open hangar door.
“It is,” one of the guys sputtered. He scratched one thick, green sideburn. “I checked. I didn’t get no feeling off nothing.”
The woman jabbed a finger at the huge ball of water bouncing above the destroyed fountain. “Really? Because that isn’t natural. There must be a Talent here.”
Sideburns met the woman’s gaze evenly. “I ain’t feelin’ nothing.”
Inside the hangar, a loud bang reverberated. Sideburns, Pink Ponytail, and their companion, a young guy with too much gel in his silver-tipped locks, all turned.
“Go!” Pink Ponytail snapped to Sideburns.
I didn’t need Erik’s warning inside my head to know that freeing Alex and Mr. Kelley wasn’t going as stealthily as planned. Without a second thought, I blew out all the windows on the front of the surrounding buildings. Glass shards flew toward the three combatants, landing neatly in the earth around their feet.
Sideburns screamed and dropped to his knees, covering his head with his arms. The woman was pissed. She stood her ground, unafraid of injury.
“Diesel, go!” she screamed at the younger guy. “We can’t let that brat get away!” Pivoting in a circle, she cupped her hands around her mouth. “Come out now, and we won’t hurt you!” Her voice projected eerily, in a way that shouldn’t have been possible in our surroundings.
“What’s going on in there, Erik?” I sent. Diesel attempted to open the hangar door, which was suddenly stuck in place.
Another series of loud bangs sounded from inside the hangar. Diesel yanked on the door again, throwing his weight to one side. It still didn’t budge. When he raised his gun to shoot at the sensor lock—useless move, since the door was bulletproof—I tore the gun from his hands and made the barrel hover beside his temple.
“Open the door, Tals!” Erik shouted inside my head.
Releasing my hold on the door, I gently bumped the gun barrel against Diesel’s head in warning. He sank to his knees and closed his eyes, bracing for his last moments. A lengthened blur sped past—Erik was extending his visibility to shield both Alex and his father from view as well.
“We’re clear!” Erik sent, his voice carrying from somewhere behind me.
“Come out! Now!” the woman hollered. I thought for sure she was going to stomp her foot.
“Meet you back at the house,” I told Erik.
“Be careful, Tals.”
“I always am.”
My relief was palpable. Erik and Alex were safe, though they’d only remain safe if I did my part. The two assailants who’d remained behind in the hangar were no longer an issue—Erik had seen to that.
Three against one, great odds, I thought with a small smile.
“Too scared to show yourself?” Pink Ponytail sneered. Still circling, she searched for me.
Maybe I should turn the gun on her, I thought. Instead, I cocked the trigger. The guy with gelled hair, Diesel, bowed his head.
Taking a deep breath, I strolled from the shadows.
You want a fight, lady? I’ll give you one.
Though I could have incapacitated all three with my powers, after my day, I was spoiling for a good, physical fight. My emotions were erratic, and I needed an outlet.
The woman cackled when she saw me standing there.
“You’re a child,” she sneered.
I strode toward her, the earth rumbling with each step. The ripples knocked the woman off balance, but she didn’t fall. Sideburns curled further into himself on the ground, seemingly still afraid more glass might come shooting down from the sky. Thinking I was distracted, Diesel reached for the gun pointed at his head. I slapped his hand away. Adding insult to injury, I broke the gun into thousands of useless pieces that fell in a puddle beside him.
“What’s your name, girl?” called Pink Ponytail.
The giant water ball was still swirling above the broken fountain. With a single thought, it arced through the air. When it formed again, the liquid sphere hovered above my enemies’ heads.
“Fun parlor tricks,” the woman said conversationally.
I continued my advance, measuring my steps. Outwardly, I hoped I appeared calmer and more collected than I felt. The power surge coming from the dorms was still present and making me nervous. A part of me couldn’t help but focus on the unknown entities.
Why aren’t they intervening? I wondered, even without knowing who “they” were. Are they with these fools?
Returning my focus to Pink Ponytail, I made sure my grin was off-putting. I didn’t need to try hard; most people found all my expressions off-putting.
“Who are you?” repeated the woman, her tone no longer so confident.
Cheeks aching from the effort, I widened my smile.
“My name is Natalia Lyons.”
Diesel staggered to his feet. The coward with the sideburns darted for the hangar. I slammed the door shut just as he reached it. He bounced off the reinforced metal and landed flat on his back.
The woman was no longer laughing, though I did feel a jolt of elation run through her when I said my name. Her thoughts projected loudly: I can retire for good with her bounty.
When I was only ten yards from the woman and her companions, I stopped and cocked my head to one side.
“Are you Privileged?” I asked.
The look on her face answered my question; she’d never heard of the Privileged.
Then who the hell are you? I wondered.
Apparently, I was projecting my inner commentary. Two words popped into the woman’s head: Bounty hunters.
All three of the people in front of me had powers. They were weak, but still.
They had yet to use them, which put my hypersensitive senses into a state where even the slightest disturbance in the air was tangible. My hearing was so acute that I caught the pitter patter of feet inside the dorms.
Four sets of feet? Maybe five? Why did they seem like one large ball of energy?
“Talia, where are you?” Erik sent.
I didn’t respond, my gaze locked on the woman with the pink ponytail.
“Who is offering the bounty?” I asked. It was Gretchen, I was positive. But she’d obviously called in Nightshade—a mercenary organization that would do absolutely anything, for the right price—and I wanted to know who was behind the legendary shadow society.
The woman remained stubbornly silent. I poked around inside her head.
She doesn’t know who’s in charge, I realized. Pink ponytail was useless to me.
“Tals, we’re back at the house,” Erik sent. “Where are you?”
Though I didn’t respond, I did open my mind to him.
“What the hell are you doing?” he demanded. “This isn’t the time for games.”
Erik was right, of course. And I was done playing. I knew what I needed to do.
Casting a net with my sensory energies, I closed my eyes and collected my power. Pink ponytail, Sideburns, and Diesel all clutched their heads and fell to their knees.
There were several ways I could handle the situation. Killing them in cold blood felt wrong, but no one could know where we were hiding. Letting them go wasn’t going to happen either.
In a spontaneous verdict, I decided on a third option: locking them up with Gracia.
Just as I made my decision, I heard it: the rustling of leaves; the faint crackling of a branch; the footsteps hurrying toward me.
As I spun, a ball of energy smacked me in the chest. I flew backward. The reinforced steel of the hangar didn’t give an inch when my body slammed against it.
That’s gonna leave a bruise, I thought as I stumbled to my feet. Through blurred vision, I saw my attacker sauntering across the school’s courtyard. The newcomer moved like she had all the time and confidence in the world. Eyes the color and shape of olives focused on me.
Pink ponytail raised a hand slowly. This time, I was ready for her.
“Don’t do it,” I projected. Even as I sent the warning, I dove to avoid her next attack.
Somersaulting to my feet, I sent my attacker careening toward the dorm. She hit the brick façade just as I’d done with the hangar.
A splash to my right temporarily drew my attention. My three captives were still under my mental hold. Concentrating so much of my energy on the new attacker, I’d let my control of the water sphere slip. Pink Ponytail, Sideburns, and Diesel were now soaked in the icky fountain water.
Whoops.
“The great Natalia Lyons,” the woman called. Climbing to her feet, she wiped a smear of blood from one side of her face. She advanced toward me, limping slightly but trying to ignore the pain. “What are the odds that you would be here?”
She laughed, wincing slightly as though the act hurt.
“Actually,” she continued, “I’ll tell you the odds. Did you know there are bets on whether you’ll be captured? The odds are slimmer than a man with string bean legs.”
“Who are you?” I called back, muscles primed for another attack.
“No one of consequence,” she replied. “Though I suppose you deserve to know who bested you. You can call me Eighteen.”
Eighteen had more power than my three captives combined, yet I couldn’t feel her talent energy. I hadn’t felt it approach, and I still couldn’t feel it now.
Why can’t I sense her?
“I’m on my way,” Erik sent.
“You’re Nightshade,” I replied to Eighteen. She’d limped close enough that I could see she wasn’t much older than I was. Twenty-four or twenty-five, maybe?
Eighteen clapped, though one of her arms didn’t move very well.
“Bravo,” she drawled. “Most of my targets have never heard of us.”
With that brief exchange, I should’ve been able to access her mind. Instead, Eighteen’s head appeared empty to me. I couldn’t hear her thoughts. It was like there was nothing there to control.
“I shouldn’t have left you,” Erik said, clearly reading my thoughts about Eighteen.
“She’s injured. I can take her in a physical fight,” I sent back. “But Erik, I can’t feel her. There may be more of them out there that we simply can’t feel. Be careful.”
“You be careful,” he countered.
“So how does this work?” I asked aloud, keeping my tone conversational. “How do you take me in and collect your reward?”
Eighteen was an unknown. I didn’t like unknowns. I wanted to keep her talking until Erik arrived. We’d already screwed up with Gracia today; we were just lucky Erik was too stubborn to succumb to Gretchen’s mind traps.
The girl’s devilish grin should have been a clue.
Black light shot from Eighteen’s chest. It happened so fast, I had no time to react. What felt like electric snakes coiled around my body, trapping my arms against my sides. When I tried to break the hold with my mind, nothing happened.
Where are my powers? Why aren’t they working?
Eighteen sneered as the three bounty hunters stopped moaning, no longer under my mental control.
“Not so tough are you now, Natalia?”
I’d underestimated the Nightshade girl, and it had cost me dearly. But I wasn’t about to let her know that. I slapped on my haughtiest expression.
“You have no idea what I’m capable of,” I said softly, an eerie lilt to my voice.
“Maybe
not,” Eighteen replied. “But those power dampeners make you much less dangerous.”
As she limped closer, that stupid grin was still plastered across her features. We were face-to-face, her olive-like eyes appraising me.
“You’re all hype,” she declared, running a black-lacquered nail down my cheek.
I didn’t flinch, though I wanted to. In the distance, a raven cawed.
Erik.
From her hip, Eighteen pulled a small pistol-shaped object with a thick needle on the end. She held it to my temple as the raven’s caw sounded again.
She wasn’t going to kill me. I knew for certain she wouldn’t, even without access to her mind. I wasn’t afraid of that threat.
Still, Eighteen would hand me over to Gretchen.
Mac’s wife would use my blood to make more foot soldiers. She’d make more Mind Manipulators. And they’d be able to control most of humanity. Maybe all of it.
The thought pissed me the hell off.
Eighteen was so close, I did the only thing I knew would be effective; I cracked my forehead against hers in a dizzying collision. As I did, the raven darted over the courtyard. Eighteen stumbled backward. Raven-Erik targeted her.
Instead of attacking in bird form, Erik flipped through the air to land on his feet. He lunged for Eighteen. She was faster.
Bullets started flying.
“Erik!” I screamed, struggling against the power dampening coils holding me captive.
The bullets froze midair. I spared a glance at Pink Ponytail, who was one of the people shooting. Or, she had been. Her weapon laid at her feet in tiny pieces.
Eighteen used the distraction to shoot another set of power dampeners toward Erik. He dove backward, arching his spine and flipping his feet over his head. He landed on four paws, a sleek black panther with turquoise eyes. Erik and Eighteen weighed one another. Bound and unable to move, I felt more useless than ever.
Stupid. Stupid. Stupid.
Erik bared his teeth as he and Eighteen circled. Pink Ponytail and her friends ran to Eighteen’s side, joining the fight.
