I don’t know what to do.
12
~Eli~
Everything is intense. The world around me is spinning with life and I have to force through it all and stay focused.
“How are you doing?” Colton asks.
“My head is about to split open,” I admit. “But we need to do this if we are going to find Lyn. She’s definitely around here.”
“You really believe in that program, don’t you?” DJ asks.
I nod. My software is the best. I finished it last year and ever since, it has helped us on our jobs—just like it is today. The software allows me access to all the cameras in the area, and using that, plus knowing what she looks like, it doesn’t take long to get a hit at the entrance of this park. I got to watch her slip inside and haven’t seen her leave yet. I set the program up to alert me if she’s seen on another camera. Unfortunately, there aren’t many cameras inside the park.
I’m hoping to catch her when she tries to leave again.
“Then we’ll find her.” Colton nods at Jackson and DJ. They split off from us, disappearing to circle around the park.
We walk around casually, even smiling when we see some gifted getting a game of football started. I’m tempted to join them.
“If it gets too much, tell me. I don’t want you straining,” Colton says as he leads us further into the park. He discreetly scans the area, and I copy him.
“I’m fine.”
“Let me reword that so you understand.” Colton’s voice is serious and he stops to turn to me. He steps closer, lowering his voice so those around us can’t hear. “You are not allowed to strain. If you do, you become useless and we can’t afford that. Do you understand?”
Gritting my teeth, I’m barely able to get out, “Crystal.” Doesn’t he understand that time is not on our side? I need to push myself to find her.
My ears pick up the sound of a giggle and the rustling of grass. Then there is the familiar sound of two people going at it. Not what I want to hear.
I hold back a gag.
“What?”
I shake my head. “Don’t want to know.”
Colton’s lip tilts up into a half smile. “Couples at it again. I can copy your gift.”
I gag again, adding in a disgusted shiver. While I enjoy having sex, I never got into being a voyeur. My damn senses makes that hard sometimes, because no matter how much I don’t want to hear or see it, or even smell it, I do when I’m near it. I really don’t like hearing strangers going at it.
“Don’t bother copying. Keep that mental one. If we get close enough, you can at least call to her without bringing attention to us.” Early this morning, Colton found someone with a telepathic gift and copied it. If we get close enough to Adalyn, he’ll be able to talk to her without us having to call out loud.
“Focus,” Colton says to get my attention. “Focus on what you need to. Remember. What does she smell like?”
“Jasmine.” I smile, remembering her scent from the dream realm.
“And her voice?” Colton asks.
“Melodic, smooth. There’s a slight southern lilt.”
“Good. Good. Focus on that. Try to filter that out of everything else. Nothing but her is important.”
“I know how to do this,” I say.
“I know you do. But you also need help sometimes when there is a lot of activity going on.”
Blowing out a slow breath, I do that. I focus and search.
“Shit.”
I freeze at the familiar voice.
Colton stops next to me and remains quiet so I can stay focused.
“Shit. Shit. Shit.”
My lip twitches.
“She’s definitely here,” I say and nod in the direction we need to go. We pick up speed but not enough to draw any attention to us. We should have come wearing running clothes. Sprinting through the park in street clothes, especially jeans, would be weird.
We pass by a boy and a girl flirting together by the water. The trail goes into a small section of woods.
Colton pulls out his phone.
“Yeah?”
He listens while Jackson’s low voice comes through. I don’t bother listening in on the conversation, Colton will fill me in. I stay focused on Adalyn’s voice as she goes into cursing us.
“Fucking stubborn idiots. Just stay away. How hard is it to follow basic instructions? But nooo, instead they have to come chasing me.”
I stifle my laughter, but just barely. My chest warms as she continues to berate us in a whisper. She’s doing all this because she wants us to stay safe. No one has ever done that before.
“Where?” Colton asks while I nudge him to take a right on the path.
There’s a small screech from behind us, not from anyone in distress, but it’s enough to make my ears ring from the suddenness and the pitch of it.
“Damnit.” I shake my head.
“Okay, keep an eye on them.” Colton hangs up the phone.
“We have a problem.”
I’m pulling at my ear. “What now?”
“Holsen’s men are here.”
“Noah?”
“Here too.”
“How did they find her?” I frown and pick up my speed, trying to catch up to Adalyn.
“Noah tracks energy signatures. We know this. If he’s tuned to her, he’ll know the moment she Sees anything and can react.”
“She used her gift.” Silly girl. She can’t afford to be doing that.
“If they’re near, we can use this opportunity,” Colton says slowly. When I glance at him, his eyes are distant as he goes through the information he has.
“What do you mean?”
“We stalk them. Learn more about them.”
I frown, not liking that idea. “You want to track them instead of her.”
“Yes.”
“But we’re so close,” I point out. “She’s near here.”
“Is she though?” Colton asks. “Have you heard or scented her again in the last couple of minutes.”
I don’t respond as I focus again, but I don’t pick anything up. Not her scent, not her grumbling to herself. Nothing. “She knows we’re here.”
Colton nods. “She knows.”
“Damn, this is getting ridiculous. Why won’t she just accept our fucking help?”
“Because she’s nice. She doesn’t want our blood on her hands.”
“If something did happen to us, it wouldn’t be her fault.” I stop walking and turn to Colton. “Let’s do it. Let’s go check out Holsen’s men, see what they’re all about. We’re going to have to confront them eventually, and it’ll be good to do it with knowledge of how to take them down.”
“And since they’re hunting Adalyn, if we follow them, they’ll lead us to her.” Colton pulls out his phone and shoots off a text. Not even ten seconds later he gets a response. “Come on, they’re on the other side of the park.”
“We trapped her. Us coming from one direction and them from another,” I say.
“Yes.”
It doesn’t take us long to find the group. We stay discreet as we watch them. There are four of them, no doubt on sentry duty while others tear the park apart for Adalyn. I recognize Noah instantly by the pictures we have. He’s a tall son of a bitch, with dark blue eyes and nearly black hair. More than that, everything about him is familiar, and I know exactly the kind of person I’m staring at. Trackers recognize trackers. It’s the way we move, the way we hold ourselves. It’s the way our eyes are constantly taking in the scene, ranking everyone around us by threat level.
“Stop,” I say, grabbing onto Colton’s arm. “We can’t get any closer. He’ll know.”
Colton doesn’t say anything, and we find a spot by a small monument to stay out of sight.
“He’s dangerous,” I say. “Where are the others?”
“I still have them trying to find Adalyn. Jackson is also tracking the other men. Looks like both sides know Adalyn is in the park, but none of us can
find her. She’s good.” Colton rubs at his chin and then grins, his eyes gleaming with excitement from the challenge. “I’m borrowing your gift.”
When I nod, he grabs my shoulder, and I feel him scooping some of my energy and making it his own. Colton’s mimicry is one of the best. Most people can only borrow gifts of a certain level, usually on the lower end, but Colton has been able to do it on a higher level. So far, only Jackson’s gift is the only one he can’t replicate.
His expression blanks out, his eyes going distant, and I know he’s listening in on them. I do the same.
“She’ll need to use her gift to avoid us,” Noah says, eyes hard. “As soon as she does, I’ll get her. Janis, I’ll need your transportation gift so we can move fast. Kline, make sure the van is ready. We are not fucking this up again. She escaped from us once and Holsen will neutralize us if we fail again.”
“She won’t last much longer,” one of the men said. “She’s exhausted. We ran her into the ground. It’s only a matter of time before she messes up. We’ll get her.”
“We better.” Noah’s voice is dark with barely suppressed anger.
Colton and I share a look.
We need to find her fast.
But how do we outdo someone with access to a teleporter and who can feel her the moment she uses her gift.
Why the fuck can’t she trust us to help her?
Worry surges through me for the woman. Our interactions have been limited, but those moments were enough and the idea of Noah getting his hands on her makes me want to rip his spine out. I have the strength to do it. It’s just a matter of getting close enough to touch him.
When I eye the men around him, I know that won’t be an easy task. And Noah isn’t someone to take lightly.
“We have to be very careful with how we deal with this,” Colton says. “They aren’t aware that new players have entered this game of cat and mouse. We need to make sure they don’t find out.”
I nod. We have surprise on our side. We need to keep it that way.
Adalyn.
We’ll find you, so just say safe.
13
My teeth hurt with how hard I’m grinding them. After careful maneuvering, avoiding both Noah’s men and Colton’s, I manage to slip into a visitor’s tour exiting the park, staying low and using the gaggle of giggling women to stay hidden.
Once I’m away from the park and the cameras there, I need to think fast. My eyes roam the surroundings, noting cameras and doing my best to avoid them in case I’m being tracked that way.
I won’t be able to get out of the city. Not safely. They’ll have all modes of transportation under surveillance. I could use a taxi, but that’s tracked too, and I can’t exactly take one of those to another city.
Stealing is an option, but I’m no expert in breaking into a car, hotwiring it, and then getting out. And cars have extra security these days with alarms and LoJack systems.
I can’t use my gift. The moment I do, I have a feeling Noah will be right in front of me, prepared to grab me. I need to find a way to get around, without cameras around.
At a crosswalk, a man wearing a bright orange vest goes over to a manhole and places cones around it while another backs up a big truck so the tail end is near the hole. Even when the light changes and everyone around me surges forward, I remain rooted to the ground as I watch them work.
That can work.
Quickly pulling my map out, I find a nearby library only a couple blocks away. I rush there, my heart picking up with hope. They won’t find me down there and there are definitely no cameras. I just need to learn the layout of the sewer system. I can use it to get to the outskirts of the city and maybe reach a highway to hitchhike
The library is large, three floors, with columns at the entrance and two sets of doors. One set is propped open, with a constant flow of people going in and out. I keep my head down as I go in and after spreading a web of lies about a report I’m doing for school, the person behind the desk is more than happy to point me in the right direction.
It doesn’t take long to locate the maps and scan them, making a copy. There’s one spot I can sneak down nearby, so I take off, hope finally filling me up.
No fricken way they will think of the sewers.
The entrance is along a highway, with stairs going down into the ground. When I get there, the lock laughs at me, but I smile back. Using my energy, I send it out, breaking the lock to get inside.
The metal door creaks and scratches the ground as I open it. I dig out a flashlight from my bag and turn it on, wincing at the disgustingness I have to walk through. The smell doesn’t help either.
Why is this a good idea again?
I stay in the main part which is tall and wide enough to walk in, the smell seeping into my pores. Rotten eggs. After only a couple of minutes, I give in and pull out a shirt, tying it around my face in an attempt to help filter out the air and lessen the smell. My nose burns from it.
Once I get an idea of where I am in terms of the map, I head to what looks like the only path out of here and it should come out in a suburban area.
The hike through the sewers is slow going, everything wet and slippery. My feet are soaked through and sore from all the walking. With all the abuse I’ve been giving my shoes the last few days, once this is over, I plan on burning them. They need to retire. Another mile, and I should come out where I want to.
So close.
After finishing the rest of my water, I tuck it in my bag and begin walking again. That’s when I hear it.
Footsteps. Coming from behind me.
My heart rate skyrockets. Is it Noah? Or the guys? I’m praying it’s a worker, but that isn’t how life works for me.
I pick up speed, trying to be as quiet as possible. I turn off my flashlight so I’m not as noticeable.
“Adalyn, just stop.” The accented voice sends a shiver through my spine. My eyes briefly close in defeat.
“Noah. Stalking isn’t nice,” I call out.
“Can we stop with this game now? I’m sure both of us would like to get out of this disgusting place. Why did you think this was a good idea?”
I hear him getting closer and find a door tucked about a foot into the wall. When I try opening it, it’s locked and a sob threatens to spill out. I swallow it as I press myself hard against the door.
“How did you find me?” I ask.
He doesn’t answer and I can hear each of his steps as he approaches.
Fuck it. I grip my bag hard and sprint forward, turning the flashlight back on so I don’t run into a wall.
His footsteps, along with others, become loud as they chase me.
“Stop running,” he snaps out.
I don’t respond, working to keep my breathing even as I fly through the tunnels, taking turns hard, risking falling.
A shot rings out, and not even half a breath later, I feel chunks of cement hit my face.
“Stop running, Adalyn,” Noah snaps out. “I will hurt you.”
“I’ll take my chances with the gun,” I mumble and slam into a door. It’s locked too, and I push my energy into it until it clicks and I’m able to push inside. Just as I’m closing the door, another shot rings out and the bullet slams into the door.
I let out a girly yelp and nearly fall on my butt. I shoot more energy into the door to melt the lock so they can’t undo it easily. It works just in time because I can hear them pounding on the other side. I get up and keep running, but then come to a halting stop when the air a few feet away shimmers.
Noah comes into view with another man.
Transporter.
“Shit,” I say, gasping for breath.
“Don’t make this harder,” Noah practically growls out. He approaches, and I glance around with no options. I just melted shut my only exit at this point.
Resolved to having to fight, I go into the stance for it. Noah finds this funny and flashes me a grin as if to say really.
When he comes at me, and since he’s a
lready here, I use my gift just enough to see what’s going to happen. He reaches for me, and I back off. This is over if he gets his hands on me. I briefly eye the transporter. He can just grab me and then transport us to who knows where. He definitely can’t touch me.
When Noah is in reach again, I dive to the side and manage to slip by him. I keep going and feint right. The transporter falls for the trick and goes to tackle me. I change trajectory, managing to get by him, his fingers grazing my clothes.
I don’t stop.
Another shot, and this time hot pain surrounds my stomach. I fall against a wall and when I see them coming, push myself off, stumbling away.
A door. I slump against it, holding my side. My hand is warm with blood and all I want to do is curl into the fetal position.
Shot. I’ve been shot.
I’ve never been shot before.
Shooting a prayer up into the abyss, I try the knob and nearly sob when it opens. Time is running out for me. I can feel it. I’m about to lose. Game over. Holsen is going to get me and then I’ll wish I was dead from that moment on.
Falling through the door, the only thing I have left inside of me is desperation as my head bangs against the ground and I yelp. Desperation can be dangerous, and it can also be a blessing. Only when people hit rock bottom and are forced into a corner are they ready to go beyond the capacity they can handle.
Half the time it kills them.
For me, I’d rather be dead. It’s as simple as that. But I’m also too much of a coward to kill myself. So yanking on that desperation and using it as my new best friend, I throw everything I have out there. My mind is flooded with images, telling me what to do, what not to do, to increase the possibility from two percent, to at least fifty percent. I fight with everything I have.
Close the door.
I kick it closed, still on the ground. The door clanks shut with an echoing bang.
Weld it shut.
Raising my hand, I gather what little bit of energy I can and melt the fucker closed. They aren’t getting out that way.
Release it. All of it.
I draw on as much energy as I can. My brain is banging out a loud crescendo in retribution, hating the strain I’m putting on it. My body acts as a back-up chorus as it agrees with my brain’s assessment. I’m pushing myself too far.
Fate Foretold (Gifted Anomalies Book 1) Page 10
