by JA Huss
I open my eyes and he becomes real. “Iziah,” I say, my lips trembling and my voice shaking.
“Shhhh,” he says, sitting down on the bed next to me. “Shhh. I got you, chick. I got you. Don’t think about anything right now. Don’t worry about anything right now.”
“Where am I?”
“What did I just say?” He laughs, sweeping a strand of sweat-soaked hair out of my eyes. “Just relax. You’re all good.”
I close my eyes, mostly because they are too heavy to keep open. It’s just too much effort. “I’ve missed you,” I mutter, almost asleep again.
He leans down, making the bed move, and kisses my forehead. “We’ve missed you too. But forget it for now. Just sleep a little longer, Sade. You’re safe here.”
The next time I open my eyes, I see him again, but not him. “Uzi,” I whimper.
The reaction is much the same. “Shhh, Sade. You’re OK. I’m just changing your drugs. Your stupid fucking friend messed you up good with that gas. But we got a hold on it now. Don’t worry. Just sleep.”
“Cyan,” I whimper back. “Where’s Cyan?”
“She’s been in and out the past week. She’s sleeping now, like you should be. I’ll tell her you’re almost ready. She’ll be so happy.” Uzi caresses my cheek with his hand and then leans down and kisses my forehead, just like Iziah did the last time I woke up. “Just sleep.”
CHAPTER NINETEEN - SULLIVAN
My body is cannibalizing itself from the inside out. I have no idea how long they’ve had me locked in this room, but it’s more than a few days. Maybe more than a week. This is a prison cell. I’ve measured it by pacing more times than I care to count. About six feet wide by six feet deep. Gray cinderblock walls. Gray concrete floor. No windows. The ceilings are tall, at least. So I was able to stand up and move around. There is a toilet in the corner. No mirror. And a concrete bed. No blankets.
No one has come. No one has fed me. No water. No demands. Nothing.
I stopped pounding on the door days ago. I don’t think anyone’s out there. I think they locked me up in this room and left.
I’m hoping for unconsciousness soon. The pain in my stomach from not eating is constant. My mouth is so dry it feels like it’s stuffed with cotton. The floor is cold and there’s nothing to cover myself, so I shiver uncontrollably.
Thomas is gone too. I have no idea what happened to Thomas. He might be dead. Which is just fucking great. I tried to use my powers but nothing’s there. I’m not talking about a weak wind, either. I’m talking about nothing.
I have been completely disabled.
I have no idea where Sadie is. If she’s alive or dead. Where this place is. Whether or not anyone will come back, or even who these people are.
But I can take a good guess.
Prodigy.
Everything about this place has Prodigy written all over it.
This cell is one I’m intimately familiar with. It’s just like the one they used to lock me in as a child. That’s what broke me, I realize. That cell back when I was little. Back when I was whole. Back before Thomas, and mentalist abilities. Back before I knew anything, they put me in a cell like this and they broke me.
Split me right in two.
They created Thomas from parts of me.
They starved me back then too. It’s a trigger. Something in me breaks free when I have no food or water. So they’ve already started the experiments again.
I can’t pace anymore. I can’t even crawl. So I just sit here, my back against the cold, hard, concrete wall, and wait. Shivering as I wait for the darkness to come.
I reach for Sadie’s mind. We’re linked. We know we’re linked. I was in there. I can call for her.
Sadie, I message. I’m still here. Help me.
Nothing.
This is my past, my present, and my future.
There’s nothing else I can do but wait.
CHAPTER TWENTY - SADIE
“Sadie.”
This time the voice is different. Soft. Feminine. Mine.
I open my eyes and see my sister. “Cyan,” I whisper. I reach for her hand and squeeze. She squeezes back harder.
“How are you feeling?”
“Like shit. What the hell happened?”
“We’re still trying to figure some of it out. But you’re OK now. We’ve got you back and that’s all that matters. Just rest.”
“No,” I say, pushing myself up on my elbows. “I’m done resting. I feel like I’ve been in this bed for weeks.”
“You have,” she says. There’s fear in her voice. “That gas—” She shakes her head. “Whatever it was really fucked you up. But I’m almost done analyzing it. I wish I could’ve gotten that done sooner. It would’ve shortened your recovery period.”
“Where’s Uzi?”
“He’s in the other room sleeping. We’ve been taking shifts with you. Keeping things going until you were strong again.” She squeezes my hand. “The worst is over now. You’re gonna be fine. Your leg is healing and—”
But I lose track of her words because a memory hits me in the head. “There was a crash,” I say, interrupting her.
“Yes.” Cyan nods. “A very bad one. Your leg was…” She shudders and makes a face. “Gross. But don’t worry. It’s healing nicely. The nanites have almost knitted everything back to good as new. Maybe a few more hours and you’ll never even be able to tell it was broken.”
I go looking for more memories, but my mind is blank. “Why can’t I remember anything?”
“I think it’s just a side effect. Of the gas. But it’ll wear off.”
“Where did you guys find me?”
My sister pauses for a moment, looking down at me with that thoughtful expression I’ve always loved. I wonder if I look at her that way? We have the same face. The same eyes, hair, fingers and toes. Identical, with one exception.
I’m an illusionist and she’s a mentalist.
But together, we are more than twins. We are complements. Yin and yang. Wondertwins.
“You were kidnapped by one of the Alphas. That’s who poisoned you.”
“Good God.” My insides twist with that revelation. “How long was I gone? How long did those sick fucks have me?”
She pats my hand sympathetically. “Don’t think about it now, OK? Uzi wants to fill you in on all those details later. Do you want to take a bath? I have your favorite bubbles.”
“God, yes.” I laugh. “That would be heaven.” But then I remember something. “Wait. I think I saw Iziah here. Was I dreaming? Is he here? Did you find him?”
“Yes,” Cyan says. Her sisterly smile beams down on me like rays of sunshine. “We found him about a month ago.” The smile fades. “It was so bittersweet though, you know? You go missing just when we thought we were all back together again.”
“Is he… OK?”
“He’s fine.” But it’s a lie and she knows I know it. “He will be fine. He was pretty fucked up when we got him out too. But not as bad as you. And then they found you in that tunnel with the Alpha. He sent Iziah reeling into a piece of wreckage with a mental blast, tore his biohazard suit open, and then the gas got him too. But he’s OK. He was mostly protected by the suit, so his dose was much smaller. He’ll come say hi when he gets some time. We’re very busy. We’ve got Prodigy within reach now. We’re going to take them out, Sadie. Just like we planned.”
Another flash across my vision. Sadie, it says. Help me.
“Are you OK?” Cyan asks me. She puts a gentle hand on my shoulder. “What’s wrong?”
“I just got a flash. Of the Alpha.” I look up at my sister. “Thomas Brooks was the one who took me, wasn’t he?”
She nods, but says nothing.
“God. It’s even worse than I could’ve imagined. Of all the Alphas to be caught by, it had to be him? What did he do to me?”
“We don’t know yet,” she says in her stay-calm voice. “But whatever it was, we can fix it. Don’t worry.”
Sadie,
the message reads again. It’s me. I’m still here. Help me.
“Don’t listen to them,” Cyan cautions me. “They’ll twist your head. You know this. You know the kind of power they wield. You’ve been training your whole life to deal with their tricks. Don’t let him have your mind, Sadie. Turn him off right now.”
She drops her carefully planned optimism as the last few words come out. They are harsh and stern. An order.
“You were tricked with his stupid mentalist powers. That’s how he got you. Don’t let him do it again. I can’t lose you again, do you understand?”
I nod. “I won’t. I promise.”
“Good,” she says. Her smile is back and she stands up from the bed. “Now let me help you to the tub. Uzi will come in when you’re done and you two can have some alone time.”
She winks at me, then smiles.
Uzi. We have been partners for as long as I can remember. Which, at this point, isn’t long because my memory is so fucked up. But I know him. I know what he is to me. I know what we are together.
He’s my other half. He’s the one I belong to.
Things I know.
I’m in a house. A pretty big one, too. We’re in the mountains because I have the most picturesque view imaginable as I soak in the tub. The bubbles smell like heaven. The hot water feels so delicious, I might drink it. And I have no clue what was wrong with my leg, because there’s no sign of injury at all from what I can tell.
But every few minutes, that message flashes across my vision overlay.
Help me.
Why in the ever-loving fuck would I help that asshole?
I grew up terrified of them. All of them. I’d never met one personally, since the Alpha program was officially over before I was even old enough to understand what they were. But I’ve seen pictures. I’ve heard the horror story of how they killed all those other kids.
And Thomas Brooks was the ringleader. He was the one who did it. The others are just bad, but he’s the worst of the worst. If evil is a real thing, that man is it, personified.
Cyan, Uzi, and I escaped Prodigy two years ago. Iziah was caught the same night. He was covering for us so we could all get away, and he was caught. I was caught a few days later.
That much I remember.
I have been with Prodigy for a long time.
The rest… well. It’s a little bit fuzzy because that stupid fucking Alpha kidnapped me, put me into some kind of train car under the ground, and then we crashed, which released that green gas.
This is as much as I’ve figured out.
I remember the crash, the car, and the tunnel. Cyan told me about the kidnapping and the gas.
And I remember him too.
He’s kinda hot.
Good God, I hope Cyan isn’t trying to read my mind right now. She will flip out. Alphas are not hot, they are dangerous.
Sadie…
God, why is he doing this to me? Go away!
But just as I say that in my head, I have a flash of light. A feeling floods through my body. Fear, I think. Fear of… him?
No. Not him.
Them.
Which I can only assume is Prodigy. It makes me shudder even though the tub water is so hot, steam is still wafting up in hazy tendrils.
Don’t let them take me.
I’ll do my best.
He’s holding me. Carrying me. His arm around me protectively.
And then it’s gone.
I sink down into the water and wet my hair again. I stay like that, holding my breath, wanting that last part to come back, but I don’t dare wish for it.
Too many people can see inside me. I’ve always hated that part about being an illusionist. There’s no privacy when you have mentalists around. Cyan and Uzi are both mentalists.
I force myself to think of Uzi instead of Thomas. He’s always been a part of our lives. Iziah too. They aren’t twins like me and Cyan, just brothers. But they look enough alike that people assume.
We are a team. Been a team our whole lives. Iziah and I are illusionists. Uzi and Cyan are mentalists. We are perfectly matched. We are all linked, which means Cyan and Uzi can see inside Iziah and me.
But I wonder something as I sit in the tub and soak the ache from my muscles. I wonder how much Thomas saw of me. Because I feel his link. I feel his connection.
Sadie… Help me.
I feel… his pain.
“Cyan!” I yell, standing up in the tub. “Cyan!” I step out, grab a towel from the vanity, and wrap myself up.
The door flies open. Uzi is there. “What?” he asks, coming towards me. “What’s wrong?” His huge arm wraps around my body, pulling me close.
Sadie… Help me.
Cyan appears in the doorway. “What’s going on? Why are you screaming my name?”
“Where is he?” I ask, pushing Uzi away and slipping past Cyan. “He’s here. Somewhere. Where are you guys keeping him?”
“Who?” Cyan asks, grabbing my arm. “Where are you going?”
“The Alpha,” I say. “Thomas Brooks. He’s here. Where is he?”
“Why?” Uzi asks.
“Because he’s in pain, Uzi. He’s dying.”
Uzi laughs. “You know as well as I do, he can’t die.”
“You’re torturing him, aren’t you?”
“Sadie, just calm down.” Cyan still has a hold of my arm, but I yank it away.
“I want to see him. Right now. I want to make sure he’s OK.” I turn around just quick enough to catch Uzi and Cyan sharing a knowing glance. “Take me to him.”
“No,” Cyan says. “I’m not letting him get near you. He linked himself to you, didn’t he?”
I can’t deny it, so I don’t.
“Are you fucking kidding me right now?” Uzi asks. “Why the hell would you let that spawn of hell into your head?”
“It’s not her fault,” Cyan says, moving close to me. She takes my side and I appreciate that.
“It’s not,” I say. “I didn’t let him do anything. But the link is there and I know you’re torturing him. I can feel it!”
I feel Uzi inside me. It makes me sick. I don’t know why. I’ve always loved it before. But Cyan kicks him out. She’s there now. She has a special place inside me. She fills me up and makes me complete. She begins probing and poking. Looking for things she feels entitled to.
But there’s a trick us illusionists learn early. We did it in the classrooms at Prodigy all the time. If there’s someone in your head without permission, you can kick them out using another, stronger mentalist to take their place.
And normally I have no one I can use. Uzi and Cyan have been coming and going inside my head for so long—it’s been just us for so long—I’d forgotten what it was like to replace them.
But now I have a third option. And he’s much, much stronger than the two of them put together.
Now I have Thomas.
I call for him. He’s weak, but he’s still a level ten. The only level ten I’ve ever heard of. You don’t have to be strong to take a mind. You just have to know the tricks.
I call again and this time I feel his attention on me.
“Stop it!” Cyan says.
“Get out of my head.”
“Don’t let him in there, Sadie. What the fuck do you think you’re doing?”
I call again. “Get out of my head!” I say. This time it’s loud. “Or I will let him in.”
Cyan retreats. Uzi doesn’t try to take her place. They both stare at me—open-mouthed—like I have lost my mind.
“What the fuck is wrong with you, Sade?” Uzi yells.
“Just calm down,” Cyan says, grabbing Uzi’s arm to hold him back.
I clutch the towel around my body and turn away. They follow me, still demanding answers.
I realize I don’t have any clothes. I was wearing a nightgown when I woke up. “I need clothes,” I say. “And then I want to see him.”
“No,” Cyan says. “That’s absolutely not going to happen.�
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“Yes,” I say back. Forcefully. “It absolutely is. You’re torturing him. And as long as he’s in my head, I won’t stand for it.”
Then I do something I don’t think I’ve ever done before. I trip them. I trip them both. I make them see me as Thomas. The way he looks right now.
I don’t know what he looks like right now, but that’s the beauty of my power. I make people see what they know to be true. I don’t have to know what people look like to turn myself into an illusion of them, I just need a face.
So they see Thomas.
“Stop it!” Cyan yells, yanking my arm. “Why are you doing that? What the hell is wrong with you? Did he brainwash you?”
“You’re sick, Sadie,” Uzi says. “You were with them too long.”
And that stops me for a moment. The word… them. My illusion snaps and I’m Sadie again. “With… them? Who is them?”
“He means the Alphas. They did something to you. That green gas. Iziah has been complaining for days now too. He’s—”
“Where is Iziah?” I ask, forgetting Thomas and the way they’re torturing him.
“He’s resting,” Cyan says. “He’s not feeling well today so he’s resting. He told me to wake him for dinner. And that’s what we’re gonna do now, OK?”
She starts out speaking harshly to me. But her tone is that same soft voice of love and compassion by the time she’s done.
Help me, Sadie. Please.
I close my eyes. His plea is so hard to resist. “First you take me to Thomas.”
“No,” Uzi says. “He’s just gonna hijack you again. Take control.”
“I’m a lot stronger than him right now. I can kick him out. Watch.” I do. I shut off his plea and immediately, Cyan is back.
Her body is next to me, but her mind is inside me. Her shoulder relaxes with relief.
“I can control him right now. And I want to see what you’ve done to him. So get me some clothes and take me there right now. Or I’ll kick you out again, Cyan. I can do it, you know I can.”
I kick her out of me and let Thomas back in.
It takes every ounce of self-control I have not to smile about that.
