Wheeler continues to glance at my eye. “Are you okay, baby girl?”
“I am now I’ve seen your beautiful face. What about the others?” He pushes the door open and Emiko, October, and Seth waits outside with nervous anticipation.
I throw myself at Emi, and she jumps up and down, bouncing me along with her. Seth and October join in- the four of us dancing around like lunatics.
“How did you get out of the detention centre?” I gasp, going in for another hug.
“Lizzie got us out,” states Wheeler, his face deadly serious.
“I was at the centre when Towley’s evacuation order came through. He’s been on edge. Something must have spooked him. I took advantage to release your friends, but I couldn’t get to Adam and Yana in the isolation cells. I was being monitored.”
“We barely made it out alive,” says Emiko. “TORO are terrifying, but they helped us.”
“I ordered them,” says Lizzie.
I understand the logistics of TORO and they would have only listened to a person who they believe to have authority. They would have obeyed Lizzie’s commands without second guessing her.
“Okay, but why are you sneaking around?” Ingrid asks.
Lizzie hands her a piece of paper, she reads it, and then drops it as if it’s burning hot to the touch. I snatch it up, unsure of what I’m looking at. There’s a list of names written in untidy scrawl. It’s only when I get to the bottom that I notice Leoni’s name.
“It’s a list of the Shift members dated fourteen years ago. This is how the government knew who was in the organisation.” Lizzie turns it over and points to a name written in capitals and underlined several times- Rafe Lloyd. Then she points to the scrawl at the bottom- ‘Signed by Grayson James’.
My mouth goes dry and I feel physically sick. “Does Adam know?”
“Adam’s here?” Wheeler asks, gawping. All of them become more alert, more animated. “Is he okay?”
I can’t help but smile to be the bringer of good news. “Yes. Adam and Yana.”
Wheeler turns his head to the skies and thanks the heavens, and Emiko squeals her excitement.
“We knew you were close by because Seth could sense you,” says October.
“You’re st-st-stronger than I-I-I remember,” Seth adds.
Emiko hugs me again. “We had no idea what had happened to Adam and Yana. They were taken from us on day one.”
“Why did you come back if you thought it to be dangerous?” I ask Lizzie.
“We’ve been monitoring Syndicate’s base. It’s all we could do.”
“We hoped one of you would return. We thought Jude was long gone,” says Wheeler. “Then, I intercepted the radio call Jude made to Grayson about Shift and we had to come and check it out.” Wheeler readjusts the radio hanging from his belt.
“Grayson isn’t the man we thought him to be,” says Lizzie.
Ingrid holds a hand to her throat in disgust. “He’s a rat.”
“Are these new Shift guys straight up people?” October asks.
I pull the mask from my back pocket and slide it over my face. “They’re our people,” I say through the synthesiser. “But they could be in danger if Grayson is still an informant.”
CHAPTER TWENTY TWO
We race back through the warehouse; adrenaline and anger courses through my veins. Grayson is a traitor. That sentence doesn’t sit well with me. Everything he has done until now has been for the benefit of other people. I know he was sneaky, allowing me to check out the centre, but he must have thought it was safe, and I can’t blame Grayson if I don’t blame Jude. Since when do rats turn into good Samaritans.
We slip back into the surgery room and I don’t wait for introduction, bursting into the meeting room in a haze of anger. I don’t even give Adam or Yana time to greet Wheeler and the others, I run up to Grayson and swing for him, knocking him off his feet.
“You lying bastard,” I shout in his face. “Who the hell are you?” I smack him again, this time in the stomach. Cooper has taught me well.
Crow grabs me from behind, latching his arms through mine, so I can’t do anything other than thrash about.
Grayson jumps to his feet, wiping blood from his nose. “Teddie? What are you talking...” He sees the paper in my hand and hangs his head.
“Do you recognise this? You should because it’s got your signature on it.”
Adam wrestles Crow away from me. “What’s this about?”
“Grayson is the reason your Dad is dead. He’s the reason Rafe and every other original Shift member is dead. He ratted everyone out.”
Leoni snatches the paper from me, her eyes darting over the list of names and Grayson’s signature. The paper floats from her hand and she stands motionless for a moment before pulling the gun from her waistband. “My husband is dead because of you. I had to abandon my son because of you. And you have been looking me in the eye- calling me a friend!”
Grayson raises his hands in surrender, backing away from us. “It isn’t how you think. I know it looks bad- it is bad, but I have reason.”
“Get talking,” says Jude. He hasn’t moved from his spot against the wall, but his hand now rests on his own gun.
“I first met Rafe when he hired the security company I was employed with. He was hosting an event for a load of rich aristocrats and entrepreneurs. He had a sensor working for him, and by the end of the night I was a member of Shift.”
“Give me a reason not to kill you right here, right now,” Leoni snarls.
“Rafe got me a security job in a government research centre. I had been collecting intelligence for Shift for six months, but someone somewhere cottoned on. Some government types drove me off the road one night after work, took me to a barn in the middle of nowhere, and beat me half to death. Then, they brought my wife out. They threatened her life.”
The room is silent. Even Leoni has lowered her gun an inch or two.
“Nadine was seven months pregnant with our baby boy and she was so scared. They had blindfolded her, gagged her, and tied her to a chair. I gave up the names because they threatened to kill my wife and unborn child.”
Grayson cries now. The memories clearly hurt and are so strong that he imparts them on me without me having to consciously tune in. I can see Nadine on the chair with a gun pressed into her temple.
“What would you have done? What would any of you have done? I gave them the names, signed the paper, and I watched as they put a bullet in my wife’s head, and then her belly. They killed them anyway to teach me a lesson.”
The gunshots are so clear in his mind that I physically jump. I lurch forward, gagging as the vision of Nadine with blood seeping over her white maternity dress floods my mind.
“Stop it,” I scream at Grayson.
Adam catches me before I hit the floor. “What’s happening?”
“She has no control,” says Leoni, helping him steady me.
Grayson sobs uncontrollably, hysteria in his voice. “They killed them both anyway! I’m sorry for what I did to you and yours, Leoni. I tried to get hold of Rafe... I tried.” He slumps against the desk. “By the time I contacted him, Stuart was dead. I warned Rafe of what I had done.”
The only image in Grayson’s mind is of Nadine slumped in the chair. The image fades, enabling me to finally breathe.
“Did you see it?” Grayson asks. He sounds childlike and vulnerable.
I’m crying now. “I saw it. I’m so sorry that you had to go through that. No one should have to go through that.” I hold him, and he cries into my hair.
Jude pushes himself away from the wall with his foot. “I’ll go get some brandy.”
***
Grayson holds my hand as he sips his drink. He sits shaking in the chair, desperately clawing back his composure.
“How do the attacks affect Syndicate?” I ask, changing the subject to encourage Grayson to think about something other than his pregnant wife’s murder.
He shakes his head. “I really
do not know. We need to gain more ground, get a better footing. We’ve got the hardest job of all- taking on both the government and the E.N.C. I had to appoint new Council members since you all went AWOL, but we have been planning something big. We would like your permission to announce your allegiance to Syndicate, Teddie. Many EVO are joining the E.N.C out of fear from the government, not a hatred of Non-EVO. If we can show them what we represent and that we have the worlds’ most powerful EVO working for—”
“No,” says Adam without so much as a blink.
“No,” says Jude.
Yana and Cooper both step forward at the same time. “No,” they say in unison.
Crow laughs out loud. “Cub is Shift, not Syndicate. You lost her the minute you told her about us.”
“I never realised we were in competition.”
“Hey, do I get a say? This isn’t a Teddie tug of war,” I say. Grayson leans closer, eagerly awaiting my decision. “No.”
“May I ask why?”
I hesitate to think up a kind way to tell him what I need to. Sometimes fast and quick is the best way, like ripping off a plaster. “You know how I feel about Syndicate. I love what you’re trying to do, but I want to be on the pro-active team. I’m put to better use on Shift’s squad. I can be of more benefit actually doing something than pretending that Syndicate can handle their shit.”
“Your face can do more good than you know. That’s all I need, Teddie- your face. You can do what you like with Shift, but we need your support. Do you not care about your reputation? We can put the truth out there.”
“It’s not happening, end of story,” Crow barks at Grayson. “Cub is with us. We will take any intel you have on the detention centres and fight houses, and we will deliver any EVO and Non-EVO who need sanctuary to you under the guise of Syndicate. You can take the credit, but don’t expect us to bow to your rules. We have our own way of doing things and handing over a valuable member of our team isn’t one of them. Shift is in Teddie’s blood. That’s all there is to it.”
Grayson dips his head in defeat. “I’m sorry to hear it.” Then, he turns to me. “I’m disappointed in you.” He could have slapped me in the face and not wounded me as much.
“Like you said, you’ve got the wrong girl.”
Grayson shrugs. “No, Teddie. You are the right girl, but you’re scared of that fact. It is easier for you to have the world hating you. If nothing is expected of you, you can’t let anyone down. No expectations- no responsibility, right?”
Jude squares up to Grayson. “You don’t get to talk to her like that. A rat doesn’t get to talk to her like that.”
“I’m trying to make amends for my wrongs. I’m stepping up. I’m raising the expectations, because if I fall, then at least I know I tried.” He turns to me. “Running around playing vigilante is not trying, Teddie. Hiding your face behind a mask is not trying. If something is at risk, but you do it anyway- that’s trying.”
“You want to talk about risk?” Jude snaps.
“It’s alright, Jude,” I say, stepping in front of Grayson. “You’re right. I don’t want the responsibility. I don’t want to have anything expected of me, and I sure as hell don’t want an organisation I have no confidence in using me to gain leverage because they are out of options.” Adam smirks at Grayson. The pride oozing from him gives me a little high. “I like you, Grayson. I know you’re trying to right wrongs, and I know you’re a good guy. I even understand what you are trying to achieve, but if Syndicate’s only hope is to pull my face out of the bag, then you stand little chance at making any difference in this war.”
“This doesn’t affect our agreement,” Crow tells Grayson, leading me toward the door. I’m grateful for the chance to escape anymore scrutiny; unfair scrutiny that I know I don’t deserve. “We’ll be moving out shortly. You can talk communication systems with Kesh, and as long as you keep up your end of the deal, we’re happy to help.”
Grayson sighs, but shakes Crow’s hand. “Do you require any tents? Food? I can have men deliver supplies here within the hour.”
“Don’t bother. We’re not staying here. We’ll go somewhere private, safer,” says Crow, brushing fluff from his trousers. “And no, Syndicate do not need to know where.”
Grayson motions for his men to follow him, and then breezes from the room. He pats my shoulder as he passes. His heart is in the right place, but he is deluded.
Once Grayson’s trucks pull onto the road, Kesh scouts the warehouse for bugs. It is clean, which I thought would be the case. I don’t have Grayson down as the ‘spying on his allies’ type of guy.
“So, where do we go? Tents are a bit conspicuous,” says Leoni. “We need somewhere secluded; somewhere no one would think we’d go.”
“The Leason house,” Jude says. My tummy lurches. “It’s about forty-five minutes from here, and no one would think we’d be stupid enough to take Teddie there. I’ve been there a few times this week and it’s pretty much forgotten about.”
“What if you’re wrong?” asks Leoni.
“No, Jude’s right. We have a Telepath, Empath, and Sensor. We should take the chance.” Crow doesn’t wait for agreement.
A part of me wants to run screaming from the idea of going back home, but that is overshadowed by my need to be there, to feel close to my family once more. “Okay, home it is.”
***
I sit in the window seat with Adam’s arm around my shoulders. Our free hands are linked, and he rubs his thumb over my palm. I shift in my chair to disappear further into his embrace.
I gently stroke at his bandaged forearm. “What did they do to you?”
He looks up from his wrist, his face just centimetres from mine. Running my thumb over his swollen lips, I kiss them gently.
“They tried to break me, but they failed. I thought you were dead and nothing they did was worse than living with that.”
“I’m sorry. I really thought—”
A head pops through the middle of our head rests. “She as good as snuffed it for a moment. I still can’t get over the size of that knife Maggie stuck her with. It went through her like a pin cushion.”
Adam sighs, turns to face Cooper, and extends a hand through the chairs. “Thank you for being there for her.”
Cooper shakes his hand. “Someone had to. You know the trouble she gets herself into.”
Adam nods, but seems reluctant to talk to him further. I can already sense that the two of them are going to be hard work. Well, Adam at least.
“Hey, I saved your ass on more than one occasion,” I add. “Don’t you go forgetting that,” I say, laughing. Cooper ruffles my hair, and sits back in his chair.
Rio opens a window and a rush of cold, sea air gusts through the mini bus. The familiar scent fills my nostrils and I know we’re close to home. We pass the crooked tree; a tree that, as a child, I would imagine was a withered hand stretching from the earth.
Crow asks me to read the area. There are fourteen people in the bus, and Kid follows behind in the truck. The thought of all those voices and thoughts makes me nauseous. I look for Leoni again. As if pre-empting my thoughts, she gets up from her seat and makes her way over. Adam is a little put out when she asks him to move, but I need Leoni’s guidance.
She takes the seat beside me and places her hands on my shoulders. “Remember what we’ve practiced. Use your deep breathing and reach out beyond everyone in the vehicles. All you’re doing is listening.”
I inhale deeply and allow my telepathy loose. The thoughts are so fast and furious that they jumble and grow to fever pitch in my mind. “There’s too many,” I say, fighting away the urge to vomit.
“Push passed us, Teddie. What is out there? Just listen, Sweetheart. You only have to listen.”
It takes everything in my composure to reach out further. The thoughts of everyone on the bus grow quieter, and then there is silence. “There is nothing. I’m not picking up on anything.”
Leoni hugs me again until my shaking subsides. �
��Well done. You’ll get the hang of this soon. I’m sure of it.”
“I never knew you could read on that scale,” Adam says, returning to his seat.
Wheeler turns in the chair in front. “Yeah, you seem stronger. When Seth sensed you at the warehouse he said your strength felt unlike anything he’s sensed from you before.”
“I’ve been un-manipulated,” I say. “You were right. My memory flashes were exactly like yours. After Tess stretched my ability I started to un-manipulate my own memories, but it was getting dangerous and manifesting itself in episodes like I used to get before. I still can’t master the new strength of telepathy; the thoughts overwhelm me. The only thing I can control is our link.”
Everyone is listening now; only Jude, Cooper, Leoni, and Kesh know the story of my un-manipulation.
Leoni has taken a seat across the aisle from us and pivots to face us, resting her elbows on her knees. “If you don’t mind, Teddie, I think I need to explain this one myself.” Her eyes flit to Adam, and I happily hand the conversation over to her. I don’t want to step on her toes where Adam is concerned. I need to get used to sharing him with her.
“It was me who manipulated Teddie’s memories as a child. Her mother contacted Rafe for help when Teddie started showing signs of telepathy at five years old. Rafe thought memory manipulation might have held off any further development and protect her from exposure. This was just weeks before Dad was killed in the accident. I manipulated you too. You knew things that might have jeopardised your safety. It was wiser that you thought I was dead, and that I wiped any memory that may have linked you to Shift.”
“I want those memories back,” he says. There’s a bite to his words.
“As soon as we get somewhere safe, I promise,” she says. “They won’t be pretty, Sweetheart.”
“The truth never is,” he says, quietly. “But I want to remember everything.”
Jude bumps the van down the lane at speed. My stomach cramps as I remember every bump and dip in the old track.
“Jude, slow down, there’s a pot—” The van launches down and up, throwing everyone around in their seats. “Hole,” I finish my sentence with my brain rattling in my skull. I could drive this lane with my eyes closed.
EVO Shift: EVO Nation Series: Book Two Page 18
