Monster (Tainted Elements Book 3)

by Alycia Linwood

  “No. You have to go, and forget you ever saw anything.”

  “I can’t. I won’t!” I crossed my arms.

  He faced me again, leaning his back against the wall. “I’m not like you. My elements... they’re not like yours. You were born with them. I wasn’t.”

  “What?” My eyebrows furrowed. “What do you mean you weren’t born with them?” That didn’t make any sense. Every person on the planet was born with an element, at least one, even if it was too weak to be used.

  He swallowed, closing his eyes for a moment. “I mean... I was born like a regular elemental, not like you.”

  “But you said...”

  “I lied. My father didn’t find a way to manipulate an unborn child’s genes before anyone else. He found a way to create a second element in me after I was born and enhance the power of both of my elements.” This time his cheek became translucent for a moment.

  “Okay, whatever.” I was sure my mom would be freaking out right now and would want to know the details, but I didn’t care whether his elements had come from regular genetic manipulations or from the moon. “But what’s wrong with your elements now?”

  “They’re not really permanent. I need a serum to keep them strong or I won’t be able to use them.” He let himself slide back to the floor, his eyes fixed to the ground. “There, happy now? You do realize that if you say any of this to anyone, my father will kill you. So just go back to whatever you were doing and forget about this.”

  I just stared at him. “And why don’t you just go get the damn serum instead of wasting time in this stupid room?”

  He shot me an annoyed look. “Because my father is displeased with me and won’t give it to me.”

  “So he’ll just keep you in here until he needs you, is that it?” I put my hands on my hips, wishing I could just drag Jaiden out of this room, but if I did that, I’d put Lily’s and my mission at risk. “Wait, this is your big secret. You actually sold Noah and me out back on the island because of this serum, didn’t you? You were with the elementals for too long, and your father must have stopped giving you the serum when you didn’t return soon enough. And all of this...” I waved my hands around. “You’re letting him do all of this to you because of the stupid serum. Wow, Jaiden, wow.”

  “Look, I’m sorry about what happened to you and the others, but you don’t know what it’s like not to have elements. Without them, I’m nothing. Completely weak and useless.” The pain in his eyes tore at my heart.

  He was right; I didn’t know what it was like for him. There were so many things that I believed I would have done differently if I were in his place, but his father had taught him that his only value was in his abilities. If I’d been listening to the same thing for years, maybe I’d get to believe it too.

  “That’s not true,” I said matter-of-factly, not willing to walk away without at least trying to make him see my way. “There’s nothing weak about you, Jaiden, even without your elements.”

  “What do you want from me?” His eyes bored into mine, as if trying to see through me. “Everyone, including you, always needs something from me... either my protection, my abilities, information... Do you think any tainted elementals like Noah and the others would have followed me if I had offered them nothing? Would I even be here now if you hadn’t needed me to show you where the lab was?”

  I closed my eyes for a moment. Whatever I told him, he’d find a way to convince me and himself that I was either lying or wrong. Steeling myself and wiping any emotion off my face, I took a deep breath.

  “You want to keep sitting here and be your father’s slave for the rest of your life? Fine. Be my guest. It’s not like I can’t do everything on my own. But if you really want that serum and your elements back, you’re going to knock out the guard when he comes here next time. It’s not like you can’t fight without your elements and it’s not like he’s going to seriously injure his boss’s son. If you’re successful please come find me so we can have a drink. If not, well at least you tried.” Without another word, I turned on my heel and strode out of the room, my shoulders tense.

  As the door closed behind me, I slumped against it until I saw the confused expression on Tommy’s face. Regaining my composure, I pushed myself to my feet, my air sneaking into his head again. “Do you know the code for that last door?”

  “Yes,” he said.

  “Great. Then why don’t you tell me?”

  I’d left Tommy outside the door to keep watch and ended up in a small room full of vials and papers. It looked almost like a small lab. There was another door, but I didn’t see a way to open it, so I focused on what I had in front of me.

  A rack of vials filled with colorful liquids caught my eye, and I went closer to inspect it. Careful not to break anything, I lifted one of the vials and saw a sticker with a name on it: Amber. Huh, what could that mean? I picked another vial and found more names, such as George, Kevin, and Tina. I assumed those were names of people, and not of the liquids.

  One of the vials was crimson and completely different from the others, so I picked it up. Jaiden’s name was taped to it. My pulse sped up. Was that the serum Jaiden needed? If so, there was only one vial like that here, no more. Maybe the boss had already prepared it and left it here until he decided to give it to Jaiden.

  I looked around until I found two empty vials. Popping the cork very slowly, I poured a couple of drops of the liquid into the empty vial. Closing everything again, I hoped no one would notice someone had touched the vials. I pocketed the one with the drops. Getting back to the desk, I rummaged through the things on it until I found a stack of papers with photographs and profiles of people.

  I didn’t recognize any of the faces until my eyes fell on an envelope with Jaiden’s name. I opened it and found what looked like a birth certificate, with the “Mother’s name” field empty. The next paper stated that an experiment on him had started when he was only three months old. I skimmed through the rest of the papers with information about things I couldn’t even begin to understand—until I saw the last sentence, which stated: “The first semi-successful experiment; supplement needed.”

  I was about to return the papers into the envelope when I noticed a bunch of photographs inside. What I saw made my stomach turn upside down. I held up a photo of a crying baby, its tiny body full of IV needles and connected to some machines. The next photo was of the same baby surrounded by fire. The next one was a scan of elemental energy, and results of a bunch of tests. I tucked everything back the way I’d found it, although I doubted anyone would notice something had changed in this mess.

  The other files seemed to be all about experiments, but who were all these people? Some of them weren’t young, so I didn’t quite understand why Jaiden’s file was with theirs. As I flipped through other files, a familiar face caught my eye. The guy Jaiden had shot in that alley. The one who had looked too old to be one of us.

  I checked the info, and indeed he was four years older than me. At the bottom of his file, in huge black letters, it was written, “Volunteer.” Did that mean he’d volunteered to have his elements enhanced? But how? When I turned the paper, I saw that under, “Cause of death,” it stated that he’d been killed in the field. There wasn’t anything that could tell me when or where these experiments had taken place or what they consisted of.

  The guy had been older and he could turn into air. Did that mean Elemontera had found a way to transform older elementals into tainted elementals? I went back to other files, checking the cause of death. On most of them it said death had occurred a couple of days after the experiment because the body was too weak to handle the tainted elements. Only one of them had managed to last longer than a week.

  Oh, God. They were all failed experiments, which meant Elemontera was still trying to find a way to enhance elements so regular elementals could become like us. Jaiden was their only mostly successful experiment, but they didn’t need to enhance a baby’s elements. They wanted to do it with adults; adul
ts who’d pay great money for it. If they’d succeeded, would Elemontera have stopped hunting tainted elementals? Did the government even know about this?

  I took one of the papers and tucked it into my pocket. One paper could easily disappear in here and it was totally random, so even if someone noticed it was missing, it wouldn’t look suspicious. I just had to make sure no one caught me with it. Arranging everything to look more or less how it’d been before I touched it, I cursed myself for not knowing more about these things.

  Someone like my mom would probably be able to tell what was going on just by looking at the strange medical terms that were pretty much everywhere. She might even be able to recognize what was in that vial. I just had to get it to her.

  Tommy was still obediently waiting for me when I got out. “Why did the boss give you the code for this room?” I couldn’t imagine he’d let many people inside, especially when he was obviously so intent on keeping this secret that there weren’t even any cameras.

  “So I can give Jaiden his medicine,” Tommy simply said.

  “Why does the boss trust you so much?”

  “I’m his distant relative and I’m loyal to him.”

  “Ah, wonderful.” I, or maybe my air, briefly toyed with the idea of removing one of the boss’s most loyal men, but I couldn’t let that happen. Instead, I snatched the new tablet from Tommy’s hands. “You won’t remember any of this happened. And if someone asks, I was here to replace my tablet and nothing more. Nothing out of the ordinary happened.”

  He blinked as I released his mind, and laughed. “Try not to break this one.”

  I cradled the tablet to myself as we walked to the elevator. “I won’t. Promise. Thank you so much.”

  As we went back to the main floor, I hoped I’d see Jaiden again very soon. But now I had to figure out how to take the vial and the paper I’d stolen to my mom. I wondered if the government knew about these experiments. It wouldn’t surprise me if they did. Until they could have what tainted elementals had, they were willing to hide us and hunt us all down in fear for their safety, or more like out of fear of losing the power. But if by some miracle they could become like us, that would be another story.

  Chapter 10

  The next day a guard entered my room, and my breath got stuck in my chest. Had they discovered something unusual? Had they somehow found out what I’d done yesterday?

  “Can’t you at least knock?” I glared at him, my voice quivering only a little. My body perfectly still, I didn’t dare get off the bed, because I wasn’t sure my legs would be able to support me.

  The guard approached me, some kind of a device in his hand. “I’ve come to upgrade your bracelet a little since your elemental energy seems to have spiked up.”

  “Oh.” I extended my arm so he could press the device against the bracelet. Damn it. This was probably a consequence of my little accident with the tablet. They clearly didn’t want me to ruin all their inventory. The device beeped, and the guard flashed me a smile. “All done.”

  After he left, I glanced at my bracelet. I could still feel my elements and reach out with them, so they hadn’t blocked them. But maybe someone would block my elements if they saw me sleeping. Hopefully, I wouldn’t have to do any more stupid things to reach my goal. Slipping into my sneakers, I jumped off the bed.

  As I made my way down the hallway, I nearly bumped into a group of guards who were dragging two teenagers with them. The captives were struggling, crying, and screaming, but the guards ignored them. Were they new recruits or new lab rats? Bile rose in my throat when I thought of how Elemontera was finding volunteers for their experiments. But there was nothing I could do right now to help those teens. I couldn’t stop Elemontera. Not until I found a way into the main lab.

  Someone’s hand grabbed my arm, sending shivers down my spine. I yelped, turning around, and found myself face to face with Jaiden, who smirked at me.

  “Did you miss me?” he asked.

  I grinned at him and wrapped my arms around him, glad that he was here and not in that damn room. His hand wound up in my hair as I tried to pull back, and suddenly we were so close that I could have brushed my lips against his if I’d wanted to. I looked up into his dark eyes, and we just stared at each other for a moment. I rested my hands on his chest as his arms hugged my waist.

  “Oh, God,” a guard groaned as he saw the two of us, and we jumped apart. I licked my dry lips, looking away.

  “We should go somewhere else,” Jaiden said.

  “Yeah.” I couldn’t agree more. I couldn’t even speak to him in this place with eyes and ears everywhere. That was so incredibly frustrating, and yet another reason to destroy the damn place forever. My elements surged again and I had to shove them back.

  “Let’s go.” Jaiden started down the hallway and I followed him to the elevator. He pressed the button for the rooftop and I arched an eyebrow, but he just smiled at me. When we walked outside, I was blinded by the morning sun. The rooftop was empty, and the fresh breeze ruffled my hair. I breathed in, my shoulders finally relaxing. But when I opened my mouth to say something, Jaiden put a finger in front of his lips and shook his head. Elemontera could still hear us. Great.

  “Why didn’t I know that I had access to the rooftop?” I frowned, realizing the alarm hadn’t beeped when I crossed through the door, and I knew Jaiden hadn’t done anything to disable it or grant me access. And we weren’t on a mission, so we couldn’t have automatic permission.

  “Because no one remembered to tell you.” His eyes sparkled with amusement.

  I groaned. “Where else can I go?”

  “I’m afraid not anywhere far, but you can see it all on your tablet. If you still have it.” A ghost of a smile traced his lips. “If you don’t mess up your next mission, you might even get your first free day.”

  “Wow, progress!” I clapped my hands in excitement that I didn’t really feel. Maybe some idiot in Elemontera would misinterpret my words and conclude I was Elemontera’s most enthusiastic agent. Jaiden offered me his hand and I took it.

  We walked to the edge of the roof. The city was bathed in golden rays of sunshine, the windows glistening, people milling around. Jaiden let go of me, and I placed my hands on the low stone wall, looking over the city. He came to stand behind my back and wrapped his arms around me.

  “Your energy is spiking way too much,” he whispered into my ear. “I could teach you something. A favor for the favor you did to me.”

  “Okay,” I said, digging my fingers into the cold stone as Jaiden traced his fingers down my neck. He pushed me forward so I was trapped between him and the wall, my breathing leaving my lips in a sigh, my whole body tingling.

  “Look down,” he said, his breath tickling my neck. “Pick whoever you want. Get inside their head. Make them do whatever you want.”

  “How is that going to help?” I tried to turn my head to look at him, but I couldn’t. His grip on me was too strong and tight. My element almost jumped out of me from impatience, as if it were mad at me for stalling and asking dumb questions.

  “You’ll see.” He nuzzled my neck. Taking a deep breath, I focused on my air, and a shimmering thread rose from my hand, traveling down toward the person I could barely see. And yet, I could feel the exact moment my element entered his brain. I ordered the man to walk back a few steps and then continue on his way as if nothing had happened. I laughed as some woman looked at the man, probably surprised by his actions. God, this felt good.

  “Now reach out for someone’s mind, get inside and get out.”

  “Um, okay.” I shoved my element inside a woman’s mind, weaving around the brain signals, and pulled my element back. “Will you now tell me what the point of this was?”

  “Don’t be impatient.” He chuckled, his right hand tracing circles over my stomach.

  “If someone told you I was a patient woman, they lied.” I leaned into him, raising my hand so I could reach behind me and touch his face, but his fingers wrapped around my wri
st, holding my hand in front of me.

  “Pretend you’re going to reach into someone’s mind, but instead wrap your element around your arm.”

  I tried to do what he wanted me to, but instead of my air, fire coated my fingers. Letting out a frustrated sigh, I pulled back the fire and let my air out, picturing a person standing not far from me. A shimmering thread hovered above my hand, as if unsure where its target was.

  “Good,” Jaiden said. “Guide it to your hand.”

  I dragged my air toward me, but as soon as it reached my skin, it slipped inside of me and was gone. “Is there are point to this or you’re just trying to drive me crazy?”

  “Try it again,” he said with a soft laugh.

  “Fine.” I pouted, focusing on my element again. This time the shimmering thread wrapped itself around my fingers until my whole hand looked like a shimmering glove.

  “Hold it like that.”

  I did as he asked, looking at my hand until I could no longer see the shimmering, but I could still feel my element right where it was. “What just happened?”

  “You just learned how to use up a bit of that energy that causes the spikes, and when you hold it like that, the detectors don’t notice how powerful it really is. If you do this whenever you feel like your elements want to rip their way out of you, you might get them to calm down easier.”

  I pushed the element back, and it settled inside of me, calmer than before. “Nice. Thank you.”

  His lips brushed my cheek. “No. Thank you.”

  “What about the shimmering? How do I hide that?” If there was a way to do that, other tainted elementals would be able to see what I was doing while I was mind-controlling someone.

  “You can’t. Many tainted elementals can’t see the shimmering when it goes for them, and it’s unlikely someone else will see it during mind control anyway. Just try to make your element as thin as possible without breaking the contact.” Jaiden stepped back, the cold breeze hitting my back as he let go of me. “Let’s go before they send someone to find us.”