A bright white light blinded me for a moment, and as I squinted my eyes, the wall in front of me parted and two big metal flowers surged out. Before I could see what they really were, fire and air started gushing out of them, creating a blue fire for a moment. I called to my air and created a shield, but the force of the fire and air slamming into it pushed me a couple of steps back.
“Sophia! What do you want from me?” I yelled as I shoved my energy at the flower-like devices. No one answered, but the elements coming toward me increased in their strength. Sweat trickled down my back, and slow tremors started to spread all over my body. As soon as my elemental energy touched the metal flowers, it was as if someone had sucked out all of my strength.
What were those goddamn things? How did they even work? Dropping the shield, I threw myself to the ground and rolled over as the flowers changed the direction of their attack. They were following my every movement. I couldn’t keep this up. There was nowhere to run. The more energy I used, the quicker I got drained, while the attacks only grew stronger. Were my elements feeding them? Were they using my elemental energy to attack me? Shit.
I turned into air, hovering just above the ground. If I rose up, I was sure I’d collide with a yellow net similar to the one Jaiden had run into. Gliding right and left to avoid the attacks, I tried not to engage the flowers. Dodging the fire and moving swiftly, I drew closer to the wall with the flowers. If I could somehow get behind them or get them to turn the energy against themselves...
Fire caught my shimmering arm and pain shot up my shoulder. I hadn’t been quick enough to part my air around it, so it had burned me a little. Hissing, I quickly materialized, inspecting my arm, but aside from the slight redness of my skin, I didn’t see any burns. The flowers were turning toward me, so I gathered my strength and turned into air, rushing at them. I hovered in between them, bracing myself. When they turned toward me, I surged up so fast that I was dizzy. I made sure not to go too high so I wouldn’t collide with the net.
The flowers sprayed each other with elements and I closed my eyes as they burst into flames, smoke filling the room. I landed, materializing, and waited to see if the flowers would recover, but they didn’t. Wiping the sweat off my forehead, I took a shaky step toward the wall. The flowers were no longer in their original shape. Now they looked more like huge metal heads with spaghetti on them. I peeked inside one of them and saw a pipe that was leading somewhere, but I didn’t have time to go investigate. I had to leave this room and get everyone else out of this place.
As I turned around, the yellow light flashed across the door. Right. My exit was blocked. Rolling my shoulders, I tilted my head to the side. The door was going down no matter what. I’d had enough of this madness. I sent a small fireball at the door, and the yellow light easily consumed it. It seemed that no matter how strong I attacked, the door would simply absorb my elements. My energy was already low from all the fighting. I couldn’t afford to lose any more, not after I’d defeated Sophia’s stupid robot flowers, or whatever they were.
I stepped in front of the door, placing my fingers against the light, which glowed stronger, but I could feel the wooden surface through it and I didn’t feel any pain. If I was right, this was only elemental protection. A slow smile spread across my lips as I kicked at the door. Nothing happened, so I lifted my leg and tried again. If only I had something to throw at the damn thing. My eyes fell on what was left of the metal flowers. I dashed across the room and kicked them until they detached and fell to the floor.
Their metal heads were heavy, and I couldn’t lift them up by myself, but I could certainly use my air to do it. The door would only absorb my elements if they touched it, not if I used them on something else. Summoning what was left of my energy, I wrapped my air around the metal heads and threw them at the door. Shielding my eyes, I could see the heads forming a huge hole in the door, so I sprinted for it and immediately pulled myself through the gap. When I was out, I looked down the hallway.
Kenna was just emerging from another room and scowling at the burning door.
“Are you okay?” I asked.
“Yeah.” She patted her jacket. “I’m so glad I brought grenades with me. What the fuck is this place?”
“I’ve no idea. Let’s get the others.” I kicked at the nearest closed door. “Do you have any more of those grenades?”
“Yep.” Kenna tossed one to me and I caught it. The grenade was the size of a Ping-Pong ball, its surface smooth and bluish. Pulling out the trigger to activate it, I hit the door once again and it opened without trouble. It seemed like it was much easier to get in than get out. I spotted Marissa cowering on the floor.
“Stay down!” I yelled and hurled the grenade at the flowers. Small explosions rocked the mansion, and Marissa came running toward me, her face stained with tears.
“Oh thank God! I thought I was going to die!” She threw herself into my arms.
Sam and Ashley were with Kenna, their faces covered with soot and dirt. The only one missing was Jaiden. There was one room left, but the door was open. As I peeked inside, I realized it was empty.
“Where’s Jaiden?” Marissa’s chin trembled. “Please tell me they didn’t take him too.”
Not even willing to consider that possibility, I headed to the foyer. Jaiden was strong. He could’ve fought off the flowers or anything else that had come at him. I stopped dead in my tracks as I reached the main door. The metal panel was nowhere to be seen, and all the windows were open.
“What’s going on?” Sam asked.
“I don’t know. Let’s get out of here.” I bolted for the door and burst through it. Jaiden was lying in the grass, his eyes closed. I nearly tumbled down the stairs as I hurried to him.
“Jaiden!” I yelled. He didn’t even stir, but his chest was moving up and down, and I took that as a good sign. Kneeling next to him, I put my hand on his cheek and gently shook him. “Jaiden, hey.”
His eyes fluttered open and he looked at me. “What’s...”
“Thank God.” I briefly closed my eyes, pulling him toward me.
“Is everyone safe?” he asked, sitting up.
“Yeah.” Everyone seemed shaken and exhausted, but we were all safe and sound, which is what mattered most.
“Sophia’s not here,” Kenna said. “If this was her plan to get us killed, then my brother is already...”
“No, don’t say that.” I met her dark eyes. “I don’t think this was meant to kill us.”
“Then what was she trying to do?” Ashley asked. “Because this was way too close.”
“Maybe it was a distraction,” I said. “We were trapped here for at least an hour! If Sophia’s in the city, she could’ve done whatever she wanted and we weren’t there to stop it.”
“Shit.” Jaiden ran his hand through his hair. “We have to go back to the city! Maybe it’s not too late. We should send all tainteds to a safe place until this situation is resolved. We can’t let Sophia win this!”
“We’ll go, but we’re not strong enough to fight,” I said, flexing my fingers. If Sophia’s plan had been to indispose or weaken us, well, it worked like a charm. “Those pipes and holes through which we were attacked... they lead somewhere. If we follow them, we might find the source and Sophia’s hiding place.”
“We don’t have time for that,” Jaiden said. “I doubt she’s hiding anywhere here. The pipes probably lead to the source of elemental energy and nowhere else.”
“Can you carry Marissa and Sam with you?” I asked.
“Yeah,” he said.
“I’ll take Ashley.” I turned toward Kenna. “Let’s go.”
When we were all just shimmering clouds, we flew as fast as we could toward the lab. While we were moving above the city, we didn’t see anything suspicious or any signs of any kind of disturbances, which didn’t necessarily mean Sophia hadn’t made her move already. Once we were safe in the lab, I dropped into the nearest chair and leaned my elbows onto my knees.
“There
’s no sign of any disturbance,” Sam said, checking the computer. I found my phone and texted my mom. A reply came almost a second later, and she told me nothing had happened while we had been away.
“What the hell was she doing? Having a secret mission?” I frowned.
“Maybe she was relocating Noah and Nick to another place or using them to do something for her that no one other than us could have detected,” Marissa said.
“I’m dead on my feet.” Ashley yawned. “Can we get some rest?”
“Yeah, you go. I’ll keep watch for now,” Jaiden said. As everyone trailed out of the room, probably happy that they were able to get some rest, I looked up at Jaiden. He was eyeing the room as if there was something hidden in it. When he caught me watching him, a smile spread across his lips.
“Are you okay?” I asked. “How did you escape the mansion?”
“Yeah, I’m fine,” he said. “My energy was too much for those devices. I flew outside as fast as I could, but I got dizzy and I guess I fainted.”
“I’m glad we all got out of there alive.” I stretched my achy muscles.
“Yeah, but we should really take tainteds somewhere safe until Sophia is dealt with,” he said. “I think I know a place where we could gather them to make sure no one reaches or tries to harm them.”
“What are you talking about?” I raised an eyebrow at him. “How would we even find all tainteds in the city when we don’t even know who they are? And why would we do that? There isn’t a place that we can protect effectively. They’d be like cattle waiting for slaughter. It’s better they’re not in one place.”
“We’re scattered all over the city now, and look what’s going on. We can’t catch one woman,” he spat out. “If we call out to all tainteds, they’ll come. We can face Sophia together, and then she won’t be able to take a single one of us.”
I narrowed my eyes at him. “I’m not sure about that. It sounds like a bad idea. Tainteds are not fighters. They would be scared. And where is this safe place you keep mentioning?”
“I could show you,” he said. “But believe me, it’s a good one.”
“Um, yeah, okay.” My brow furrowed. “Maybe after we find Noah and Nick.”
“No, if we wait, Sophia could end up taking more elementals and mind-control them into doing things for her. If we don’t act now, it’ll be too late.” Jaiden’s voice was full of urgency.
“Are you sure you weren’t mind-controlled?” He wouldn’t tell me what kind of safe place it was or where it was located, and he’d never talked about anything with such fervor. Not to mention that his idea had been so sudden and unexpected. Considering what Sophia could do and the fact that he’d been unconscious... someone could’ve mind-controlled him to think this was what he wanted.
“I wasn’t mind-controlled. Check my mind if you want.”
“Fine.” I gently slipped my element inside his head and he grimaced. All the signals were white, but as I tried to grasp one of them, he shoved me out.
“Hey, you checked, and everything’s fine. Can’t you just trust me on this? I don’t want anyone to overhear our plan. If Sophia could’ve hacked into our system, who says she didn’t do something to be able to listen in to everything we say in here?” His face was serious.
“Right.”
“Can you get me something to drink, babe? My mouth is dry.” He coughed, offering me a smile. There was something in his eyes... something different that I couldn’t put my finger on. It was as if I were watching a stranger through Jaiden’s eyes. And he’d called me babe; something he had never done.
“Sure.” I got to my feet, glancing over my shoulder as he busied himself with the computer. When I passed through the door, I slammed it behind me so hard that it almost cracked.
Chapter 21
My hands were shaking as I filled a plastic cup with water. Was it possible to mind-control someone into thinking they were talking to a certain person when in fact they weren’t? Could someone have mind-controlled us to see Jaiden with us when it wasn’t really him? Everything was off about him, and as I carried the cup to the computer room, I knew I was about to find out for sure. Jaiden would be at least a little shaken because I’d closed the door and left him alone in a small, closed space. Maybe the computer would distract him, but probably not completely.
Since the door was still closed when I reached it, I hesitated before entering, but then I took a deep breath and went inside. Jaiden offered me a wide smile as I handed him the cup.
“Thank you.” He took a big gulp. His shoulders were completely relaxed, his eyes calm. And as he lifted his gaze toward me, I was sure that real Jaiden would never give me such a contemptuous look. Oh God.
“You know what?” I said. “You’re right. We should protect tainteds first. Noah and Nick are important and we have to find them, but we can’t risk Sophia kidnapping anyone else.”
“I knew you’d come around.” Jaiden spread his arms and I walked into his embrace.
“I only had to think about it.” I forced myself to smile and wrapped my fingers into his hair... someone’s hair. If this wasn’t Jaiden, and if I attacked him, we’d never figure out what their plan was, and I didn’t want this person to mind-control me if he or she turned out to be more powerful than me. His gaze focused on my lips and I bent my head, closing my mouth over his so he wouldn’t suspect anything. When I pulled away, those unfamiliar eyes stared back at me in amusement.
“I’m going to tell the others about our plan.” I let go of him and pushed myself up. “But after I get some sleep. Will you keep watch?”
“Yeah, get some rest.”
“See you in the morning. Let me know if something happens.”
“Will do.”
I flashed him one more fake smile and strolled out of the room. There was no time to sleep. I had to go find everyone and talk to them now, before the person who’d infiltrated our base did something to harm us. But as I closed the door behind me, I slid down to the floor, wiping my mouth with my hand.
Letting my air out of me, I risked guiding it into my own mind. With my eyes closed, I blocked out every thought until I was sure my brain signals were untouched. I blinked at the empty hallway. My brain was fine. Who the hell had I kissed? Where was Jaiden? Swallowing past the lump in my throat, I slowly breathed in and out until I was strong enough to get to my feet.
When everyone was on the roof, their faces varying from sleepy to grumpy, I stepped into the middle of the group. “We have a problem.”
“Did you find my brother?” Kenna immediately asked.
I shook my head. “Jaiden... he’s not... Someone is pretending to be him,” I blurted out.
“What?” Kenna scowled. “You woke us up and called us here just to tell us...”
“I’m serious, Kenna,” I snapped. “The person who came back with us isn’t Jaiden!”
“What do you mean?” Marissa blinked at me, tugging her coat tighter around herself. “Do you think he was mind-controlled?”
“No, he wasn’t. He let me into his mind to check and kicked me out before I could do anything else.”
“That’s typical Jaiden,” Sam said.
“No, it’s not. He looks... different and isn’t acting like himself. I know it’s not him. And he keeps insisting on gathering all tainteds and taking them to some place only he knows about. He claims he doesn’t want to tell me the details because he thinks we’re being watched,” I said. “But why would he say anything at all if he was truly afraid of that? If Sophia hears we were rounding up tainteds, she’d make sure to stop us, even if she didn’t know where that place was. She’d do anything to find out. His plan is just too sloppy. I agreed with him because I was afraid he could mind-control me, and then we wouldn’t have even known it.”
“That doesn’t make any sense,” Sam said. “How could someone look exactly like Jaiden? Were we mind-controlled into thinking it’s him?”
“I don’t think so. I checked my mind and I didn’t see an
y traces of mind control.” Although, if someone had been counting on me to check, could they have mind-controlled me into seeing both mine and Jaiden’s mind as untouched when they actually weren’t? “If it was just mind control, I don’t think he’d lose his biggest phobia or act so differently... I...”
“So you’re saying there’s a person who can make himself look like another?” Ashley’s voice was filled with suspicion. “Are there really such good disguises that we wouldn’t notice the person is wearing a mask?”
“I don’t think it’s a costume or a mask... It’s... It feels real.” That kiss had certainly felt like touching real flesh.
“Are you sure you haven’t been mind-controlled into becoming a paranoid freak?” Kenna crossed her arms.
“Yeah, I’m sure. Sophia or someone wants us to take tainteds to some place. I don’t know how she’s doing it, but...” I ran my hand over my face. “All I know is that the person with us isn’t Jaiden.”
“Wait, do you think it could be her?” Kenna asked. “Sophia? Could she somehow pretend to be Jaiden by projecting some sort of a mask?” She turned on her heel. “I’m going to kill that bitch!”
“Kenna!” I had to use my air to create a wall in front of her to stop her from doing something stupid. “Even if it is her, we can’t let her know we figured out she’s not Jaiden.”
“Why the hell not? She’s here and alone. We can catch her and get her to tell us where Nick and Noah are. Maybe even trade her for them!” Kenna insisted.
“Yeah, we could do that, but we don’t know the extent of her abilities. If she can actually turn into another person... then we can’t be sure of anything! If we attack and fail, we’ll never find out what her real plan is! And she might even mind-control us so we won’t even know what’s going on!”
Kenna let her hands drop to her sides, her face troubled. “Then what? Should we pretend everything is fine?”
“Sort of,” I said.
“And if it’s not her and it’s one of her accomplices?” Ashley asked. “We could walk straight into a trap.”
Hunted (Tainted Elements, #5) Page 12
