“No matter what the Doctor says, just don’t respond,” Payton warned. He climbed down into the tunnel first. She followed. Once they were inside, they each put on their masks.
Tait gave him a sideways glance. “I haven’t said anything to him yet. Your warning is a bit unnecessary.”
“I’m just telling you, again. Alona seems to think he’s going to be a bit more verbally aggressive tonight than usual.” Payton scowled. “I don’t know what his problem is. It’s exhausting to have him take it out on us all of the time. I’m reaching the end of my rope.”
“Maybe I should be warning you to keep your cool with him instead of the other way around.” She raised both of her eyebrows at him.
His gaze averted to the ground. “I won’t lash out. It’s only a little while longer. I’ll suck it up…again.”
Tait nodded, rubbing her brother’s back. “Good.”
With nothing more to say, they walked through the tunnel. At the fork where the path to the school and Lunar Falls Business Center met, they turned toward the business center. A new location for them. The Doctor always had to meet at a new location, and he wouldn’t go near the high school. That was Alona’s territory anyway. His refusal to go there was part of why she had chosen it for her base of operations.
Their footsteps echoed quietly as they made their journey. Waiting for them at the door leading into the business center was Alona. Even though the weather was freezing, she wore nothing more than a pair of loose pants and a tight blue tank top. She was casually fixing her hair into a bun.
“On time, just like I prefer,” she said.
Payton gave a full-on ear-to-ear grin. If Tait didn’t know better, she would have assumed he had a crush on the woman. But he was in a long-term relationship, and incredibly loyal. Still, she didn’t see him get so excited about people often.
“Our meeting will be brief, like I said, but Sprout, I would like to have a private moment with you afterward,” Alona said.
Why just me? Tait frowned, but nodded, knowing better than to question her leader. “All right.”
“It won’t take long. Only a few minutes.”
“However long you need, my leader,” Tait said.
Alona frowned, but didn’t say anything more on the issue. “We are only here to be appeasing, nothing more. Remember that.”
The twins nodded and watched as she unlocked the door via the keypad placed over the lock. A quiet beep sounded, and then the door slid open with ease. Alona took the lead, walking them into a medium-sized storage room. They didn’t go further than that. Everywhere Tait looked she saw boxes, tables upon tables of boxes. Some were stacked as high as the ceiling. There were filing cabinets in the center of the room. Cleared space created a ring around the files allowing for access to everything in the room as well as a safe way through in case of an emergency. The place was cluttered. It would drive Payton up a wall.
“Business is still being conducted at the moment,” she said. “The Doctor is here performing duties for his other job. I’m not quite sure what he does, but he seems to come to this location at least once every couple of weeks. It makes for a convenient meeting point, as well as a jumping point for researching his true identity.” She gave them both a pointed look. “You are more familiar with these things than I am.”
“I understand,” Payton said. If anyone could find anything out over the Internet, it was him. He had a knack for knowing the right words to search for, and when it came to field research he was even better. His gentle personality made it easy for him to blend in and get into places others might have be turned away from.
A smile actually formed on Alona’s face. She hardly ever seemed to express much emotion. Payton will be bragging about it for days. Tait tried to not let it bother her. She kind of liked being Alona’s favorite, though. If her brother took her place, she’d be at a loss over what to do. Something about their alien leader’s charm made them both want to go above and beyond to please her. Tait felt a little like a dog if she viewed things that way. She hoped she meant more to Alona than an obedient pet.
Nodding, Alona found a counter to lean onto. “He has two minutes to get here, otherwise we’re leaving. I will not tolerate tardiness.”
The door opened, and the Doctor stepped in. “If you were hoping I was going to forget about our little get-together so you could use it against me, you’re sadly mistaken.”
“Now, we both know that I would never do such a thing,” Alona said and batted her eyelashes at him. “My superiors might, but never me.”
“Of course not,” he said, his gaze narrowing from underneath his black mask. He put his attention on Tait and her brother. “I see you’ve brought your faithful lackeys.”
“Yes, we’re doing a bit of a training exercise in listening skills.”
“Something they seem to lack,” he mumbled.
Tait didn’t react in any way. She wanted to say something in her defense. At the very least, roll her eyes or clench her fists. Just like she promised, Tait simply stood there and took it like a big girl. Even Payton didn’t tense up, which was impressive for him since he was the more sensitive of the two.
And of course Alona wasn’t fazed by anything. She laughed at the Doctor, covering her mouth with her hand. “Seems to be something that’s missing in most of your culture in general. From the nations I’ve met while on my travels of your…home, I’ve found Americans to be the most stubborn of all. The younger, the more difficult to deal with.”
“Yes, which is why it’s a shame that teenagers seem to be the most useful age group. I’d personally prefer to work with other adults, but abilities don’t seem to grow in them the same way. Their powers don’t become as strong, or they’re a lot more complicated to unlock.” The Doctor still didn’t take his gaze off Tait or her brother.
Shrugging, Alona picked at her nails with feigned disinterest. “Not my problem. Can we please discuss business?”
“Of course, my apologies.” He bowed to her, mockingly. “As you know, my superiors are interested in developing a drug to unlock the natural superabilities in all humans. They’ve found someone who is willing to help pay for research. Obviously, I’m tickled at the idea because more funding means I can work in a bigger lab and have easier access to the supplies I need. There is also going to be an Alturan buyer who wants to bring the drug over there.”
“This is wonderful.”
“I want to agree, but I don’t. Why? Because the drug isn’t as perfect as I was hoping. You see, there is something missing from my formula. The problem is, I lost my notes from the attack by Chihuahua Man during the party. Almost everything was gone. On the plus side, the list of those who took the drug is pretty accurate, and I’m almost positive the answer lies in the bloodstream of one of them.”
Alona’s smile faded. “You want us to kidnap them?”
“That’s just one thing I need your help with,” the Doctor said. He folded his arms in front of his chest. “I also need a few of your charges to volunteer a display of their power to the buyers. You have so many of them, and a lot of them have strong, useful abilities worth showing. And…”
“There’s more?”
He laughed. “Are you surprised?”
“No, I suppose I’m not,” she said.
“You’re learning. All good things come in threes, remember that.”
Her gaze darkened. “Of course.”
“I need Sensor.”
“No,” she said flatly.
The Doctor took a step forward. “It’s not your place to argue with me, Gesubsavat. I need Sensor. His abilities are useful to me.”
“They’re useful to us too!”
“Not in the same ways,” he said. “You’re not even using him to the full extent of what he’s capable of. Did you know he can find those whose powers are potent and ready for tapping? This would minimize on duds, so we wouldn’t go through all of the trouble of injecting or using the Wimosiphyer on the teenagers and then have them
produce no abilities whatsoever. He can even find who is compatible with the drug and who isn’t. Like I said, he’s useful to me. I request he join my tribe, and by request, I mean it as an order.”
To say Tait was stunned was an understatement. It took everything within her to not show any kind of reaction to what the Doctor had just said. Not only was he blunt, rude, and all-around disrespectful of Alona, but to suggest taking one of their most worthwhile teammates was ridiculous. Sensor did a lot more than just detect who was near their meetings. The Doctor didn’t get to see all of the work he was being used for. When Alona’s gaze dropped to her feet, Tait let out a quiet gasp. Hopefully, no one heard it.
Sighing, Alona shook her head. “I have superiors who need to okay this…request…before I can just flat-out give him to you. Changing tribal allegiance isn’t as easy as just saying it is so.”
“Yes, I’m aware,” the Doctor said, his tone softening some.
“Then you’ll understand my inability to give you what you want right at this moment,” she said stiffly. “As for your other assignments, those should not be difficult in the slightest. I know just who to send to you. I’m surprised you wouldn’t want to use your own charges for this special show-and-tell.”
The Doctor laughed, hard. So hard he wiped at his eyes. “You’re hilarious. Why would I use my own charges? I barely have any as it is, thanks to our latest fiasco back in December. Remember that delivery of supplies you were supposed to help me with? And how I was supposed to give the upgrade to some of your charges as well as a number of mine? Do you know how many of them were taken by the enemy and turned against me? Nearly all of my most powerful ones. It’s going to take time for me to rebuild my army. Who gets what kind of ability is not something I can predict. While my team is still useful, it would not be considered…impressive in terms of a display of power.”
“I lost a number of my charges too, remember,” she muttered. “I don’t particularly want to lose anymore.”
“Then don’t screw up. Again.”
“Of course. Is there anything else we need to discuss?”
He shook his head. “No, this has already taken enough of my time as it is. I trust you understand what you need to prepare for. We’ll meet again with exact dates and times.”
The Doctor’s gaze trailed over to Tait and her brother. She knew then that the only reason he wasn’t elaborating was because they were present. In that one gaze, she could tell he did not trust them. Stupid, really, since Alona was going to tell her the information later anyway.
Jaw tightened, Alona faced Tait and nodded for the twins to head back out through the door. She didn’t bother to bid farewell to the Doctor. Not like it would have mattered anyway, since he had gone out through the other door already. Once Tait was back in the tunnel, she waited for orders from her leader.
“That was interesting,” Payton said, breaking the silence as soon as the door was closed behind them.
Alona was quiet for a moment. She shut her eyes and took in a few deep breaths. “Interesting is one word, yes. Aggravating is another. Does he not realize how difficult it will be to kidnap individuals who were injected at that party and not already under our control? I’m sure a few of them are being used by our enemies. They have the same information we do. In fact, they know much more than I care for them to, thanks to all of the charges who were extracted from our team. At least we didn’t lose quite as many of them as the green tribe.”
Frowning, Tait started to lead the group through the tunnel. Standing in front of the door and chatting probably wasn’t the best of ideas. “Yeah, I’m not sure how to go about it.”
“That will be the least of our worries. While I want those teenagers on our team just as much as the Doctor wants them on his, it isn’t a priority.”
“Breaking free from him is,” Payton said quietly.
She nodded. “So is restoring you both to your original condition.”
“I’m not sure I understand.” Payton scowled.
“We’ll discuss it at another time.” Alona shifted her gaze to Tait. “Let’s make a brief trip to the mall for some girl talk.”
Girl talk. That implied so many things. Tait wasn’t sure what to think. She noticed her brother’s shoulders slouch. He was jealous. Tait knew all of his mannerisms, probably even better than he knew himself.
Not taking her eyes off of Payton, Tait offered a smile. “Sure, we can do that. But it does have to be brief. I’m hoping to go out tonight on a date.”
“A date?” Payton raised both of his eyebrows.
“Yes, I’m working on a few things with Orly, if you must to know,” she said.
He folded his arms in front of him. “When it comes to you, yeah, I do.”
“Relax.”
“If tonight is a bad night, we can plan for tomorrow,” Alona interjected quickly.
Tait shook her head. “You said it wouldn’t take long. That still gives me time to do something else. I just can’t stand him up again or he’ll never forgive me. Having hours together is probably hoping for too much with him in the first place. We have a lot of making up to do.”
“Just be careful,” Payton stressed. “Not just to protect you, but him also.”
“I’ll be fine,” she mumbled.
He laughed. “I’m more worried about him.”
“Some brother you are!”
Alona stepped in again. “So long as you’re sure.”
“I’m positive,” Tait said. “This is important, right?”
“Very much so.”
“Then let’s go to the mall.”
****
For wanting to talk so badly, Alona was being awfully quiet, and Tait wasn’t sure what to make of it. They had been at the mall for ten minutes, wandering aimlessly outside the stores. Unable to stand the silence between them anymore, Tait tried to think of a casual way to approach the subject.
“So what’s up?” she asked. That seemed like as good of a place to begin as any.
Alona stopped to admire a dress in a store window. “You mentioned having holes in your memory. I didn’t want to concern you too much at the time, but I wanted you to know that I haven’t forgotten about you and your predicament either. Both you and your brother have been compromised somehow. The red tribe knows who you are, where you live, and what you are doing to help my people.”
Nodding, Tait’s gaze went to her hands in front of her. Even if it wasn’t her fault, she still felt awful for that. “Yeah, and I don’t want to think about what kind of information they were able to pull out of my brain.”
“According to Drone, not as much as they would have liked. They want to take you again, and we are going to let them.”
“What?” Tait seethed. She ground her teeth together and clenched her fists. “Why would you let them take me? Am I no longer useful to you? Do you just want to trade us all out for new charges?”
Laughing and shaking her head, Alona resumed their walk. “Most definitely not. I would not trade you for anything. You and your brother are precious to me, and not because of your abilities. Let’s be honest, your brother is far from impressive in that department. But there is something about you that I enjoy. You’re like my family. We’ve talked about this.”
“Right, I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have lashed out. The Doctor…he…”
“Did he trouble you? Don’t worry, he will get what’s coming to him.” Alona smirked, running her fingers over her lips. “Back to the topic at hand. Part of the reason I haven’t acted too concerned over your predicament is because we have a simple backup plan in place. Drone is going to be a part of the team to kidnap you. He has something that will stop you from being put unconscious, and through his help we’ll not only get back what memories were stolen from you, but hopefully get our hands on the Ilotus itself.”
Tait furrowed her brow. “And you’re sure you trust him with this?”
“Not as much as I should for such an important task, but I’m not left with m
uch choice. The worst-case scenario is he betrays me and they take more of your memories. I would be sad to lose you, but I would find a way to make things right again. You would be avenged.”
“Why tell me about this alone? Payton was taken too.”
Sighing, Alona put her hands into her pants pockets. “Because I don’t think he would be able to pretend he doesn’t know he is safe. If Drone’s cover is blown, then I could lose more than you and Payton.”
“Even more than if he was a traitor?”
“No, but at least this way if he’s not I know our secret is safe. The whole thing is risky. I do not like it at all, but we are left with no other options. No matter what, they will come for you. There is nothing I can do to protect you from them so long as you are required to stay with your parents.” She gave Tait a weak smile. “And I would not ask you to leave your home and go into hiding. Many complications would arise from such an arrangement.”
She was right. If Tait disappeared, her parents would call the police. Her picture would be plastered all over social media. Everything would be a mess. Which was worse? Being in hiding for the rest of her life, or having her memories completely wiped clean? Both options were a lie.
Alona’s confident smirk returned. “It’s a good thing I am good at protecting those I care about most. I will fight for you if it comes down to it. They will not get away with defiling your brain for their own sick purposes.”
“Thanks.”
“Call your love. I will not keep you any longer,” Alona said softly.
The sadness in her tone made Tait hesitate to text Orlando. If she rejected him again, he would never forgive her. There was so much loneliness in Alona’s gaze, however, it almost made it all worth the risk. He’d understand if she explained how badly her friend needed her. There wasn’t much Alona liked to share about her past, especially her relationship with her ex-fiancé. Tait knew her leader, her sister, suffered from a broken heart. And as much as Alona tried to deny it, she was indeed still in love with the guy.
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