by D A Rice
There were times she thought she felt something else, fear maybe? But then Dr. Heek would come in and give her something in her IV, and she’d forget. Or her teacher would pay her a visit, and his voice would soothe over anything else. Are you afraid of the big bad wolf? He’d ask her gently, his hand smoothing her hair away from her cheek and she’d find that she wasn’t. Part of her wondered if that was normal, but another part of her no longer cared. Ice gripped her mind, and though it was painful at first, now it had numbed her.
“Come on, sweetheart, let’s get you home,” her mother was saying now as her father returned to them, carrying bags she assumed held her stuff. “You look like you could use some rest.”
“Rest,” she said, agreeing with her mom because she didn’t know what else to do. You will come to me, Nicole. She smiled at his request, saying to her mother, “rest sounds good.”
…
“Ezekiel Elijah Stanford, what a mouthful,” his voice was smooth like honey, and exactly the way Eli remembered it. He wore the bronze wolf mask, with its nightmarishly twisted jaw, and its slanted eye holes. Unnaturally blue eyes were the only thing that showed in the darkness beneath. They sparkled in amusement as Eli leaned his head back in the chair he was bound to.
His head was pounding, and his lip was split. It was making it hard for him to think, which was likely the Wolf’s intent. They’d taken him from Rei’s house then shoved him into the back of a black car, where they’d promptly beaten him unconscious. At six in the morning, no one had done anything to stop it. He glanced to the side, noticing the IV drip sticking out of his arm for the first time. He flexed, but his arms were strapped down tight. He glanced back at the Wolf, “still wearing masks, I see.”
“Indeed. A bit of dramatic flair is necessary at times, I’m afraid,” the Wolf replied with a hint of amusement before reaching up and sliding the mask off. He shook out his golden hair, a sadistic grin spreading across his face. The man was exactly as Eli remembered from Rei’s dream. The only difference was the cross-shaped scar on his right cheek. It looked as if someone had thrust something through it and shredded some skin on the way back out. The Wolf brushed his black-gloved fingers over the scar now, catching Eli studying it. “Ah, this. An unfortunate childhood accident.”
“That is unfortunate,” Eli remarked, meeting his captor’s gaze. He schooled his face into nonchalance, “you’re never going to find it, by the way.”
“Find what, Ezekiel?” The Wolf asked as he leaned back against a metal table as if it were a stool. He folded his hands together in front of him, completely at ease. The room they were in was dark, the only light being the one that hung in between them. With what Eli could take in, however, the place reminded him of a basement. If it weren’t for the medical tools stationed behind the Wolf and his being tied up, Eli could almost believe this was just an unfinished basement in a normal home.
“The Genesis Project. I assume that’s the only reason you didn’t just kill me. You’re not coming along with your little experiments, are you?” Eli said with far more confidence then he felt. His head was still pounding, but at least he could finally think.
The Wolf regarded him with something akin to pride, mixed with a sour disappointment. “You always were quite brilliant, Ezekiel. Blessed with a mind that could figure most things out in a matter of minutes. But that wasn’t the only thing about you that made you remarkable now, was it?” Eli could hear the other man’s fingers drumming against the table behind him. Was he waiting for something?
Eli didn’t respond, refusing to take the bait as he watched the Wolf. All he really had to do was buy himself, and Rei, some much-needed time. The Wolf slid off the table in front of him and turned his back on Eli. “You should know, Ezekiel, that I regretted the way that you died. I always thought it was such a waste, you know.” Eli hissed softly, as his veins began to burn just enough to get his attention.
“Yeah, well, it was a waste not to detonate my internal bomb when I had the chance,” Eli managed, his voice wavering slightly. He bit his lip with the pain as it only grew stronger.
The Wolf glanced back at him with a grin. “Ah! That would be the acid I mixed into your IV and put on a slow drip. It’ll be increasing over time as we talk. I imagine it’s a bit uncomfortable.”
Eli said nothing in return as his eyes narrowed before fixing on the man in front of him. “Eventually, it could kill you, but not before I have some fun. Besides, weren’t we just talking about wasted potential? As it’s clear that you aren’t easy to kill, I thought maybe I could convince you of where your potential is best suited. Do you remember that drug you so thoughtlessly erased from existence when you deleted the Genesis Project?” The Wolf continued talking as if Eli was a willing participant in this conversation.
“Titus,” Eli managed before his body tensed up, his jaw clenching as the fire in his veins became a torrent.
“The same! I’ve been testing it with some extraordinary results. She is my own personal zombie drone. I think I have a few adjustments to go until it’s perfect, it seems to wear off rather quickly. I’m very close, though, to perfecting the formula. Perhaps more so than it already was.” The Wolf turned towards Eli, a phial in his hand, and a predatory grin on his face. “Why is this necessary, you ask?” He shrugged, “I’ve found there are a few minds who are more, shall we say, resistant to my mental touch than others.”
“Rei,” Eli whispered.
The Wolf strode forward, “yes, and you. What a pair you two make,” he said in what was almost admiration, before adjusting something on the IV. The pain numbed immediately, and Eli slumped in his chair. The Wolf knelt before him, holding up the phial. “I wonder how many doses it will take to make little Rei believe that you were just a figment of her imagination?” his eyes met Eli’s with a viciousness that bordered on insanity.
Eli’s head slumped, and the Wolf’s hand shot out, catching his chin before yanking it up. The Wolf didn’t seem to notice Eli twist his wrist, checking to see if the watch was still there. Miraculously, it was.
“I wonder how many I can give you before you’ll do anything I ask?” The other man’s eyes shifted as he read what was in Eli’s. Apparently he didn’t like what he saw, Eli thought in amusement as he watched the Wolf’s eyes narrow. “I think... I’m going to break you a little bit first.” Eli’s wrist flicked against his bindings as his body jerked in an intentional way with the Wolf’s release of him.
Eli’s head fell as the Wolf stood, “What...“ he licked his lips, his eyes flicking up as he tried again, “what is your name? Your real name?”
The Wolf paused and then smiled, “I’m called by many names. Soon you’ll have a few of your own. Until then, you may call me Fenris.” With a quick snap of his wrist Fenris turned the IV up, and fire raged through Eli once again.
…
Rei woke on a bed she didn’t recognize, in a room that wasn’t hers. She sat up, and some part of her registered that she should be feeling more shocked then she did. She rubbed a hand down her face. What was going on? She tried to reach for something, any kind of memory, but it was all so foggy.
The door opened gently, and she turned to see Damion coming in with a young teenage girl she didn’t recognize. “Hey you, how are you feeling?” he asked.
“Damion,” Rei said softly, then squinted, “and I’m not sure we’ve met…” she said to the other girl.
Damion paused, a look of concern crossing across his face. “Babe,” he said gently, “this is Nikki, my little sister?”
Rei blinked, “I… I’m so sorry, I must have... How could I?”
Nikki smiled, her dark hair dripping into her face. “We don’t exactly look alike, and Dr. Heek gave you a hefty dose of your medicine.” The girl shrugged before flopping down onto the bed beside her. Rei couldn’t pinpoint it, but something about the girl’s eyes was throwing her off.
“I thought… I thought I stopped taking meds,” she rubbed her temples.
Damio
n came to her other side, setting something down beside her feet. “It’s ok. Heek said that you would be a bit foggy when you woke up. You were having an episode. A bad one. You were hallucinating and speaking all sorts of nonsense. But we got you in to see him and everything is fine now. You shouldn’t have stopped taking your meds, Rei. Heek had to IV drip them into you to make the hallucinations stop.” Nikki nodded beside her, her feet swinging in the air.
“I guess that makes sense, but whole memories missing?” Rei asked, glancing towards Nikki again. Something tickled the back of her mind, had this happened to her before? There was the vaguest of memories, but they slipped away from her before she could grasp them. It was so hard to grasp anything in her mind right now. It was so vacant, so numb. “You’d think that a sister would be something I remember,” Rei said thoughtfully.
“Adopted sister, and it’s cool if you don’t remember me yet.” The girl beside her rested her head on Rei’s shoulder, playing with something in her hands absentmindedly. “I know you will. I have faith that Damion’s girlfriend hasn’t completely lost her marbles yet.”
Damion’s mouth dropped, “Dude! Nikki! You can’t just say stuff like that,” his hands came up over his face as Nikki giggled and Rei blushed.
“No! No, it’s ok,” Rei said, unnerved. Boyfriend? When had that happened? Had she really forgotten so much? She touched her lips, a soft kiss hovering over her memories. Had that been Damion? She shook her head, her hands coming up to her temples again. “I’m just so confused, I feel like so much is missing.”
Damion touched her hands gently, drawing them away. “Hey, no pressure, ok? You’ll figure it out.” He glanced at Nikki and nodded towards the door, “I think you should rest, Rei. I got you, you’re safe here.”
Rei nodded as he helped her lie down, kissing her temple, a warm look in his eyes. “Thank you, Damion,” she said sleepily. Nikki glanced back at her, and Rei registered the dead look to her eyes with a jolt. Had that been what she’d noticed earlier? Before she could process that, however, she was asleep.
22
Nikki Wilkins unnerved Damion.
Fenris had dropped her on him unexpectedly with enough drugs to sedate a hippo. She was the one who’d told Damion he was to go to Rei and bring her back here. They were in one of the Arachnid safehouses. It sat on top of an abandoned warehouse; no one even knew it was even there. The outside looked broken down and discarded, but this part had been renovated. It still wasn’t an ideal home, but it had plenty of the necessities someone on the run would need. Arachnid had them all over the country.
Damion ran a hand down his face as he steadied his elbows on his desk chair. He was in over his head and he knew it. He risked a glance at Nikki, who watched him without seeing. She didn’t blink, and her eyes were so empty that it sent shivers down his spine. He suppressed a shiver now; was he looking at Rei’s future?
Maybe that was why he’d left Eli with his watch. Maybe he was hoping that the Recluse would think of a way to get free, and get Rei out as well. This was a situation Damion was beginning to regret putting her into. He’d pleaded with the Wolf to leave her to him.
Fenris had given him a look that Damion couldn’t get out of his head. He was afraid for himself as well as Rei. He’d sworn he wouldn’t get close to her, that he wouldn’t cross that bridge. But looking at Nikki now, he knew without a doubt he had. He sat up, turning towards Nikki fully, “why are you here, again?”
Clarity registered briefly as Nikki met his eyes, “Fenris said you needed to be watched. That I should pose as someone close to you. Someone believable, until further notice.” She said all of this robotically, her eyes shifting to somewhere over his shoulder.
Damion’s fingers came up to his lips as he leaned over the arm of his chair, considering her. She’d said the exact same thing when she’d first gotten to his apartment, a black backpack slung over one shoulder. She didn’t move, didn’t fidget, didn’t react to anything. In front of Rei, however, it was like a part of her came alive, until you noticed the vacancy in her eyes. Had Rei noticed? Damion hoped she had.
Watching Nikki now, Damion couldn’t stop the unease filling the back of his head. He didn’t really care what happened to Eli, but part of him hoped the watch Damion left on him was more then it appeared to be. Another part of him recognized that he couldn’t rely on that chance alone. He had to ditch Nikki and get Rei out of here in one piece without the Wolf knowing about it. Whether Eli used the watch or not, Damion was counting on Fenris to take his time.
Damion swerved the chair around to face his computer and cracked his knuckles, “Let’s get to work.”
…
Beep beep.
Jackson glanced down at his phone and nodded towards Montoya; they were ready for this. Using the note Ezekiel left them, Montoya had been able to get a warrant for a wiretap to be set up quickly. She’d wanted to be able to not only listen with Jackson, but record any calls that came through. They had also been able to get a ping warrant to trace the phone call back to its source. Ezekiel had told them to watch Jackson’s phone, so they waited.
Beep beep.
Jackson pressed the green button and Montoya pressed record on the machine they had hooked up to it. She glanced at the other agent in the room, who had on a pair of headphones. The agent nodded, sending out the trace. They were all in one of the FBI interrogation rooms with the door closed. The note had told them to answer the phone in a room where no one would hear, and to say nothing themselves.
How he’d gotten something past Arachnid to communicate with them was beyond Jackson. Ezekiel was either more of a genius than they thought, or he was incredibly lucky. Montoya watched the computer the other agent sat at as the trace ran. Silence came from the phone in Jackson’s hand as he set it, very gently, down. The speaker was on so they could all hear whatever happened.
There was a shuffling noise on the other end, then labored breathing. “Fenris,” came a voice Jackson recognized as the Recluse’s, but it sounded strained, as if he was in an incredible amount of pain. Jackson glanced over the phone to Montoya, who bit her lip, eyes distressed. She leaned over the computer on the other side of the table, remaining silent. “Fenris,” Ezekiel tried again a little louder.
“Oh, I’m sorry, did you say something?” came a smooth voice cheerfully from a little further away. Something metallic sounding slammed down.
“Why-- ” Ezekiel grunted, his breath coming out in a pained huff. Whatever was going on, Jackson could tell Ezekiel needed them to find him fast. Jackson glanced at Montoya, who shook her head. They needed more time. “Rei--” he managed through the phone, then whimpered as if he’d tried to hold it back, but couldn’t.
“Ah yes, I imagine you’re worried about her. Well don’t be, she is being well cared for by a mutual friend. I would be more concerned about yourself. How’s that IV treating you?” Came the voice again, then there was more shuffling and Ezekiel let out a relieved breath. “I imagine that probably feels a bit better. Now, before we continue our game, and so far it’s been a delight, I would like you to know I have the utmost respect for you.” Something moved in the background, it sounded like wheels rolling.
“You have a funny way of showing respect, Fenris,” Ezekiel managed, his breathing coming in gulps.
There was a chuckle. “We were speaking of potential, Ezekiel; wasted potential. Why didn’t you just do what I asked you to? You could’ve been the best of Arachnid in a world of chaos!”
“Chaos,” Ezekiel repeated as Jackson looked up from his phone, catching Montoya’s wave at him. They had his location. Jackson breathed a sigh of relief, signaling for her to round up their resources. Between the FBI and the NYPD, they had a whole team waiting. They had a hacker to find, but before Jackson shut off his phone, Ezekiel continued. “Chaos with a technological apocalypse. You were planning on bringing everything down at once. Destroying and killing so many people, messing with their heads on an epic scale. I couldn’t find a way to s
queeze that into my conscience, Fenris. That was not the Arachnid I signed up for.”
Jackson met Montoya’s gaze again and she paled, taking a step towards him. “Oh, but Ezekiel, we found a way to do that anyway.” The voice on the other line continued. “I have a new protégé. Not nearly as good as you, but he suffices. You would never have been able to stop us, only delay it. That whole...” There was something strained in the other man’s voice, as if he were tugging something free as he spoke. “... taking from the rich and giving to the poor thing never suited Arachnid.”
There was a pause then, “what is that?”
“You may have found a way to evade me, even to hide other useful talents from me, but I’ve found a way to control you, Ezekiel. After I wear down some of your defenses, Titus will give me access to that beautiful brain of yours.” The other man’s voice had gone low and feral as he said, “complete access, Ezekiel.”
There were sounds of a struggle, as Ezekiel groaned, “get out... get out of my head.”
“Come on, Ezekiel, let me in to play.”
Jackson’s stomach plummeted, a darkness settling like a rock there as Fenris’s voice echoed inside his own mind. The voice from the phone laughed. “Oh, Ezekiel, you have been a bad, bad boy. But there will be no help coming for you today, I’m afraid.”
Ezekiel cried out, then the phone went dead. The lights in the interrogation room flickered, rocking back and forth as if from an electrical surge. Montoya shrieked, slamming her hands on the table before her, as everyone in the room jumped with the low rumble that echoed across the room. “What the hell was that?”
Jackson could feel the color drain from his face as he stared at his phone, his jaw unhinged. “Torture, Shira,” he said, voice soft, he met her gaze and she stood with a fierce one of her own. “That was torture.” His eyes shifted to the lights above him, he had no words for the rest.
