Hyka nodded but gave no other acceptance of the appreciation.
The old tape had served its purpose, leaving Valerie’s feet blister-free. She replaced it with new tape before putting her socks and shoes back on. The soreness in her feet reminded her she was never supposed to be in Colorado Springs. Kevin was the one who was to find Max and hide out. Gia was the planned provision made for her. Valerie rolled over to question Hyka, but she was already asleep, so she rolled back over. No time passed before she was sleeping as well.
Valerie woke a few hours later to laughter and the smell of grilling meat. There was openness in the air versus the smothering walls of Max’s estate, a welcomed change. Being so far from the city lent itself to her feeling of security. She climbed the stairs to the central area of the RV. Hyka was sitting at the kitchen table reading a book. She gave a backhanded wave without even looking up. Jack, Griff, and Major stood around a grill outside drinking beer. They looked comfortable and in their element.
In the daylight, she could see the mountains. They were miles away, but even in the distance they were breathtaking: still snow-capped from the winter season. The immediate area was flat with a hint of the green growth of spring. Foothills rose to the north and south. She studied the other RVs and trailers around them, but none appeared occupied.
“Val, you want a burger?” Jack asked as she walked over to them. He opened the hood of the grill and smoke rose into the air, releasing the smell of charcoal and well-seasoned beef.
Valerie was looking forward to a hot meal after eating mystery meat through the night. She took the plate he offered and pulled a bottle of water from a nearby cooler and took a seat on a bench fashioned from a fallen tree. Under different circumstances, this would have been an excellent way to spend the week. Griff sat down next to her with his plate of food.
“I feel like I should know everything about you, seeing as you’re engaged to my closest fake friend.” Valerie came off harsher than she intended. Gia had betrayed her trust, regardless of her reasoning.
“Gia was insulted when Mike approached her about being your nanny. She’s a smart, successful woman with multiple degrees. She did not want to babysit a toddler on her days off. But once she met you and Caleb, she agreed. You’re a good person, Valerie. You have what it takes to stop this.”
She knew what he meant. Without the gene, Griff and Gia were in danger of being killed off by the CDC if she did not stop them. She owed them for helping her.
“Thanks to you, everyone else seems to be holding up pretty good, so far,” Griff continued. “Major suggested we head out before dusk to cover more ground. Just let us know if you’re not ready. A hundred miles is a long hike, even for me, and I do this kind of thing all the time.”
“I’m doing pretty well, considering,” she said, smiling back at him. She needed to figure out how to become a useful member of the group rather than cargo.
Valerie finished her lunch and made her way back inside the RV. She figured providing transportation was the best place to start. Sitting in the driver’s seat, she took the keys from the cup holder and turned the ignition, but nothing happened. She was not surprised, but still felt a tinge of disappointment. Inhale, exhale. Even though she was unsure of how she produced the energy before, knowing that she could made her more determined to get the vehicle running. She held her hands apart, palms facing each other with no reaction from the machine. Then she held them out. Still nothing.
“What are you doing?”
Hyka’s voice startled her. The woman was stealthy.
“I’d like to get this thing to work if I can. Being somewhat helpful is the least I could do after all everyone has done to help me.”
“You don’t know this, but without you being what you are, Max would have traded us for his sons the first chance he got.”
“But, I. . .” Valerie had not told anyone about her conversation with Max. Hyka nodded at Valerie. Without any expression, Valerie was oblivious as to if the woman was angry at not being told, or proud of herself for knowing information Valerie never offered.
“There are perks to being a woman. Like getting a man to tell you the cipher code to the control room and sneaking in while no one is manning the station. I don’t blame you for not divulging. I would have done the same thing. Screw that guy. Had you not turned out to be a diaphragm, my dad would still be old, and we would all be in captivity without ever having a chance at stopping all of this.”
Valerie laughed at Hyka’s repeated stab at her new status. Maybe she was starting to crack Hyka’s tough exterior, but she was still terrifying.
Hyka stared out the window for a while, deep in thought. Valerie remembered what she had said about her mother and how Hyka had opened up to her the night before. The conversation had been a sign of trust. Valerie stared out the window at the same nothing.
“I used to work in the emergency room at the main hospital when we still lived in the Springs near Mom and Dad. I was on shift during the big snow storm last year. Rain turned to snow which all turned to ice in a matter of hours. Scott was in Denver at engineer training, and my sister-in-law was watching Caleb for me. I was in line to receive the next critical patient. We got a call giving us a heads up about an accident involving a bus which had jumped the median into southbound traffic. The bus and three cars were involved. My mom had been behind the bus by maybe a mile. So, she stopped to help people get out of wrecked vehicles. She helped about twenty people to a safe distance over the course of five minutes. Just before the ambulances arrived, some guy weaving in and out of traffic, too fast for the conditions, had drifted into the median where my mom was heading back to her car. She coded before even getting to the hospital. I have never felt so helpless in my life.” Valerie choked on her words but continued to stare at nothing.
The RV door opened, breaking her train of thought and bringing her back to where she was. She looked over just as Hyka slipped to the back of the RV. Major walked backward into the RV with his hands in the air. Valerie looked out the window again to see what was happening. Jack and Griff were standing by the grill with their hands up, and the barrel of a shotgun pointed at them, though she could not see who was holding the gun.
“Look, sir. We don’t want any trouble. We will hand over whatever you are looking for. There is no need to be pointing guns at us.” Major’s voice was steady and conversational despite his situation. Another man holding a shotgun entered the RV with him. Major continued to back himself into the driver’s seat where Valerie was as if to block her from sight. She made herself as small as possible next to the door, gripping the handle. She could run if need be, but only if Major lost control of the situation.
“We saw you were having trouble with your RV, son. Lights were flashing and such. You got keys to this thing?”
Valerie pulled the keys from the ignition and pressed them to Major’s side. He reached down and took hold of them, then held them out in front of him with his thumb and index finger to the man.
“I think it might be the alternator. My brother, Jimmy, is the owner. He’s letting me and my buddies hang out while he’s in quarantine. Was going to show this young lady a good time. We got here just this morning and had been trying to get the engine to turn over.” Major continued to offer the keys, but the man held firm to his shotgun. He stood at the top of the steps, blocking the door.
She could not see the man’s face, but she could smell him. She knew the smell. He was an addict of some sort, and he had not showered in quite a long time.
“Maybe the problem isn’t with the machine but with the operator. Why don’t you come out from behind there, honey?” the man requested, his three teeth exposed by his sloppy smile.
Valerie sat up, but Major backed up further into the seat to where she could not move one way or the other. She lost her grip on the handle. Major had her pinned so she could no longer reach her escape. She looked out the windshield again to see Jack holding the shotgun, steadying the barrel at a thin woma
n in a black tank top and dirty, cut-off jean shorts.
Hyka, having somehow gotten out of the RV from the back, appeared in the door behind the foul-smelling man. The sharp edge of her knife against his throat startled him into pulling the trigger. Major was not fast enough and was peppered by the buckshot on his right cheek and ear, knocking him back and to the ground. In a fight-or-flight response, a burst of an electrical current shot from Valerie and went through everyone inside the RV. The force knocked Hyka backward down two steps and onto the ground outside. The RV’s engine turned over. The radio and TVs turned on at maximum volume, though the ringing in her ears muffled the sound.
Valerie went into treatment mode and assessed Major’s wounds while maintaining power to the RV. The electrical current had started the healing process. His injury had stopped bleeding almost immediately but was still raw. Jack ran into the RV. Valerie stared at him with wide eyes and conveyed she was okay. She sat back in the driver’s seat to get out of the way, staring at the intruder lying face down on the RV floor.
“Just a flesh wound, pal. We’ve got to go,” Major said to Jack with a calm urgency.
Jack nodded and helped his friend up. Griff helped Hyka off the ground outside, the woman behind them screaming all the while. Jack stood over the man, who still was not moving. He kicked the rifle to Major before kneeling next to the man’s head. He pressed two fingers to his neck. His gaze met Valerie’s.
“He’s dead,” Jack told her.
She already knew.
Major pulled the man out through the RV door by his ankles. Griff met him at the bottom of the steps and grabbed the man under his arms to finish getting him outside. Valerie could see the woman outside the door. Her screams became more frantic. She was sick-looking, and grief distorted her face. Tears built up in Valerie’s eyes, blurring her vision. Hyka climbed into the RV with a grin on her face. She kissed Valerie hard on the mouth, then moved throughout the RV securing cabinets and gear to prepare the RV for travel.
Once the RV was road ready, the men entered one by one. Jack skipped over two steps and held out his hand to Valerie. Once she stood up, Griff took the driver’s seat and slammed the shifter into drive. Major closed the door, muffling the screams of the woman, and took up a position next to Griff.
Jack faced Valerie. With his hand on the back of her head, he pulled her into his arms. She did not fight, but she did allow those silent tears to fall. She curled her arms up against his chest and just let him hold her. He rested his cheek on her head.
“It was an accident. They would have turned in every one of us, killed us, or worse.”
“I stopped his heart,” she whispered. “I meant to kill him.”
The RV lurched forward. The rocking of the vehicle knocked Valerie into Jack. He caught himself and pulled her up to her feet, searching her eyes to make sure he had heard her correctly. He had.
“What do you mean?” Jack demanded, his grip tightened on her arms.
Valerie shrugged free of Jack's grip and balanced herself.
“I wanted the RV to run, and I wanted the man dead. I panicked and focused my energy on him. Well, some of the energy grounded through Hyka. I saw the tiny spark in the man’s chest, making his heart beat, and then I took the spark.” She searched Jack’s face for understanding. The gunshot had forced her abilities to manifest and, like the lights in the cabin of the RV, her awareness of the power had become apparent. Valerie could see and feel so much more than she was able to articulate. She could see the energy moving through each person, to her, and out to the RV. She could finally focus on the energy inside, manipulating it to her will.
“Dear God,” Jack cursed.
“You’re a weapon,” Hyka stated from the dining table. Her head was propped up on her hands like she was watching television.
Jack and Valerie both looked at her for an explanation. Hyka smacked her lips at them and rolled her eyes.
“If they get you and pair you with another DiaZem, they will use you to kill everyone in the Midwest. Right now, I bet you could kill an entire city. They are so nervous about pissing you off and taking your kid because they don’t know how much you know, which makes you dangerous.” Hyka shrugged.
Valerie unbuckled the holster she carried on her leg, set the gun and carrier on the bench, and slid them both toward Hyka. The fear of using a weapon seemed to dull in comparison to what she could do without one. She wanted to disconnect from everyone’s energy, but they had to keep moving. She stayed plugged into the RV’s electrical system with little effort. Like breathing, she was aware, but doing so was involuntary.
“A weapon,” Valerie said to herself as she sat. She remembered the slimy smile plastered on Lucas’ face. She laughed at his title: Head of Research. Valerie needed to hone her abilities and fast. She had just killed a man and could have accidentally killed Griff, too, had he been in the RV. She looked up at Hyka.
“The only way I can explain this is we are a part of one battery. You collect energy by pulling the electricity from everything around you. When you do this, you render the object useless. If I reach out to someone for energy, I can convert the energy back into whatever I want. I complete the circuit. But I’m also an entire circuit by myself? I still don’t completely understand.”
“Good thing you aren’t more emotional. Seems like you can only perform when you’re about to lose your shit.”
Valerie knew by now that Hyka was helping, in her own way, by appearing unimpressed as usual.
“I don’t know how to control when I use my powers. But when I release a conductor’s stored energy, I rejuvenate them, make them younger, heal them, too. Maybe the only time I let my guard down is when I panic. I don’t make a habit of trusting people or reaching out for help,” Valerie admitted, trying not to sound insensitive.
Jack sat in deep concentration. The longer he sat, the more upset he got. His worry showed on his face. Griff maneuvered the RV in the direction of the highway.
“Dr. Jarrett said I could power an entire region if I were in proximity to another DiaZem. I know right now I could power more than just this vehicle. Not much actual electricity is needed since vehicles run on gas. I can keep everyone from pulling the energy put out by the alternator.”
The possibilities started running through Valerie’s mind. She could find Scott and Caleb. Then, with the help of her friends, they would run. With their collection of skills, they could find a rural homestead and live in peace, away from the threat of the CDC. She would do anything necessary to preserve the lives of the people she loved, but she would have to start leading them in that direction now. Convincing them would take a lot of work.
The RV accelerated as they reached the on-ramp to the highway then slowed. Traffic was moving, but only just. Only one northbound lane was open. There would be little room left for escape if circumstances called for them to evade.
The overall mood in the RV was positive. Hyka flipped through channels on the TV looking for the latest in CDC propaganda. Jack sat staring out the window as Griff merged into traffic and joined the unaffected population on the road. Major left his post in the front to join them, leaving Griff to drive.
“You did it, young lady,” Major said in his Southern accent. There was a twinkle in his eyes, like a child on Christmas morning.
Valerie, however, was not thrilled about their conflict ending with a fatality. In the moment of the shot, she rationalized the circumstance had come down to life or death. She gave Major a weak but appreciative smile. His wounds were still pink but had almost healed.
“You look a lot like your mama, you know,” he said after studying her for a couple of seconds.
“Thank you.” Valerie regretted not ever knowing these people before they became her friends. They all seemed to know her far better than she knew them. She would have had an easier time rallying them to her plan if she knew them already.
“Your pops is the most honest SOB I have ever met. Got him into trouble a lot, but you have t
o respect a man who will risk insubordination before jeopardizing the welfare of his soldiers. He was a smart man. Always stayed five steps ahead of the enemy. I see a lot of that in you. You’re a quick one, Mrs. Russell.”
“You all can start calling me Valerie or Val. I feel like we’ve been through enough to skip over the pleasantries.”
A reasonable request. Major nodded.
“We promised your dad to keep you safe. As a simple man, I know enough to know that little good is going to come if we let them take you. Deep down, you know they could find another DiaZem to complete their plan. We can’t stand idly by. You are the key to stopping them. You are what the good guys need to keep order in this world.”
A weapon. Valerie was either going to be a weapon for right or wrong. Major’s eyes searched hers for a positive acknowledgment. She had none to offer. Finding her son and husband were her top priority. She had a difficult time seeing past their safety to a bigger picture of overthrowing a rising world government. She wanted to preserve what life she had left and never leave her family again. She was not oblivious to the fact that she needed this group of people and was aware of what they risked by helping her. If she could offer them safety, maybe they would see her vision and abandon the idea of sending her on an impossible mission. Valerie struggled to find a way to satisfy Major’s lingering suggestion.
She stared him down with raised eyebrows, refusing to agree to his idea. Major gave a long sigh and returned to Griff’s side. Relief and anxiety rose in her as she knew this would not be the last time he brought up the proposition. He needed her buy-in as much as she needed his. They would continue to disagree until one of them gave in.
Valerie rested her head in her hands. She was stuck in a place where every decision came at a steep price. She felt helpless, like the night she lost her mother, except this time she was the driver who was going too fast. As a nurse, she was charged with saving the lives of others, but the weight of saving people she knew and loved was far heavier than she had ever experienced. If she could not find a way to control the situation, more people would die. Staring out the window as the parked cars passed by, she bit her knuckle, hoping the small bit of pain would calm the anxiety bubbling under the surface. Smoke rose from the mountains miles away. Millions of people populated the surrounding area. Yes. If her plan were successful, she would have her family; however, she was unsure if she could live with herself, knowing she was the key to saving so many more and chose to run. Her child would be safe, but what of every unaffected child? This was impossible, and she might lose everything for even trying. She swallowed the ball in her throat.
Apparent Power: DiaZem Trilogy Book One Page 11
