“Sure.” Alex fiddled with the food on his plate. “It shouldn’t take long, though.” Watching Rufus go through all the stages of exasperation wasn’t new for Alex. He’d seen him the first time around, when he escaped Beck’s lab like the luckiest fugitive alive. He’d seen him just days ago, when he’d woken from the induced coma the med crew had him under. Mia had been the first and last word on his lips and the trigger of his every reaction.
Emma moved closer to Alex and took a seat across from him at the lunch table. “You okay, Alex?” She watched him nod and return to his food. Agonizing wait aside, Emma’s heart was in the right place. She’d always found herself at her best when she had a chance to be productive, involved. There were too many things yet to be discussed and with James being at the core of it all, it was bound to get messy.
Sam’s voice broke the silence again after grabbing her purse off the floor. “I can see why Mia’s head over heels for you.” Still glancing at Rufus, she dug in its contents with both hands, grabbing what Zoey’s eyes identified as a small box of condoms. “You can thank me later.” She slid the small box in one of the many pockets of Rufus’s cargo pants, patting his pocket with the biggest ‘you’re welcome’ grin.
Forty-six long, excruciating minutes is what it took for the door to the lunch room to open. Time stopped when Mia came through, escorted by Jasper and Lilou. Zoey swallowed hard, scanning Mia’s every feature. A high ponytail swung over her shoulders. She looked clean and unharmed in gray sweatpants and hoodie, but her striking features ignited at the sight of the one she longed for most. A few steps in and Mia came to a halt, her blue eyes stuck on Rufus. She took him in, watching him bounce up, struck by the same awe.
As if he’d dreamed her alive and taking another step toward her would wake him up, Rufus looked like he forgot to breathe. His fingers dangled at his sides with a slight tremor, and before he could make sense of it, she darted for him as if he was the finish line. Her finish line. The moment they collided in what seemed like a wired embrace, no one could take their eyes off them. Mia’s fingers tingled every time she touched him, and every touch held the fear he wasn’t real. That buzz of pure electricity took over their conscious mind, both of their features aligning in a display of the purest, most desperate type of longing any of them had ever witnessed.
While Mia and Rufus beamed at each other, Zoey, Sam and Emma were drowning in crocodile tears and leaning into one another to avoid some sort of imminent collapse. Even Alex had his lips twisted in a smile. With the corner of her eye, Sam watched him nod at Lilou.
“Right.” Jasper broke the magic. “I know you guys have a lot to catch up on and I promise we’ll take it easy on you today, but we need to brief before anything else.”
Rufus took Mia’s hand in his and spoke. “Lead the way Jazz.”
γ
“Why do you think Etienne released you, Mia?” Jasper asked from the head of the table.
Her eyes shifted from Rufus to Sam and then Jasper. “I don’t know. I just woke up today, after three days in a fucking cage and he just came over and said he’d release me.” She glanced over at Lilou. “Those cuffs I had on, what were they?”
“Nothing of significant importance, they charged the magnetic field around your wrists so you couldn’t portal anywhere else as they delivered you here. Did he portal you here himself?” Lilou’s body leaned forward to get a better look at Mia. Reports came in stating she was totally healthy, zero concussions.
“He did.” She admitted, tightening her fingers around Rufus’s.
Jasper shifted in his seat and threw Lilou a knowing glance. “How long do you think they held you captive, Mia? Three days?”
She nodded. “Judging by the meals they gave me, yeah. Three days.”
“Except you’ve been gone for five.” Worry gathered over Jasper’s features. His eyes locked on Lilou’s again like a magnet. Many were the conversations they had without words. All it took was a raised brow for one to alert the other. “Do you remember talking to Rufus over the phone, Mia?”
She shook her head and watched the color drain off Rufus’s face. “Shit, babe. What does this mean, Jasper?” Rufus decided to ignore Mia’s nails sinking in his flesh. Her eyes moved frantically, calculating. It didn’t make sense.
“Let’s be rational about it.” Jasper continued. “Mia has the power to portal anywhere in the universe without prior approval and invitation from the host. As of this moment, it’s clear you did. Etienne coerced you into portalling somewhere for him.” It was enough for Alex to start working on his intersat. Just like Emma and Sam, Mia had gone through Timeline before meeting them. Except Emma and Sam had gotten a full grasp of their memories and Mia apparently didn’t.
“But where? And what for?” Mia jumped.
“Weapons, equipment, politics, it could be anything. We know he wants Zoey but his plans also involve Rufus, Mia and the other guy they have at the lab; otherwise there’d be no point in altering them.” Lilou confirmed as she stood up and walked over to glance at whatever Alex was working on. “Since the game has changed, he’s probably switching it up, looking for alternatives.”
Jasper nodded in agreement taking in a sharp breath. “Imagine all his game went according to plan. The moment the Alliance would have retracted from Earth, he’d put his foot down and refuse.” Panic crept up Rufus’s features twisting his lip as he bit his cheek, contemplating. He didn’t like this one bit.
Alex spoke, keeping his eyes pinned on the intersat. “Etienne toyed with enhancements, but didn’t consider Rufus would liquefy as a side effect of taking over someone’s body and mind, but taking over a body was still valuable and that’s why he kept him around. He didn’t have time to train Zoey, but her enhancement is developing quite well under the circumstances. Then there’s Mia, who at the moment is the most successfully altered subject of all.”
“And then we have the unknown, the other boy,” Lilou added.
“Etienne’s a strategist. He wouldn’t bet Zoey’s future on a handful of altered subjects.” Jasper was beginning to figure him out; after all, they had a little bit more in common than a job description. “Which leads us to the obvious—he probably made contact with planets outside of the Alliance. He was an ambassador. He had the coordinates of all existing planets within the I.P.A. including the lucky six which refused to join.”
Emma carefully studied each of them and made her own mental notes. Etienne… James had to be playing with fire.
Zoey suddenly shifted next to Emma. “I remember… I remember him saying two of these planets were reaching their D-Day and were soon to be looking for another home.”
“Which only confirms my suspicions.” Jasper leaned in. “He probably struck deals with some of these planets.”
“Shit! Does your Chancellor know?” Zoey jumped, her eyes going from Mia to Lilou to Jasper.
“Yeah. I had my suspicions from the incident on Paseo Sarasate. He insisted we need to play it smart, Etienne wouldn’t risk anything as long as he thought there was still a chance for Zoey to get back to him.” Lilou rested her chin on her knuckles, still analyzing something in the back of her mind.
“But he’s bound to make mistakes because time is running out.” Alex was sure of it. “We’re getting closer to developing that fabric, Rufus is advancing in his training. I give it no more than a week until we’ll be fully prepared to bring him down.”
“Are you kidding me? If he’s a strategist and you corner him, he probably sent word for Earth to be attacked if he’s caught!” Sam brought her piece to the table. And to think just two hours ago she made plans that involved wine and cheese and…
Jasper threw Sam a look from over his shoulder. “He wouldn’t risk Zoey’s life. I know that. And he wouldn’t risk ambushing us as long as she’s here.”
“We’re walking that thin line again, aren’t we?” Sam pursed her lips. She wanted to do more, to know more. This playground seemed somehow unfit for her toys and James proved to
be very different to what she took him for.
Lilou lay a hand on Sam’s shoulder, hoping to calm her down. “Richard guaranteed Zoey protection on behalf of the Alliance. You’d need to be a fool to compare the fleet of one hundred fifty-seven planets to six. Etienne’s no fool, Sam.”
“Who’s Richard?” Mia dared a look at Alex.
“Our new Chancellor. You’ll meet him tomorrow, Mia.”
The room fell silent and Emma’s fingers tightened around Sam’s. Never in a million years had she imagined James as the mischievous mastermind behind Earth’s now uncertain faith. Zoey had to be feeling like something special right now. She sighed, her eyes locking with Zoey’s for a brief moment. It became too clear that no one wished to be in her shoes right now and they had their own briefing to do whenever the optans allowed. Sooner rather than later.
Emma’s train of thought was then interrupted by Mia. “You’re here because they’re expecting you to lure Etienne in, aren’t you?” Her eyes saw straight through Zoey, as she turned around to face her.
The amount of time it took Mia to do the math sent a shiver through Zoey. “That obvious, huh?” No humor lingered in her words as she brushed a strand of hair off her face with a nervous hand. If only she’d been that smart to figure it all out in under five minutes.
Beside her, Sam’s face fell in her hands as she processed everything. That’s so messed up, her fingers fell from her forehead to her mouth in a stunned move. Shaking her head, the hurricane of thoughts shot an involuntary twitch to her arms, a perfect storm unleashing on the inside.
Briefing took a little longer this time around, with Alex and Jasper debating the schedule for the following days. When they instructed Lilou to show everyone back to their rooms, Zoey almost felt relief. Laying out the best strategy to send her ex to his death trap would never feel right to her.
With Sam’s and Emma’s bedrooms being on the same floor, they flocked together in Sam’s room. Emma needed to hear Zoey’s version.
γ
When Mia set foot in Rufus’s bedroom it became clear that someone made room for a bed in what had been an office. Lilou had closed the door behind them with the biggest grin her cheeks could hold, and it wasn’t until Mia was in when it hit her: Rufus and herself had never been alone. They’d never shared a space where they weren’t monitored, tracked, trained or surveilled.
“I know what you’re thinking.” His voice came shy and charged with emotion. “I can’t make myself believe it either.” It seemed like a lifetime ago when he braided colorful wires in her hair and slid origami birds on her food tray at the lab where they were being held. Beck never liked it when they got too close, and the thought of him being on the loose made Rufus curl his fingers in a fist. “Did they hurt you after I left?”
Mia turned to him instinctively, crushing against his sturdy chest in an embrace which nearly left him breathless. “No.” There was no way Rufus would ever find out she’d been beaten and repeatedly abused by the professor. “But when the moment comes and if I get a chance to be there, Beck’s mine to kill.”
She felt Rufus nod, cradling her head. His arms enveloped her body in a soft embrace, making her want to live inside those arms for as long as they had. “Our bathroom is behind that door; I can wash your hair if you’d like.” A soft smile made its way to her lips, knowing Rufus’s fascination with hair. Coming from anyone else, it would sound anything but innocent, but knowing him the way she did, left no room for questions.
Her scars though, still hung like badges of shame on her skin, running deep from her neck to her abdomen and hips, branching out to her legs. He’d never seen the extension of her time in captivity, where abuse had been carved in her body by the ones she’d give her life to kill. Rufus had never seen the ugly side of her and it ripped her open with guilt and shame. He didn’t love her for her body, yet showing this side of hers was like opening a door to the darkest secret, to her most vulnerable self. The only other person who had seen her scars besides Etienne and Beck, was Sam. Remembering Sam’s face the day she revealed herself at the swimming pool cast a shiver down her spine. It was also a first step into letting Sam in and that came with no regret. Mia sunk further in his arms and pressed her eyelashes against his shirt. If nothing had to come between them again, Rufus had to know.
When Mia’s fingers curled against his and she led him to the bathroom, Rufus followed and clumsily shut the door behind. Holding her breath, she faced him. “I need you to see me.”
The small bathroom window was enough to cast some natural light in. With shaking fingers she unzipped her hoodie and let it slide off, revealing the most beautiful arms he’d ever seen, covered in dove tattoos from top to bottom. The doves morphed into clocks around her shoulders and chest, disappearing into the white tank top. She swallowed hard, not breaking eye contact as she removed her sweatpants and tossed them to the side with her foot.
Mia, his Mia was standing at an arm’s length from him, scanning his face with the biggest, bluest eyes he’d ever seen. His heart hammered against his chest, sending mixed signals to the brain. It was as if Jasper had frozen him again, except he wasn’t there. But Mia was, and he couldn’t move or say a word at the sight of her.
She pulled her top off and his thoughts went silent. He didn’t flinch.
“Mia…” The words rolled off his tongue with slight tremor. Mia felt as if the floor would give in under her weight any minute, so she closed her eyes and waited to be swallowed. This was what had been left of her. And now, he knew. Before her chin started to wobble, his fingers lifted her jaw. “I swear to you, if it’s the last thing I do, those bastards are going to get what they deserve.” Her head shifted to the side. She couldn’t look at him and he was somewhat thankful, given the glossiness taking ahold of his eyes. There were a million things he could have said or done, but his knees became one with the floor as he spoke. “You are the most beautiful woman I’ve ever seen, inside and out and God damn it Mia, I want to marry you when this shitstorm’s over. If you’ll have me.”
The floor gave in, and Mia dropped on her knees beside him. When her fingers found his face, she saw him for what he really was—her knight in shining armor, a Viking and a tender bear in one. All she had and all she wanted to have for the rest of time.
“Aren’t you supposed to get down on one knee?” Her words mixed with sobs as she held onto him in a desperate hold. And he held on to her as if she was his own piece of gravity.
“For you, woman, I get down on two.”
γ
Listening to Zoey telling the tale of the last twenty-four hours had Emma’s insides tied in a sailor knot. Zoey couldn’t detach herself from who she really was and make decisions in cold blood. And her blood was anything but cold, considering the first thing Sam did as they walked into her room was to pull out a bottle of duty free wine and gulp away. Despite her spinning head, watching Sam open that bottle with nothing but a shoe had certainly sparked some memories.
“Is this the first or second bottle?” Emma asked, allowing her feet to dangle at the edge of the bed.
“If you’re keeping score, you obviously didn’t have enough!” She passed her the wine. “Drink sister, you’re gonna need it to get up with the times.” On the receiving end, Emma held up the bottle and forced herself to remember the name. Ramon Bilbao, a name to go with the occasion. And a damn good wine too. “So let me get this straight,” Sam leaned forward, resting her elbows on her knees “we’re here exclusively because James pulled the strings?”
Zoey slumped her back against the headboard. “And the optans didn’t seem to mind.” She folded her arms across her chest. “I think the optans want James to think he can have his way.” As if reading Sam’s thoughts, she continued. “Don’t get me wrong, there’s nowhere I’d rather be than with you guys, but I don’t think it’s fair on you—getting involved in all this mess, I mean.” Emma handed her the bottle in a heartbeat.
Sam shook her head before she spoke. “Do yo
u remember the day we met?” That forsaken day when Sam’s mom left their family home and Vince, her dad, was left to pick up the pieces. “You didn’t know who I was, yet you paid for my coffee, followed me out of the coffee shop and walked me home like a faithful dog.” Zoey pursed her lips together, a little nostalgia creeping up. “You were there the next morning, and the following, you practically forced your friendship on me until I caved in! Who does that?”
Zoey cocked a brow. “In my defense, you looked like you were one step away from throwing yourself off the next bridge!” She took a sip and squeezed Sam’s wrist in return.
Sam had many superpowers, among which the ease of putting a smile on Zoey’s lips in the harshest of situations. “Because today, you don’t look that far off that bridge yourself!” She concluded, snatching the bottle out of Zoey’s grasp.
Emma shifted to a side to get a better look at Sam who was all sprawled at the foot of the bed and watched the two of them exchange a glance. Maybe it was the wine, but the way Sam’s head rested on her hand while her other arm dangled somewhere at the back of her head, made her look exactly like The Sleeping Ariadne and somehow, Zoey was the first to see Hellenistic sculptures come to life beneath her eyes.
“Don’t you dare give Zoey crap about following you home like a faithful dog! You pulled the exact move on me!” Emma threw a cushion straight for Sam’s face.
She was quick to duck. “Ha! That’s different!”
“Different how?” Even Zoey was intrigued.
“Miss sunshine here had a date at The D.C. on my waitressing days no less, right before meeting Frank…”
Emma turned to Zoey, hoping to keep the details down to a decent minimum. “The guy never showed up.”
“In other words, he bailed.” Sam filled in the blanks waving a finger through the air. “So by the time she got around the idea he was never going to show up, my shift was over.” She wrapped an arm around the cushion Emma had thrown her way and raised a sarcastic brow. “Took you long enough.”
Found in Amber Page 8
