HSH: Camp Hero - Chap 15-17
Here we go with the next installment of Camp Hero. Check out all the fun action.
Anyway, enjoy the next part of Camp Hero!
Read the previous chapters.
Chapter 15
Meeting at the MET
I should have beaten myself within an inch of my life. If I had just left when I had the first vision, I could have been here on time, or even a week early. Now, I was too late. I knew the kid wasn’t counting on me to save him – after all, he had no idea who I was – but it still felt like I’d let him down. I deserved a beating.
Seeing the cops standing with the woman talking about a missing boy, was all the evidence I needed. However, it wasn’t the only evidence that presented itself. Something else was here. Something that didn’t want to be seen.
Quickly, I scanned the street. There was a man on the roof across from Eddie’s building, watching the proceedings. A woman directly across the street from us was pretending to check out a bunch of carrots from the stands in front of Kim’s Fruits and Vegetables, but she was actually eavesdropping on the conversation from fifty feet away. Then there was the black SUV – a staple in every government agent’s arsenal—sitting twenty feet away. Two Agents were inside.
They had Eddie’s mother under surveillance. That didn’t make any sense. If Eddie was missing, they must have captured him already. What logical reason could they have for keeping tabs on her?
Then it hit me.
The girl. They were watching the baby girl. If the boy had powers, then it stood to reason that his sister would too.
Just like your brother probably will. The thought entered my head without warning. Conner stood to gain some kind of ability since he was made up of most of the same genetic material as me.
I didn’t want to think about it.
“We’ve got Agents,” I said to both Ethan and Tiffany in as quiet a voice as I could, forgetting I could just zap the message into their brains. “Four of them.”
“I don’t see anyone.” Tiffany kept her voice low, but when you’re trying to be quiet, every sound is like an explosion in your ears.
I pointed to the locations of each of the Agents so the two of them could see where they were. They weren’t paying attention to the three of us. They weren’t after us. Not yet.
“We need to get out of here,” Ethan pointed out.
I agreed with him. It was only a matter of moments before one of them spotted us. God knew, our faces were probably plastered on some database of powered individuals. Yes, even Tiff’s – guilty by association.
By the time Ethan had uttered the words, it was too late. I felt the excitement rise from the pair in the SUV. They’d recognized us. It was time to fight back.
“Tiffany,” I ordered, “begin walking back the way we came. Ethan and I will catch up with you.”
“No, I’m—”
I cut her off. “Don’t argue! This is going to get ugly, and I don’t want you getting hurt.”
I only had seconds to act, and I couldn’t afford to waste time bickering with her. So, I gave her a mental push in the right direction. She got the message and started back toward Amsterdam Avenue.
Ethan, you need to take care of the guy on the roof. I pointed again to where the man was located. I knew Ethan could handle that, and would probably have the guy down before I could take care of the other three.
A rush of wind said Ethan was on his way.
The woman was easy, I mentally lifted several pieces of fruit and flung them all over, hitting the sidewalk and the store window. I threw a few into the store where a tiny old Chinese lady sat behind the cash register. She might have been small, but she was quick. She ran out and immediately began yelling at the lady Agent.
“Why you throw food? You pay for that!”
If I wasn’t already concentrating on my next targets, I would have laughed at the lady Agent’s failed attempts to explain to the Chinese lady that she hadn’t thrown anything.
The shouting caught the attention of the officers, who were already cautiously stepping toward the commotion. I couldn’t let them go far because I needed them.
I looked into the SUV, and could hear the thoughts of the men inside. They knew I was looking directly at them. They were ready to act. But it was too late, because I already had the driver’s mind in my grasp.
“What do you fear?” I said aloud.
In a second I’d plucked the fear from his mind.
Oh, this can’t be more perfect.
I projected the fear into his head until he saw it, until he felt it, until he believed it. The driver’s side door burst open, and the man sprang out of the car, screaming and shouting and hitting himself.
“Bees! Bees! Get’em off me! No! I’m allergic!”
The other door opened, and a confused Agent dashed around the car to help his friend. “Chuck, get back in here. What are you doing?”
But Chuck was too far gone. “Help! They’re all over!” He dashed across the street, right at the two officers, who had now focused their attention on the raving man.
“Sir,” one of the officers said, “calm down.” He put his hand on his holstered gun, ready to draw it at a moment’s notice.
Meanwhile, Eddie’s mom looked on in fright, shielding her baby girl from the apparent lunatic flailing about in the street.
“They’re tearing off my flesh! Get ’em away! Get ’em away!”
I had one more suggestion to plant, this time in the minds of the two officers. Quite simply, I projected, He’s got a gun, into both of their heads. I didn’t know if he actually did or not, but I assumed he would. He was an Agent after all.
It took only a second before both men had their guns trained on the psychotic Agent. It was at this point that I lifted the illusion of the killer bees. Chuck’s brain, settling into reality once more, but it was too late, as the two officers were already on him.
“Let me see your hands!” one shouted.
“On the ground, now!” the other yelled.
Chuck’s friend sprinted across toward them. A simple pull on the bottom of his shoes with each step, though, made him appear to be a drunken fool. “Now… just you… wait a second… we’re on… official…” He fell down.
“Stay down!” One of the cops now had his gun trained on Chuck’s friend. “Keep your hands where I can see them.”
“What ya think they’re on?” The one officer asked the other.
“I don’t know,” the other answered. “Something strong.”
“Damn. Why do these loonies always find us?”
Ethan was back beside me. From the smile on his face, I could tell he had been successful.
That was our cue to leave.
Ethan and I went back the way we’d come and tracked Tiffany. I had no doubt everything would be sorted out between the police officers and the Agents in a few minutes, but at least they wouldn’t be pursuing us. We were safe for the moment.
We followed our tracks back to the park, passing the high school. Eddie’s friend Nathan was gone.
The MHDA knew we were in New York now, which meant they would eventually come looking for us. When they did, I wasn’t sure what we would do. We would fight back, of course, but that would also mean exposing ourselves to hundreds, if not thousands, of people.
“Call the others,” I ordered Ethan. “We need to meet somewhere.”
He didn’t argue. He simply dialed and called Sam, and then Savanah. He informed them both of what just happened and explained how we all needed to regroup. We agreed to meet by the lake in Central Park. I knew I’d be able to find it, and if they were all where they should have been, they’d find it too.
We caught up with Tiffany just before we reached the park. She didn’t look too happy, but her emotions were more frightened than angry. “What happened?” she asked.
“They spotted us, and were going to capture us if we didn’t do something.”
“I could have helped.” Even though she sounded determined, there was a slight quiver in her voice.
“They’re trained government agents,” I explained for the bazillionth time. “They would have had you in a second. I’m sorry.” I really was. But I wouldn’t see her go down because of something stupid like that – and if they did take her, I wouldn’t let her be used as a pawn against me. “Please understand that it’s for your own good.”
“Yeah,” she said softly. She really was shaken up by the whole ordeal. “I understand.”
I nodded. I didn’t say anything else. I didn’t need to.
The park was huge. It was strange that such a place could exist in the center of one of the biggest cities in the world. Since it was a nice day, there were hundreds of people about, sunning themselves on one of the wide open fields, or enjoying a picnic under a tree with a loved one. There were even a couple of pickup games of baseball and soccer on the playing fields. It looked like fun, but I still didn’t want to play. Ethan, on the other hand – I felt his longing to run out there and show all those kids up.
I knew the way to the lake. I don’t know how I knew. I guess when I was here in my dream, I took more notice of my surroundings than I thought. I had to keep reminding myself that I’d never been here before, no matter how real the dream was.
In a couple of minutes, the lake was right in front of us. It wasn’t a lake, though. A little sign labeled it the Jacqueline Onassis Reservoir. And the bridge wasn’t really a bridge at all. It was more of a dam or a wall – a wall that was eerily complete.
In my dream there should be a gaping hole near the northern gatehouse. There wasn’t. How was that possible? Something wasn’t right. I knew what I’d seen: the pirate ship had blown a hole in that wall.
Yes, I know how crazy that sounds, I told the voice in the back of my head, which was threatening to make itself heard.
We waited by the fence, almost in the same spot where I stood in the dream. Everything looked much the same as it had before the chaos had begun, when Eddie had darted out on the bridge followed by the Agents.
Or maybe it hadn’t happened yet.
It was a few minutes before Savanah and Samantha showed up.
“This is not what I expected when Sam said we were going to New York for the weekend.”
“Then go shopping,” I told her. I had enough on my mind and didn’t need to add her whining and complaining hindering my thought process. “I don’t care.”
“Listen, you,” she said, but let it drop off. She knew I could flip her over that fence and into the reservoir without lifting a finger. I really would have loved to have done it too, except Sam would be ticked at me.
“We didn’t find anything,” Savanah reported. “We scoured the whole park, but there’s no sign anything happened here.”
“Yeah, well, something did.” The boy was missing. If the MHDA didn’t have him, then who did?
“This is stupid,” Samantha said. “You freaks want to continue searching for this idiot, then you can. I’m going to see Wicked with Sam.”
A biography about yourself? I so desperately wanted to ask the question, but held back.
As if on cue, Sam said, “No, Samantha, not tonight.”
“What?” It wasn’t really a question, it was more of an angry challenge, like a lioness ready to pounce on the lion on the last piece of meat.
“We might have found something,” Sam continued. His cheeks reddened, as he knew the argument with Samantha wasn’t over. We all knew it was a poor idea to ignore the cheerleader, but he did anyway. “Just something we overheard in the museum before we left. Tell them, Pete.”
Peter looked at Sam like the boy was dangling him over a pool of sharks. There were times like this when I wished Peter would finally accept us as his friends and open up. I couldn’t help but think there was some memory still lingering in the back of his mind about the time I tortured him.
“Ummm,” he mumbled. “It’s probably nothing. But some guy was complaining as he walked into the place, that he hoped they wouldn’t close the museum early like they did yesterday.”
“They closed early yesterday?” I asked. It was definitely a sign something was wrong. I didn’t have to be a New Yorker to know that closing the museum early usually wasn’t a good sign.
“Did you see anything?” asked Ethan this time.
“Nothing unusual,” responded Sam.
“Did you go into the big glass room?” That was where the chase ultimately ended, and even though there wasn’t any destruction in the room, there might have been some evidence left behind.
“We searched the whole museum. Didn’t see anything.”
That didn’t mean anything. I had to do a mental scan of the room – a mental scan that would hopefully be more successful than the one at the high school. If I could only find a mental vibration of the boy, I might be able to figure out what happened to him.
Everyone waited for my next order. I hated that. I wasn’t a leader and I didn’t want to be one. A leader was someone you could depend on, a person who made the right decisions time and time again. I had proven I didn’t fit that.
Across the reservoir, beyond the water and trees, lay the MET. That was where I had to go. But, it didn’t mean everyone had to go with me.
“Sam. Take your girlfriend to see her show.” A stab of pain issued forth throughout my entire body. I’d done something nice for Samantha. It hurt – it really did.
Sam started to argue, but I cut him off. “You want to keep your girlfriend, right?”
He nodded.
“And you promised to take her to a show.”
He nodded again.
“Then take her.”
I heard him formulating an argument in his head.
“I don’t need you,” I cut him off again. “There must be a show this afternoon. I’ll see you after.”
“Okay.” He grabbed Samantha’s hand. “Call if you need anything.”
As they walked past, Samantha gave me a look of mixed gratitude and loathing. I didn’t bother responding.
I looked at the remaining four faces, still seeing me as their leader in this foolish adventure. “The rest of you can go and do what you want. I’m sure you want to see the city while you’re here. I’m going into the MET to recheck things.”
Savanah grabbed Tiffany’s arm and began walking off before I’d even finished my sentence. “Come on, we’re going shopping.”
I doubted Tiff could afford anything in the stores Savanah shopped at. “But don’t you want to search for your–”
“Utter another word about it and I swear you’ll never walk again.”
Tiffany slapped her lips shut, and allowed herself to be dragged away.
That left Ethan and Peter – the love of my life and the boy who pined after me – standing at attention, like soldiers awaiting orders. The problem was, I had no orders for them. I sighed. They really did have too much faith in me.
“Come on,” I said. “Let’s check it out.”
We strolled to the museum. We didn’t rush. There was no need to. There wasn’t anything happening we needed to see. It had already happened, and from the information I’d gathered, it had happened yesterday.
We past a tall spire, very much like the Washington Monument in Washington D.C—much smaller, of course. It was nestled in a grove of trees, just outside the entrance of the MET. It didn’t look the same as the last time I’d been here, though it probably was. It had been so long, and I had been so young, that it might well have been a different building anyway.
We entered into a large lobby. There was an information desk, and a surly-looking man sitting behind it. The room was eerily quiet and as we walked past the desk, the man loudly cleared his throat. He didn’t say anything, but I got the meaning from his head.
Little freeloaders.
As I pulled the thought from the man’s head, Peter explained, “He wants us to put a donation in the box.”
Right. Nothing’s ever free, is it?
I pulled out one of the hundred dollar bills my grandfather gave me. “Got change?” I asked the man.
He shook his head, and then went back to whatever he was doing before we intruded.
Sighing, I slipped the hundred into the box. It was sure to be the biggest donation the museum would be getting this week. I prayed they’d at least put it to good use.
Since I had no idea where I was going, I allowed Peter to take the lead. He’d only been here an hour ago, if even that long, he’d be able to take us straight to the glass room. We went left, out of the lobby, and strode through the hall full of old swords and suits of armor.
This is awesome, Ethan thought. He also wished he could take a moment to actually look at everything. I wonder if I can take one of these with me.
Are you actually thinking about stealing a suit of armor?
He laughed, which echoed through the quiet hall. No. I just wish I could.
You’re an idiot. What kind of fool would even think about taking a suit of armor, let alone a suit of armor inside an art museum, even if he wasn’t serious about it?
Next, we found ourselves in a room with medieval art. I didn’t care for much of this stuff, because almost everyone looked the same in them, and all the women looked like men. It was like the people of the time didn’t know how to draw or paint. I mean, not everyone could have been as ugly as the people in those paintings – could they?
After that, we came to a room with many Egyptian pieces in it. Old sarcophagi, and what looked like the actual walls, removed from an old tomb, stood in the hall. They were surrounded by many ancient jars and tools, among other artifacts. We didn’t have time to admire it, though. We were on a mission.
Then, we were there – the room of glass. The small temple was nestled toward the back of the room, surrounded by a moat. Little pharaoh statues surrounded the moat, standing like resolute guards around the temple. If only they had been good enough to guard Eddie, then maybe I wouldn’t have to be here.
But I was.
I headed directly to the spot I’d last seen Eddie – where he’d collapsed after Abby stabbed him in the neck. It was a clean, black marble floor – so shiny, I could actually see my reflection in it.
I closed my eyes and tried to bring myself back to when I’d seen him here. There had to be something here only someone like me could detect. I pushed through the barrier, rolling the clock back to yesterday afternoon. It wasn’t something I’d ever done before, nor was it something Quinn had ever taught me. I just had the feeling it could be done.
I concentrated on the Eddie’s face, pushing through the mental mist to stop at the exact moment he stood on this spot.
Suddenly, there he was, standing in front of me, frozen in time. Everything around us was frozen, and absolutely silent. It felt like I was standing in the middle of a photograph. I wasn’t really in the past. I was smart enough to realize that much, at least. I was merely seeing an echo of what occurred here almost twenty-four hours ago.
I stepped around Eddie. He had a confident, yet fearful smirk on his face. His hand was extended out to grasp Agent Davidson’s. How I wished I could warn him off, but it was far too late.
Surrounding him, and blocking every exit, save for the giant glass windows behind him, were over a dozen Agents, all gripping really large guns aimed at the boy. Then there was Abby.
She still wore a smile on her face, and even with her right arm extended, which was meant to be a show of friendship – of peace – she still hid a syringe in her left palm, ready to strike as soon as Eddie was close enough.
Everything in this image was exactly the same as I’d seen it. At least it verified everything was real. Now, if only there was some clue I could gather from this picture. Something I hadn’t noticed before.
What’s she doing? A voice shattered the silence, seeming to come from everywhere and nowhere at the same time. It echoed through the room, and then suddenly all was silent again.
It sounded like Peter, but as I took in my surroundings, there was no sign of him. It was still only me and the frozen people.
Don’t touch her, she’s concentrating. That was definitely Ethan’s voice, but how could I be hearing him?
My concentration was breaking, my mind was returning to the outside world. Even now, I the edges of the room darkened, as the image faded away. I only had a few seconds to find something that could help us.
Someone’s coming, Peter said. They’re gonna think she’s crazy.
The darkness closed in around me again. I concentrated harder, blocking out the voices, holding onto the image as long as I possibly could.
She’ll be fine, Ethan argued.
It hung in the air, just at the edge of the moat, about to fall into the water. Something the Agents would have probably overlooked when they cleaned up. It would be a slight and insignificant thing to them, but something very important to me.
The image finally faded into blackness, and my mind again merged with the real world. I opened my eyes. Both Ethan and Peter stood extremely close to me, glaring at each other. Ethan held Peter by the forearm, while sparks arced between each of their fingers.
“I said, leave her alone,” Ethan grunted.
“Would you two stop acting like children?” I shoved between them and broke them apart.
Stepping to the edge of the moat, I looked down into the dark, but clear water. There was a phone – Eddie’s phone.
Since I had no intention of actually wading into the water, I checked my surroundings to make sure no one had come in yet. When I was sure there was no one else nearby, I mentally took hold of the cell and floated it up to my waiting hand.
“What’s that, Chris?” Ethan moved to stand beside me.
I turned the phone over in my hand. It was an expensive one. “It’s Eddie’s.”
“What are you going to do with it?” he asked.
“It’s busted,” Peter said. “You can’t do anything with it.”
Despite Peter’s words, I tried to power it on. As expected, nothing happened. What could I do with it? The true answer was nothing. All the cell phone proved was that I wasn’t insane.
I glanced at the two of them, hoping one of them would have some idea what to do next. Once again, it appeared that we’d reached a dead end in our journey. The phone, though a good find, didn’t really get us to the next step.
Maybe something will come to me later. I began slipping it into my pocket.
“I’ll take that, thank you.”
I thought we’d been alone. This woman really was a sneaky one. I made no effort to hide my loathing as she crossed the moat to the marble floor we stood on. Abby Davidson, now in a dark business-like suit and sunglasses, strode toward us, hand outstretched.
“That’s close enough,” I told her. I wasn’t going to let the woman anywhere near me.
She stopped four paces away.
Both Ethan and Peter tensed, and moved to stand between me and Abby. Peter’s hands began to spark again, and I knew if she made one false move he’d zap her.
“Relax.” She waved a hand at toward him. “If I wanted you, you’d all be unconscious in the back of a van already.” Her tone suggested we really did have nothing to fear from her, but I didn’t trust it.
“So, we’re not using the counselor pretense anymore?” I asked.
She removed her glasses and placed them in the inside pocket of her jacket. I tensed as she pulled her hand back out, thinking she’d have a gun or something, but her hand was empty. “I really see no point in charades anymore, Christine. Besides, you’re not the one I’m after.”
She hadn’t gotten a new thought inhibitor yet, so everything running through her mind came in loud and clear. She wanted me to ask about her last comment, but I refused to play her games anymore.
“Let us go,” I told her. “There’s no way you can take all three of us.”
“Resorting to threats now, are we?” There was a fierceness to her tone that she hadn’t shown in the school. “Fine. Here’s one for you then. You will either hand over that cell phone and listen to me, or I promise to send out the red alert, and have fifty Agents surrounding this building in seconds.”
A quick scan told me it wasn’t a bluff. It might not have been seconds, but there’d be no way we’d be able to escape if she called in reinforcements.
Why is this cell phone so important? I wondered.
It didn’t matter. I had no use for it, and if it would buy me a few more minutes to strategize...
The phone tumbled end over end, in her direction before I could think twice about it. She easily caught it, and placed it in her pocket without so much as a glance.
Both Peter and Ethan stared at me, wondering how I could just give in like that. I didn’t respond, but a simple glance from me told them there were more pressing matters. They refocused their attention on Abby.
“Thank you.” She returned to her polite and cheery voice. “I’m sure you realize that I’m from the MHDA by now.”
“Yeah, well. Tell us something we don’t know.” I don’t think my voice could have extruded any more “snotty teenager” than it did just then. But it certainly sent the message that I wanted her to get to the point, and fast.
“Okay.” She pursed her lips, almost embarrassed to say this next sentence. However, a clear read of her emotions told me she was anything but embarrassed. “We need your help.”
Chapter 16
Deal with the Devil
“What a load of bull!” I said, almost before the words had escaped Abby’s mouth. There was no way a secret government agency needed help from a group of teenagers.
“Chris, maybe we should hear her out,” Ethan whispered.
“No!” She’s manipulating us again, like she did back at school. I’m not playing her games.”
“Either you do as your friend says,” Abby spoke calmly, “or we go to my alternative.”
Not wanting to be up to my ears in Agents, I complied. At least I shut my mouth, but I had no intention of believing anything this deceitful witch had to say.
“As I said, I’m MHDA. And we’ve been aware of the three of you, as well as the Stephenson girl, for about two months now.”
Right around when we started using our powers to fight crime. Ethan and Peter’s thoughts reflected my own.
“We aren’t after you. If we were, we would have captured you then.”
“That’s crap,” I shouted. “You’ve been trailing us for months. And what was with the little operation you guys set up last week to catch us? I still remember the idiots pretending to rob the bank and then throwing explosives out the rear of their car at us.”
“It was a test,” she explained, “to see if you were worthy of approaching.” She looked directly at me as she said the next piece, sending a slight chill down my spine. “We had to be sure you were who we thought you were. So, I went under the guise of Abigail Davidson, school counselor.”
“I guess that’s not your real name then,” Ethan said, repeating the very same words running through my head. He said it a little nicer than I would have.
“For the purposes of this relationship, you can call me Abby.” She looked out the window for a moment, deciding the track this conversation should take. Then she turned her attention back. “Ethan, you are a wonderful young man, with all the traits a great hero should have. You would be an asset to us. Peter, you think before you act. People take this hesitation for shyness, but they don’t realize that what you are doing is constantly analyzing and retrieving outcomes for every situation. You say only what you need, when you need. And Christine, what can I say? You are a natural leader, and will never take no for an answer. When you set your mind to something, nothing will stop you from accomplishing your goal. You could be a vital part of our organization.”
If I hated her when she was being a counselor, it was nothing compared to how I felt about her now that she was no longer hiding behind her mask. Either way, she was a vile human being, bending people to her will – probably why she was so good at her job.
Unfortunately, her flattery was having the effect she intended. Both Ethan and Peter relaxed their postures as they thought about how honest her words had been. Her words about me had been true as well – except the leader part – but there was no way I would let her lead me into a trap.
She’s lying, I projected to my friends. She’s just telling you what you want to hear.
I don’t think they were listening to me anymore.
“What do you need us for?” Peter asked.
Damn, both of them. They needed to snap out of it before they agreed to whatever Abby wanted. Seduced by a pretty face.
I shook my head, holding back my need to slap the boy – that would come later. He was walking right into her clutches. Besides, if I was going to slap anyone, it would be my boyfriend, who couldn’t peel his eyes from hers.
“The MHDA employs people like you – people with powers,” she amended, “when the need arises. I fear the need has never been greater. It has come to our attention that a powered individual has entered the country and is looking to resume a war ended long ago.”
I couldn’t take this anymore. “Seriously? You say you want our help and then you’re going to speak in code to us?”
“Chris, let up a little, will ya?”
“If you like her so much, Ethan, why don’t you just go with her then?” I yelled. “I’m sure you’ll be very happy together.”
“I understand your frustration, Christine,” Abby said – stopping my tirade. “But understand, the information I carry is very sensitive. I can’t reveal much about it unless you agree to help us. The MHDA cannot risk you spilling what you know to the wrong party.”
“Is that what you told Eddie?” I challenged. “You get him to agree to help you too, right before you stabbed him in the neck?”
“Edward Eagan is a dangerous individual,” said Abby. “His power was unpredictable and letting him remain free would have put a great many people at risk. If I were you, I would forget about him.”
“You know I can’t do that,” I responded. “You said it yourself – once I set my mind to something–”
“I know.” She smiled. It was a genuine smile, a trace of sympathy radiated from her. “I had to try.”
“Where is he?” I asked.
She wouldn’t respond to the question. I knew that. But I didn’t need her to. Without her thought blocking device, once I asked the question, the answer popped into her head. Oh, she tried to push it back – I could feel her fighting to keep it nestled in the back of her mind, but I got it anyway.
An image of a simple sign, nestled among the trees, next to an old one-lane road came to me. The sign simply read, “Welcome to Camp Hero State Park”. Thank you, Abby Davidson, I thought. That’s twice you’ve helped me now.
Repressing my satisfaction, I pretended I hadn’t gotten the answer I was looking for. It seemed to satisfy the woman, because her mind went back to a state of ease. “I’m not going to talk anymore about Edward Eagan.”
“Abby,” Ethan said, drawing her attention away from me for a moment. “Why us? Why would you choose us? There’s got to be someone more qualified. I mean, we’re only just learning about our powers.”
“We have our reasons,” she answered. “One major factor was how you handled the monster back in February, which drew us to the area to begin with. There aren’t many people, myself included, who could kill a Class Four Ooze without any loss of life.”
Ethan swelled with pride. So did Peter, who’d been trapped in a mud cocoon for most of the battle. It was at this point I knew I’d lost this battle. It was sad how simple flattery from a good-looking woman could turn a boy’s mind to mush.
“A Class Four Ooze? Really?” I said. “You just made that up.”
“No. You’re a Class Five Mentalist. Ethan: a Class Three Speedster. Peter: Class Three Shocker.”
“How can you have classifications for us all?”
“We’re the government, Christine. It’s what we do.”
She couldn’t have been serious. I had a classification? Not only that, I was a Class Five? How was that possible? Most of the time, I had no idea what I was doing. I did a quick scan of her head again. It was true.
“How many classifications are there?” Peter asked.
“There are ten classes, and almost a hundred different categories.”
Something sparked in Ethan’s mind with that last comment. He couldn’t wrap his mind around the hundred different categories. “Can I ask you something? And will you promise to answer me seriously?”
“Depends on what it is.”
No, Ethan. No! I begged. I pleaded. He didn’t know what he was doing. With his question, he would give her information we needed to keep secret. Don’t do it! You can’t!
He just looked back at me. He looked very apologetic. Sorry, Chris. But I have to.
I turned away. I couldn’t be a part of this. I’d completely lost my boyfriend to this evil succubus.
“Well, we were under the impression that our powers were genetic…passed down to us from a group of soldiers involved in a…secret government project. But, there were only twelve men in that project.” He was trying his best to ask his question without revealing anything to Abby. But every word he uttered only gave her more information than she needed to have. “So, how can there be hundreds of different powers?”
“Ethan,” she said as if speaking to a child, “do you honestly think Project: Hercules was the only super-powered program that this, or any other country, ever ran?”
How did she know? I mused. She shouldn’t know anything about that. The only people who knew about Project: Hercules were the twelve men involved and three of us, plus Savanah.
“The fact is, Christine, Peter, Ethan,” she said, turning to each of us, “your country needs you. I know you fancy yourselves heroes. This is a way you can be one legally – without having to wear a mask over your face. What do you say?”
“Go to–” I began, but Ethan spun on me, cutting me off.
“Chris, this is what we wanted,” he told me. “This is our chance to become something more. We’ve been so worried about hiding from her and the other Agents, we haven’t been able to do what we needed. If we accept their offer, we can make a real difference.”
How easily you forget. “You idiot! This is the same woman who told us she was a counselor. The same woman who tried to capture me the day my brother was born. From the same agency who takes people like us away, never to be seen again. How can you suddenly believe her?”
He glanced over his shoulder. Abby hadn’t moved, and was eagerly awaiting the positive answer she was sure she would get, at least from the boys.
“Because it would be stupid to turn her down. They know about us, they can capture and take us away anytime they want. If helping them out prevents them from locking us up – or worse – then I’m willing to take that risk.”
“So am I,” Peter said.
How could I argue? They were both dead set on their decision and nothing I could say would dissuade them. I had made a promise months ago, that no matter what I wouldn’t use my mind-control powers on them, even if it was for their own good.
But, how could I just watch them destroy their lives? I couldn’t. But there was no way I would make a deal with this woman. Abby Davidson was evil. There was more to what she was saying – much more. I just wished I could pull it from her head. Unfortunately, though I’d had success in pulling some small amount of information, it seemed her mind was too well-trained to give up information easily.
“Fine,” I said to them. “Do what you want. But if you choose her, Ethan, consider us through.”
I turned my back again. I let my threat hang in the air, hoping losing me would be enough to stop him.
“Okay, Abby,” Ethan said. “You have a deal.”
There wasn’t even a pause between Ethan’s answer and Abby’s response. “Very good. And believe it or not, I already have a mission for you.”
That figured. I rolled my eyes. The two of them were so stupid. Now she’s just reeling them in until their close enough to catch in her net. I began walking, too afraid to look back at my now ex-boyfriend, for fear the flood of tears flooding my tear ducts would break free. I’d lost him, and to a hotter, older woman.
“There are two super-powered individuals in the city,” she explained. She sounded like a drill sergeant, talking to her platoon about their first training mission. “This is not their first visit to New York, and we know exactly where they’ll be this evening. They are a pair of thieves who use their powers to distract and then take what they want from their prey. They are a male and female pair, about twenty years old. She can turn anything she touches invisible, and he–”
“Multiplies,” I croaked, stopping in my tracks once I realized who she was talking about: Gina and Johnny, my thieving friends from the train. My back tensed at the very thought of the pair.
“Absolutely right, Christine.” She smiled, realizing she’d hooked me as well. I hated her for it.
“I’m in,” I said. I owed those two a little payback, and I was going to deliver.
“I’m glad you’re aboard,” Abby said.
“Realize this,” I started, keeping the contempt I felt at the forefront of my tone. “I’m not doing this for you, and I’m not going to be a part of whatever this is you’re doing. I’m going to stop those two because it’s what they deserve – plain, simple, easy. Got me?” I swore I’d never sell out one of my kind to the likes of the MHDA, but those two deserved it. Yet, I still felt like I was making a deal with the devil.
“Oh, I think I’ve got you,” she said. I think I was the only one who got the subtext of what she was saying, even if she was wrong.
“So, where’re we going?” Ethan asked.
“The Plaza Hotel.”
Chapter 17
Much Needed Revenge
As promised, we met Sam and Samantha back in Times Square for dinner. Their play got out around five, and we ended up meeting up about a half hour later, which was just when Savanah and Tiffany showed up, carrying a slew of bags which contained more clothing I could ever afford in my lifetime. We ate at this place called Virgil’s, a barbecue place off 6th Avenue. It didn’t look like much from the outside – and believe me, I wouldn’t have picked the place based solely on the way it looked – but the food was really, really good.
Ethan tried talking to me, but I ignored him. What he’d done was the ultimate betrayal in any relationship: he’d picked another woman over me. I’d never forgive him for it.
Of course, after explaining the conversation Abby Davidson had with us, the other four had no problem with staying in The Plaza Hotel for the night, especially after Samantha informed Sam she wasn’t going to be staying in the “fleabag” he’d booked.
Apparently Abby had booked a suite at the hotel. The pair was very fond of the suites – it was where Gina and Johnny could make the biggest scores. And judging by how expensive the suites were, I’d say the pair could clear enough to make the $300 they stole from me seem like a couple of pennies.
“How do you know so much about these two, by the way?” Sam asked.
“They robbed the train I was on, then robbed me after I took everything back they stole,” I explained.
“That’s why the Agent didn’t arrest you in the museum?” Savanah asked.
“Probably,” I answered.
“And you think once we do this, she’s probably going to turn on us?” she continued.
I stabbed a piece of my boneless pork ribs with a fork and shoved it in my mouth. “Yup.”
“Then why do it?”
“Because I owe those two – big time,” I said.
It was nearly six-thirty. We were supposed to meet Abby back at the hotel in an hour. So we paid for dinner and left. “I’ll have to meet you guys at the hotel tonight,” I explained. “If I don’t call my mom, she’ll freak out. Plus, as cool as my grandparents have been with me being out on my own, I doubt they’ll let me stay out all night.”
“Oooh, you’re going to sneak out,” Savanah said. “You rebel.”
“Shut up,” I said. “By the way, is there anything left in Saks?” I pointed to the six bags she was carrying.
“It’s not all for me,” Savanah said.
“Yeah, she bought me a scarf,” Tiffany said with absolutely no enthusiasm.
“I didn’t have to buy you anything.”
Suddenly, Tiffany seemed grateful. As much as she would hate to admit it, Tiffany still idolized Savanah and would do anything to be just like her. Upsetting the rich girl was definitely not something Tiffany liked to do.
Outside the restaurant, Ethan called, “Chris, will we see you later?”
I walked away, not looking back, and found a subway station. I went down the stairs and found the right train. I remembered my grandfather had told me the A or the C trains would take me up to the apartment. As I waited for it, I fought hard against the knot forming in my chest. It hit me again, what Ethan had done, betraying me to that woman. Every time I thought about it, it felt like someone was driving a knife straight through my heart.
Two minutes later, I jumped on the A-train and within seconds I was soaring uptown.
I got off at 72nd Street and walked out of the station, coming aboveground right where my day had started.
I didn’t have any trouble getting back into my grandparents’ building, because the doorman recognized me, no easy feat considering how many people must walk in and out of the building on a daily basis. I thanked him for holding the door, and again he tipped his hat.
My grandparents were watching their big-screen TV in the living room. I couldn’t believe I hadn’t noticed the television before – the thing took up the entire wall!
“How was your day?” My grandmother didn’t even unglue her eyes from the screen.
“Fun,” I answered. She wasn’t actually listening, so I didn’t go into detail, not that I could have anyway.
“That’s nice,” came her programmed response. “Call you mother.”
I sighed, walking into the kitchen to grab the phone.
“Hey, Myles,” I said to the butler, who was pretty much in the same spot I’d left him that morning, at the stove.
“Oh, little miss, you’ve returned,” he said. “And how did you enjoy your day in the big city?”
Unlike my grandmother, he actually sounded genuinely interested in what I had to say. “I had a good time. Got to see the MET, so that was exciting, I guess. Then had dinner in Times Square.”
“Very good, miss. And do you have anything exciting planned for tomorrow?”
“Not yet,” I admitted. It was absolutely true. The one thing I wanted to check out was the Camp Hero State Park, but for all I knew it was halfway across the country.
He nodded, and went back to preparing what I took to be my grandparents’ dinner. I grabbed the phone.
From the way my grandmother had said to call my mother, she had probably called a few times looking for me. I prayed my grandmother didn’t let on I was out by myself. If she did, my mother would probably insist I take the next train home.
“Hello,” Grandpa Carpenter answered the phone.
“Hey, Grandpa, is Mom there?”
“Hi, Christine. Did you do what you wanted in New York?” He mustn’t have been alone in the room where he’d picked up the phone, or he’d probably have questioned me more directly about what I’d been up to. With this question, he would at least get some of the information he was looking for.
“Mostly,” I said. “There’s still one more thing I’d like to check out tomorrow, but I don’t know if I’ll be able to get there.”
“Really?” he asked. I heard the curiosity, mixed with disapproval, in his voice.
I hated disappointing him, but I had to do what I had to do. “Just some park I heard about.” I didn’t want to tell him the name of the park with Myles standing not ten feet away. Not that it mattered, I doubted either of them ever heard of the place anyway.
“Just be careful,” he reminded me. “I’ll get your mother.”
He called for her and a minute later she picked up. My grandmother hadn’t spilled the beans about me going out alone. My mother was under the impression that my grandfather had taken me around the city for the day. She just wanted to check on me and see what I’d done. I told her the parts I could tell her.
She went on to tell me about what Conner did that day, which was really no more exciting than watching pro golf, but it thrilled my mother, so I listened. By the time I got off the phone it was nearly eight o’clock. I would have to wait for my grandparents to go to bed before I could sneak out, and I had no idea when they actually went to bed. I didn’t know what I was going to do while I waited, either. But then I remembered.
There’s a Jacuzzi with my name on it. And I had an awful lot of troubles in need of washing and massaging away. I started to leave the kitchen, noticing Myles sitting at the table, eating his dinner. He must lead such a lonely life. With the amount of attention my grandparents had paid me so far this weekend, I could only imagine how much they paid him.
“So, what do you do when you’re not serving my grandparents?” I asked as I slid into the seat opposite Myles.
He stopped eating, looking up to meet my eyes. I felt the shock that someone was actually talking to him waft from his head like the aroma of the chicken on his plate.
“I enjoy reading,” he said simply, then went back to his meal.
He was either uncomfortable I was there, asking him questions, or so unused to it he didn’t know how to respond. I assumed it was the latter, because I didn’t feel any negative vibes coming from him.
So I pressed on. “What do you read?”
“A great many things, little miss,” he responded. “I especially like reading Tolstoy, Faulkner, Hemmingway, all kinds of things.”
“The classics. Impressive. We’re reading Bradbury now in English.”
“Bradbury has some marvelous literature,” Myles said. “Not really my taste. Though a few of his books send very interesting messages.”
I sat and talked with Myles for a good twenty minutes while he ate his meal. Once the initial awkwardness left him, he really warmed up to the prospect of having an intelligent conversation with someone. It was really sad that my grandparents never sat and talked with the man. They didn’t treat him like a human being.
Much like they treat everyone else, I realized.
He offered to make me some dessert, but I declined, remembering my date with the Jacuzzi.
I left the kitchen, grabbed a change of clothes, and immediately went into the bathroom to fill the tub. I found some bubble bath and poured a capful into the hot water. The scent of freshly crushed raspberries filled the room, and with that scent it seemed that all the tensions of the day would melt away.
It was pure and total bliss a few minutes later, when I undressed and slipped into the tub. The hot water splashed onto my skin, relaxing muscles I hadn’t known had tightened, and the jets in the tub massaged out every knot in my back and shoulders. Even the knot in my chest melted away, along with any thoughts of my backstabbing ex-boyfriend, What’s-His-Name. I don’t think I have ever been so comfortable and carefree in my entire life. It would have been heaven, except that eventually I would have to get out.
**********
Thankfully, my grandparents weren’t late goers. They said goodnight to me about nine-thirty, but I waited until ten before I snuck out. I’d put on pajamas after my bath, but made sure to change back into normal clothing. For some reason, I didn’t think it would be a good idea to walk the city streets in a tank top and my sleep shorts.
My grandparents’ room was at the end of the hall so, thankfully, I didn’t need to go past it in order to get out. That didn’t stop me from tiptoeing through the apartment. After only about ten steps, I knew I was home free.
At least, I would have been, if Myles hadn’t been sitting in the living room with a cup of tea and a copy of Churchill’s History of the English Speaking People in his hand.
His eyes peered over the book at me. I stopped, knowing I was caught. I should have checked to make sure he was in bed too. The tension pulled from me in the bath returned in that instant.
Myles was wondering if he should raise the alarm. I felt the warring in his head between his loyalty to my grandparents and wanting to help the young lady who’d been so friendly toward him.
“I see nothing,” he said, and returned to his book.
I breathed a sigh of relief, then walked out the door before he could change his mind.
It was about twenty blocks away, but I decided walking was easier than trying to figure out the subway. So, I followed Central Park West down to 59th Street and then trekked to The Plaza.
The place was closer than I thought, sitting on the southern edge of Central Park. The hotel was big and beautiful, and I already knew why this was the premiere place for rich socialites. Pretty much, it would be the type of place Savanah’s parents, or my grandparents, would reserve.
I walked in, feeling instantly out of place. The lobby was large and brightly lit by several large chandeliers. There were many people around, talking, checking in, or sitting in the lounge. Bellhops moved here and there, picking up luggage and taking people to their rooms. The thing I really noticed was that each and every person in that room was dressed better than me.
I didn’t talk to anyone. Abby had told us which suite was ours. So I bypassed everyone and walked straight for the elevator. I was quite surprised no one stopped me. You would think they would try to keep the riff-raff out, and by the way I was dressed, I definitely qualified as riff-raff.
I rode the elevator up to the Plaza Suite, one of the higher levels, and stepped off. I got out and found room 1212 and knocked. About ten seconds later, Samantha answered the door. “Oh, it’s you.”
“As if it would be anyone else,” I retorted.
Samantha stepped out of the doorway and let me in. I made sure to shut the door behind me. When I turned around, I stopped dead in my tracks. If I was impressed when I’d seen my grandparents’ apartment, it was nothing compared to this. I think the suite had more square feet than my house in Jefferson Hills. The furniture looked brand new, almost like the maids changed it every time a new person checked in. The high ceilings and giant windows overlooking the park were like something out of a fantasy.
“Must be one of the perks of working for the MHDA,” Ethan said. The boy was lounging on one of the couches with Peter and Sam, drinking cola out of a wine glass.
“We’re here because this is one of their most targeted rooms,” I said through clenched teeth. The boy was lucky I didn’t fling him through one of those windows and watch him splatter on the ground below.
Sam, who also had a wine glass of soda, raised it as if giving a toast. “I don’t care, I’m loving this. To the MHDA!”
“MHDA!” Peter called, raising his own glass.
“MHDA!” Ethan repeated.
The three glasses clinked and the three boys drained their glasses and placed them on the table. All four of us girls looked at them like they were deranged – which they were.
“Guys, seriously,” I tried reasoning with them. “This is how they recruit people. Get them all comfy and loving life, and then when they sign on, they reveal what it’s really about.”
“MHDA!” they all called again.
“That was soda, right?” I asked Tiffany, who’d taken a spot next to me.
She nodded. “I took the liquor out of the mini-bar when we got here.”
That was a relief. The last thing I needed was a bunch of drunk boys laying around when the pair of thieves arrived.
“MHDA!” The three of them shouted again, clinking together their now empty glasses.
“Okay. Would you shut up?” I asked.
All three boys laughed. If they hadn’t had anything to drink, then there was something definitely wrong with them. I narrowed my eyes, and glared at the boys. ENOUGH! I projected into their heads.
All three stopped their chuckling in an instant.
“Aww, c’mon, Chris,” Ethan said, coming toward me, “we’re just having some fun.” He reached out to give me a hug.
I got just close enough to him to check his breath didn’t reek of alcohol. It didn’t. Then I pushed him away and turned to all the others. “We need to get ready. We should expect them sometime between midnight and two in the morning. That leaves us only a little more than an hour to prepare.”
“I want no part of this,” voiced Samantha.
“We all know your opinion. So, if you’re not going to contribute, just sit down and shut up!” Tiffany shouted at the girl. It was like I was speaking through her mouth.
The sudden outburst, and the fact that it came from someone other than me, made her obey. Sam put his arm around her, as if to console her fragile state of mind.
“Everyone, sit,” I ordered. Then, after a brief moment and watching them stare at me, I added, “Please.”
Ethan moved back to his spot, sliding in next to Peter. Tiffany and Savanah sat on a loveseat across the small table from the sofa. I stood.
There I was, standing before them all, taking on the leadership role I neither desired nor deserved. Yet they all continued to follow me blindly, except Samantha. Once again, I found myself wondering why they all looked to me for answers. There were many times, like this moment, when I had no idea what I was doing.
“Like I said, between midnight and two,” I explained. “The thieves are named Johnny and Gina. He can make copies of himself and Gina can turn herself and anything she touches invisible.” I paused and paced as I thought of the next thing to say. I had no idea. I could try to take them again, like I had the last time, hoping surprise would be on my side and I could catch them off guard. I wanted to take them alone and throttle each of them until I got my wallet and phone back. But that wasn’t how to do this. I didn’t even really defeat them last night on the train, because they got away. I needed my friends.
I stopped my pacing and faced the six people sitting before me. “Anyone have any suggestions?”
**********
Sitting in the darkness, after a full day of running around and a night of no sleep, while trying to stay awake, wasn’t a good idea. I nodded off at least three times, and was nudged awake each time by Tiffany’s hard elbow.
“You were snoring again,” she whispered.
The two of us were sitting on the floor in the suite’s small kitchen. Even though the floor was hard and uncomfortable, I still couldn’t keep my eyes open. “Sorry,” I whispered back.
The lights were out since we wanted to make it look like we were asleep, so when Johnny and Gina did come in, they would assume they had an easy target. There was only one way in and out of the suite. Once they were in, the idea was to barricade the door so, unless they felt like going through the window and jumping twelve floors to the ground, they’d be trapped.
Sam and Samantha sat in one bedroom, and Ethan and Peter in the other. Savanah was lying on the couch, and I was sure she really was asleep since her thoughts were erratic – they kept coming back to her grandparents. It was nearly one in the morning, and everyone was getting pretty antsy. I was too. Johnny and Gina really needed to show up soon.
“Talk to me so I won’t fall asleep again,” I told Tiff.
At first, she didn’t say anything. I thought she might have fallen asleep herself. As it turned out, she was just trying to come up with something. “Well, how are your grandparents?”
“Same as always. I’m just glad they don’t really care about anyone but themselves.” It was the first time I’d actually said it out loud. It was painful to say, even if it was the truth. Everyone’s grandparents were supposed to care about them and love them. Mine didn’t, and probably never would.
“Oh,” she muttered, unsure how to respond. “Yeah. That’s… good, I guess.”
She looked toward the bedroom where Peter and Ethan were hiding, and hesitated a moment before asking, “What’s up with you and Ethan?”
Pain flared in my chest again. I hadn’t said anything about it to Tiff, my best friend, and I wasn’t ready to yet. “I don’t want to talk about it,” I said. “Wound’s too fresh.” Then I tried for a rapid change of subject before she could press me. “Anything new with you these last couple weeks? I haven’t been the most attentive since Conner was born.”
“No, you haven’t.” The way she said it was half-joking and half-serious.
“I’m sorry. About everything.”
“It’s okay,” she said.
“No. I had no right to tell everyone about, you know.”
“It’s fine. It was an accident,” she explained. “I understand that.”
“Still friends then?”
“I’m here, aren’t I?”
I laughed like I hadn’t in what felt like a long time. “I think you just wanted a vacation.”
I was glad she wasn’t mad at me anymore. I threw my arms around her and gave her a hug. She returned the hug and we just held each other for the longest time. It was a stupid fight, and we both knew it.
Our making up was soon interrupted by something vibrating in Tiffany’s pocket. She quickly broke our embrace and checked her cell phone. Her fingers flew over the keys as she responded to the text message.
“Who was that?”
“Ryan,” she responded.
“Who?”
“Just this guy. No big deal.”
She said no big deal, but her emotions said otherwise. I really had been out of touch with my friends for a while. However, that wasn’t my concern for the moment. As usual, my need to fulfill my mission overrode my curiosity about Tiffany’s new boyfriend. Her cell phone probably had just what I needed.
“Your phone have Internet?”
She nodded, even as she sent the text.
“Can you look something up for me?”
“Sure.” Her fingers were already moving over the keys, pulling Google up. “What do you need?”
“Look up Camp Hero State Park. I need to know where it is.”
She typed in what I asked and waited for the search to load. It didn’t take long, but my anticipation made it seem like forever.
She squinted. “According to this, Camp Hero is here in New York, at a place called Montauk Point.”
I froze. It couldn’t have been that simple, could it? This state park was– “Tiff, say that again.” I had to be sure.
“Montauk Point.”
Damn. It was right where Quinn told me to go. It couldn’t have been a coincidence. He must have known everything, before it happened. There was no other explanation for it. What was there that a group like the MHDA could keep hidden from…EVERYONE?
There was no time to dwell on it, as there was a knock at the door.
The tension rose in the suite. Even Savanah, it appeared, returned to the world of the waking. They were supposed to break in, not knock on the door. We all sat there, wondering what to do, when someone knocked again, this time a little harder.
Reaching out, I focused on the minds on the other side of the door. There were two of them and both were eager to get inside. They believed they were going to get a great deal of money out of here tonight. They were wrong.
“It’s definitely them,” I whispered to Tiffany.
“What do we do?”
There was another, even more insistent knock.
“Answer the door. There will probably be no one there. Just look confused, look back and forth in the hall, then come back in. Give them plenty of time to sneak in past you. Okay?”
She nodded, appearing very nervous. It was one thing to want to go on an adventure, but another thing altogether to actually be in a dangerous situation. I would have gone myself, but chances were the pair would recognize me and run.
Tiffany stood and walked out of the kitchen. She went to the door and opened it. “Hello?” she asked in a sleepy voice. “Anyone there?” A count of ten and Tiffany shut the door. She walked back into the suite, this time passing the kitchen to head to one of the bedrooms.
Good job, Tiff, I thought. I hadn’t thought about that. It wouldn’t make much sense if Tiffany headed for the kitchen after being roused from “sleep”.
Reaching out again, I located our two intruders. They were sneaking into the living room, trying not to make a sound.
We had them. All we needed to do now was block their escape.
I waited for them to pass the entrance of the kitchen, then slunk out of the corner and went back to the door. I locked the deadbolt, then moved a small endtable up against it.
Triggering every switch in the suite at the same time, I lit up the entire place in a second. Then I grabbed the couch and quickly floated it back toward the entrance. It flew over my head and settled itself down in front of the door.
“What d’you think you’re doing, Loser?” came Savanah’s irritated voice behind me.
I spun to see her rolling off the couch. “Sorry,” I said. “Next time, sleep somewhere else.”
I wasn’t concerned at all with her agitation. I was concentrating on the sense of fear now coming from the center of the living room. The thieving pair had seen me, and knew they’d been caught.
Savanah and I walked up the hall, still blocking the entrance. We didn’t see anything, but I knew they were there. Gina was doing her invisibility thing, so they could have been standing two feet in front of us and we wouldn’t have known.
“I know you’re in here.” At the sound of my voice, their fear spiked. “You know I can find you. I promise, it will be much worse if you make me look.”
Nothing. I had honestly expected them to just appear before me. It looked like I was going to have to do this the hard – but fun – way.
“Fine,” I said, sending mental tendrils out and grabbing hold of their minds, “have it your way.”
Johnny thought I was bluffing, but he didn’t know what I could do to him. Gina, though a little more nervous than her brother, also felt safe inside her blanket of invisibility.
I shook my head – how little they knew. “Tell me, what do you fear?”
Their fears were plucked from their minds as easily as pulling a tomato from the vine – and they had an awful lot of fears between them. I sifted out many of the superfluous ones, and settled on the one they shared. Still, I latched onto and pushed it back into their minds.
They became visible instantly, both of them crumpling on the floor. Gina began crying, but Johnny just looked lost somehow. Neither said anything. Neither screamed.
Looks like I won’t need the others after all.
“What’s she doing to them?” Samantha’s voice sounded as if it were coming from very far away.
I understood what she was thinking. She’d been the only one of us who’d felt what it was like being on the receiving end of my fear power – at least the only one who could remember.
There was a reason why these two weren’t screaming. Their greatest fear was a very simple one. They were twins, I’d discovered, and their greatest fear was being separated. It became apparent that neither had ever left the other’s side in their entire lives.
“NO!” Johnny shouted. He snarled something fierce, like a tiger trapped in the corner of its cage when the handler came to catch it. He was poised to attack.
And attack he did.
The next thing I knew, there was a copy of Johnny, swinging his arm at my head. I ducked just in time to not get hit, but my concentration broke.
“Get them!” I yelled.
A second later, it was total pandemonium.
There was no doubt in my mind that the four of us with powers would be able to subdue our two assailants. Add on the three without, and the task was even easier. What I didn’t count on was Johnny’s ability to split himself multiple times. He just divided and divided until twelve of him stood in the room.
Ethan charged at Johnny, the original one, but one of the copies appeared directly in his path, and Ethan collided into him with a sickening crunch. Ethan and the Johnny copy both careened into the nearest wall, leaving a remarkable dent in it. The Johnny copy disappeared, leaving Ethan lying unconscious.
Please be okay.
At the same time, Peter sent a burst of electric energy at another of the Johnnys. But as the jolt hit the boy, he disappeared as well. Peter hadn’t counted on that, and continued releasing the charges from his fists, which slammed into Tiffany. Her body tensed and convulsed for a moment, then fell limply to the floor.
This is not going well. How could something so well-thought-out have gone so wrong?
Mentally, I lifted the loveseat and flung it toward what I thought was the original Johnny, though at this point, I could no longer be sure. It crashed on top of him and the boy disappeared. A copy. That figures.
Savanah grabbed hold of Gina. She had a vice-like grip on the girl’s neck, and I could already see her lips turning blue. I prayed Savanah wouldn’t kill her in some uncontrolled rage.
Just as I was thinking of interceding, both Gina and Savanah vanished. It had to be Gina’s power, but that didn’t stop a moment of shock from destabilizing my mind. I was almost sure Savanah still had hold of the girl, but I couldn’t be sure.
I had more pressing matters to worry about. One of the Johnnys was backing Sam and Samantha into a corner. Sam put his body in front of his girlfriend to protect her, but Samantha looked like she was ready to tear the Johnny’s eyes out. When Johnny inched close enough, Sam took a swing. Johnny ducked under the sloppy punch with ease, and Sam, a bit off balance, was pushed easily to the side by the older boy. Sam’s head smashed into the wall, and the boy fell unconscious on the ground.
Johnny approached Samantha now, pulling a small knife from his pocket. I knew these two were thieves, but I would never have assumed they were killers. That knife he was brandishing at my fr– at Samantha, told the tale of his immorality. He planned on stabbing a defenseless girl.
A little mental push was all it took. Johnny was whisked off his feet and flew into the window, where he landed with a thud. The glass cracked from the impact, but didn’t break, and the knife fell from the boy’s hands and disappeared, as did the boy a few seconds later.
Even though we’d taken out many of the replicas, it didn’t seem to matter, because there were now nearly twenty of them filling the room.
“We need to find the real one!” I shouted. The only two people still standing in the room with me were Samantha and Peter, with Savanah still presumably invisibly grappling Gina.
I looked to Peter. He could shock multiple copies at the same time. I was confident that once we found the real one and incapacitated him, the rest would disappear. “Peter, you need to use your power!”
“But what if I hit someone else again?” He eyed the prone form of Tiffany.
“We’ll be okay,” I assured him. “A little pain never hurt anyone.”
He nodded, still not looking too sure of himself. “I’m gonna try something.” Then his eyes started to glow – not something I’d ever seen before.
I dodged a lunge from one of the Johnnys and sent him sprawling on the floor. As I made my move to go after him, I noticed that near the door one of the Johnnys was moving the couch, trying to escape.
He’d already pulled it away from the door, but not enough to get the door open. He also hadn’t gotten to the little endtable either.
There would be no escape from this battle arena. I grabbed him with a mental tendril by the ankle and quickly flipped him over, whipping his body up into the ceiling. The body disappeared before it could slam back into the ground.
I heard a scream from behind me and saw one of the Johnnys disappearing. He’d tried to touch Peter’s body, but the glowing charge now visible across every inch of the boy’s skin proved to deliver quite a jolt.
Peter, himself, looked like the coursing energy was causing him unimaginable pain. It was steadily building inside him until he couldn’t contain it anymore. He was turning himself into a bomb, an electric bomb that would shock everyone in the room.
Oh, this is going to suck, I thought. I’d been on the receiving end of one of his shocks before, and it wasn’t pleasant.
I tried to find cover, but was stopped by a loud crash. I spun toward the noise and watched as the door buckled inward. Someone was trying to break down the door.
Can this possibly get any worse?
Of course, the answer, as always, was a resounding, “Yes.” While I was distracted, a large heavy mass hit me from behind, and pinned me to the ground. It was heavy, and though I couldn’t see what it was exactly, it felt like a body – several of them, actually.
I heard a distinctly female groan, and then the body moved. “Okay, now I’m officially pissed!” the voice said.
“Savanah?” I asked, even though I already knew who it was.
“Thanks for catching me,” she said.
“Jeez, how heavy are you? I feel like I have a car on my back.” I’d lifted her before, but I’d never had her on top of me. Her power, which made her strong, also had to make her body mass extremely dense.
“Are you calling me fat? Muscle weighs more than flab, Loser.”
“Well, can you get your ‘muscle’ off of me?”
Another loud bang, and I could just barely make out the door caving in just slightly. Whoever was on the other side really wanted to get in.
Savanah shifted her weight to lift herself off me, but that’s the exact moment Peter unleashed his energy. In an instant, the room was filled with a bright blue light. All the Johnnys disappeared and several people collapsed, including Savanah, who fell back on top of me, knocking the air out of my lungs. I felt a tingle, but Savanah definitely got the brunt of the pain. When the blue burst of energy dissipated all light went with it, plunging us into darkness.
It took me a few moments to regain my senses, but then I was able to mentally lift Savanah’s crushing body off me. At the same moment, the door burst inward and several men carrying flashlight-mounted machineguns covered the room.
MHDA. That figures. Make us do all the work and they’ll take all the credit. I pushed myself up and stood, just as Abby Davidson walked into the darkened room. I heard a groan to my left, which I knew to be Ethan. He’d hit the wall pretty hard but, as always, being a quick healer meant he’d be fine in a few minutes. I pushed down the pain I felt in my stomach every time Ethan got hurt, though I had no reason to feel that way anymore. Yet I still did.
Abby stopped in front of the brother and sister pair, both knocked out and sprawled on the carpet. “Not the most elegant job, but it’ll do,” she said.
“I’d like to see you do better,” I said. It was meant to sound tough, but I was tired and weak, so it came out more like a whine.
“Christine,” she said, as if just noticing I was there. “Glad you could make it. Your friends were worried you wouldn’t show.”
I appeared to be the only one left standing after our little skirmish. Even Peter had collapsed after he released the torrent of electricity. I wouldn’t have been surprised to find the whole hotel was without power.
Abby motioned two of her Agents to pick up the prone bodies of Gina and Johnny. “Get them in the van before they wake up. And make sure you put the shock cuffs on them this time. We don’t want a repeat of December.”
“That’s it,” I said, my voice coming out as a weak cry. “We’re done. No more missions for you.”
She didn’t even acknowledge me this time. “Bring in a medic, we’ve got some bumps and bruises in here. I want these kids back at a hundred percent before sunup.”
A man ran out of the room. Two more men walked out too, carrying the still unconscious bodies of Johnny and Gina with them.
“Hold on,” I ordered the two men.
They stopped at my voice, but looked at Abby to confirm my order. She nodded at them.
I walked over to Gina. She had a bag slung across her chest. Opening it, I dug inside. A few second later, I pulled out both my cell phone and my wallet, both unharmed and apparently untouched in the twenty-six hours it had been out of my possession. The three hundred dollars, was incredibly still in there.
I would have been excited, but exhaustion had overtaken me. I needed to sleep, and I needed to get back to my grandparents before they knew I was gone.
Waving the two men on, who eagerly carried the brother and sister down to the waiting van, I turned on Abby. “Did you hear me?”
“Yes, I heard you. Whatever you say, Christine. No one will bother you again.”
Her words rang true in my head. But I still felt a certain amount of unease at her words.
“Thank you,” I found myself saying without meaning to. I really owed no gratitude to this woman, other than allowing my revenge on the two felons being loaded into the van.
The medic came in a few minutes later and patched us up, proclaiming each of us fit and healthy. Surprisingly, Sam got the worst of it all, with a raised bump on his head.
When I was sure everyone was okay, especially Tiffany, who’d gotten a nasty shock, I left my friends to the mercy of Abby Davidson – against my better judgment. She offered me a ride back to my grandparents’ but I declined. I didn’t want to be in debt to the woman at all, not even for a car ride. So I walked, fretting that my absence removed the cone of protection from around my friends.
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