I jerked my gaze to the Ellington twins who were seated across the van from me—one of them Mateo, the other the Luke impersonator.
“What the fuck did you do to Luke?” I snarled.
Mateo snickered. “We handed him over to The Controller. I would have preferred to kill him, but The Controller wanted to experiment on Luke. He wanted to see how much mental and emotional torment an empath can withstand. He has big plans for Luke.”
Another wave of anguish crashed over me, stealing my breath. Fuck. Even after all the torture I’d endured at the hands of The Company, I’d never experienced anything quite like this. It was intense, almost debilitating, like the anguish of thousands of tortured souls was being slammed into me all at once.
And if it hurt me this bad, how did it affect Luke?
Then, suddenly, the pain disappeared, telling me Luke had pulled the torment back, blocking it from me, trying to prevent it from flowing into me. Trying to protect me.
But his scream echoed in my mind. A cry of pure agony. Ahhhh!
I sucked in a breath. Lifting my head, I glared at Mateo. “You son-of-a-bitch!”
Suddenly, the twins both shifted, their faces changing into one person right after another, a stream of different faces that made my eyes hurt, until finally, they both morphed into Mateo again.
Son-of-a-bitch! Who was who?
At that moment, Tony freed his hands from the cuffs and turned me loose. I lunged at the nearest Mateo, wrapping my hands around his throat, using my prosthetic hand around his windpipe as I squeezed hard. Tony attacked the other Mateo, and we took them both to the floor of the van.
“Where’s Luke?” I snarled. “You’re going to take us to him, you bastard! Everything he has suffered, you’re going to suffer ten times worse!”
Mateo grinned up at me, even though I was squeezing off his air. Didn’t the bastard feel anything at all?
“Who the fuck is The Controller?” Tony slammed the twin’s head into the floor of the van, again and again. “Who is he?”
Mateo gurgled beneath my grip on his throat, so I loosened the fingers of my prosthetic just enough to let him talk. “He can control people with his mind. He can make you do whatever he wants. No one is immune from his pull.” He let out an eerie cackle.
Fuck, I hated this bastard. I squeezed my prosthetic fingers around his throat again. Tighter. Tighter.
The van rocked to a screeching halt, sending us all sprawling.
Doors slammed as the officers exited.
“Be ready!” Nate warned. “They’re coming around back!” Everyone scrambled to their feet.
The back doors of the van flew open. Guns pointed inside.
Tony and I both lifted the Ellington twins in front of us, using them as shields, and shoved them at the officers, knocking them back. The other dregs slipped past us and out of the van.
“We only need one of the twins,” I whispered to Tony, who nodded and promptly snapped the neck of the Mateo in his grip. He let the man’s body drop to the ground. Almost immediately the man’s face changed, morphing into his true form…Matt Ellington, the twin. Which meant the Mateo I had in my grip was Mark Ellington, the sick fuck who liked to abuse women. The one who’d hurt Liz. How had they pulled this off? Had they somehow traded places back and forth? They weren’t identical twins, but they looked enough alike to tell they were related. No wonder the twin had been able to pretend to be a cousin, rather than a brother. How many people had these two fooled over the years? How many different identities had they taken on? How many had they hurt or killed?
As Tony rose from dropping the twin, he smacked his elbow into the closest officer’s head, snatched his gun, then knocked him out and laid him down. Yanking the handcuff key from the officer’s belt, he hurried around and used the key to free each of the other dregs.
The remaining officer—Agent Masterson—stared in shock at Matt Ellington’s body, his mouth gaping open. Then he jerked to attention and pointed his gun at us, shouting, “Stay back or I’ll shoot!”
“We don’t want to hurt you, man,” I told the agent, while Mateo fought and squirmed in my grip. But even with my prosthetic, I was still stronger than he was. The bastard wasn’t getting away this time. “We’re taking him as a hostage,” I informed. “He has information we need. And just FYI, his name is Mark Ellington and he’s currently wanted by the FBI. And the dead guy…” I pointed to Matt Ellington. “…is his twin. His name is Matt Ellington.”
Mateo opened his mouth to protest, so I roughly shoved my prosthetic hand against his lips, silencing him. “Shut up. No one’s talking to you.” He gurgled and glared up at me with that evil black stare.
The FBI agent’s startled gaze met mine. “What the hell is going on here? How did he…do that?”
Noah stepped forward. “If you’ll contact Agent Browning from the Atlanta office, he’ll confirm we’ve been working with him. They have the ability to change their appearances to become whomever they want. They were once Company soldiers, just like all of us were. Agent Browning will know what that means.”
Silence. The FBI agent’s eyes bugged out of his head. “Okay, all right. Don’t kill me. I’m going to call the Atlanta office.” He cautiously lowered his gun, but none of us moved to hurt him. He was one of the good guys. We all waited patiently while he snatched his phone from his pocket and spoke to someone. He listened a few moments, his gaze widening as he focused on Mateo, then glanced back at me. Then he stuffed the phone back in his pocket. “Agent Browning confirmed it. He said I should let you all go.”
A stunned silence fell. Thank God for Noah’s FBI contact.
Agent Masterson’s gaze darted down to Matt Ellington’s body. “I just witnessed you murder a man.” He glanced at Tony. “Murder is a crime.”
Tony shrugged. “The guy deserved it after all the hell he put us through. And he’s probably killed a hell of a lot more people than any of us have.” His gaze hardened, daring the agent to refute that.
Agent Masterson swallowed hard, glancing nervously around at each of us.
Mateo squirmed in my hold, mumbling something against my hand. I shoved my prosthetic harder against his mouth, silencing him. “Shut up, you little shit. No one cares what you have to say.”
Agent Masterson glanced at me and Mateo, then swung his gaze to Noah. “Agent Browning said to tell you that the lead you gave him on the Flesh King proved legit. They raided Vasquez’s compound on Saturday and arrested him and seventy other people.”
No shit? The dregs all exchanged glances, satisfaction filling everyone’s eyes. Vasquez had kidnapped several of our women. We were all happy to see the bastard get what he deserved.
“What about the other gangs?” Noah asked. “Do you know if the FBI took them out?”
“Not yet, but they plan to soon.” Agent Masterson glanced at each of us again, then he sighed. “Agent Browning said I was to cooperate with you and that he would handle all the details. But he said to tell you not to kill Ellington.” He waved at Mateo. “Or whoever the hell that guy is. He needs to be punished for his crimes.”
“We won’t kill him,” I assured the agent. “We just need some answers from him. You can have him when we’re done with him. We’ll drop him off at the local police precinct when we’re finished.”
Several of the other FBI vehicles had circled around and now came racing back toward us, obviously to see what had happened to the van.
“Let’s get out of here,” Tracker urged.
“Don’t make me regret letting you go!” Agent Masterson called after us. “I’ll be waiting to hear from you!”
“We’ll be in touch!” I shouted.
As we hurried away, dragging Mateo with us, a new urgency swept through me.
We needed to find Luke now.
Before The Controller completely broke him.
CHAPTER FIFTY
Ryan
None of us could interrogate like Luke and get the kind of results he did. So Mateo’s
interrogation would wait. We needed to find Luke.
Mateo was still secured by the handcuffs the FBI had locked around his wrists, so all we had to do was gag and blindfold him, and toss him into the trunk of my car. He could stay there until we saved Luke. Hell, he could stay there until he rotted for all I cared.
Luke was by far more important.
We all gathered around the empty, dark parking lot behind the building where we’d parked our cars. It was time to strategize and discuss how to save Luke.
Another wave of Luke’s agony slammed into me, stealing my breath. I nodded at Tracker, motioning him closer. He grabbed hold of my arm, trying to get a feel for Luke’s location through my connection to him.
Tracker gave a slight jerk, indicating Luke’s misery had also flowed into him. As if Luke had felt that, he jerked the pain away in an obvious attempt to shield us from the torture.
Tracker kept his eyes closed for several moments after my connection with Luke slithered away.
Stepping back, he looked me in the eye. “He’s back at that house where we found Liz.” He paused, his gaze turning sad. “He’s not good, man. They fucked him up. I don’t know what he’s going to be like when we get there.”
Silence stretched while we all contemplated that.
“Doesn’t matter,” Tony stated quietly. “We’re all here for him. We’ll help him get through it, no matter what.”
Nods and murmurs of agreement erupted around the group. Luke was one of us, our brother, and we’d never abandon him, no matter how bad it got. We’d all risk our lives to see him safe, again and again, if necessary.
“Was Mateo right? Luke is an empath?” Jacob asked quietly, his gaze locking on mine. “Did you know this?”
I sighed. “Not until a few days ago.”
Jacob nodded. “I thought I had it bad when you guys kicked me out. But I can’t begin to even imagine what he’s gone through all these years. He had to have felt so alone.”
A surge of emotion rushed over me. “Yeah.” I wish Luke had told me the truth sooner. He didn’t have to go through this alone. “He said he didn’t want to burden me with it, so he tried to block it from me.”
Logan shook his head sadly. “He was pretending to be a cold bastard all this time, but in reality, he feels more than the rest of us. Hell, he feels everything.”
Another moment of silence stretched.
Nate slapped me on the back. “Let’s go get him.”
We all turned away, heading for our cars. We didn’t know anything about The Controller, so we had to be prepared for anything.
Loaded down with guns and ammo, and wearing our Kevlar vests, we parked down the dark street several minutes later, and snuck up to the residence. The place was dark, with no sounds of life coming from inside. The house was still blocked off with yellow crime scene tape. Was Luke still here? Or had they taken him somewhere else?
Nate signaled us all into position.
Then we went in.
Tracker, Jacob, Nate, and Tony went in the back way, while Logan, Noah and I went in the front.
Kicking the door in, we surged forward, guns drawn.
I headed in first, my senses alert, scanning for danger. Searching for Luke.
Nothing stirred.
No one was in the front living room area.
I headed down the hallway while Logan and Noah headed into the kitchen area.
“Clear!” Nate called from the back of the house.
I cautiously entered the first bedroom.
“Clear!” Logan called from the kitchen.
A quick scan revealed no one was in the first bedroom, so I headed back out into the hallway, shouting, “Clear!”
The other dregs all met up with me in the hallway, and together, we all turned and entered the second bedroom.
As soon as I stepped into the room, I felt Luke’s presence.
Then I spied him in the far corner near the closet.
He was curled into a ball, rocking back and forth and mumbling incoherently.
My heart twisted, squeezed, pinching so tightly that for a moment, it stopped all together. Then, with a jerk, it came back to life, slamming into my ribs.
What the fuck had they done to him?
“Luke,” I whispered, lowering my gun. “Hey, man. You all right?”
His head lifted, his gaze zeroing in on mine. There was no recognition in his eyes. “Stay back, you motherfucker! Stay back! Just…go the fuck away and leave me alone.”
I had never seen Luke so broken before. He was incredibly strong, both inside and out. He’d been my rock for the past fourteen years. They must have really fucked him up.
He was still dressed in the jeans and blue pullover he’d had on the day he’d headed out to track Mateo down. As far as I could tell, there was no evidence of a physical beating, so whatever they’d done to him had to have been purely mental and/or emotional.
“It’s me. Ryan,” I murmured, kneeling before him. “Your dreg partner, remember? Your brother. Your best friend.”
He stared at me for a long moment, then recognition crossed his face right before shame flickered in his eyes. He swallowed hard, turning his head away. “Fuck,” he hissed out. “Go! Get out of here! The Controller is here somewhere. He gets inside your mind. You can’t see him. You can’t stop him. You can only feel him.”
Silence stretched while we all exchanged glances. Nate and Tony cautiously stepped back out into the hall to watch for danger.
“There’s no one here but us,” I said gently, patting his arm. “Come on, let’s get you out of here.”
Luke hitched in a breath, turning back to me. “I don’t want them to see me like this,” he whispered. “Please, make them leave.” There was so much shame and misery in his eyes, yet no emotion spiraling off him, that I couldn’t fathom how he managed to hold it all back from me. How the hell did he feel it, yet hide it so well?
“You don’t have to hide from me,” I murmured, sitting next to him on the hardwood floor and setting my gun aside. “You know that. I’m here for you, man.”
He hesitated, then he turned toward me with a look of complete despair in his eyes. He didn’t hug me—Luke had never hugged me, ever—but I sensed what he needed, so I pulled him in, hugging him to me.
“I’ve got you, bro. I’m here.”
Slowly, almost cautiously, his arms came up, and then he squeezed me back. A raw cry of pain that was a mixture between a sob and a moan escaped his lungs. And suddenly, he let the emotions loose, and they spiraled into me, one right after the other. Pain. Disgust. Sorrow. Fear. Horror. Shame. Grief. Regret. I didn’t brace myself against the onslaught. I just let it all hit me, allowing myself to experience what he had to go through on a regular basis. Holding him tighter, I endured his turmoil, vowing I wouldn’t let him down. He was so fucking strong, and I marveled at the amount of strength it took for him just to survive from day to day. I would endure it all. For him. For as long as he needed me to. Because I was his brother. His dreg partner. His best friend.
The other dregs turned away, giving us a moment of privacy. But not one of them wasn’t unaffected by Luke’s turmoil. They all felt it, and they all understood.
Then Luke shoved me away and cleared his throat. “Enough of that girlie shit,” he muttered. “The others will think I turned soft.”
This was the Luke I knew. “You don’t have to worry about them. They understand.”
“He’s right, man,” Logan said quietly. “We’re all here for you.”
The other dregs nodded. Somehow, we all managed to keep sympathy out of our expressions. Luke wouldn’t want that.
Luke squeezed his eyes shut and banged his fist on the hardwood floor. “Fuck.”
We all waited patiently. When Luke was ready, we would go. But not until.
Finally, after several more minutes, Luke gave a slow nod. He drew in a ragged breath, then gathered himself, and shoved to his feet. He only wobbled for a moment, before steadying himself. H
e lifted his chin and slowly turned and met each of the other dreg’s gazes.
“Thanks, guys.”
“Sure, man,” Logan said.
“No problem,” Noah replied.
“We’d never leave you behind,” Tracker murmured.
“We’ve got your back. Always,” Jacob added.
Nate and Tony both nodded from where they still stood out in the hallway.
Luke’s mask slid into place, his expression hardening. It was what I now recognized as a practiced look, a forced expression. A way to hide his feelings.
“I hope to fuck you still have Mateo for me to interrogate,” he ground out as we all turned to leave the room. “Because I really want to pummel that little shit.”
Tony slapped him on the back. “Oh amigo, we sure do. There’s more than one Mateo. Ellington has a twin.”
Confusion crossed Luke’s face. “Twins?” He glanced at me.
“Yeah. Creepy, right? A twin with the same abilities. But the twin is now dead, thanks to Tony. But Ellington needs interrogated.”
Luke nodded slowly in understanding. “I remember Noah telling us Ellington might be Mateo, but I don’t remember anything about a twin.”
“That’s because we didn’t know he had a twin until tonight.”
My heart stopped as a thought struck me. How long ago had the twins kidnapped Luke? Had Ellington and his twin been impersonating Luke ever since the hotel? Sooner? Had they used Luke’s identity to get Tracker to help them locate each other? Could they be that good?
I knew Luke better than anyone, so the idea of me possibly not knowing it was Ellington or his twin, being fooled by those bastards for that long, made me queasy.
I glanced at Tracker, then Jacob. The looks on their faces said they were wondering the same thing. How long ago had they kidnapped Luke?
“What was the last thing you remember?” I asked Luke.
He hesitated, then admitted. “Talking to you on the phone right after we filled up with gas. Mateo was in the trunk and we were heading back to Oklahoma.” He paused. “No, wait...” He glanced at Tracker and Jacob. “I went around back of the store to the restroom before we hit the road again.”
The Extractor Page 30