"Come on," barked Agent Yu. "Let's go."
Stepping onto the floor took effort, but Eve managed to avoid buckling. A lightheaded feeling paired with the piercing pain in her arm made walking almost unbearable.
Taking a deep breath, she walked alongside the agent. In silence, they proceeded into the hallway. Before long, she was back inside the empty room—her cell—and shaking all over. Alone. Too weak to hold herself up, she leaned against the wall and slid to the floor. An unpleasant odor caught her attention. She looked at her thighs and ran her hands over them, realizing she'd failed to notice the wetness earlier. She sniffed her wet hands. Urine.
Eve rested her hands on her thighs and stared at the bare walls. As the tears streamed down her cheeks and silence enveloped her, all she could see was her hand around Agent Grobeck's pale neck and her other hand pointing a gun at Agent Yu's face.
***
Shaky from the cold and covered from the waist down in her own urine, Eve examined her bandaged arm. Blood had soaked through, and the bandage felt soggy at the touch. Wincing and looking away, she undid the bandage and dropped it on the floor. Hesitantly, she looked at her arm and stroked the three metal stitches covering the incision wound. To her surprise, the pain seemed to be subsiding with every passing moment.
Hungry and alone, Eve retreated into her mind and attempted to plot out every feasible escape plan. She figured she might stand a chance if she could get a good understanding of the building and swipe a key ring from one of the guards. But then what? Were there any other prisoners like her in the building? Could she figure out how to free them as well? Where would she go after escaping?
Her thoughts drifted to Mr. Pebbles and whether he was alive or had found a new mom. Maybe Zoey had stopped by the apartment and taken him home with her. Eve lay on her back and closed her eyes, wishing she could see Mr. Pebbles again and know he was safe. She wished she could feel Zoey's arms around her again.
Eve opened her eyes and looked around the room at the cameras in each corner. If I even try to practice teleporting, they’ll see. They can see everything. Never before had she felt so trapped. She feared that despair was winning, that she lacked the physical and mental strength to fight it much longer. No. No. You’re stronger than them. Don’t give up. She closed her eyes and repeated this refrain until she believed it. She would find a way back to them, no matter what. With a smile on her face, Eve fell asleep.
Booted feet at the door jolted her awake after what seemed like only a few minutes. She popped up and rose to her feet, ready to tackle whoever entered.
Agent Yu came in and approached her. At once, she covered her nose. "Here, take these and put them on," she said, handing Eve a pair of handcuffs.
Eve made no objection and, once she slipped the handcuffs on, followed the agent out the cell. She didn't dare speak or ask any questions anymore. What would be the point? Instead, she followed in silence as Agent Yu led her to the surgery room where Agent Grobeck awaited them. Once again, Agent Yu and Doctor Thomas strapped her to the bed.
She watched the doctor, whose merciless face and pale lips seemed to form a solid line whenever she smiled. The doctor's long, dark hair was pulled into the usual bun at the back of her head. There was something missing from Doctor Thomas, Eve surmised. Something essential. The same something Agent Grobeck lacked, she thought, watching him fold his arms across his chest and tap one foot against the floor. Between him and Doctor Thomas, Eve wasn't sure which one of them was more terrifying.
She'd heard of people lacking a conscience. But, to her knowledge, she hadn't met one until now.
Eve often had speculated about whether her father lacked a conscience or was merely a troubled man. She'd never reached a conclusion. Until now. Now she was certain. Her father was just a run of the mill asshole. Agent Grobeck and Doctor Thomas were psychopaths.
Before she could delve further into these thoughts, the first shock went through her body, snatching her undivided attention. The razor-sharp and burning-hot sensation pierced through her entire body and forced her chest and her hips upward. She writhed against the bed.
During a brief moment of relief, her gaze fell upon Agent Grobeck. He observed her while Doctor Thomas administered a second set of electric shocks. Another round of shocks followed, then another, until Eve was lost to the torment. More shocks came and, at last, Eve lay in a dark and soundless void.
When she regained consciousness, she was inside the cell. Sore all over, she balled up into a fetal position on the floor. She cried.
The sound of the door creaking open moments later caused her to scramble away, curl in a corner, and shield her eyes. "No, no. Please, no more. I can't—"
The door thundered shut, and she uncovered her eyes. Her visitor was gone but had left a tray next to the door. Like a weak and starved dog, she crawled to the tray. It contained a small bowl of oatmeal and a glass of water.
She picked up the bowl and stuffed her mouth with oatmeal until there was no more, licking the bowl to make sure she didn't miss a drop. Breathing hard, she turned up the glass of water and finished it in a few gulps. Her stomach growled for more, but she knew no more was coming any time soon.
This cycle—Agent Yu taking her to the surgery room, the shocks, Agent Yu leaving her in the cell afterward—would repeat several more times. It played like a scratched record. After the fourth time, Eve stopped counting and decided that something as abstract as time didn't matter. There was no time anymore. There was nothing, except pain and rage.
***
Doctor Thomas locked Eve's wrists and ankles to a bed. She stood next to the two agents and scrutinized Eve like she was nothing more than a lab rat. Accustomed to the routine now, Eve simply preoccupied herself with studying the white paint chipping off the walls. She expected more shocks, so she tried to ready herself by withdrawing into her mind.
"I'm going to ask you some questions, Miss Cooper," said Agent Grobeck.
Caught off guard, Eve regarded him with suspicion.
"You'll answer each question, and if you refuse..." He cued the doctor.
Doctor Thomas pressed a button on the machine behind the bed, and Eve mustered all her strength to keep from screaming out when the shocks cut through her. She clenched her lips together, clasped her fists tight, and willed herself to endure the torture. Sweat beads glistened on her forehead and neck. It would be over soon, she told herself. I'll be in my cell soon. I'll be fine. I've been through this. I'll be fine.
"You'll get two to three shocks every time you refuse to answer. Is that clear?" he asked.
She frowned at him and nodded. “Agent?”
“Yes, Miss Cooper?”
“What day is it? Has Christmas passed?”
“Christmas was two days ago, Miss Cooper,” he replied, not a hint of apology in his voice.
I’ve been here for weeks? She imagined Zoey, Gabe, and AJ probably had lost hope of ever seeing her again. The idea that she’d spent Christmas in this nightmare was almost more than she could bear.
"All right. Let's get started then. Tell me about your relationship with Jackson Cooper."
She blinked. "My father?"
"Yes."
"Why?"
Agent Grobeck signaled the doctor.
"Fine," Eve interjected before the doctor could push the button. "Jackson Cooper is a cheating, entitled, abusive piece of shit. If he died tomorrow, I‘d feel sad but also relieved."
"Why?"
She sighed. "He beat my mom almost daily, and he beat me whenever he got tired of beating her. When he wasn't beating us, he was drinking all our money away or almost gambling away the house. The house my mom's parents built and left to her and to me." She paused, watching Doctor Thomas' finger twitch near the shock button.
"Go on," he said.
"The only time I saw my mom get mad and fight him was when we almost lost the house. She broke a vase over his head. He didn't like that, so she ended up in the hospital for a week. I thought she was
going to die."
"Your mother did die later, correct?"
She paused. "Yes. Cancer. He came to her funeral drunk and left early, probably to be with one of his other women, came back, and then tried to start a fight with one of mom’s friends. To this day, he lives in the house my mom's parents built. The county had a lien on it at one point, until I started footing the delinquent property tax and water bill."
“By law, it’s your property. You could’ve sold the house and set yourself up financially by now. Why have you allowed him to stay there?”
“We’ve already talked about my childhood, Agent. What’s the point of going over all this again?” she asked, frowning. “Why does it matter so much to you?”
“Because it’s a window into your psyche, Miss Cooper. I want to know what drives you,” he replied. “Now, answer the question.”
She paused. “He’s my father. You don’t kick parents out on the street, no matter how shitty they are.”
"Loyalty. I see. How does that make you feel?"
She sneered at him. "How does it make me feel that that piece of white trash is living free off the labor of my black ass mom and my black ass grandparents? I bet you can guess."
"Miss Cooper, may I remind you that if you refuse to answer—"
"If I thought I could get away with it and not feel any guilt, I would've killed him a long time ago."
"Did you ever attempt to kill your father?"
"I considered it once—bought the rat poison and everything," she said, pausing and staring at him. "Unfortunately, I didn't go through with it."
"Interesting. So would it be accurate to say that you and your father are not on the best of terms?"
"Figured that one out all by yourself, huh?"
"Has your father or your mother ever exhibited any special ability like yours?"
"No." She glimpsed Agent Yu who was pecking away at the electronic tablet on her clipboard.
"So it would be accurate to say that you are the only one in your immediate family to exhibit your special ability?"
"Yes," she answered.
The questions went on in this fashion for a half-hour or longer, and she observed his expression go from bored to intrigued with every fresh answer. He appeared satisfied and even excited when she told him the story about the bully she'd stabbed in middle school. The kid, a large boulder of a boy, had recovered but never revealed who had attacked him.
"He was probably worried that everyone would find out a tiny girl defeated him in a fight and landed him in the hospital. He and his friends never bullied me again."
"Why did you choose that particular weapon, a knife?" asked Agent Grobeck.
Because I couldn't let anyone see how strong I was. She thought back to that playground fight in elementary school when she'd overpowered three kids and accidentally became invisible. "Why not?" she replied, smiling at him. "It was easier than getting a gun into the school."
"Tell me, how did you get him to follow you into the restroom?"
"How do you think? Like any other stupid middle school boy, he couldn't say no to that offer."
"I see." He glanced over his shoulder at Agent Yu, who scribbled notes on her clipboard.
The questioning carried on, and Eve yawned.
When he stopped and turned to Agent Yu, Eve sighed and rested against the bed. Between the hunger and the pain in her temples, she wasn't sure she could take much more without passing out.
Agent Yu came forward and unlocked the restraints around Eve's wrists and ankles. "Stand up. Come on."
With a struggle, Eve pulled herself up and gripped the side of the bed for support. Her head spun as she stepped down.
Agent Yu gripped her hand to help her stand up straight.
Unsettled by the agent's thoughtful gesture, Eve pulled away. "I'm fine." She held her head high and followed the agents, a tall guard tailing them.
***
After taking her to shower, Agent Yu provided her a fresh set of clothes. Clean underwear, a plain white shirt, and matching white pants. Eve was relieved to be rid of the smell of urine and musk.
Agent Yu led her to another room guarded by two large men, both of them staring straight ahead with impassive expressions. One of the men nodded at Agent Yu and stepped aside to allow Eve to enter the room. At Agent Yu's orders, Eve stopped by a desk behind which sat a graying middle-aged man. Agent Grobeck, who was standing in the center of the room, leaned over the desk and whispered something to the man. They looked at Eve, both men displaying the same eager glint.
Agent Grobeck cleared his throat. "While it would be ideal to extend your training another couple of weeks, an urgent matter has been brought to our attention. As a result, you will be proceeding to the field to help SPI resolve this matter as fast as possible."
She blinked. They're really going to send me out and expect me not to run? What am I missing?
In the next moment, he launched into a long-winded explanation about the purpose of the mission. He spoke with conviction and excitement, like a football coach speaking to his star player before the big game. His voice boomed more than usual as he walked forward and regarded the player he'd mentored. A look of possessive pride mixed with an unsettling shade of violence lurked in his eyes.
Eve averted her eyes when something else caught her attention. Was she imagining it...or was she feeling warm air against her neck? Confused, she looked behind her, not listening as Agent Grobeck continued his speech.
"Don't move," came a whisper so low that Eve was sure only she could hear it. Her eyes widened as she watched Agent Yu, who was lingering at the door and talking to the guards. "I'm going to get you out of here," came the whisper again. Wait. She recognized that voice. Oh, my God.
"Is there a problem, Miss Cooper?" asked Agent Grobeck.
She shook her head. "No."
"Good. There's a bag at your feet. It contains new clothes and details about your assignment, just as before. Get dressed."
"Okay," she muttered, waiting for the men to look away so that she could change clothes. Seconds later, she realized they lacked any such courtesy. With a sigh, she pulled the new clothes from the bag and disrobed.
After changing into the jeans and sweater, she folded the clothes she'd removed and stuffed them inside the bag. Finished, she stood at attention and looked ahead at Agent Grobeck and the man sitting behind the desk. Her mind lingered on the other man in the room, the one who no one could see. Was he going to rescue her from this place? Was it a trick?
"Your assignment is straightforward, Miss Cooper, and Agent Yu will assist you," said Agent Grobeck. "It will be tempting to take this as your opportunity to run. Let me make it clear: running would be a waste of time. That little chip in your arm means we can find you wherever you are at any time. Running, tempting though it may be, will get you in big trouble, and we don't want that. Let me reiterate that what you've been selected to do is special and for no other purpose than the security of your country."
The mysterious man behind the desk stroked his bearded chin and surveyed her. He appeared anxious for this meeting to end. Indeed, he indicated as much by yawning and not bothering to cover his mouth. Then, he ran his hand through his gray-streaked dark hair and glanced at his wristwatch.
Agent Grobeck came closer to Eve. "Do you have any questions?"
She shook her head.
"Good. Pick up your bag and follow Agent Yu. She'll lead you to your car. Good luck."
Before she turned away, Eve met Agent Grobeck's gaze and held it. For a fleeting moment, she saw her hands around his neck and his eyes rolling in his head as he struggled to breathe. She smiled at him and then followed Agent Yu.
The invisible man's hand touched hers, and she inhaled, almost afraid of what he planned to do. Was she about to see another person shot dead? Would it be Agent Yu this time?
Outside the building at last, Eve sniffed the fresh air and looked at the cloudy sky. A part of her had wondered if she'd ever experience such
small joys again. Peering around, she realized she was in a part of Chicago she hadn't seen before. Somewhere in the far southwest side, she imagined, noticing all the boarded-up industrial buildings and greystones.
When the black Impala pulled up, she slid in the back. Agent Yu got in next to her and closed the door. The agent buckled her seat belt and instructed the driver to take them to Hotel Vertigo. She felt a hand brush against hers. He must be sitting in the front passenger seat. Eve tried to keep her expression as flat as possible, hoping to avoid giving away the presence of the invisible man who might be her salvation.
With an unhappy look, the agent shifted and stared out the window.
"Why are you doing this, Agent Yu?" asked Eve, as the car turned a corner onto a street lined with vacant and boarded-up homes.
The agent ignored her.
"Were you trying to help me before? Or were you just—"
A smacking sound stopped Eve mid-sentence, and she stared in confusion. The agent looked dazed all of a sudden. Another smacking sound. Spit came flying from the agent's mouth, and she passed out, her head leaning against the door.
Eve's heart raced when she saw the driver glance in the mirror, and concern spread across his face. He stopped the car and turned to her. But before he could reach his gun, there was another smacking noise, and he slumped over. Blood appeared at his temple.
"Open the door and push her out," the invisible man said.
Eve saw the front door open, and the driver fall out. At once, she reached over the unconscious agent to open the door. She pushed the agent out of the car, pulled the door shut, and locked it.
Her chest heaved in and out, while her brain ran laps the whole time. She clutched her chest as the car accelerated and haphazardly made a left turn onto a busy street.
When Eve finally looked up, she stared in disbelief at the man who was sitting in the driver's seat now and swerving the car through midday rush hour traffic. “You—you were the one who killed Salazar?”
“Yes,” said Mauricio Candela.
“Wait...were you the one Agent Yu saw on the CCTV footage? Wearing a fedora?”
Eve and the Faders Page 11