“I’ve heard that before,” Max said, thinking about how Ghost had tried to convince him of the same thing. This time, he wasn’t buying it.
“Come on,” Spike said, but not meanly. “And seriously, don’t try anything. Not everyone is as cool as I am. Just go with it and everything will be fine.”
Max allowed himself to be led out of the room. He didn’t for a minute believe that everything would be fine. Spike and the others might believe that the Mogs weren’t up to no good. He knew a lot of the kids who’d become involved with Jagger Dennings had basically been brainwashed into believing they were doing the right thing. And some of them probably did know the truth and just didn’t care. Like Freakshow. She seemed like she might be as bad as the Mogs, ready to use her Legacy to hurt people for fun. Others, though, he couldn’t understand. Spike seemed like a nice enough guy, and Lava’s sister didn’t seem like she belonged there either. So why was she? He hadn’t gotten the story from Lava. But something had happened to make her stay while her brother tried to get away. What was it?
He would have to wait for an answer. Right now he was being taken into a different room. He expected it to be another lab of some kind. Instead, it was a small office. There was a desk in it, and behind the desk was Magdalena. She was typing on a keyboard while looking at a computer screen. When Max walked in with Spike, she looked up.
“Oh good. You found him,” she said. “You can leave us alone now, Spike.”
Spike nodded and left the room, shutting the door behind him. Magdalena pointed to a chair. “Sit,” she said.
Max sat. Magdalena continued to type, saying nothing to him for several minutes. Then she stopped, pushed the keyboard away and turned to him.
“Are you hungry?” she asked.
“What?”
“Hungry?” Magdalena said. “Are you? I would think you would be. Or did Lava feed you?”
“No,” Max said. He realized he had just given Magdalena information he shouldn’t have, and tried to backtrack. “I mean, I haven’t found any food and—”
“You don’t have to pretend,” Magdalena said, waving a hand in the air. “I know all about Bats and Lava’s little hideout.”
Max didn’t know what to say, so he said nothing.
“You’re wondering why I haven’t captured them,” Magdalena said. She giggled. “It’s because it amuses me to have them running around, thinking they’re getting away with something. Although now that Six and Sam are mixed up with them, I might have to rethink that.” She sighed and frowned. “Eleni really wants to get her hands on those two. Especially Six. I’ll probably have to let her at some point. But, like I told her, I only need her or Sam for my experiment.” She looked at Max. “How are you feeling, by the way? Any headaches? Anything weird happening with your abilities?”
Max was confused. She was talking to him as if they were having a normal conversation.
“I guess I feel okay,” he said.
“Hmm,” Magdalena said, biting her lip. “I should probably do a scan anyway. Something should be going on in there by now. But let’s eat first. Can’t have you passing out from hunger or anything.”
She picked up a phone on her desk. “Bring something to eat,” she said and hung up. Only then did Max realize she had spoken in her own language.
“It will be a few minutes,” she said. “While we wait, how about we do a reading?”
“A reading?” Max said.
Magdalena reached into a drawer and pulled something out. Max recognized the deck of cards he’d seen her using before in the house in Alabama. Magdalena started shuffling them in her hand.
“Byron and Eleni think I’m crazy using these,” she said. “They say it’s all human superstition.”
“What are they?” Max asked, curious despite his worry.
“Tarot cards,” said Magdalena. “Some people call them fortune-telling cards, but that’s not what they are at all. They’re really a kind of mirror.”
“Mirror?” said Max.
Magdalena nodded. “Of our psyches,” she said. “Or whatever you want to call it. Of what’s going on in our lives, I guess. See, you concentrate on a question and focus on the cards giving you an answer to it. The pictures on the cards tell you what’s going on. I don’t see why that’s any weirder than, let’s say, an invisible entity giving certain people superpowers. Right?”
Max shrugged. “I don’t really know.”
Magdalena laid out three cards, facedown. She set the rest of the cards aside. “Want to know what my question is?”
“Sure,” Max said, even though he didn’t. The Mog girl weirded him out.
“I asked how my plan is going to work out.”
“What plan?” Max asked.
Magdalena shook her head. “I can’t tell you everything,” she said. “That would ruin the surprise.” She turned over the first card. “The Seven of Rods. Someone who is outnumbered by enemies. I suppose that would be me. But the person will be victorious if he—or she—sticks to the plan. Which I will.”
She flipped the second card over. “The Page of Swords.” She frowned. “That usually represents someone who is spying or looking to cause trouble.” She looked up at Max. “Like you,” she said. “Or Six. Or Sam. Or your friend who killed Byron. There are lots of pages running around right now. It could be anyone.”
She looked at the remaining card. “Shall we see what the final outcome is?” Without waiting for an answer, she turned the card over and held it up. It depicted a full moon hanging over a city. Beneath it, dogs looked up, barking.
“What does it mean?” Max asked.
“Unforeseen dangers,” said Magdalena. “Secrets. Things coming out into the open.”
“Okay,” Max said. “But what does it mean?”
“For my plan?” said Magdalena, sweeping up the cards. “I don’t know.”
“Then what was the point of this?”
“The cards reflect what’s happening now,” Magdalena said. “And what might happen if things stay as they are. I’m considering this a warning to be careful. But I like the part about secrets.” She put the cards away, then rested her elbows on the desktop and placed her chin in her hands. “I have a lot of secrets, Max. Would you like to know one?”
Before Max could answer, there was a tapping on the door.
“Come in,” Magdalena called.
The door opened and a Mog walked in. He was carrying a tray, which he placed on the desk. It contained a plate with a cheeseburger, fries and what looked like a chocolate milkshake. Max’s mouth began to water from the smell.
“The egg that the human boy brought here with him from the school has hatched,” the Mog said to Magdalena.
Magdalena frowned at him, glancing at Max. “I’ll be right there,” she said sharply.
The other Mog scurried out. Magdalena turned her attention to Max. “I know you understood what he said.”
“He’s talking about Seamus, right?” said Max.
“Yes,” Magdalena admitted.
“He brought an egg here?” He thought for a moment. “Is that what that thing was? The thing he said was a bomb?”
“It was an incubator,” Magdalena explained. “I suppose there’s no harm in telling you that. It won’t change anything.”
“What kind of an egg is it?”
“I said I would tell you one secret,” Magdalena said, standing up. “Now, eat your dinner like a good boy.”
She walked to the door. “You won’t be able to get out,” she said. “And if you did manage it, Freakshow would make you regret it. I’ll be back shortly. Try not to get into any trouble.”
She left. Max heard the door lock behind her. He had no doubt that she wasn’t lying. For a moment he looked around, wondering if he could use anything in the room to his advantage. He got up and looked at the computer, but it was protected with a fingerprint scanner. The drawers were also locked.
He returned to his seat. He looked at the food on the tray, and his
stomach growled. Was it drugged?
There was only one way to find out.
CHAPTER SEVEN
SIX
SHILO, UTAH
“WE HAVE TO GET HIM OUT OF THERE.”
Standing in the hidden corridor, Bats looked at Six, her eyes filled with worry. Six shook her head. “That’s exactly what they want us to try,” she said, knowing what the girl’s reaction would be.
“No!” Bats said. “We can’t leave him with Magdalena.” She started to tremble, and tears formed in her eyes. Six wondered what experiences she’d had with the Mogs to make her so afraid.
“I know how you feel,” Six said. “Believe me. But you have to trust me on this. Max is better off waiting this out. If we rush in there trying to rescue him, it’s the two of us against however many of them are in there. And right now, my Legacies aren’t reliable, which means you’d be doing most of the fighting.”
“I can do it!” Bats insisted, her already-rusty voice sounding even more anxious.
Six could feel her intensity. She was practically vibrating with telekinetic powers waiting to be unleashed. And part of her wanted to do what Bats suggested. But it was true—Max was safer being held by their enemies than he was on the run from them. Six was pretty confident that Magdalena wouldn’t harm him, at least no more than she might already have by infecting him with a parasite. If that was even true. Plus, there was Sam to worry about. Six was concerned about what was happening with him.
“We need to get back to the safe room,” she said. “Then we’ll make a plan. Okay?”
Bats looked away, then nodded.
“All right,” Six said. “I promise, we’ll come for Max. We need to do it in an organized way, though. That’s our best chance of getting him out with nobody getting hurt.”
Bats led the way back through the passageways. They moved silently, not speaking, but Six’s mind was racing with thoughts about how to proceed. It would be easier if she knew that Sam’s message to Nine had gotten through, but there was no way of telling. Enough time had passed that if he had gotten it, he should have shown up. Or at least be on his way. She hoped that he was.
In addition to Max being captured, they were also now without any source of information about what Magdalena and the other Mogs were up to. Six had been depending on Max to find out—or at least get a clue to—what was going on in the labs. Now Magdalena would be even more suspicious and on the alert for their presence.
She suddenly felt exhausted. Part of it was being physically tired. She couldn’t remember the last time she’d really slept or ate. She didn’t even really have a clue what time of day it was, as there were no windows—and being underground was like being trapped in a never-ending twilight. If she could just rest for a moment, she might feel better.
A jolt of pain shot through her head. She gasped, bringing her hands to her temples. She thought she might be sick. Then she was. A trickle of something sticky and acidic dribbled from her mouth and onto the floor. She gagged, bringing up more.
“Are you okay?”
Bats was bent down, her hand on Six’s shoulder.
Six couldn’t answer. Her head was swimming. Her vision blurred, and her stomach lurched again. This time, nothing came up. And a moment later, the pain was gone, as if it had never been there.
“What’s happening?” Bats asked her.
Six wiped her mouth with her hand. “I’m okay,” she said. “Let’s keep moving.”
She stood up. She was very much not okay, but she didn’t want the girl to worry. Bats once again took the lead, and Six kept up with her. She waited for the feelings of pain and nausea to return, but they didn’t. Whatever was happening inside of her, she could no longer deny that something was wrong. Whether it was really a parasite or a drug or something else Magdalena had done to her, she didn’t know. She couldn’t deny that she was feeling weaker, though, and Sam seemed to have been feeling the same effects.
They reached the secret room, and for a moment Six felt a sense of relief. She could rest, if only for a little while, and make a plan. But when she and Bats entered the library, they found Lava in a state of panic.
“Sam’s gone!” he said as soon as he saw them.
“Where did he go?” Six asked.
Lava shook his head, spinning around as if maybe Sam was somewhere in the room and he just couldn’t see him. “I don’t know. He said he was hungry, and we were out of food, so I snuck out to get something from the pantry.” He pointed to a table, where some bags of potato chips sat beside some cans of soda.
“And Sam was gone when you got back?”
Lava nodded. “He was acting kind of weird,” he said. “Before I left. He said his head hurt. Then he threw up.”
Six felt Bats look at her. She ignored the glance, focusing on Lava. “Do you have any idea where he might have gone?”
“No,” the boy said. “Like I said, he was sitting right there when I left. And he wasn’t here when I got back.” He paused and looked around. “Wait. Where’s Max?”
“He got captured,” Bats told him.
Lava sank onto a nearby chair. “No,” he said. “No, no, no, no, no.”
Bats sat next to him and put an arm around his shoulder. “It’s okay,” she said, her finger pressed against her throat while she hugged her friend. “We won’t let her do it to him. I promise.”
Her wording caught Six’s attention. “Do what?” she asked. “What is it Magdalena does that you’re so scared of?”
Bats continued to keep her arm around Lava as he started to cry silently. “She does something to their brains,” she said. “We don’t really know what it is. Something that makes them . . . obedient. She did it to Shaky. Kalea.”
“But not to the two of you?”
Bats shook her head. “It’s why we decided to leave. Well, one of the reasons. To get out before she did.”
Lava had stopped crying. He wiped his eyes. “She’s evil,” he said. “She experiments on people and doesn’t care what it does to them.” He looked at Six. “Is that what’s wrong with Sam? Did she do something to him? Did she do something to you?”
Six was tempted to lie. She didn’t want Bats and Lava to worry any more than they already did. But they deserved to know the truth. Also, she might need their help.
“Magdalena claims she infected me and Sam with some kind of parasite.”
Lava put his head in his hands. Bats looked as if she’d been given the worst news of her life.
“I don’t know if she really did or not,” Six continued. “We were already having trouble with our Legacies because of the serum her doctor pal Drac injected us with. That was wearing off, though.”
“That’s why you got sick,” Bats said. “And why Sam was acting weird.”
“Maybe,” Six admitted.
She sat down on a chair. “Like I said, I don’t know if she’s telling the truth or not.”
“She is,” Lava said. “I know she is.”
Six didn’t know what to say. Bats and Lava had obviously been counting on her and Sam to help them. Now they seemed defeated. Worse, they were looking at her as if she had some kind of monster inside of her that might burst through her head at any second.
“You’ve seen this before, haven’t you?” she said softly.
Bats nodded. “There was a girl called Firefly,” she said. “She did something the Mogs didn’t like. Tried to get the rest of us to leave. Magdalena punished her by putting something inside of her. The same thing happened to her that’s happening to you.”
“I just thought Sam was sick,” Lava said. “If I’d known . . .”
“There’s nothing you could have done,” Bats assured him. “You know that.”
“What happened to Firefly?” Six asked. “Where is she now?”
Bats looked as if she didn’t want to answer.
“She’s dead,” Lava said. “She started having headaches. Then she was throwing up this—stuff. Then she said something was trying to eat it
s way out of her head. Said she could feel it. One night we had to stop her from trying to get it out of herself with a—”
“Lava,” Bats said gently, and the boy stopped talking. Bats looked at Six. “She started bleeding from her nose,” she said. “Hallucinating. She said she was being attacked by something. We had to restrain her. Magdalena just laughed.” She paused. “The weird thing is, for a while Firefly’s powers got even more powerful.”
“What was her Legacy?” Six asked. “I’m guessing she made light?”
Bats nodded. “It was like the parasite or whatever made her stronger. For a while. But then it killed her.”
“How long?” Six asked.
“Once she started throwing up, about three days,” said Bats.
Six took in this news, not letting on how alarming it was. Three days was nothing, especially when she was trapped underground with no escape plan. And now Sam was missing and Max was captured. Her odds were not good. She allowed herself a minute to feel the weight of the situation, then pushed those worries to the back of her mind.
“I’m going to need the two of you to help me,” she told Lava and Bats.
“What can we do?” Lava asked. “We’re screwed.”
“No, we’re not,” said Six sharply. “I’ve been in worse situations than this, and yet here I am. We can get through this. If we work together. My Legacies might not be working right, but yours are. Between the three of us, we’re going to get this done. Got it?”
“Got it,” Bats said, although her enthusiasm was obviously forced.
“Lava?” said Six.
“Got it,” the boy said, much less convincingly.
“What do we do?” Bats asked.
“Find Sam,” Six said. “We can’t have him stumbling around this place on his own.”
“It might already be too late,” said Lava. “Magdalena and the others have probably found him, especially if he’s running around like a crazy person.”
“Then let’s hope we find him first,” Six said.
“We’re just going to go out there?” said Lava. “We don’t even know where he went.”
The Legacy Chronicles: Raising Monsters Page 7