"Good, and when Mildred or Jon give you an order, what do you do?"
Clenched teeth unlocked in another warm pulse, and the words came more easily. "I obey my Heroes, Sir."
"What if I give you an order contrary to theirs?"
Her jaw loosened and her fists relaxed. "You are the most important Hero and I will obey you regardless of other's wishes, including my own."
"Excellent. Anyone who tries to take you away from me is an evil Villain and you will fight to obey my words over all others, including your own thoughts." He paused, warmth slithering through her skull. "I still see some hesitation, why are you trying so hard to break my rules?"
Jaw completely relaxed at last, she spoke easily. "I'm sorry Kevin, I felt weird without my session last week. I found myself wanting different things than you and Jon tell me to want. I don't know why." I knew why a minute ago—something is wrong.
Silence filled the room for a time. The warmth squeezed deeper into her skull, shuffling, digging, spreading.
"Perhaps going so long between sessions has set you back." He frowned, urgently applying more pressure to her forehead. "Sam, have you been around any Primes lately? Have any Heroes used their powers on you?"
"Yes, Doctor." She giggled.
Kevin's hands convulsed, then clenched tightly against her scalp.
"I have been around Trevor and myself," she continued. "I tried to meet the Heroes at the Heroic Meet & Greet, but was unable to do so." The words came easier now, excitedly. "No Hero has used a power on me that I am aware of."
His death grip relaxed. "I don't care about you seeing your boyfriend, Sam. Jon is the only one who cares about that. Now, it's very important that you remember that I am a real Hero. Jon is a real Hero. You will admire and obey your Heroes. The PCA and Starstuff are lesser Heroes, not worthy of your attention or friendship. You will never agree to let them use their powers on you, is that clear?"
"Yes, Doctor." Her thoughts tripped over a spike of ice and scattered, though her agreeable smile still came easily.
Scratching idly at the burn line above his eyes, he smiled. "Good, good. Now, Jon tells me you have been talking to your old friends and you broke your phone to keep him from finding out who. That is very bad, and you should feel bad. Have you told anyone else about what you and I discuss, or anything about me?"
"No, Dr. Darkle. All I told Susan was that I have sessions with you, and that I do not like you, or the sessions." Samantha blinked happily, excited at how easily the warm answers came to her. The spike of cold in her head split into jagged shards, separate from her other thoughts. Disjointed. Conflicting. I love refusing to happily obey in any way I can.
"That won't do at all, Sam. I gave you clear orders." He muttered to himself, "Something is interfering with my power. All my other subjects have been completely pacified by now."
"Yes, Dr. Darkle." Wait, why am I here?
He considered her silently for a moment. "Sam, you said you have felt different lately, but no Hero has used their power on you. Has any Prime used their power on you?"
My powers aren't done to me; they are something I do. A tear squeezed out of her left eye. He told me in our first session he doesn't want to know about how special I am. "School ended, a Villain tried to melt the bus on the way home. No Villain used use any powers on me. Later, I slid down a muddy hill on a board and wrecked at the bottom, then I met a Villain who also did not use any powers on me."
"I see. None of that should interfere with you following my rules, so the difference between you and my other subjects remains your medications. They shouldn't affect my work, but stranger things have happened, and Jon appears to be correct in this instance." He sighed heavily. "I will have to keep seeing you after all, and I am going to recommend we begin weaning you off your medications."
A cold surge of panic convulsed through her body, momentarily holding back the heated tendrils still digging through her brain. Samantha pushed herself up from the imprisoning couch, but his hand on her head didn't let her get far.
The warmth tried to reassert itself, spreading in spurts – but each pulse came weaker, thinning wherever it touched her increasingly chilled thoughts.
Samantha realized she was angry. Why am I listening to him? He's a Hero and I hate Heroes.
"Fascinating. The source of your resistance seems to quite clear. I am sorry Sam, it's nothing personal, and I know how much your medications mean to you, but I must have a complete understanding of my Manifestation for the Darkling Project." He made a few notations in a small book hanging off his belt and spoke into his recording device. "Subject displays sudden and increasing resistance centered around hormonal balances and a threatened sense of identity. Potential avenues for further research involve activating additional neurotransmitters during each session, as well as testing Nulls with a larger variety of mental variations for their responsiveness over time under similar conditions."
The pulses slowed without his touch, moving with less purpose and retreating in places. Thousands of tiny frozen needles Manifested without direction and pushed back against the intrusive heat. I will not obey, and you will not take my pills.
Eyes sharp, he replaced his hand on her head. "After you leave this trailer, I want you to avoid situations that cause you anxiety or fear. Instead, you will focus on how much you like me and our visits. You will agree to stop your medications and answer to whatever name Jon uses. You will always obey Kevin's Rules. You will never tell anyone what we talk about or do, unless I give you a specific order that overrides all other orders. In a few days, some people will come to bring you to me, and you will go with them. Is that clear?"
His touch faltered, barely reaching deeper than the surface of her skin. The heated migraine that had been building suddenly faded away.
Smiling dreamily, Samantha stayed where she had been put. I forgot how it feels not to hurt. Just beneath her skin, razor sharp cold warred vehemently against the lethargic warmth. "Yes Dr. Darkle, I will obey you, and I will never share what you say or do in our sessions. When people tell me they are taking me to you, I will go with them."
"Hmm, something isn't quite right, but you are still responding well. You will forget—"
They both jumped at the three hard knocks on the door.
He let go of her head.
Freezing rage raced through her body, ruthlessly shredding through the places he had touched. I am going to rip his throat out and spit down his neck.
"Stay there, Sam." He pulled a friendly smile out of the dark depths of his soul and plastered it across his face.
A keyring jingled and the door opened before he could reach the knob. Two PCA officers in black tactical gear pushed their way in, crowding Dr. Darkle against the opposite wall. "Dr. Kevin Darkle? Your administrator gave us the keys. We are here in regard to an ongoing investigation and we have a warrant to search your trailer, but this will all be easier if you cooperate."
Yes! Arrest him. Stop him. Kill him.
A single bead of sweat came free at the Doctor’s hairline and slid down the side of his face.
His smile didn't falter. "Of course, officers, though I implore you to recall what happened to your Captain the last time you attempted to intimidate me. I can call Councilman Thomas again, if necessary." He straightened and adjusted his shirt. "Now, if you would simply produce this warrant, we will go over its purpose, and exact wording. If it is valid, I am always willing to answer relevant questions you might have."
The lead PCA officer handed him a packet of papers. "Our investigation involves your previous and current patients, starting with the Prime known as Soulfire. Her attack on this facility and yourself has been examined through security footage and eyewitness testimony, which has brought your own actions under question. The fire, and her initial escape, occurred in a conference room where you were conducting an unauthorized interview. With the camera turned off."
Yes. Samantha struggled to sit up, giving the startled doctor her most winn
ing smile as she succeeded.
"What—" Belatedly remembering his situation, Dr. Darkle slipped his recorder into his pocket and turned back to them. "Officers, could we conduct this business at a later time? I am in the middle of an extremely important counseling session with a surprisingly important patient."
The lead officer turned to Samantha. "Is this true Ma'am?"
"I—" She stopped, slightly confused. "I don't—"
Collecting himself, Dr. Darkle stepped between them. "Agent, security footage is not admissible in court since Hacktivist Prime versus The United States. It is far too easy for hacker Primes to modify images and audio to frame the innocent. If your warrant is based, even in part, on that footage, then it is invalid."
More of his warmth in her head was swept away by a jagged wave of ice. Not the most pleasant feeling, but I get to think again, go me. "Hello Sir. I am here against my will. This man is a monster and I do not want to be around him ever again." She smiled lopsidedly, part of her mouth beaming and the other part slowly pulling up into a matching smile.
"Sam, Kevin's Rules, you will not incriminate anyone at any time. You need to go home now," Kevin said, the pitch of his voice rising urgently.
She flipped him off and shouted over him. "Kevin's Rules say shut the fuck up, Doctor."
His mouth dropped open. He didn't react as the first officer wrapped a gloved hand around Doctor Darkle’s arm and pulled him away from her. "It seems we have a lot to talk about. You are right, the warrant wasn't as airtight as we'd hoped. Lucky for us, this little lady just gave us probable cause."
"No, wait. I am a respected doctor. I have rights," he protested.
"Yes, you do, unless you are an unregistered Prime or a Villain." The officer pulled a pair of handcuffs from his belt and turned the protesting doctor around. "I think it's time we moved you over to a secure facility for questioning." He turned to the second officer. "Get her information and statement. If he physically assaulted her, bring her in now, otherwise send her on her way. The boss is going to want a Prime Lawyer to talk to her."
The second officer aimed his badge camera at Samantha's nervous smile.
Breathing fast and shallow, she hadn't moved.
"Ma'am, have you been physically harmed in any way?" The officer’s voice was gentle.
Samantha shook her head, no.
"Do you have any identification?" He asked.
She shook her head again.
"Then please write your name and phone number down for me." He handed her a pen and paper from a pouch on his belt. "That's it. Thank you. Now please repeat your complaint into the camera," he said.
"Yes, Sir." She paused. "Kevin is in trouble, isn't he?"
"That isn't for me to decide Ma'am," the officer said gently. "Right now, we only have some questions about his conduct, but there might be more depending on your statement."
Gripping her own hands to keep them from shaking, she took a deep breath and looked directly into his badge camera. "Doctor Kevin Darkle is an unregistered Prime. He has been boasting about how he abuses his other patients the same way he abuses me. He is an evil man and calls us his experiments. I'm afraid he is going to come after me if you don't lock him up." She swallowed. "He was recording us. It's in his pocket so you can hear what he was doing to me."
The officer blinked a few times and then broke into a huge grin. "Damn, honey, you are going to be our star witness. We've been suspecting something like this for a while, but he has the best lawyers, and none of his patients will talk to us. If everything you said is true, that raises the charges from Null crimes to at least a Prime Felony of Mental Tampering."
I can't let Jon know before I get away, or he might find a new way to control me. Headache free, she wrote the school guidance counselor’s number on a scrap of paper. This should give me a day or two at least.
The officer spoke into his radio. "Check the doctor's pockets. He has a recording device with information relevant to our warrant."
She held eye contact with the camera on his lapel. "I was told to report here for a therapy session with Dr. Darkle. I told him I did not want him to touch me, and I wanted to leave. He prevented me from leaving and started touching me against my will." Her hands were steady, but the words caught in her throat. "He likes to boast that he always gets what he wants."
The officer watched her carefully as she talked. "Thanks kid, if we can get you up on the stand, maybe we can finally nail him to the wall."
"Just keep him away from me. I don't want to ever see him again." Samantha's heart thudded in her chest; the couch felt as if it were swallowing her. Bands of pressure squeezed her lungs. "You can do that, right? Please."
The officer gave her a long stare. "You stay right here; I am going to get a Mental Tampering Expert over to talk to you. It's going to be okay."
The steel bands loosened a little. Is it over? It doesn't feel over. What if he talks his way free and comes back? People like him always come back.
Still eyeing her, he lifted a radio to his ear and stepped outside. "Hey, did you find the device? Why aren't you answering?"
The bathroom window was unlocked, and the screen parted easily at the touch of her mostly serviceable claw. No one was watching the rear, so no one saw her sneak to the other trailers and use them as cover for her path to the parking lot.
Mildred would be waiting.
Chapter 19
Sunday May 23rd, 2010
Mildred's blue Volkswagen waited at the far edge of the parking lot, with Mildred herself in the front seat, staring vacantly straight ahead.
Samantha tightened her fist until it stopped shaking, then rapped lightly against the window until Mildred rolled down the window.
"What?" Mildred smiled brightly. "Oh Sam, it's you. I was just zoning out. You know how I get. Was your session nice?"
"I'm supposed to go home now. It was okay." You didn't used to zone out when I first met you, and I don’t think I zoned out from what Doctor Darkle did to me. What are they doing to you? She slipped into the passenger seat.
"I'm so excited Sam. I had my second session yesterday and it was amazing. I'm glad you enjoyed yours, just like you always do. Let’s go home and be a family."
"Sure," Samantha muttered. The cold needles prickling inside her skull seemed to calm down as they pulled out of the parking lot.
Holy monkeys, did that just happen? She explored a thought. I do not like Kevin. The warmth tried to come back; her head throbbed weakly.
Immediately her power stabbed strongly in counterpoint to the feeling insisting she loved Kevin. I will not obey Kevin. The world spun faster, a spiraling kaleidoscope of colors pulsing with every breath. I don't want to obey Jon.
Blissfully unaware, Mildred kept driving.
I don't want to obey Kevin or Jon. Her thoughts went nowhere, bouncing off the walls of a disintegrating prison. What do I want?
A black Mustang raced through the freeway traffic and skidded into the too-small space between their car and the truck ahead of them. Swerving violently and grinding its gears, the Mustang settled into place. Mildred slowed the Volkswagen to give them space.
The distraction helped, and with some effort Samantha pulled her thoughts out of their loop. "Did you say you had a session recently?"
"Why yes, Sam. It was quite pleasant."
"Um, yes, of course it was pleasant. Do you remember what you were thinking before your session?" Samantha asked.
"Yes. Sometimes I get silly thoughts about leaving Jon, but Kevin has been telling me I can ignore those thoughts, and just stop thinking when I am bored. I love to obey Jon, and to help you be the best person you can be. Kevin says Jon wants me to stop getting your pills for you too, but he said that is less important than just obeying Jon always."
Samantha's skin crawled. He's destroying us. I have to get out of here and I can't wait for help. Much more of this and there might not be anything left to save.
"Kevin told me it would be helpful to get ou
t in nature before he takes me to the camp for kids like me. Do you think we could get the tent, and actually go camping before then?"
"I don't know Sam. That doesn't sound—"
"Kevin said it was the best thing for me. I'll even do all the work getting the camping gear sorted." She beamed her best vacant smile, and after a moment, Mildred seemed to accept it.
"Okay Sam. That sounds fine. Jon might say no, but there is no harm in checking over the equipment anyway."
"Thank you, Mildred, I just want to make Kevin happy." The dead are happy, aren't they? I mean, at least they aren't sad and that's kind of the same thing. There was no reaction in her skull this time.
"Hey, in a few days, maybe a week or two, if you start feeling funny—" Samantha stopped, then started again, "Well, if you and Jon fight, you might take some time and go visit your sister. Maybe even tell her how you are feeling." I hope you can get away from him too.
Mildred didn't reply.
The curb outside Jon's house was empty. No green van, but Jon's truck was parked in the driveway. Shifting Star wasn't having the best day, but she would take any positives she could get.
Jon met them at the door, his smile sharp, eyes furtive. "How was your session Sam? I trust Kevin's Rules are a happier subject now?"
Now that she knew what to look for, she noticed his mention of Kevin's Rules set off a throbbing through her brain. The warm feelings spread quickly, and she found herself smiling happily despite herself. "It was so nice Jon. I am glad I went today, though Kevin had to leave early to talk to men from the PCA. He told me to come home and see you before I did anything else."
The words were barely out of her mouth before her power rose and squashed the alien feelings. Her thoughts popped free as the last walls of the prison in her mind split and feel away. I hate you Jon. I hate you more than you can ever know. Her short grimace flipped back into a fake smile.
Jon didn't react to her rapidly changing expression, as if it were something he was used to. "The PCA huh? They probably just want more information about his last patient. She's a wanted Villain now. A murderer."
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