by R. D. Brady
Laney looked away as an image of her other uncle’s fist appeared in her mind. Even all these years later, it was impossible to forget how powerless she had felt.
“We don’t know Victoria’s story,” Patrick continued. “But I have a feeling it’s not an easy one to tell. And as much as you and Henry and Jake and everyone wants to know, we need to respect that it’s her story to tell when she’s ready.”
Laney looked into the crystal blue eyes that she knew so well and blew out a breath. “I know you’re right. I hate that you’re right, but I know it.”
“Good. Now tell me what else is bothering you.”
Laney strove for innocence. “What? Nothing’s bothering me.”
“Delaney McPhearson, I know every look on your face. You are currently wearing your ‘I’m lying but I hope he believes me’ look. So I ask again, what is going on?”
Laney didn’t know why she was trying to keep it from him. Scratch that—she did know. The idea of small children being missing was eating her up inside. She didn’t want her uncle to go through the same turmoil. But he had his arms crossed over his chest and his face resolute, and she knew he wouldn’t budge until she told him the truth. Taking a breath, she did.
Patrick’s face grew progressively paler as Laney spoke. Finally, she stopped and waited.
“Dear God, those poor children.”
Laney felt his pain, and more of her own.
“But who could it be?” he said. “Samyaza’s dead.”
Laney watched her uncle for minute and knew she had one more thing to share. “Actually, I don’t think Samyaza is dead.”
CHAPTER 13
Laney and Patrick decided to take their conversation outside. Kids had begun to wander by the office and Laney didn’t want anyone overhearing their conversation.
They made their way to the gardens at the back of the school. Or more accurately, to what had once been the gardens. They had become overgrown, so the realtor had simply had them mowed over.
But you could see what the garden would once again become one day, with a little TLC. Laney planned on hiring a landscaping staff as soon as she took care of all the things ahead of that task on her to-do list—which, at her current rate, should be about two years from Tuesday.
Laney and Patrick took a seat on the bench in the old gazebo, which sat in the middle of the roughly one-acre space, with six separate paths leading toward it.
“How young are we talking?” Patrick asked as soon as they sat.
Laney sighed. “Too young. The youngest abductees are actually twins. They just turned one last month.”
Patrick gasped.
Laney nodded, then explained about the data search Danny and Dom had conducted. When she was done, Patrick bowed his head and said a little prayer. Laney closed her eyes, saying her own informal prayer. Please, God, keep them safe.
“What did you mean when you said Samyaza wasn’t dead? Is Amar alive?” Patrick asked.
Laney looked at him and then away. She had never explained to her uncle her doubts about Amar being Samyaza. It’s not that he wasn’t evil enough, because he was. It was just that, from everything she’d read, Samyaza was supposed to be this incredible strategist—and Amar wasn’t.
“No. Amar isn’t alive.” She paused. “I just don’t think he was Samyaza.”
Patrick sat back and then shook his head. “Taking down Amar was too easy.”
“Yes. Samyaza was supposed to be this gifted orator, a leader of men. Amar was egotistical and didn’t care about his followers. But to be a good leader, you need to at least make people think you care about them. And we found his estate awfully easily.”
“But Rocky…”
The stab of grief was fresh and familiar. “I know. We lost good people. But for a great strategist, it should have been harder than that.”
“It’s still possible that it’s the Fallen behind these abductions,” Patrick pressed. “Maybe some other Fallen wants to gather the kids before they get their powers. Keep them under his control.”
“That would take years.” Laney paused, looking at her uncle, speaking slowly. “Some of these kids have already been missing for weeks.”
She let her words hang in the air.
He looked at her, his face paling. “You think they’re already dead.”
Laney blew out a breath and looked across the destroyed garden, trying to imagine it blooming with life. “The criminologist in me says yes. In stranger abductions, the likelihood of a victim surviving for this long… it’s slim.”
She felt Patrick’s eyes on her. When he spoke, his voice was quiet. “You don’t really believe that, though, do you?”
Laney shook her head, thinking about what Maddox had told her about the camps. “I don’t know. The children are of no use to the Fallen until they come into their powers. And even when they do come into their powers, the Fallen will only use them if they have that killer instinct. I can’t imagine them taking care of children for potentially years until they figure all that out. I mean, a few of them are under the age of five.”
“But that’s not entirely true.”
Laney glanced at him, confused. “What do you mean?”
“About them having to wait years to come into their powers,” Patrick clarified. “Jen turned early.”
Laney felt lightheaded. “You don’t think—” She paused, the horror of her thought making it difficult to get the words past her throat. “You don’t think someone is trying to turn their abilities on early, do you?”
Patrick stared at her silently, but with his hand he made the sign of the cross.
Laney knew Jen had come into her abilities early because she was being relentlessly tormented by some foster brothers. The day her abilities kicked in was the day they threw her out of a tree—a really tall one.
Laney looked at Patrick as realization and horror washed over her. “Do you realize what they’d have to do to make that happen?”
Patrick nodded; he looked a little shaky himself. “Yes.” He swallowed. “What do you need from me?”
“The new kids need a calm, peaceful introduction to the school. I had planned on staying here to help, but Henry, Jake, and I need to look into this. Can you take the lead? We’re heading out of town first thing in the morning.”
Patrick nodded. “Of course.”
Laney stood up, but Patrick grasped her hand. “Do you really think someone’s trying to turn the kids’ powers on early? That’s just evil.”
Laney stared back and spoke slowly. “When dealing with the Fallen, do you really think there’s any limit on evil?”
CHAPTER 14
Sacramento, California
Nathaniel sat behind the desk, his ear to the phone but his eyes focused on his son sitting across from him.
Nathaniel’s wife’s blue eyes and blond hair graced the boy’s angular features. He was a beautiful boy. He and Beatrice had taken great joy in the similarities between his wife and Zachariah when he had been born. Now, Nathaniel struggled not to cringe at the sight of him.
“Your son has a lot of talent,” Coach Ferguson said. “I told him he needs to be on the soccer team, but he said he wasn’t allowed. I thought I’d press home just how much skill he has. I could easily see him getting a full scholarship to college. Is there—”
“I’m afraid Zachariah is needed at home. Thank you for calling.” Nathaniel hung up the phone. He let out a breath as he tried to calm the rage building inside of him.
Zachariah stared at the floor, his hands clasped.
“What did you do?” Nathaniel asked.
His son continued to stare at the floor.
“What did you do?” Nathaniel yelled.
Zachariah jumped like he’d been hit. “Nothing, nothing. It was just gym class. I played soccer in gym class.”
Nathaniel narrowed his eyes. Disdain dripped from his words. “And you felt the need to show off. You had to be better than—”
“No!” Zachariah yelled
, and then immediately looked stricken. His tone shifted to a more humble one. “I mean, one of the boys was making fun of me, so I just played without holding back as much.”
Nathaniel narrowed his eyes. “‘Everyone who is arrogant in heart is an abomination to the Lord; be assured, he will not go unpunished.’”
Zachariah paled at the words.
Nathaniel’s eyes pinned his son in place. “You are sinful by your very nature. You must be more humble, more obedient than any others.” He stood up, undoing his belt and pulling it off. “Come, submit to God’s will.”
Zachariah hesitated for only a moment before he stood and pulled off his shirt. He leaned his two arms against the desk.
Nathaniel walked behind him, curling the end of the belt around his fist. With a practiced move he lashed out at his son’s back, the buckle digging deep into his son’s skin.
“What are you?” Nathaniel growled as he let go with two more hits. His anger only grew as the wounds on the boy’s back began to heal.
“An abomination,” Zachariah said softly.
CHAPTER 15
A few hours later, Laney slipped away from the welcome dinner. She’d tried to focus on the kids and not on her earlier conversation with Matt, but it was difficult.
An unknown player. As if they didn’t have enough to worry about already.
She’d stayed at the dinner for two hours, making sure she spoke with each new kid. Most of them seemed like typical teenagers, if maybe a little nervous. A few had attitudes that might cause problems down the road.
Laney rubbed her temple as she walked down the hall. She, Jake, Henry, Clark, and Patrick had all spoken before about what they were going to do if one of the teenagers went rogue, but so far they had come to no resolution. Clark made it clear his facility could hold more; Laney prayed there was a way to avoid that possibility. But at the same time, she knew that any one of those teenagers could hurt a lot of people if they wanted to.
Laney just hoped they could find a way to ensure they never wanted to.
At the dinner, she’d been surprised to see Danny walk in with Lou and Rolly—surprised and happy. She’d been worried about him after the fight with Henry. Danny had stayed for quite a while and had left only a little before she did. As he left, he caught her eye, and she nodded back at him—silently confirming that their training session was still on.
After Amar, Danny had wanted to learn self-defense. Laney had been a little unsure at first, thinking that maybe Henry should be the one to teach him. When she’d mentioned that idea to Danny though, he’d had a very reasonable response: “Henry doesn’t fight the way you and I have to.”
So they’d started training that night. And they now trained five days a week, although Laney suspected Danny was practicing a little more on his own. Every once in a while, Yoni or Jake would also step up to teach Danny something as well. At first, Laney had been worried about Danny’s ability to pick up the moves; he’d never really been an athletic kid. But he had made incredible improvements in the last few months.
She had thought about cancelling tonight’s session, but she needed the workout as much as he did. Sometimes after a nice strenuous workout, she thought a little more clearly. And right now, she needed a little of that.
Laney jogged down the hall, making a mental note to take Cleo out later for a walk, when she heard the sounds of a bag being hit in the gym. Laney smiled. He’s already at it. She hurried to the locker room and changed quickly.
Pushing through the gym’s double doors, she tucked her chain with the ring on it into her shirt. Danny was on the far side of the gym, hitting one of the heavy bags. Laney watched as he bounced around the bag, staying on the balls of his feet. He darted in every few seconds to hit or kick, then quickly danced away.
Laney smiled. Yup. He’s definitely getting it.
She jogged over to him. “Good job, but you’re dropping your guard when you kick. Try to keep your hands up by your face at all times, okay?”
Danny nodded, wiping at the sweat on his brow. “Okay.”
Laney glanced over at the clock. “Let’s start thirty-second rounds, ten seconds in between. Pick one series of punches and kicks for each round. Okay?”
Danny grinned. “Okay.”
Laney lined herself up at one of the other bags. With a glance at the clock, she yelled, “Go!”
They worked in the gym for an hour. After the bag work, they moved on to some hand-to-hand work and then some situational scenarios. By the time they were done, both were dripping with sweat. They both grabbed showers before meeting back in the gym.
Laney slid down the wall to the floor. Danny took a seat next to her.
Laney took a drink from her water bottle. “You’re really coming along.”
Danny ducked his head. “Thanks.”
She glanced at him out of the corner of her eye and realized he was really growing up. His face was starting to lose that boyish quality and he’d easily grown five inches since she’d met him. She pictured how his face had looked when Henry told him to stay away from the missing children project. She debated whether or not to say anything about it, then figured she might as well.
“Danny, you know Henry loves you.”
Danny groaned. “Not you too, Laney.”
“What do you mean?”
“Jen already laid into me about it. Telling me Henry’s trying to protect me.”
“Well, he is.”
“Yeah, but maybe I don’t need his protection. And those kids could use my help. I’m not a little kid anymore.”
“We all know that, but when you care about someone, you try to protect them. Heck, I tried to keep Uncle Patrick from learning about the missing kids.”
Danny’s mouth was just shy of a smirk. “How’d that go?”
Laney rolled her eyes. “About as well as you’d think. But I had to try. And Henry worries that you’ve seen too much violence. He doesn’t want to expose you to more.”
“I was exposed to plenty before I even knew him.”
Laney sighed. Danny never talked about his family. Just like she never spoke about her time with her other uncle and aunt, Patrick never spoke about Vietnam, and Henry never spoke about his torture. They were all walking around with these open wounds and pretending they didn’t exist.
“I know you were,” Laney said softly. “And that’s the point. Henry doesn’t want you to go through any more.”
“Yeah, well, you know what they say: life happens.”
“Ain’t that the truth.” Laney took a drink just as the doors to the gym pushed open. Standing silhouetted by the hallway light was a tall woman with pure white hair cut in a no-nonsense bob.
Laney nearly choked on her water. “Victoria?”
CHAPTER 16
Victoria Chandler crossed the room toward Laney and Danny. “Hello, dear.”
Laney scrambled to her feet. “Um, hi.”
“Hi, Victoria,” Danny said shyly, getting to his feet next to Laney.
Victoria smiled at him and held out her arms. He walked into them and they hugged for a moment.
Finally breaking away, Danny looked up at her. “What are you doing here?”
“Well, Laney called and said she needed to speak with me. I wasn’t too far away, so we headed here.”
At the mention of “we,” Laney glanced back toward the doorway and saw Ralph¸ Victoria’s bodyguard. She waved and he waved back, but he didn’t leave his position at the door.
She turned back to Victoria. “I didn’t mean to make you change your plans. We could have spoken on the phone.”
Victoria gave a small shrug. “It was a good excuse to visit. It’s been over a week since I’ve seen you.”
Danny took a step back. “Well, I’ll let you two speak.”
“Oh, Danny,” Victoria said as he stared to walk away. “I picked up a copy of Chaos Rules and left it in your office.”
Danny went still. “Seriously? That’s not supposed to be out for m
onths.”
Victoria shrugged. “I have a friend.”
Danny ran back to her and threw his arms around her. “Thank you, thank you thank you!” he said, before dashing across the room and disappearing through the doorway.
Laney smiled. “Well, that made his night.”
“It’s a grandmother’s prerogative to spoil her grandson. And I have a lot of lost time to make up for.”
Laney nodded, and suddenly the distance between them seemed filled with all the words they never seemed to be able to say. “Uh, I was going to let Cleo out. She’s been locked up all day. Do you mind if we walk and talk?”
“That would be lovely,” Victoria said.
Laney led Victoria through the series of hallways that led to the back of the school. As they walked, she explained to Victoria about the missing children.
“That’s horrible. What can I do?” Victoria asked as they stepped out into the night air.
Cleo screeched at them.
“Hold that thought for a minute.” Laney headed toward Cleo’s cage.
Cleo’s thoughts got louder the closer Laney got. Laney stopped at the cage door and looked through the bars at Cleo, whose black coat was beginning to fade into the darkening sky. “No,” Laney said to the big cat. “I didn’t know some kids had done that. Yes, I’ll speak with them. No, you can not disembowel them.”
Victoria chuckled from behind her. “She sounds like she’s had quite a day.”
Laney unlocked the gate. “Apparently.”
Cleo sprang out of the cage. She held her head up in the air as she walked past Laney.
“Fine. Be that way,” Laney muttered.
The cat walked over to Victoria and lowered her front paws, her head down. Laney stared at the two of them, dumbfounded.
Victoria ran her hand over the giant’s cat’s head. “Hello, Cleo.”
Cleo got to her feet and ran off into the courtyard.