by Jessica Gunn
I tried to get out, and when I’d run away, I’d met Chelsea. Valerie had never bothered. She was loyal until the end when she betrayed Thompson and got herself kicked out. I often wondered how long I had until the Lemurians came knocking, wanting answers from me about Valerie. About Dave. About TAO and SeaSat5.
“I never wanted to walk with them in the first place,” I said. “That’s why I left.” Helping them keep their myths afloat was one thing. Assisting them in using the Navy’s masterpiece vessel as a pawn… absolutely not.
“Fair enough. What else do you know?”
I hated this game. If she knew something, she should tell me—not make me dance like a puppet for the answers I needed. “Chelsea’s working with another organization right now, some paramilitary thing.”
“They’re hunting Lemurians,” Valerie said. “Cute little group. But they’re flying by the skin of their teeth.”
I looked at her so I could read her reaction when I asked, “Do you know where SeaSatellite5 is—when it is?”
“Even if I did, it wouldn’t matter without a Link Piece to get there,” she said. “But no, I don’t. I’d tell you if I did. They were my friends, too.”
Some friend. She’s the reason they almost died. If she’d kept her mouth shut, things might have actually been fine. “Right.”
“I gotta admit, Trevor, I knew you’d visit Abby sooner or later, but I never expected you to come tonight. We didn’t exactly part on good terms.”
“Seems like I’m not on good terms with many people right now,” I said.
“What do you mean?” she asked.
“Chelsea and I broke up,” I said, but it seemed stupid to say it on its own, so I added, “and TAO thinks I’m a Lemurian mole. I’ve got all the enemies in the world right now, so I figured meeting with an old best friend was safe enough.”
She turned to me. “Why does TAO think you’re spying for the Lemurians?”
So maybe she didn’t know everything. “Long story short, we ran into a Link Piece that’d been strategically placed. We think it was meant to give a variation of the bubonic plague to Chelsea or Sophia.”
“Because they’re Atlantean super soldiers,” Valerie guessed.
I nodded. “I got it instead, but to place it there, they would have had to know when and where we going, and when we planned to go there. I don’t know why TAO thinks I did it. I’ve never been able to see Link Pieces, never had any powers.” I paused. “Or maybe that’s exactly why TAO thinks I could have gotten away with it.”
Her brow scrunched together and she pursed her lips. “What was the time-place?”
“Not sure,” I said.
“Trevor,” she warned.
I shrugged. “Somewhere in Brazil, sometime B.C. I didn’t get an exact date before we left, and was too busy dying afterward to ask.”
Valerie stared at me, but I didn’t think she meant to. She looked down at her drink, then back up to me. “I can get you answers, but I won’t have them until morning.”
“What? Why?” Her sudden appearance and eagerness to help left a sour taste in my mouth. Valerie’s agenda spread wider than SeaSat5, that much was obvious.
“I have an idea about who left that Link Piece, but I want to check something out, first,” she said. “Can you meet me back here tomorrow morning?”
“Are they even open?”
“The alley is,” she said with a nod toward the back door I knew so well. I exited through it two years ago and started this mess. Funny how something as simple as a door can change everything.
“Okay,” I agreed.
Valerie threw back the rest of her drink and stood. “It was good seeing you again.” Then she moved to leave. Before she was too far away, she stopped and turned back to me. She placed a hand on my shoulder. “Plague aside, you look good, Trevor. Stay safe.”
Then she was gone. I didn’t even have time to tell her that sometimes I thought I saw the Waterstar map in my head.
Phoenix and Lobster’s set ended an hour ago, but I’d stayed at the Franklin anyway. A DJ spun music from the sound booth. I sat watching the empty stage, thinking through Valerie’s words and reactions. She’d known what had happened in that jungle, what Chelsea had been up to lately, and probably more. I’d be willing to bet she knew how to get to SeaSat5, too, though I couldn’t fathom why she wouldn’t tell me.
“Hey,” someone said as they plunked into the seat Valerie had vacated an hour ago. Sarah, Chelsea’s younger sister, smiled at me. We’d talked over the years, getting to know each other through Chelsea inviting me to all the band’s gigs.
“Hi,” I returned.
“What in the world brings you to Boston?” she asked. “Chelsea’s not here, is she?”
“No,” I said.
Sarah stood up and walked to the bar. Okay, then. But she returned with a bottle of beer and placed it in front of me. “That’s a guilty beer. I know why Chelsea wouldn’t be here.”
Because she’s playing dress-up soldier? “How do you mean?”
“I know she’s been off-kilter lately,” Sarah admitted, a frown edging her lips.
“You could say that.” It came out harsher than I wanted it to.
“Hey, she’s still my sister,” Sarah warned with a glare.
I inhaled slowly, trying to relax. “I know. Sorry. I came here to meet up with a friend who had something for me, that’s all.”
“You came all the way to Boston to pick something up?”
Okay. Good catch. “It’s a long story. If you want to be mad at me, be mad. Chelsea ended what I probably started.”
Sarah gave me a small smile. “I know. She told me things haven’t been great for a while.”
“There’s a lot weighing us down.” And I had a feeling there’d be even more weight once Valerie got back to me in the morning.
I drank some beer in the silence that followed.
“You look like shit,” Sarah said suddenly, leaning in over the table.
I sighed and put down my drink. “Really wish people would stop telling me that.”
“What happened?”
“I caught something nasty. Not contagious, though.”
“Well that’s good to know,” Sarah said, but still scooted her chair away an inch. “So what’s with Chelsea’s new position?”
“It’s temporary.” I was surprised Chelsea had told Sarah about it at all. “She’ll be back with us soon.”
“Yeah, unless Josh convinces her to stay. I just worry about what will happen to the band if that…” Sarah trailed off, eyes widening as she covered her mouth with her hands.
My breath came deliberately slow as I tried to control the anger stirring within me.
“Forget I said that,” she said.
Not like Sarah knew Chelsea wasn’t at TAO anymore. Sarah didn’t know about any of that. And last I checked, Chelsea didn’t plan on letting her in on it until—if—Sarah started showing signs of Atlantean abilities. But still. I balled my fists. “I knew it.”
“Trevor—”
“No, don’t worry about it,” I said.
“But you shouldn’t have had to hear it confirmed by me. I shouldn’t have said anything.”
Sarah stood to leave, but I grabbed her arm. “Seriously, it’s fine.”
“Look,” she said as she pried my arm off hers. “I’m really sorry. Let me make it up to you. I don’t know how long you’re in town for, but if you’re not leaving in the next hour or so, there’s a party at Kris’s house, our lead singer?”
“Yeah, I remember him.” Although I didn’t think I’d ever formally met him.
I glanced at my watch. It was already ten. What the hell. A party might actually keep me awake long enough to meet Valerie in the morning and then leave without having to pay for another expensive-as-hell hotel for the night.
Sarah reached into her purse and pulled out a pen and stack of sticky notes. She wrote something down and handed it to me. “That’s the address. I’ll make it up
to you, okay? Buy you a drink?”
“You already did.”
“That was free.”
I looked down at the beer in question. “Oh. I’m not too much of a drinker.”
She laughed. “Probably because you were too busy playing designated driver for Chelsea.” She winced. “Sorry. Look, show up. It’ll be fun and you’ll get to see the band again, okay?”
I looked down at the address. How weird would that be if I showed up there without Chelsea? How weird would it be to party with her friends without her? But Sarah extended the invitation, and Chelsea clearly had no disregard for me. “Yeah, I’ll be there. Are you leaving now?”
She nodded. “I’ve got to bring some people home first. See you there.”
As soon as Sarah walked away, my heart sank. Chelsea was with another man. I already suspected it, but hearing Sarah confirm it gutted me.
I felt the music from inside the two-story house before I made it halfway up the driveway. I shot Sarah a quick text to let her know I’d made it before approaching the front door. This was the life Chelsea lived, not me, and only when I stepped inside did I realize that accepting Sarah’s offer might actually regress my health. The bass on the stereo thrummed in my chest, setting off vertigo issues I thought were over with.
Aside from the Franklin, the only real bar I’d ever been to was with Chelsea a few weeks ago. Kris’s house wasn’t much different, save for the lack of leather-clad biker men who wanted to pummel me. Instead, I was met with college-aged girls in short skirts and tight tops. My eyes wandered where my mind usually didn’t have time to think about.
Someone bumped my shoulder to get my attention. Sarah stood behind me, two drinks in hand. She handed me a solo cup. “It’s Jack,” she said. “That’s all I could grab on short notice. I’m glad you came.”
“I’ll tell you if I’m happy you invited me after a few drinks,” I said, although I wasn’t planning on drinking a lot. On top of not being much of a drinker, if the music got to me this bad, alcohol wouldn’t help, but I took a swig anyway.
“And for what it’s worth, Logan isn’t here,” Sarah said, “so you don’t have anyone to worry about. I won’t even tell Chelsea you came. Go drink and have fun. Go dance with somebody.” She winked before being pulled away by someone and lost to the crowd of people.
Logan was Chelsea’s best friend, and I knew he wouldn’t be happy if he thought I broke us up. But I didn’t, Chelsea did. She took what we’d tried rebuilding, our search for SeaSat5, and threw it to the wind. And now she was with some dude. Josh.
Another swig made it past my lips. Although this wasn’t my thing, I might as well make the best of it tonight—and for that, I’d need all the whiskey here, Black Death be damned.
Three shots of some concoction and an immeasurable amount of whiskey later, my head stopped pounding. At one point I thought I saw the Waterstar map take over my vision again, but it swam out as quickly as it slithered in. Wouldn’t surprise me if it was never there at all.
I’d danced with two—three?—girls, enjoyed their soft skin and tight bodies, when someone I was pretty sure I knew approached me. Bleached blonde hair and striking summer blue eyes arrested all breath, but her short skirt and tall boots sent my heart racing. Blood thundered south. I licked my lips.
I smiled and offered her my cup. She took a sip and slipped an arm around my neck. Her hips rhythmically rocked against mine as we danced, but the feeling that I knew who this girl was kept nagging at me. But then her blue eyes silenced the evolved parts of me, and I couldn’t focus on the thought anymore.
At one point I managed to surface from carnal motions long enough to lower my lips to her ear and ask, “Do I know you?”
She giggled and shook her head. Her hands snaked around to cup my ass, bringing me even closer. “Maybe, but my lips are sealed.”
The hammered part of me, which was barely smaller than the needy, horny part, took that as a dare. I kissed her hard, prodding her lips with my tongue. She accepted and moaned into my mouth.
Who. Was. This. Girl? Not Valerie. Not Chelsea’s sister. Not anyone I could easily remember, and yet—
My hammered brain only allowed one thought process at a time, and this definitely wasn’t one Brain Two wanted. Brain Two wanted to know where this was going, an answer received when she pulled me against a wall. She reached down between us and massaged me through my jeans. I couldn’t help rocking into the motion.
Shitfuck am I doing?
All thought processes stopped the moment she led me from the wall into the basement. I briefly registered a leather couch squeaking as her legs and ass slid across them. I climbed over her. The last thing I remember before blacking out is the feel of her around me.
eneral Allen sat behind his desk. “I want to commend you on a well-conducted first job.”
I mirrored him in a chair opposite some paperwork. “Thank you. Although it was really Josh who saved the day. I kind of just stood there.”
“Yes, Sergeant Turner is quite the explosives expert, isn’t he?”
Again with the ranks no one but the General used. I tried not to let my feelings toward Sergeant Turner show through.
General Allen pulled a file from one of the stacks on his desk and opened it. It’d only been a few hours since we’d gotten back from the mission.
I caught a glimpse of the title on the front. It read CHELSEA DANNING in bright red letters. “General?”
“Relax,” he said. “Most jobs have a probationary period review.”
“I had a probationary period?” I thought the job was pretty much mine based on the short duration. My palms grew sweaty. I messed something up. Or maybe he found out about Josh and I. Was that not allowed? Of course it’s not. Fraternization wasn’t okay. Not that everyone didn’t still do it. Not that Trevor and I hadn’t gotten away with it for two years. But this wasn’t TAO. “Sir, I can explain.”
A warm smile appeared on his lips, but instead of reassuring me, it left me feeling off. “No explanation needed. Job well done. You passed training more or less with flying colors, minus the rock climbing incident.”
My toes curled in my boots. Something wasn’t right. Even from the start, General Allen’s whole demeanor hadn’t sat well with me, I just wasn’t sure if it was a hidden agenda or a dislike of civilians playing hidden commando. But if he ran a paramilitary company, could they be called anything but civilians?
General Allen stood. I moved to follow him but he waved his hand and told me to stay where I was. “For the next two and a half months you’ll continue on missions. If your abilities continue to show as much potential as Lieutenant Weyland raved about when you got here, the potential to sign you on for an extended period may open up to you. Should you choose to accept it, more training may be required.”
My brow furrowed. “Why?”
“Civilians aren’t allowed at TruGates,” he said. “We take in officers and enlisted men for rehabilitation purposes. To give them a life. They have training you don’t.”
Yeah. He had a definite hatred for civilians. Unfortunately for him and his apparent love of my powers, I wasn’t interested in joining up. “Well, I thank you for the offer, but I’m not much of a soldier, General. Nor do I intend to be.”
His fist flew to his desk. “Bullshit!”
I jumped in my seat and shot him a glare. What the hell is his problem?
I was met with a stare that could burn Pompeii all over again. His ferocity shocked me to the core. I went to stand, but his hand clamped onto my shoulder and pushed me down. Hard. Much harder than I would have expected from him.
He bent so his eyes were level with mine and said, “I know exactly how much soldier you are, you get me?”
My eyes narrowed, but I said nothing. If he knew—and I wasn’t sure how he knew, because not even Weyland fully comprehended it all—everything just changed. Everything.
“Weyland was right,” he said. “We do need you here. The Lemurians are too much for
us to handle and they must be exterminated.”
The moment he said “Lemurian” my head felt weightless, my palms as dry as they were sweaty. How did he know?
His expression held mock surprise. “What, you didn’t know?”
His grip on my shoulder tightened, then, out of nowhere, his other hand flew to his desk and grabbed something. He jammed that something into my leg faster than I could stop it, and the same chilling, searing hot sensation that came over me when Germay’s people took my powers away knocked the wind out of me. This wasn’t even close to what Germay’s people used. There must have been a sedative in there, too. The weakness that swarmed me told me yes, and that my strength was now gone—along with my ability to fight General Allen.
“We need to have a conversation with both of us on even ground,” he said.
“What…”
He got so close to me, all I saw was Thompson. His beady eyes. His mangled, greasy red hair. I slammed my eyes shut. It’s not him. It’s not him. But I sure felt as powerless as I had back then.
“It’s clear I know more than you think I do,” General Allen said, gripping ever harder onto my shoulder. It was sure to bruise, maybe break. “But let me give you a preview of how much.”
He spun my chair so I faced him. I glared so hard I thought my eyeballs might pop out. But the spinning set off some equilibrium issues my head couldn’t handle, and the world tilted on its axis. I gripped the chair handle with one hand and cradled my face with the other.
“I know there was a second spy on board SeaSatellite5. You’ll tell me who that person was, and you’re going to keep this exchange a secret…” The air between us hung heavy as he took his sweet, sick time delivering his ultimatum. “Or I kill one of them.”
One of them, who? Josh? Weyland? Or the SeaSat5 crew no one could find?