Grim Vengeance

by Jennifer Reinfried

  To M. Unger and, as always, to Anton.

  This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, businesses, places, events and incidents are either the products of the author’s imagination or used in a fictitious manner. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, or actual events is purely coincidental.

  Art copyright © 2016, 2017 by Jennifer Reinfried

  Grim Ambition art by Stephen S. Gibson

  Grim Misfortune, Grim Judgment, Grim Resentment art by Evelyne Paniez

  Cover design/art by Stephen S. Gibson

  Edited by D.W. Vogel

  Table of Contents

  Title Page

  Copyright Page

  Grim Vengeance | Book Three of A Grim Trilogy

  Chapter One

  Chapter Two

  Chapter Three

  Chapter Four

  Chapter Five

  Chapter Six

  Chapter Seven

  Chapter Eight

  Chapter Nine

  Chapter Ten

  Chapter Eleven

  Chapter Twelve

  Chapter Thirteen

  Chapter Fourteen

  Chapter Fifteen

  Chapter Sixteen

  Epilogue

  Official Grim Character Art

  A Special Thank You

  Grim Vengeance

  Book Three of A Grim Trilogy

  Everything was too easy.

  Finding Jax.

  Finding the Synths.

  I’ve always had a better connection with Jaxon than the others. Not power-wise, but he was almost always alone at the lab, just like me.

  No one made fun of Jax, though.

  He was the Golden Child.

  Protected by the big guys.

  No one made fun of him.

  Everyone made fun of me.

  “No-Power Charlie.”

  “Not a real Synth.”

  Assholes.

  I hate kids.

  “Sure, I GUESS I’ll let you borrow my power, Charlie, since you don't have any.”

  You don’t have any power, Charlie.

  You don’t have any.

  You don’t have any power.

  Like hell I don’t.

  Chapter One

  Charlie Reed slapped the dying man across the face with a sharp crack. His fingers tingled at the contact. Gripping the man’s wrist, Charlie grimaced, trying to quell the sense of urgency he’d felt since making his promise to Jaxon.

  “One more time, Bill. Show me one more person.”

  The power that he had been created with, that he had been cursed with, surged through Charlie. He could feel Bill’s Evo power slipping into him. His palms tingled with a ferocity, the sensation warm and pleasant.

  Glancing down at the map spread out over his legs, Charlie thought about Ivan Vance. He pictured the Russian’s large frame, his square jaw, his greying hair and ice-blue eyes. Recalling the man was simple. Vance had frequented Lab 14 while the Synths grew up, working with their makers. He always stood with his arms crossed, his gaze hard, watching little Aaron or tiny Shawn realize their powers, even at such a young age. The last time Charlie had seen the Russian, they were all about six or seven years old. He had stormed into the testing area, demanding in a loud voice that he be compensated for the lab’s failure to save someone. Charlie had never discovered who, but it never mattered to him. Neither did Vance’s sudden disappearance along with that creepy twelve-year-old boy, Alex. What did matter was the suffering. The fear. The exhaustion. Everything that Charlie and the other children had endured while in the clutches of Lab 14. He scowled and concentrated on the map, pushing his anger aside.

  There. A light blue dot glowed bright in Northern California. Got you, you Russian fuck.

  Bill moaned, and his breath hitched. He attempted to speak, but his words were muddled and incoherent.

  “You know, it’s been great, Bill.” Charlie let go of the Evo’s wrist and folded the map into a pristine rectangle. He stood from the bed. Placing the map on the table next to his black briefcase, Charlie sighed. “You’ve helped me so much. Given me the exact power I needed to find Jaxon and even led me to that beautiful Evo, Emma.” He opened the briefcase to reveal a row of syringes and a line of carefully labeled vials of blood.

  Charlie extracted the closest equipment, a needle along with a small vial, and turned toward Bill, who still mumbled from the motel’s bed. “But I’m afraid our friendship has come to an end.”

  Bill’s head flopped to the side, his eyes glazing as Charlie approached him. He squirmed on the bed, the comforter bunching up beneath his feet.

  “Oh, don’t worry. I’m not sedating you further. I’m just taking extra blood with me.”

  The Evo moaned.

  Charlie sat next to him and restrained Bill’s left arm. He slipped the point of the needle through skin and into a vein. “It’s a long drive from Massachusetts to California. If Vance moves in the time it takes me to get there, I need to know where he goes. And I’m not taking you with. Just this.” He smiled as dark crimson liquid filled the vial.

  Bill’s head fell to the other side, and he lay still. The only movement was his chest as it rose and fell with his shallow breathing.

  Charlie finished collecting Bill’s blood and slipped the needle from the man’s arm, not bothering to stop the slow trickle that formed. He held the vial up and gazed at it with a grin. “Wonderful. Thanks, Bill. This’ll help me a great deal.”

  He stood and added the vial next to others, tossing the equipment he used to drain the Evo back into its clear pouch, returning it to its spot in the briefcase.

  The meager light from the nearby lamp glinted off of metal as Charlie withdrew a large serrated hunting knife. “Bye, Bill.” He sank the blade into the Evo’s throat in a quick motion. Withdrawing the weapon, he stepped back, watching Bill’s eyes snap open wide, listening to the dying gurgles his body made. Bill spasmed once, twice, and lay completely still.

  Silence filled the motel room.

  Charlie smiled.

  “All right.” He clapped his hands once and rubbed them together. “Now for a little luck from Brandon.”

  Still grinning, he withdrew a different vial. The label was rough to the touch, unlike the smoothness of the glass. Charlie unscrewed the purple rubber top, pinching it. Thick red blood traveled up the small dropper. Withdrawing it, he carefully placed a small round dot of Brandon’s blood on the tip of his left index finger. Lifting the side of his shirt, he smeared the liquid on his hip, just below the waistline of his jeans.

  The reaction was instant. The tingle in Charlie’s palms heightened once again, and he grinned as the blood of the Evo provided him with Brandon’s power. He quickly replaced the vial, ensuring the cap was secured, and shut his briefcase with two sharp clicks.

  Picking up the map, he eyed Salt Lake City. I could just go there now, to the cabin they were all thinking about when I bumped into their mind reader in Boston. Apprehend them. Kill them all and steal Emma. Jaxon flashed through his mind, along with the promise he made so his life would be spared.

  “Soon.” Charlie stuffed the map into his back pocket and picked up the case that contained the only things he truly needed in life. He walked around the bed, thin carpet muffling his footsteps. Unlocking the door, he gripped the handle. Charlie adjusted the baseball cap atop his head, tucking his sandy hair underneath, glanced back at Bill one last time, and exited the motel room.

  Bright sunlight shone in his eyes, forcing him to squint as he walked to his most recent stolen car. He chuckled as he passed a woman in her late fifties. Her gaze snapped away from him. A younger man followed behind her and he, too, looked off into the distance, ignoring Charlie’s presence entirely.

  Br
andon’s blood was beginning to dry, and the fabric of Charlie’s pants grew sticky. He shifted as he arrived at his car, pulling his jeans away from his skin a moment. He risked a quick glance at the nearby security camera. It had already swiveled in another direction. Thank you, Brandon. You may have been taken from me, but at least your blood still works. For now.

  Charlie tried to ignore the urgency the thought brought on. Although the blood of Evos held its owner’s power for days and days to come, it had been almost a week and a half since he’d discovered his stash of evolved humans had been compromised, that they had been released or escaped. He still didn’t know which, but it didn’t matter. He was going forward, finally — forward to what he had been wanting to accomplish since the massacre at Lab 14.

  He was going to capture Emma and use her to wipe out every last Evo he could find. And then he was going to kill the Synths

  But to do that, he first needed Ivan Vance.

  —-

  “What the hell did you call me?” Shawn’s hard gaze and rigid stance screamed of anger, but Emma could still sense he was holding back.

  “I said...” Lucas rolled his shoulders. “You’re a yellow-bellied sonofabitch who can’t even bring himself to hit me.”

  “Yellow-bellied? What is this, the Wild West?”

  “Sonofabitch.”

  “I never knew my mother. I’m sure she was a nice woman, though. I mean, look how I turned out.” Shawn lunged forward, ducking his head and slamming into Lucas’ stomach.

  “Oof,” was all Lucas said. He stumbled back exactly three steps before bringing his elbow down on Shawn’s back.

  Emma cringed.

  “The guy really needs to work on his shit talking.” Isaac laid a hand on Emma’s back. She smiled, tossing him a wink.

  “I still think he feels bad for trying to beat the hell out of Lucas after he found out about his dad.” She kept her voice low, eyes locked on the sparring men a few yards before her.

  Sunlight warmed her back and shoulders. Isaac’s hand left her as he stepped forward.

  “Go for the eyes!” he shouted. “The jugular! The jugular!”

  Emma laughed, and the sound mingled with the sounds of grunting in the warm spring air. “Maim, don’t kill!” she added. A laugh escaped her until realization hit, and she froze. Adrenaline shot up from her stomach, nearly choking her. She leaned toward Shawn and his clone, gripping the low fence just as Lucas snarled and took a swing.

  “No! Stop!” Emma’s heart sped up. Oh, God, not again. “Don’t fight each other. Just stop.”

  The pair immediately stopped fighting and relaxed.

  “Emma?” Isaac’s eyes were full of concern. “What’s the matter?”

  “I just ordered them to maim each other. What do you think the problem is?”

  His eyes softened, and he nodded slowly. Turning, he waved the other men down. “Guys, maybe we could do this another time?”

  “But we just started. And I’m still not as good as this douche.” Shawn jerked a thumb at Lucas. “I have to keep going. I can’t stop, not until I’m faster. Stronger. Better. Training’s the only way I can...oh.” Concern spread across his face when he finally noticed Emma’s expression.

  “I’m sorry,” she whispered. Turning, fists clenched, she stalked away from them, from Isaac, and nearly collided with Duncan.

  “It wasn’t your fault,” he said in a soft voice. His kind gaze and friendly face only enraged Emma further.

  “Of course it was. I’m just going to lock myself in my room and not speak to anyone until we leave.” She side-stepped around him.

  “Emma, you know damn well that a simple single command isn’t enough to turn everyone on each other.” Duncan’s voice was firm. “Your training has shown us that much. And that it’s most effective if you’re making eye contact.”

  She closed her eyes and wrestled with the anger and guilt she felt inside. “I can’t risk it. I don’t want to hurt anybody.”

  “You’re not.” Shawn walked up behind her. “Duncan’s right. You can’t freak out every time you say something or every time you—”

  “I know, I know.” Emma sighed.

  “You say you know...”

  She shot him a withering glance. “Look, I get it. You don’t know what it feels like to have this power and not want it. I hate it. Every single time I finally let my guard down and start thinking that way, I accidentally blurt something out that could end up seriously hurting someone.”

  “The key word there is accidentally,” Isaac said softly.

  “That’s not my damn point!” She turned on him, frowning. “Accidentally or not, I could get someone killed. And that is a horrible thing to have to live with every single day, all right?”

  They all nodded.

  Shawn shrugged. “I could get someone killed on accident, too. So could Lucas. All of the Synths. Well, except Aaron.”

  Emma let out a short laugh and glanced back at the porch where the mind reader sat with a novel in one hand. Without glancing up, he raised a middle finger in Shawn’s direction, then turned a page.

  “The only harmless ones around here are Duncan and Isaac. We all know what you’re going through, Emma.” Shawn’s fingers brushed the side of her arm, tickling her skin. “In our own ways. Just know that all of us, including you, are using our abilities for good. To train, to fight my brother, stop him from hurting more people.”

  “Harmless?” Isaac gaped.

  Shawn smirked at him. “Yeah. You’re like a little puppy. Completely harmless.”

  Emma glanced at Isaac, picking up on the irritation and offense in his light green eyes. “I wouldn’t underestimate him if I were you,” she said.

  Shawn shrugged. Turning, he shoved an unprepared Lucas, sending him onto his back.

  “The fuck?” His clone scrambled to his feet, angry expression etched with determination.

  Duncan clapped Isaac on the shoulder as they all hurried away from Shawn, who was tossed into the air. Lucas cackled.

  “He didn’t have to be a dick about it.” Isaac watched Shawn scramble to his feet and charge forward.

  “He’s still mourning. It’s only been a week. He needs time to cope with the loss of his father.”

  “I know.” Isaac ran a hand through his curly hair. “I just...I don’t know.”

  “It’ll be all right. Training is getting his anger out. It won’t be enough to make much of an improvement before we approach Vance, but at least his aggression will have been handled as much as it can be so his mind can be focused at the most important and crucial time.”

  Hearing the name of her former boss sent a tickle down Emma’s spine. She swallowed. “How do we know he won’t be gone when we get there? That we’re not just wasting time right now?”

  “We don’t.” Duncan sighed. “He could have left before we even devised our plan. But we at least have to try.”

  Lucas let out a grunt as Shawn threw a punch into his jaw. He stumbled back, one hand massaging his face. “Dick.”

  “Finally.” Shawn crouched low and took advantage of his clone’s shock. He dipped to the left and threw a fist into Lucas’ abdomen. Twisting with speed Emma had never seen before, he swiped his leg across the ground, tripping his clone. Before the dust even settled, Shawn had the man pinned.

  “They aren’t even breathing hard.” Emma shook her head, impressed.

  “Now what? Huh?” Shawn grinned.

  Lucas sighed and brought a leg up. Pushing himself to the side, he tipped Shawn off of him with ease and slammed him into the dirt.

  “Son of a...” Shawn wheezed.

  “Now what?” Lucas mocked.

  “Synths.” Duncan rolled his eyes.

  Shawn grunted as a blow from his clone’s fist landed in his stomach. “Oh, hell no.” He squirmed out of Lucas’ grasp and rolled into a crouch, dirt covering his back and hands.

  Emma chewed on her lower lip as she watched the Synths spar. I need to stay focused, too. Make s
ure I keep practicing on Shawn without him catching on. Lucas, too. She glanced at Isaac to find he was gazing at her. His face showed discomfort, an internal struggle. He jerked his head to the left in a slight motion, toward the cabin. Shooting one last look at the tussle, she followed him toward the back door. Climbing the porch steps, she opened her mouth to ask what the issue was, but stopped when she saw Aaron’s expression.

  Instead of reading his book, he was glaring at Isaac, who hesitated, staring back, before he went inside.

  “What was that all about?” Emma asked as the door shut behind them.

  “No idea. He’s probably digging around in my damn thoughts again. I’m so sick of that shit.” Isaac’s brow furrowed as they made their way down the hall to their bedroom. “Yes, I know, I was a criminal. For fuck’s sake, he doesn’t have to give me looks every single time he—”

  Pulling Isaac against her body, Emma kissed him, silencing his words. In the quiet, she listened as her heart sped up at the contact, at the rush of adrenaline that shot through her, at the feel of his lips on hers, his hands gripping her waist.

  Finally, slightly breathless, she pulled away. “I love you, Isaac.”

  Smiling, he stroked her cheek with one finger. “And I love you.”

  “Don’t let them get to you. We’re together. That’s all I care about. And when this damn thing is over, when we take out Jaxon and the threat to our lives, we’ll run. Far away, to a cabin in the woods just like this one, where no one can ever find us again.”

  “Us and Frankensteve.”

  Emma laughed and kissed him again. “And Frankensteve.”

  “I won’t let anything happen to you.”

  “Neither will I. I’m not letting anyone come between us.”

  “Keep using your power on the clones.” Isaac ran his thumb along her lips. “The last thing we need is to realize it wore off and they no longer feel like protecting you.”

  “Protecting us.”

  He smiled. “Aaron and I talked. He agrees that it’s wise for you to keep Shawn and Lucas persuaded in our favor. All he cares about is making sure we’re all together in the end to fight. He knows if we’re split up, none of us stand a chance on our own.”