Countdown

by Michelle Rowen

  “Yes, it is. But that doesn’t make it any less true. Currently there are over fifteen thousand Subscribers fitted with an implant, who each pay upwards of a million dollars a year to gain access to the Network feed.” He snorted softly at that. “Ironic. The feed that feeds Gareth. And there is no end to his appetite.”

  I did the math in my head. This shadowy Network was netting a minimum of fifteen billion dollars a year—and Countdown was only one of its horrible games.

  “Does the Network have any idea about this feed? About what the virus is doing?” I asked.

  “Not that I’m aware of. Not that they’d likely care if they knew, as long as they continue to turn a profit.”

  “Why haven’t you tried to stop him?” Rogan clenched the side of the table. His knuckles were white.

  Jonathan pressed his lips together. “What makes you think I haven’t? I’ve been secretly working behind Gareth’s back on a plan to stop this before it gets worse. Before Gareth manages to take things wider—toward a day when everyone on the planet is fitted with an implant. I know that’s where this is all headed. The Network—”

  “The Network’s not my concern. Only my father,” Rogan said bluntly. His jaw tightened. “I can help you.”

  Jonathan shook his head. “The best thing for you to do is to get as far away from here as possible.”

  “Wrong. He’s my father—”

  “Exactly. You’re too close to the situation. You will only interfere with what I have planned. Besides, it’s my duty to do what I can. After all this time, I’ve waited too long…” Anguish filled Jonathan’s expression, and he squeezed his eyes shut.

  “And you feel guilty about it,” I said. “I read you when I was in the hospital room. I felt that guilt.”

  “So much time has passed, and I haven’t known what to do. I’ve watched my dear friend slip away and a monster take his place, and all the while my fear for my own safety kept me from taking the necessary action to stop it. Including what happened to you, Rogan. Words will never express how sorry I am for everything you’ve been through.”

  Rogan’s face was tight. He didn’t say anything in reply.

  Jonathan met my gaze. “If your father saw the same test results I did—and I’m sure he would have—then he knew about your Psi abilities. But he kept it secret, even from you. I understand why he was afraid. There are those in this society who wish harm to anyone different from them.”

  I swallowed hard. “Like Kurtis. He’d wanted to kill me for what I was. What I am. He said it was a mutation of the Plague.”

  “In a way, it is. But I don’t think it’s a bad thing. I believe it’s an incredible gift.”

  I shook my head. “I don’t know if I’m really high-level. I mean, I read you as being honest, but you’ve lied to me over and over.”

  His expression shadowed and he looked away. “I’m sorry for all of that.”

  “But—but it doesn’t mean you’re not honest. You have helped us. And you were the one who told me about my ability. And you want to stop this virus. A few lies and bad choices don’t change who you are deep inside.”

  “I don’t know anymore. I hope you’re right. I really do.” Jonathan stood up from the table. “I’ve arranged for two tickets on the next shuttle to the Colony for the both of you.”

  My breath caught. I didn’t expect this at all. “Are you serious?”

  He nodded gravely. “This city is not safe for you—not now, not ever again. You must go to the relative safety of the Colony. There is less corruption there, at least for the foreseeable future, and a large enough population to lose yourselves in.”

  There was silence at the table.

  “When does the shuttle leave?” Rogan asked. “How do we get to it?”

  “You’ll find a set of train tracks behind this house. At precisely three o’clock, I’ve arranged for it to stop to pick you up. It’ll look like a normal passenger train, but it will bear this symbol—a mayf lower—to let you know it’s the right one.” He reached into his jacket pocket and pulled out two tickets with our names on them, along with a white f lower with five petals in the top corner. “It will then take you to another train that will continue your journey to the Colony.”

  We each took one. I stared at it, certain my eyes were deceiving me. I’d been wanting this for so long that now it seemed surreal to actually be holding it. This was all it took? This little piece of shiny paper was enough to change my life forever?

  “I’ve contacted the Iris Institute already, Kira. It’s a private school for girls who have high-level Psi abilities like yours. I know it’s been difficult for you, especially with no training. I promise that the more you use your ability, the less pain you’ll experience. It’s like exercising a muscle, you see. You will grow stronger and they will help you. I’ve written the address on the back of your ticket.”

  I turned it over and stared at the small, precise writing. “This is— It’s…too good to be true.” My gaze shot up. “What’s the catch?”

  This earned me the edge of a smile on his otherwise deathly serious face. “I understand your doubt. But it’s all true.”

  A school that could help someone like me. Where I could meet other girls who had Psi abilities. Where I could make friends and take classes and have a place to belong—after all this time of not belonging anywhere.

  I drew in a shaky breath, my throat tightening. “Thank you.”

  He nodded. When he turned his attention to Rogan I noticed that Jonathan’s eyes were now shiny with emotion. “As for you, Rogan. I cannot express to you how sorry I am for all the pain you’ve been through.”

  Rogan’s throat jumped as he swallowed. “It’s over now.”

  Jonathan nodded. “As I said, your father has had a few sentient moments. He was able to arrange for a bank account to be set up for you. By the time you reach the Colony your criminal record will be cleared, so your name will cause no red lights upon your arrival. The account number is written on your shuttle ticket. Your father wanted you to have enough money to last the rest of your life. He wanted you to enroll at the school Liam went to. He believes you have incredible potential—more than you ever gave yourself credit for. Some admissions tests will be required, but again, I’ve made a call and explained the situation, leaving out some of the more unpleasant details, of course.”

  “You would have had to leave out a lot.”

  Jonathan raised an eyebrow. “Let’s face it—money speaks volumes when delivered in the right amounts. The school is aware you might stop by, and they said that they’re looking forward to it.”

  Rogan stared at the ticket as if in disbelief. “My father wanted this for me.”

  “Yes. He loves you, Rogan. He always has, whether or not you realized it.” Jonathan pressed his lips together. “You should know, he begged me to kill him while he was still in control of his body, but I couldn’t do it. Now he doesn’t trust me—this technological monster that possesses him believes I’m working against him, but he has no proof yet. He has associates who shadow me wherever I go.”

  Alarm rose inside me. “Then how were you able to get away today without being seen?”

  He crossed his arms. “After your escape, Gareth was furious. The headquarters were in chaos. I had a feeling that you might be headed here, and when you pressed the buzzer, I managed to slip away unseen. I’m afraid I won’t be able to stay for much longer, though. In fact, I should leave immediately. They’ll be looking for me.”

  “I’m coming with you,” Rogan said firmly.

  “No, you’re not. My plan does not involve you. I must do this myself.”

  “What’s your plan?”

  His expression was tense as he fished into the front pocket of his pants and pulled out a small card. “Take this. I will find a way to contact you in a week to tell you if I was successful. However, if you don’t hear from me, it means I have failed. Wait a month until everything has calmed down and then use this information to get in to
uch with a man named Joe. I believe he might be able to help fix this if I can’t.”

  Rogan didn’t look convinced, but he took the card, anyway. “But why can’t I help you now?”

  “Because the moment they see you they will kill you. They’ll kill both you and Kira for escaping from the game. There’s still a risk once you arrive at the Colony, but it’s substantially reduced from the risk of staying here, I can assure you.”

  I shuddered at this blunt statement. Then I glanced at the card. It had an H-like logo on it and an address here in the city. The logo looked familiar to me, but I couldn’t place it.

  “What is this place?” I asked.

  Jonathan’s lips thinned. “Just a small glimmer of hope after years of darkness. After all this time, I still hold on to the hope that things can change—even when they seem at their bleakest.”

  I eyed him. “Well, that is annoyingly vague. Can’t you tell us more than that?”

  “Sorry. I’ve already told you too much as it is.”

  Rogan took a step closer to Jonathan. I wasn’t sure what he was going to do until he thrust out his hand toward the other man. Jonathan shook his hand firmly.

  “Thank you for what you have told us—and what you’ve done to help us,” Rogan said, his voice tight. “And good luck with your top-secret plan, whatever it is. Please do what you can to save my father.”

  “Be safe, Rogan.”

  When Jonathan glanced at me, I offered him a genuine smile. “See, I knew you were a good guy after all.”

  “No, you didn’t.” He smiled, too, but his eyes remained sad.

  “No, you’re right. I didn’t. But I do now. Thank you for the tickets and for the—the school thing.” Words failed me. How could you thank someone who’d forever changed your life for the better?

  He gave me a gracious nod. “The shuttle will arrive at three o’clock on the dot. Stay inside the house until only a few minutes before. Understand? There are clean clothes upstairs if you’d like to change. I’m sure you’re ready to get out of those ridiculous costumes.”

  “It’s like you’re psychic, too,” I said, which drew a short laugh out of him.

  “Goodbye, both of you. And good luck.”

  He turned away and left the kitchen. A moment later I heard the door slam behind him.

  Rogan looked at me.

  I stared back at him, my mind reeling, my heart racing— I honestly didn’t think it had slowed to normal since I woke up in that silver room chained to the wall.

  “My head is still killing me,” Rogan said, deadpan. “I have no idea why.”

  “Might be because a big piece of metal just got ripped out of it.”

  He snorted and I couldn’t help but grin.

  “Yeah, that could be part of it.” He glanced in the direction Jonathan had just taken to leave the safe house. “I shouldn’t have let him leave yet. I should be helping him.”

  “You heard him. He has a plan.”

  “I wish he’d told me what it was.” His expression was grim. “But after everything we’ve been through, I just want to get as far away from here as possible.”

  “I’m so sorry about your father.” Looked as if we were both orphans. Even though his father was still technically alive, Rogan had really lost him two years ago.

  He nodded. “Yeah, so am I.”

  I reached around to the back of my head and felt the hard ridge of cauterized skin. “I can’t believe the implant’s gone.”

  “I know.”

  “And here I thought I was going to have to get used to having you within ninety feet or less for the rest of my life.”

  He gave me the edge of a smile. “Good job they’re out, right? You can finally be free of me. You’ll be happy in that private school, Kira. I know it.”

  “I hope they like me.”

  “What’s not to like?”

  I rolled my eyes and tried not to grin. “I’m going upstairs and check out that change of clothes Jonathan mentioned.”

  “You do that.”

  I turned away from him, leaving the kitchen. Around the next corner was a f light of stairs to the second f loor.

  Once we got to our destination we’d go our separate ways. Was I thinking we’d stick together indefinitely? There really wasn’t any reason why we would. I would go to the Iris Institute—which sounded both terrifying and amazing. And Rogan would go to university, like his brother had. The Colony was huge—a thriving city of a million people. We’d both get lost in the crowd.

  If my father had seen the results of my tests, that I was a high-level Psi, maybe he’d been planning to take me to this institute so I could develop my abilities and learn how to control them. What would my life have been like now if that had happened? If instead of living on the streets of this dangerous, desolate city for the past two years, I would have lived those years in the Colony.

  However, then I wouldn’t have met Rogan.

  We’d been thrust together, neither of us had had any choice in the matter, and we’d dealt with it the best we could. Now it was over, and the moment we reached our destination I might never see him again.

  This was the way it was supposed to be.

  Even though I knew that, it still hurt like hell.

  THE CLOTHES WERE UPSTAIRS IN A CLOSET. They weren’t perfect—I didn’t think whoever had stocked the closet, probably Jonathan, ever expected a girl to be here. I grabbed the smallest pair of jeans I could find, cinching them with a belt, and a T-shirt I had to tie at my waist. There were no shoes close to my size, so the black lace-up boots I already had would have to do.

  Then I busied myself with taking a shower and washing my hair before I slowly got dressed. I stared at my ref lection in the foggy mirror after clearing it with my forearm.

  Still me. I looked the same as ever. Tired, though. And a bit bruised. I had a small cut on my cheek that I hadn’t noticed before.

  I tidied up and left the bathroom. Rogan was waiting in the hallway.

  “Finished?” he asked.

  “Yeah, it’s all yours.”

  “Thanks.” His hand brushed against mine as we passed, and he closed the door with a click. I stood there for a moment, studying the door separating us, listening to the sound of the shower turning on, as well as to the sound of my suddenly racing heart.

  I spent the next two hours exploring. The house was small, but fully furnished. It reminded me of the house I’d grown up in, even though it didn’t look much the same. Maybe it was just the fact that it was a real house, not some crappy place I could crash for the night to get off the streets.

  There was a small view screen set into the wall, and I activated it, f lipping through the channels. I stopped on a news feed, half expecting to see mine and Rogan’s faces splashed across the pixels as dangerous, escaped criminals.

  There was nothing, of course. We weren’t criminals. And the only thing we’d escaped from was something that very few people had any idea existed.

  In another room I found a bookcase with some old hardcover novels. I pulled one out, brushing my palm against the torn, dusty cover. After a second, I recognized it as a book about a boy wizard and couldn’t help but smile sadly. My mother had read this book to me and my sister—even though my sister had always thought she was too old for such things. Still, it hadn’t made her leave the room when Mom had pulled this book, and others, out.

  I read a few chapters, lost in nostalgia, before slipping it back onto the shelf.

  Soon I’d be sort of like that boy wizard. Only, you know, I wasn’t a boy. Nor was I a wizard. But I’d be going to a school where they’d help me learn how to use my special kind of magic. And to think, only a few days ago I’d been stealing red shoes and depending on French fries for my meals.

  I glanced at the clock for the hundredth time. It was two o’clock. Still an hour to go until the shuttle arrived. The house was cold, and I hadn’t found a temperature control yet. I decided to grab a sweater before we left. At the top of the
stairs, in the room I’d been in before, I tapped the light pad on the wall so I could take a better look in the closet.

  The f loorboards behind me creaked—Rogan had moved into the doorway and was standing there, looking at me.

  “You’ve been keeping a low profile,” I said, not taking my attention from the closet of fascinating men’s clothes. “Two hours apart. I think that’s a record for us.”

  From the corner of my eye, I could tell he smiled at that.

  “Yeah, well, I guess we should get used to it.”

  I forced a grin to cover up the f lash of pain I felt at that. “Do you know what subjects you’ll take in university?”

  “No idea.” His words were dry and fairly clipped. He wasn’t making eye contact with me anymore. “I’ll deal with that when I get there.”

  “Good idea.” I pulled a blue sweater from its hanger and slipped it on. It would do fine.

  “Kira…”

  “What?” I turned back, surprised that he’d drawn closer. I waited for him to say something else.

  He didn’t.

  “What is it?” I prompted, pushing the closet door shut with a click.

  His throat worked as he swallowed. He studied a small picture of a lake on the wall over my shoulder. “So, you’re definitely going to that girl’s school.”

  “Well, yeah. Of course. I can’t think of anywhere else I should go.”

  “Just don’t let anybody tell you that being a Psi is wrong— like that bastard did. It’s not. Jonathan’s right, it’s a gift.”

  “All the more reason to go so I can be around other kids like me. Otherwise, I would think I’m a total freak.”

  “You’re not a freak.”

  “Thanks for the vote of confidence.” I pressed back against the wall. It hadn’t been this awkward talking to Rogan before, had it? Now that I knew we were parting ways, everything seemed harder. “What are your plans if you don’t know what you want to study?”

  “Other than waiting for news about my father, not much.” He shook his head. “Actually, I have no damn idea what I’m going to do next.”

  I nodded and tried to push away some of this overwhelming sadness—it was crazy to be so sad over saying goodbye to a boy I’d only met a handful of days ago. “Well, I wish you luck.”