by T. C. Edge
“Zander told me,” I say, nodding. “I never knew it was so bad.”
“Well, it is. However, we have no true idea of what their full intentions are. There are things that go on in the High Tower that none of us are privy to, and we’ve been looking for someone who can go to Inner Haven as a spy…”
As she speaks, my eyebrows descend lower and lower, and my features curl up with utter confusion.
“A spy,” I find myself cutting in. I can’t help it, despite who I’m talking to. “You want me to be a spy! How can I do that?!”
“I understand your doubts, Brie. So let me explain. We have a man on the inside, a man who is currently unattached. He is due to attend a bachelor ball in the coming days, and with the impact you made during the ceremony, I’m sure we’ll be able to get you to attend as well. As far as they know it, you’re just an exceptional Unenhanced. It’s the perfect cover.”
“But…attend a bachelor ball…for the Enhanced? You have to be kidding me! So you want me to have a relationship with this man?”
“It will be nothing but a sham,” comes Zander’s voice. I find my eyes narrowing as I look at him. This is why he brought me here. “You’ll be able to operate undercover in Inner Haven, and can help us from the inside. You’d be doing a world of good, Brie…”
“But why me?! I mean, what can I offer? How could I possibly get into the High Tower?!”
A million other queries and concerns materialise in my head as Zander and Lady Orlando share a look.
“Settle yourself, Brie,” says Lady Orlando. “Take another sip of whiskey. It helps, it really does.”
I do as ordered, taking a moment to compose myself.
“Now, we understand this is all a bit of a shock,” she continues. “That is only natural. However, as you well know, it is common for Unenhanced to marry into the ranks of the Enhanced, and live in Inner Haven. With your profile as it is, and the hidden abilities inside you, we consider you a prime candidate to take on this mission…”
“But I’m no spy, and I don’t even know what abilities I’ll have, if any! And, what if they find me? What if they discover that I’m a hybrid? I’ll be killed…”
Once more, my voice quickens, forcing Zander to slide in beside me and offer me a comforting arm. As he does so, I hear Lady Orlando whispering quietly to him.
“Tell her, Zander. She needs to know. I’ll give you some space.”
I raise my eyes again to see the old lady shift towards the door. Before she leaves, she offers a final few words to me.
“You are compelled to do nothing, Brie. Remember that. You can forget all of this, if you want, and return to your world. The choice, really, is yours.”
With that, she opens the door and slips out of the room, leaving Zander and me alone once again. I find the whiskey glass back at my lips, my desire for a refill quickly growing stronger.
Zander seems to sense such a thing. The bottle is sought and a fresh supply emptied into my glass. After returning the bottle to the table, he wanders slowly over towards the window, his eyes set on the distant shape of the High Tower, glowing in the darkness.
A short silence follows, before his voice registers in the room once more, softer this time, more calm.
“My mother once lived there,” he says, gazing into the night.
The words take a moment to register.
“Your mother…was a Savant?” I ask, still standing by the fire.
I see his head nod, his body so still. I wonder how far his eyes can take his gaze, whether he can make out the details of the High Tower, see the shadows of shapes moving within.
“My mother had strange powers that she passed to me. I can see into people’s minds, Brie, read and manipulate their thoughts. For a long time, I was like you, hidden in Outer Haven, my abilities suppressed. Then, my life changed one day, and I found myself on this path. It’s one I’ve trodden since I was just a boy…”
I find myself moving towards him, drawn in as he speaks. There’s a melancholy to his words, a suppressed sadness and simmering anger, locked down below the surface.
As I come, nearing his side, I whisper into the now quiet room: “You’re a Mind-Manipulator?”
“I’m many things,” he says. “Many things, like you…”
I reach him and turn my eyes to his, still fixed to the distance and refusing to blink.
“But how do you know? How do you know what I am?” I ask, my voice little more than a murmur now.
His hand slips into his jacket. His fingers withdraw a piece of card, folded in two. Finally, he turns to me, opening the card up before his eyes.
“I know what you are, Brie…I know what you can do…because you can do what I can. We’re one and the same. And when I saw you, on that big screen, I finally knew…I’d found you…”
His words come out slowly as he opens the card, twisting it around to show me the other side.
My breathing halts. My heart-rate suddenly grows stiff. My eyes lock to the picture, to the image of my parents, looking down at their child.
But not one child.
Two.
Then, slowly, my eyes lift again and meet with Zander’s. Hazel, like mine, deep as an ocean. And a smile forms on his face.
“You and me…we’re twins, Brie.”
The Enhanced will continue in Book Two…
Book Two - Hybrid
First of all, I hope you enjoyed the story! If you want to continue it right away, then you can do so immediately by getting book two at the link below.
Click here for book two - Hybrid
Of course, if you want to find out EXACTLY when any new book I release comes out, feel free to sign up to my newsletter by clicking here. By doing so, you’ll also get access to the first book in The Watchers Series (The Watchers of Eden) completely free of charge, as well as a short story that’s only available to those who join my list.
I’d also really appreciate it if you’d leave me a review for this book. As an independent author, reviews can make all the difference for me, and help me hone my craft and write better stories and characters. So, I’d appreciate just a few words to let me know your thoughts.
Thanks for reading!
Toby C Edge