by Pam Eaton
Finally, the girl sitting next to me stands up. She’s average; nothing about her stands out except for her eyes. They’re as dark as night and hard—there’s no softness there. “My name is Sariah. I’m eighteen, was a freshman in college with plans to become a doctor. It took a lot of arm twisting and convincing to get me here. We’re all here because one of our parents died not too long ago, and it was my mom’s dying wish for me to be here.”
Well, that shuts us all up.
Sariah sits down. Guess it’s my turn. I stand and address everyone. “Well, I guess I’m last. My name is Rebecca, but I prefer being called Becca. I’m seventeen and scared out of my mind to be here. I don’t know what I’ve gotten myself into, but like the rest of you I’m here now. I guess the last thing I have to add is, here’s hoping that we all make it out of this alive and live to have improper fraternizations in the future.”
Tony shoots me a smile and adds a “Hear, hear!”
We all exit the classroom to find Gregory leaning against the wall. I smile at him. Tony may be good looking, but I can’t help getting excited when I see Gregory.
“So you’re hoping to live through training to have ‘improper fraternizations’?”
I can feel my face turning as red as a stop sign. I had no idea he was listening to us. And seriously, when’s the last time I blushed this much? “Well you know, I thought I would leave everyone with a dose of humor instead of seriousness.”
The smile on his face slowly leaves as his demeanor changes. “That was a good choice. The next few days are going to be pretty rough, and you’ll need humor to get you through it.”
“How come everyone else’s mentors aren’t escorting them back to their rooms?” He’s the only one.
“You’re sort of a special case.” I raise a brow at that. “Since we don’t really know what all your powers are. I thought it would be better to be safe than sorry.”
We walk side by side down the hall and I occasionally catch a hint of cloves, sweat, and something that has to be Gregory’s natural scent. Whatever it is, it’s delicious.
“I’ve got a question,” I say.
“Shoot.”
“So we’re supposed to be working with everyone? But we can’t talk about what we do?”
His eyes stay fixed ahead, and then he nods his head like he’s come to some sort of decision. “Not yet. There are so few of us left and we invite everyone here, but there’s a chance that some won’t stay. Or that some are plants.”
“Plants?” I ask.
“Some of the one hundred who no longer work with us have their own faction. Only about sixty of the hundred have anything to do Project Lightning. But of that other forty, their decedents have come to us before saying that they want nothing to do with that group. Most of the time it’s true. But there have been a few cases where it wasn’t,” he says.
Whoa.
“So the next little bit, if that’s the case, they’ll be weeded out,” he says.
“What happens to them?” I ask.
“They get their memory wiped,” he says.
“But what if they leave before that?” I ask.
“That’s a rarity,” he tells me.
“Not with my mom,” I counter.
His gaze leaves mine. “She was a rarity,” he says.
Apparently.
He approaches my door and I realize I’m going to get lost in the place. He’s got to know that. But somewhere in the back of my girlish head I’m fantasizing, hoping that he’s walking me back to my room as an excuse to be with me. “You’re not going to be camping outside my door all night, now are you?”
He laughs, making me feel so naive. “Well, I know you would probably enjoy that, but I need my sleep as well.”
I swear he must know what I’m thinking. That or I’m just completely obvious.
“All right, I’ll see you in the morning after breakfast. Get some sleep; you’ll need it for tomorrow. Training is really exhausting at first.”
Sleep. Sure, because that’ll come easily.
Thirteen
The dream is familiar. I’m flying through the air again. That same feeling of exhilaration washes over me as I weave in and out of the clouds. Suddenly the clouds start to darken and the wind is blowing fierce and cold. Cutting my thrilling flight short.
I hear a voice, but it’s too distant to make out.
A feeling, like a heavy shove, pushes me toward earth. I thrash my arms and legs, attempting to fight it. But fighting it just seems to make the pull harder and increasingly faster toward the ground.
I make a choice.
I stop fighting and release myself to this unseen force. Everything goes dark and my body feels suspended in the air. A whisper in the wind pierces me, as if passing through my soul. “Becca, we don’t have much time. Don’t trust anyone. Don’t tell your secrets, and keep your guard up. Listen to your instincts and never doubt yourself.”
Sirens roar in the darkness. Am I still in the dream? My eyes snap open and I’m back in the small dorm room. A voice booms over a loudspeaker. “This is a wakeup call! All trainees are to wake up and proceed to breakfast!”
Not a dream.
Well, that’s one way to wake up. Guess there’s no need for an alarm clock?
I sit up quickly in bed. Maybe today is the day we’ll figure out what the heck my power is.
I didn’t unpack last night, so I fish my toothbrush and paste out of my suitcase. Looking in the mirror, I don’t see my reflection, just flashes of the dream. It was strange, even surreal. I’m not sure it even happened. It was just a dream, and nothing really comes of dreams, but there was something eerily familiar about that voice. With all the weird things occurring right now, it couldn’t hurt to heed the warning.
After countless wrong turns and endless white halls, I follow the smell of food. The cafeteria is already full of people sitting and eating. I wonder if they’re some of the one hundred, or if they just happen to work for Project Lightning.
Grabbing my breakfast, I feel like I’m in high school again trying to find a place to sit.
“Becca, come join us over here,” Tony says from behind me.
Four sets of eyes assess me, besides Tony. “Sorry guys, you’re going to have to remind me of your names again. I wasn’t paying the best attention last night,” I say with a sheepish shrug.
Thankfully, Tony jumps in with introductions. “Well, I’m Tony, but how could you forget that? This is Mike, Paul, Jessica, and Steve.”
The chair next to me pulls out. “And I’m Gregory.”
Tony narrows his eyes. “I don’t remember you from last night.”
Everyone looks at Gregory, and I suddenly feel protective of my mentor. “It’s okay, I can vouch for Gregory. He’s with me.”
Tony keeps looking between the two of us. Searching.
That’s followed up with blank stares, and I look at Gregory for help. “Yes, I’m her mentor. Each of you will meet with yours if you haven’t already. Probably after your first workout.”
“What’s the deal with the workout?” Tony asks.
“We need to see where you’re at physically. Some of you have been athletes. Some have a little martial arts training. It’s really just to get a baseline on you guys.”
We dig into our food, and that’s when I notice Dexter out of the corner of my eye. He’s just standing there, holding a tray and looking a little lost. No one seems to notice.
“Hey Dexter, come sit with us,” I yell out to him.
His shoulders relax, and a bright smile spreads across his face as he walks toward us.
He takes a seat at our table, and everyone introduces themselves again. He looks at me. “Thanks for that. For a minute there I had a horrible flashback to eighth grade.”
I laugh at the exact same thing I thought when I walked in here. “Me too, Dex. Me too.”
He smiles at the nickname I’ve already bestowed on him.
As soon as our plates are empty, we’re
herded into a large training room. Today is the first day of our group workout. Everyone stands around the mat assessing one another. Dexter and I stand next to each other, and Tony takes his place to my left. His eyes survey the room, really only focusing on the girls. Typical guy, with too many hormones roving around. Mike stands next to him, and I can hear them talking in hushed voices. “They really need to drop the rule of no ‘fraternizations.’ There are some real hotties in the room,” Mike says.
Gross.
Tony strokes his stubble. “Well, if no one finds out, then no harm, no foul.”
He gives a chin lift to Sariah across the mat. Her eyes haven’t really looked anywhere else but at Tony. I wish someone would tell her to wipe the drool from her lips. “She’s not half bad, eh?” Mike asks.
Tony smiles at her. “No, she’s not, but I prefer someone else.”
He turns from Sariah and his eyes meet mine. I’ve been caught eavesdropping. “You ready for today’s session, Becca?” he asks, laughter heavy in his voice.
Suddenly the wall is super interesting, but only because I’m completely mortified. Yup, he was totally aware I was listening. I nod, too embarrassed to answer. Because I don’t really need him to know how humiliated I am.
The training room door crashes open, and through it steps Ania. Quite the entrance. A bunch of others follow her in and line the walls. These must be the other mentors.
At once, every guy in the room turns and stares at her. It’s like dogs looking at a bone. I’m pretty sure some of their mouths are salivating. She’s got to use her looks to throw off opponents.
What’s it like to have every guy in the room want you? I know I’m not ugly, but my body is more muscular than lean, nowhere near the modeless of Ania. Girls always tell me that if I did more with my hair and wore makeup I would be a knock-out, but that’s too much hassle. The only thing I care about right now is that I’m in better shape than most of the other trainees.
Thank goodness for grandpa and all of his grueling drills on the basketball court or at the batting cages. Most girls got to go to Brownies or tea parties, and poor Grandma Mae tried so hard to put me in dresses with bows in my hair. Her efforts failed. More often than not I came home with my tights torn, hair a mess, and grass stains all over. Which would cause her to put her hands on her hips, give a disapproving sigh, and say, “Oh Rebecca, what am I going to do with you? You need to start acting like a little lady.” Fat chance of that.
Ania positions herself before all of us on the mats. “Today we’re going to work on some self-defense tactics. Later, as you progress in your training, you’ll have the opportunity to learn different types of martial arts and combat styles. These will be useful, as you never know where you’ll be or what you’ll need to survive. Now, can I have a volunteer?”
Mike steps forward immediately. His eyes scan her slowly from head to toe like he’s undressing her with his eyes. Total creeper. He rubs his hands together and a huge, smug smile sits on his face. He may be big, but that’s going to be his downfall. “I’ll gladly take you on.”
The sound of his voice makes my skin crawl. He’s one of those guys you wouldn’t want to be alone with. I don’t know if I’m the only one who knows her power is unbelievable strength. I smile to myself. It’ll be such a pleasure to watch this. “Well, come up here and we’ll see how long you keep that smile on your face, tępak,” Ania says.
“Well this should be interesting,” Dexter says from beside me. And I couldn’t agree more.
The hairs on my neck stand up as the warmth of a body presses against mine. “I bet she wipes the floor with him,” Tony whispers.
I snort at his comment. I have no doubt that she’ll easily subdue him. When I glance back up, Sariah’s shooting daggers at me. I highly doubt we’re going to become friends. Oh well. If she wanted to giggle with Tony, all she had to do was walk over here and stand next to him.
Mike looks poised on the mat. “Okay, I want you to come at me and don’t hold back,” Ania instructs. “There’s nothing more irritating than a man who can’t take control.”
She’s baiting him. He seems like the type of guy who refuses to lose and would never be outdone by a woman. He stalks around her, surveying her body. I want nothing more than to go retch in a corner. What a sleaze. I wonder if she thinks he’s gross as well.
He rushes to grab her from behind. But without any effort she turns, lifts him in the air, and slams him onto his stomach, twisting his arm into an unnatural position behind his back. It all happened smoothly and quickly, like she was dancing. All her movements were well planned. His lips are pinched and his eyes are slits, and that’s the best thing I’ve seen all week. His pride is completely wounded.
Silence fills the room. No one seems to know what to make of what just happened. A small part of my brain would love to laugh, but I know better. I start to clap slowly. That was amazing, after all. All eyes swing to me. Tony joins in and the rest of the room soon follows. The clapping and shouting becomes a roar and Mike’s face reddens even more. He crawls back to his spot alongside Tony and shoots me a dirty stare. I give him an innocent shrug. I’m not really making a lot of friends, but he deserved it.
Ania stands triumphantly on the mat, but not without a smile on her face. “Never underestimate an opponent because of their size. Dexter, come up here and we’ll show everyone some easy moves to break holds.”
Dexter freezes for a moment and then gives me a horrified look. I pat his shoulder. Poor guy. But he soon joins Ania on the mat. She shows us different ways to get away from an attacker. After a couple rounds Dexter’s face is covered in sweat, while Ania stands there without a hair out of place.
She pats the poor guy on the shoulder. “All right, let’s break up into partners and work on these simple tasks together. We’ll start on how to break free from an opponent by sweeping them off their feet.”
Sariah saunters over toward Tony, while Ania walks toward me. “I’m going to have you go off with Gregory to work today,” Ania says.
She points to the door behind me and there he stands, leaned up against the door frame. How long has he been standing there? He always seems to appear out of thin air. As I approach, he smiles and I understand how Sariah must feel when Tony looks at her, because my stomach starts to do flips. “Are you always lurking by some door?”
“I love this part of the training. Ania is always able to draw out the one creep who just wants a chance to put his hands on her. Their facial reaction makes my day every time.”
I look back at Mike, and he’s partnered with Ania. He looks like a scared little kid, but that’s not who Gregory is paying attention to. “I don’t think Tony really likes me,” Gregory tells me.
My gaze shifts to Tony. A scowl mars his handsome face, his eyes looking at Gregory. “I think he feels like his turf is being threatened,” he says.
I laugh at the notion. “What, with me?” I ask.
He smiles and grabs my hand to pull me out of the room. Tony watches us leave, still looking annoyed. “You and I have some training to do ourselves.”
Fourteen
The training arena reminds me of the rec center at school. Various weight machines, treadmills, elliptical machines, and a rock wall. The major differences are the boxing ring, sparring area, and a door marked Caution: Shooting Range. I stop to marvel at the sword-fighting area. Why they have swords I’ll never understand, because last time I checked, this was not medieval times.
Gregory walks over to the boxing ring. As I approach, he flashes his brilliant smile and produces a pair of boxing gloves. “Lucky for us, you’re already in pretty good shape. However, you need to learn to defend yourself and fight. Today we’ll work on boxing to teach you how to block and move. Any questions?”
“Yeah, why am I boxing alone with you?”
He smirks. “You better feel lucky you get to spar with just me. Be grateful that it’s not Ania you’re working with. We’re alone because until we have a better handle
on your powers, we don’t want to expose you to the others.”
More secrets and more seclusion. Just add another reason for the others not to like me.
I put my gloves on and follow him into the ring. I hop from foot to foot. I’ve never boxed, but this is what they always do in the movies.
He starts me with basic techniques of blocking shots, jabbing, dipping, and reacting quickly. My muscles scream in protest, especially since I’ve been benched for a while. But man, does it feel good to release all of these pent-up emotions. He’s quick to anticipate my moves and we continue for close to an hour in the ring.
My hands grip my knees. I’m going to die. Gregory grabs my sweat-drenched arm and leads me to a bench. He hands me a bottle of water. “That was a really good workout. I know you’re tired, but after working at this for a while, you’ll be able to handle much more. It’s vital that we stay in top shape. Rest a minute, and then I’ll take you to the classroom.”
In the classroom are Ania and Mr. Smith, but no one else. It isn’t really a classroom, but more like an office. The desk at the front is hidden under various stacks of papers. The walls are covered with different type of maps, as well as a picture of Mr. Smith shaking someone’s hand. I’m guessing the guy in the picture is important, but I have no clue who he is. There’s only one picture on his desk. He’s a lot younger in it, dressed in army fatigues with two other men. There’s no picture of a wife or children. How depressing.