It skidded to a stop and two MRRA soldiers jumped out. They both held guns. One of them yelled something and waved his arm as if beckoning the Kazzies closer to him.
The Kazzies stood motionless.
The soldier yelled again and raised his gun.
My heart stopped.
The Kazzies kicked into action. All three ran toward the van. When they reached it, one of the soldiers grabbed the orange-skinned Kazzie’s arm, the one with strain 22. The Kazzie ripped his arm away from the soldier and took a menacing step closer to him. The woman with strain 11 grabbed the Kazzie. She appeared to be saying something to him.
The guard kept his gun raised as the two Kazzies piled into the back of the van. When the woman tried to join them, she tripped over something on her way to the door. It looked like the soldier had stuck his foot out, intentionally making her fall.
The orange-colored Kazzie jumped out of the van and advanced on the soldier.
A shot rang out, making me jump.
The orange-skinned man grabbed his shoulder as the woman screamed. The stone-skinned man lunged at the soldier who shot his friend.
The other soldier tazered him.
Since electricity was one of the few things that permeated the skin in a Kazzie with strain 35, he fell, convulsing on the ground
“What the hell?” Amy’s voice rose. “They were just playing Frisbee! What the hell is their problem?”
I tensed too as Sharon grabbed my hand. Her eyes were wide. I had no idea how many videos she’d seen. I guessed not these.
The video then showed the soldiers dragging the stone-colored man to the back of the van. The woman and orange-skinned Kazzies stood huddled together. The woman was assessing his shoulder. Blood poured down his arm.
The guards yelled at the woman when they had the unconscious Kazzie at the van’s door. They appeared to be demanding that she help them. With stiff movements, she left her friend, that I assumed was her boyfriend from how they were acting. She easily lifted the stone-skinned Kazzie into the van despite him probably weighing five hundred pounds.
The video cut out.
None of us said anything.
I felt Ian watching me.
With a shaky hand, I moved the mouse over the next video and double-clicked.
Another image appeared. It showed hundreds of Kazzies lined up in the distance. They appeared to be around a military station. Dozens of MRRA soldiers surrounded them. It was later in the season. The prairie grass had browned.
All of the soldiers had multiple weapons. Each held an assault rifle. They also had guns strapped to their legs and waists. And I couldn’t be sure, since they were far away, but the sunlight gleamed off something on their belts. I squinted and peered closer. It looked like they also carried tazers.
A flash of midnight hair caught my attention.
My breath sucked in just as Sharon squeaked.
Davin.
He stood near the front of the line. At his side was Sage. My heartbeat increased wildly.
Mitch sat up straighter. “Is that Sage and Davin?” He pointed at the screen.
“Yep, that’s them,” Amy whispered.
“What’s on Sage’s hands?” Charlie leaned closer.
Sage’s hands were covered with something. It looked like his hands were wrapped in dark and bulky mittens.
Ian cocked his head. “Those almost look like… mitts of some kind?”
“Thick mittens.” Charlie scratched his chin. “Rubber mittens maybe?”
I bit my lip. Before moving to the reservation, Sage had learned how to better control the ability Makanza had given him. Since he had strain 27, he could generate electricity along his skin. But more than that, he’d learned how to throw electric bolts. Almost like lightning shooting from his hands.
“They must have figured out what he can do.” Amy clasped her shaky hands together. “Maybe they think it’s too dangerous to leave his hands exposed.”
“So they’re restraining his hands twenty-four hours a day?” My voice rose. With each video it was becoming more apparent that the Kazzies were being horribly abused. It was no better than Compound 26.
And to think I gave them up. For what? So Dr. Roberts could abuse them without drugging them? Stupid! So stupid, Meghan!
“What are they doing with all of them around that building?” Mitch pointed again at the screen.
We continued watching. It soon became apparent the soldiers were having the Kazzies step forward individually. From there, they were doing something to their arms. It looked painful. Each Kazzie cried out or grabbed their wrist when the soldiers finished.
Rage surged in me.
“Isn’t that where they put those tracking devices you told us about?” Amy nudged me.
“Yeah, that’s where they put them.” I barely got the words out.
When I’d ridden with our Kazzies to the reservation over three months ago, they’d forced a tracking device into each Kazzie’s wrist when they were admitted. Dr. Roberts’ reasoning was that they needed to know where each Kazzie was at all times.
It seemed like a rather extreme measure and another barbaric practice that the Kazzies were subjected to.
My gaze stayed glued to the screen. Each Kazzie’s head hung, as if their dignity had been stripped. Tears stung my eyes, and I struggled to blink them back.
When it was Davin’s turn, he stepped forward, his chin up. My heart filled. Just the sight of him made my pulse race, and pride flowed through me like raging whitewater. Davin was a fighter. He always had been, and even after years or torture and abuse, it didn’t appear that had changed.
The soldier grabbed Davin’s arm. Davin appeared to look the guard in the eye. His head didn’t dip. He didn’t show submission.
Holding something to his wrist, the guard blasted it. I had no idea with what, but Davin’s stiff form didn’t falter.
It’s just like in the Compound. Even then, he refused to show his pain or any weakness.
Sergeant Rose, Davin’s former watch room guard, had once called Davin resilient. That word probably described him best. Despite being beaten down and struck again and again by the Compound and MRRA, Davin always stood back up.
A sob reached my ears. Sharon spun away from the laptop and flew across the room. She raced to the bathroom and closed the door behind her.
My stomach sank. “Let’s turn it off for now. We’ve seen enough to know what they’re really doing inside. Mitch, can you download all of the videos to my laptop? The more copies we have, the better.”
Mitch nodded. “Yeah. I’ll do it.”
Everyone else stayed quiet.
I crept to the bathroom door. Quiet sobs could be heard on the other side. I tentatively knocked. “Sharon? It’s me. Are you okay?”
Her shaky voice came through. “Just… ah… just give me a minute.”
I leaned my forehead against the door. In the past, I’d seen firsthand what the Compound was capable of. I knew of the mistreatment that took place, but Sharon didn’t. She may have heard of it, when I tried to gently explain things in the past, but she’d never witnessed it firsthand.
And not when it was her own son.
That squeezing band around my chest crushed me again. I tried to fight the anxiety that wanted to consume me, but it was hard. More than ever I knew we needed to find a way to free the Kazzies.
EVERYONE RETREATED TO their rooms not long later. I offered to stay with Sharon in the room she and Amy were sleeping in, hotel policy be damned, but she shook her head.
“I’ll be fine, Meghan. Really. I will.”
From her red rimmed eyes, I didn’t believe her, but I also knew that being around a stranger might help her keep her emotions at bay. With me, she felt comfortable, and while at times that was a blessing it could also be a curse. I got the distinct impression that Sharon wanted to keep herself composed and not breakdown again.
“I’ll see you in the morning.” I hugged her before she left.
She gripped me tightly. “Yes. Sleep well.”
She turned swiftly and departed out the door before I could reply.
Once everyone was gone, it was just me and Ian. I’d felt him watching me during the night. I knew I hadn’t kept my emotions in check. The anger, pain, and sadness that swirled inside were probably etched on my face, like a horrific painting that captured an image of suffering and despair.
I’d been told on more than one occasion, mostly by Jeremy, that I didn’t hide my emotions well.
“Are you okay?”
I felt Ian move behind me, hovering, his body like a looming shadow with weight and presence. He laid a hand on my shoulder.
I stiffened but turned to face him.
He stood only two feet away. Emotion swam in his eyes. “I know you care for them. I’m sorry about what’s happened. I’ll help in any way I can.”
His kind words did something to me. All of the anger, longing, and fear that I’d been feeling all night bubbled up inside me like an erupting volcano. I couldn’t stop it. Tears rushed to my eyes, and before I knew what was happening, they were streaming down my face.
Ian pulled me into a hug, crushing me against his chest. His arms locked around me. His cedar and leaves scent was everywhere.
I closed my eyes and listened to his heart beat strongly within.
His pain morphed into mine as he held me. It wasn’t nearly as strong as my own, but Ian was so in-tune with people that I doubted he could ever witness abuse and not be affected.
“We’ll get them out. I promise. We’ll find a way.”
His quiet words, while hollow, helped. There was no way he could make that promise. All we could do was hope that Cash’s videos would sway our government to take action. We had proof that the Kazzies were being abused. We had proof that Dr. Roberts’ reservation was run no differently than Compound 26’s labs.
I pulled back from Ian, hurriedly wiping the tears that stained his shirt. I sniffed. “Sorry about that.”
He shrugged. “Don’t worry. I don’t mind being a tissue.” His dimple appeared when he smiled.
I smirked and gave a hysterical laugh.
His gaze softened when I looked up. Another strange current passed between us, similar to the one in Washington and my bedroom last night. I stiffened, but Ian’s gaze grew hooded.
Reaching up, he placed a finger on my chin, tilting my head up. Yearning grew within his irises.
And what happened next felt like it all transpired in slow motion. He leaned down, his gaze fixed on my mouth. His hand stayed in place, gently turning my head.
When his lips covered mine, I froze.
I felt him stiffen, his body growing harder, but he didn’t pull back. His lips stayed against mine and then moved slowly in a dance full of question and need.
A part of me screamed to pull back, but the other part stayed frozen. The last time I’d kissed a man, it had been Davin.
Maybe it was the memory of Davin, the absolute, bone-crushing need to be with him and wishing more than anything that it was Davin’s lips pressed against mine and not Ian’s – whatever it was, my lips softened under Ian’s before my head caught up with my body.
But it was too late to tell him he had it wrong.
Ian groaned and pulled me against him.
His hands roamed everywhere – up my back, brushing along the sides of my breasts, cupping the back of my neck – while his heat warmed me.
It was his heat that snapped me back to the present.
The last time I’d felt heat against my body like this had been in the forgotten corridor in the Inner Sanctum. When I’d been against Davin. The only man I’d ever loved.
What am I doing?
I abruptly stepped back and broke the kiss. “I’m sorry.” I looked down, breathing heavily. “I… I don’t know why I did that.”
The floor stared back at me. I kept my gaze glued to it.
“Oh.” Ian’s words sounded dumbstruck. He stepped back. “No, I’m sorry, I should be the one, uh, the one… Shit. I just thought when you…”
I squeezed my eyes shut and wrung my hands. Finally meeting his gaze, I floundered with what to say. “It’s my fault. I should have stopped you immediately. I don’t know why I didn’t.” I took a deep breath. “I love somebody else.”
Ian’s eyes widened. “I see.” He cleared his throat and took another step back. “I’m sorry. I didn’t know.”
I ran a hand through my hair, my fingers catching in a few strands. My cheeks felt hot. I could only imagine what I looked like.
Pulling my fingers free, I gripped my hands tightly together. “He’s not someone I can ever be with.” I shrugged helplessly. “But it doesn’t matter, I only want him.”
Silence filled the room for at least a minute. It weighed down on me, as if pressing me to the floor.
Finally, Ian asked, “Is he a Kazzie?”
I nodded stiffly.
“Is that why you care so much about this? You want to free him?”
“That’s one of the reasons.”
“It’s Davin, isn’t it?”
I snapped my head back. “How did you know?”
“That’s whose name you were screaming in your dreams last night.” He sighed heavily. “Right. It all makes sense now.” With an abrupt turn, he pulled his bag onto the bed and unzipped it. The sound of the zipper echoed in the void. “So… we should probably go to bed. It’s getting late, and Cate will be here tomorrow.” He pulled out his flannel pants and t-shirt.
I stood frozen. Cate. I’d forgotten about her in all that had transpired tonight. We could only hope she’d be able to pull rank and gain admittance into the reservation.
Swallowing uncomfortably, I shuffled from foot to foot. “Going to bed is probably a good idea. What time is she flying in tomorrow?”
“Early. She thinks she’ll arrive at Mobridge’s landing strip around nine.” His words were stiff and formal.
I nodded tightly. “Okay. Yeah, we better go to bed.”
I whirled away and ran into the bathroom as despair and confusion rained down on me. Why did I just do that?
Closing the bathroom door behind me, I leaned against it, wrapped my arms around my waist and sank to the floor. But I knew the answer. I knew why I’d done it.
For a brief moment, I’d imagined it was Davin kissing me, not Ian, and that was something I wanted more than anything.
10 – DR. HUTCHINSON
We left the hotel first thing the next day. All of us were starving. Other than our makeshift meal before meeting Cash, we hadn’t eaten anything.
The first thing on the agenda was finding a restaurant that was open. Luckily, the checkout guy at the hotel pointed us in the right direction. Bismarck had two diners that opened early, so Mitch pulled into the closest one.
The doughy scent that greeted us when we entered the cozy restaurant made my mouth water. A part of me was glad to be out of the hotel and back with the group. Last night had been awkward and uncomfortable after my disastrous kiss with Ian. We’d both gone to bed after that botched encounter, but this morning when we woke, I swear neither of us could turn or walk anywhere without bumping into the other.
I’d wanted to crawl under a rock and hide, even though Ian had been nothing but polite and a complete gentleman since the incident. But I had sensed a change. He’d raised a wall. A barrier now separated us that hadn’t been there a day ago. I knew he was protecting himself from further embarrassment.
It just made my shoulders slump even more.
“What time is Cate flying in?” Amy slid into the large booth the waitress showed us to.
“Nine o’clock at the landing strip outside Mobridge.” Ian picked up his menu. He hadn’t glanced at me since we left the car.
“We better hurry then.” Charlie’s eyes lit up. “Oooh, look. They have pancakes. I love pancakes.”
We placed our orders and sipped coffee while the cook prepared our food. Charlie, Mitch, and Amy seemed pe
rfectly happy and at ease. Only me, Sharon, and Ian were quiet. I knew Sharon’s detached mood was from what she’d seen last night. No mother could witness that and not be affected.
As for the strained vibe between Ian and me… well, I was glad nobody knew why that was or seemed to sense it.
Once our food arrived, we all dug in. Normally, I would have savored the cinnamon roll and omelet, but it tasted like cardboard in my mouth. Not only were thoughts of Davin still swirling through my mind, but now thoughts of upsetting Ian were too.
I forked a large bite and forced myself to chew. I suppose I should count my blessings that the only male I’m feeling awkward with here is Ian.
Mitch didn’t seem to be holding any grudges about me rejecting him. There had been a few times where I’d caught him watching me, but for the most part, he acted like he always did. Thank goodness for small miracles.
Ten minutes later, Mitch wiped his mouth and threw his napkin on the table. “Right, should we go? It’s already seven. We need to get moving.”
We paid our bill and hopped in the SUV. The morning sun lit the horizon as we sped back to Mobridge. Blue sky shone overhead. Nervous energy hummed in the vehicle.
Cate was arriving soon, and she was the last chance we had. Because if she couldn’t get us into the reservation today, no one could.
MOBRIDGE MUNICIPAL AIRPORT lay just east of the small town. It was as empty as the prairie around it. The runway was in dismal shape. I eyed the cracked tarmac and brown weeds poking through the pavement that stood waist high.
“Will they be able to land on that?” I pulled my hat out and stuffed it over my head. It was even colder today than yesterday.
Ian crossed his arms. He stood on the other side of Amy. “They’ll have to. Let’s hope it goes well.”
The sound of distant jet engines in the sky soon reached my ears. It was the only sound in the quiet prairie. Here they come.
“Does anyone see them?” Charlie shaded his eyes.
Sunlight glinting off the fuselage caught my eye. I pointed. “There.”
The jet approached, descending lower and lower.
Section 12: Book #3 in The Makanza Series Page 9