Fear Power

by C. C. Bolick

  “I’m not sure if it’s her or Louis trying to confuse me.”

  Travis lifted his keys from the table beside the bed. “Guess what you’re doing tomorrow?”

  “Hopefully not being responsible for your car ending up in another harbor.”

  He smiled. “Tomorrow you get to drive.”

  “You want me to drive your car? You love that car.”

  “I love something else even more.” He pulled me down into an embrace that proved I was the only person in the world he wanted to kiss. He had one chance to use the serum and he’d drank it for me. For forty-eight hours he’d be powerless.

  I broke the kiss. “You weren’t lying about giving me the most perfectly normal day ever.”

  “Except for the part about me not having powers.”

  “Don’t argue when I give you a compliment.”

  Playfully, he slapped at me. His hand grazed the side of my chest and I froze.

  “What’s wrong?”

  “Nothing.”

  Travis took my hand and examined the palm. A dim blue light sparkled. “You’re still afraid of me?”

  “I’m not afraid of you, I’m—”

  His laughter filled the room. “Rena Mason is afraid of me getting to second base. If I knew this was how to get your powers working, I would have tried that two months ago.”

  I laughed with him. “No, you wouldn’t have.”

  He closed my fist. “It’s me, Rena. You don’t have to be scared I’ll go too far because I won’t. I respect you. I love you.”

  “I love you too.”

  His eyes met mine, and I realized that was the first time I said the words. And it was the truth. I really did love Travis Payne.

  “Today was always about you. I didn’t plan for anything to happen in this bed, but I did want to be near you. That’s why I didn’t ask for two beds.”

  “I’m glad you didn’t. You know,” I took a deep breath, “it would make sense if we—”

  “No.”

  “Are you sure? This might be our only chance.”

  “If we can have this chance, we’ll find another.” He kissed me again, painfully slow, and put an arm behind my neck. When he stopped for air, he pulled away and propped his head up on his arm. “I wrote something for you—a letter I want you to read.”

  “Does it have a check box for yes or no?”

  “I want you to read it but… not tonight. I put it under your pillow back at the base.”

  I groaned. No way would I think about going back there. Travis only had forty-eight hours before the serum stopped working. Going back meant our time together would be over. I wasn’t ready to accept that future. “If not tonight, when?”

  His voice became a whisper. “Tomorrow. You can read it tomorrow when you get back to the base.”

  “Not tomorrow. As long as we can be together like this, I’m not going back.”

  “You have lives to save.”

  “Not tomorrow I don’t.”

  “Rena?” When I didn’t answer, he drew me close. “Meeting you was the best thing that’s ever happened to me. Promise me that no matter what else happens between us, you’ll wait for me.”

  “Wait for you?”

  “One day I’ll be normal again. One day I’ll be there for you.”

  I snuggled against him. “You’ve always been there for me, even if we couldn’t touch.”

  “Promise,” he said.

  “I promise.”

  With my words, Travis drifted off to a sound sleep. I kept my eyes open and enjoyed his arms wrapped around me until even his touch faded.

  Chapter Thirteen

  Behind me, Mama sat on the bench. The ducks spread their wings and rose into the air as the sky darkened. I turned to look at Mama, but she was gone. A ringing split the air.

  I opened my eyes and sat up on the bed. Travis lay beside me in a sound sleep, his arm draped over my waist. On the table next to the bed, his phone glowed and vibrated across the wood surface as it rang.

  Then the room went silent.

  Before I could think of who might be calling Travis, the phone began to ring again. Same annoying melody that could blend in with the high-pitched notes of a thousand other phones. Usually he kept the phone on vibrate.

  I shoved his arm. “Travis, wake up. Someone is calling you.”

  Travis groaned and put his arm around a pillow. The window showed darkness; it must still be night. The phone stopped ringing. While the street behind the hotel filled our room with engine noises and stereos blaring earlier that night, the air now was eerily quiet.

  “Travis,” I said, shaking him. “Your phone was ringing.”

  When he didn’t respond, I laid on my side and stared at the door to the hall. A thin band of light stretched along the bottom of the door. A shadow moved through the light… No, I must have imagined the movement. No sound came from the hall. When another shadow danced through the light, I whispered Travis’s name.

  The potpourri smell of the room had welcomed me the day before. Now I felt anxious. I pulled the blanket up to my neck. I had control. I would keep control, no matter who came through that door.

  With another wave of shadows, this time stopping before the door, I held my breath. In the next second, the door crashed open and people in camouflage rushed in.

  Soldiers with guns. More than a dozen people in black masks with machine guns filled our hotel room. After the camouflage came a wave of people in black.

  “Travis,” I cried.

  He opened his eyes and looked up at the soldiers who crowded around our bed. One drew a gun and shot a dart that pierced Travis’s neck. A tranquilizer dart, like on TV.

  “Don’t… fight… Rena…” His words faded and he fell off the side of the bed.

  I leaped to his side of the bed, grasping for him, but one of the men grabbed my arms and dragged me from the bed. Still fully dressed in my clothes from earlier, I spun and shoved my fingers in the man’s eyes. He swore and released me. Before I could move, two other soldiers had my arms.

  Had Travis’s alien friends come back to get him?

  Someone turned on a light. Travis lay lifeless on the floor. A man dressed completely in black kneeled beside him and checked his pulse. “He’s out.”

  My stomach turned and I stopped fighting the soldiers. This voice was familiar. Not an alien at all.

  Agent Lockhart lifted his mask. “Get him out of here.”

  Two soldiers lifted Travis and carried him out of the room.

  “What’s going on here?” I yelled, not sure if I felt more anger or hurt.

  “A mission,” he said. “I’m following orders.”

  Rage filled me, and I rushed forward to claw his eyes out. The soldiers grabbed my hair and jerked my head back.

  “Regina,” another familiar voice said. “Stop fighting them.”

  I froze as Dad approached and removed his mask. Hot tears filled my eyes. “What are you doing?”

  “Executing a mission to subdue and capture Agent Payne.”

  Realization hit me like a blow to the face. “You knew he took the serum. You told Sylvia that Travis didn’t have his powers.”

  “I did my job.” Dad glanced at Agent Lockhart. “Don’t forget his car. He’ll be upset if anything happens to that car.”

  With a breath of relief, I relaxed. At least I relaxed as much as possible while surrounded by agents with machine guns. Travis would get his car back, which meant he’d be released at some point.

  Agent Lockhart nodded. “I’ll have it towed back to the base. There’s a spot in the airport deck where Travis likes to keep it.”

  Dad nodded. “That sounds like something his father would do. He probably thinks no one realizes where he keeps his car.”

  I followed Dad down the elevator and past the desk where an attendant watched with fear.

  “I didn’t know she was a minor,” the woman told another agent.

  “We’re sorry for the late-night show,” Dad sai
d.

  Minor? So that was Dad’s game. He’d neglected to tell the hotel staff I’d be eighteen in two weeks.

  Or that I’d most likely pick that day to walk out of the base with the legal system on my side. But who was I kidding? They had the support of a senator.

  A senator I would make sure regretted this.

  * * * * *

  I didn’t speak to Dad on the ride back to the base. From the backseat of the SUV, the Atlanta streets looked empty. At two a.m., how many people had a reason to be out?

  When we reached the base, Dad escorted me to a small conference room where Sylvia sat.

  I took the seat at the far end of the table. “Didn’t know this place kidnapped people out of their beds at two a.m.”

  Dad leaned against the wall next to the door. “If that’s what it takes to make you see reason.”

  “Make me…” Anger rushed through my veins.

  “You have to control your power,” Sylvia said. “I don’t believe you can achieve that control with Agent Payne at your side.”

  “You took him to punish me?” I asked.

  She shook her head. “Agent Payne must learn to follow orders. Since your arrival, his work has been sloppy.”

  “He’s been helping me figure out my power.”

  “Is that why you almost died?” Dad asked. “Because he was helping you?”

  “Travis said I had to fly. The only way for me to be successful was for him not to help me.”

  Dad shook his head. “You don’t know how I felt when he brought you back. Watching you die…”

  “I’m still alive.” I pointed to my face. “Still breathing, still talking. Still hating you for interfering with my life. It wasn’t enough that you drank yourself to sleep and made me take care of Alfie. I finally start figuring out answers and you swoop in to what… put your foot down and show me who’s boss?”

  “I’ve never put my foot down with you, Rena. Maybe that’s the problem.”

  “Did you know Mama had to fly?” I asked. “Did she tell you that flying helped make her strong enough to diffuse larger bombs?”

  “I knew she used both powers,” Dad said. “I never completely understood the connection between the two.”

  “I want to see Travis,” I said.

  “We’ve got bigger problems,” Sylvia said. “Our intelligence points to another bomb. Louis has been busy.”

  “I don’t care about Louis.”

  Sylvia gave me a hard stare. “You should care. Sources tell me Louis has a bomb ready to blow this base along with the surrounding counties.”

  “The threat from the message,” I said.

  She nodded. “Someone’s been watching Louis better than we have. It seems he plans to go live with this bomb and kill millions of innocent people.”

  “Where is Travis?” I asked.

  Dad dropped into the chair next to me. “Please, Rena. Don’t make this harder than it has to be.”

  I crossed my arms over my chest. “She needs my power. If she doesn’t let me see Travis, I won’t help diffuse this bomb.”

  “I warned him,” Sylvia said. “He should not have gone against my orders in front of the senator.”

  “Travis wanted to save lives,” I said.

  “No one is above the laws of this country,” she said. “Just as no agent is above following orders. Being number one on the list made him reckless. When your father told me of Travis’s choice to take the serum, I saw our opportunity. I’m not the only one who believes the world is safer with Travis under our control.”

  I glared at Dad. “I can’t believe you sold us out.”

  “When Travis told me he’d given up his powers to show you a normal day, I felt closer to that kid than I’d felt in years. He’s the son of my old partner. I promised to look after him.”

  “Were you afraid of Travis spending the night with me?”

  He shook his head. “Travis wanted to be straight about his intentions. He promised to respect you.”

  “He didn’t try anything. Why do this to Travis? Does the agency see him as that much of a threat?”

  Dad’s face looked haunted. “You still don’t get it.”

  “Get what?”

  He hit the table. “If you want to help Travis, diffuse this bomb and show us you can control your powers. Otherwise, Travis will remain in his current state.”

  I made fists of my hands. “Let me see him.”

  Dad looked at Sylvia and she nodded.

  “Where is he?”

  “The isolation floor,” he said.

  * * * * *

  Sylvia took me to the isolation floor herself. I wondered if she wanted to see my face when we arrived at his room.

  It didn’t matter who watched; seeing Travis’s motionless body through the glass brought a sob to my throat, one I couldn’t hide even from Sylvia.

  He lay across the bed in a white outfit that reminded me of a straitjacket. Like machines that kept people alive, the machine flashing next to him kept Travis in a coma. Probes were taped to the sides of his forehead.

  I touched the glass while cursing Dad for betraying us. After a few minutes of watching in silence, Sylvia insisted we leave. Her eyes had watered as she watched him. Maybe it was a trick of the awful white light or maybe she felt guilty. I wanted to touch Travis’s hand again before the serum wore off, but I knew asking was pointless.

  No one would let me in that room.

  I rode the elevator back to my room. At one of the floors, the elevator opened and Dr. X stepped inside.

  “Are you okay?” she asked. “You’ve been crying.”

  “I lost the person I cared about most today.”

  “He died?” she asked softly.

  “They put him in a coma. Said his powers make him a danger to the world.”

  “It was the hand thing, right? There’s a reason he wears gloves.”

  “He can kill with his touch.”

  “I knew it.”

  Her excitement caught me off guard. “If I can learn to control my powers, they might let him out.”

  She stopped the elevator and turned to me. “I’m sorry, but at least it’s some good news. I heard about what happened when you tried to fly.”

  “I didn’t just try. I flew and it was wonderful.”

  “Why did you crash?”

  “I flew long enough I lost control. I think there’s a time limit.” I thought of the interviews. “Why are you still here? Did you get the job?”

  “Sylvia extended the decision after what happened to you. She gave us all an extra week to determine if your powers can be controlled. She said the agency is facing a disaster that only you can stop.”

  “How does she…” Well, this was Sylvia. “I don’t think I can save anyone after what happened this morning.”

  “At least he’s only in a coma.”

  “Only?” I stammered. “Only in a coma?”

  “He could be dead.”

  I sighed. Dr. X was right. Sylvia could have issued a kill order if she’d wanted Travis gone. This might be their only chance.

  She restarted the elevator.

  “You want this job, don’t you?” I asked.

  “I’m always sure until I talk to you. Hearing your drama makes me second guess myself.”

  “I could make Sylvia hiring you a condition of me saving the world.”

  “If you could negotiate this nonexistent salary…” She chuckled. “If I’m going to get the job, I’ll do it on my own merits. Same if I lose the job.”

  The elevator stopped on my floor. “Good luck with finding the secrets of my powers.”

  She laughed. “Good luck springing your boyfriend. Actually, I’d pay to see that fight.”

  As the doors closed, I realized I never asked about my DNA test. Again.

  * * * * *

  The hall outside of my room was empty, just as I expected at this time of morning. I opened my door but jumped back when I realized Dr. Greene had made himself at home on
my couch.

  “Didn’t realize you got up this early,” I said.

  He closed the folder in his hand. “Sorry, I was doing homework while I waited.”

  “How did you know I’d come here?”

  “I knew you’d show up eventually. You associate this room with home.”

  I sat on the couch next to him. “To be honest, I’ve never felt at home anywhere. I started to think of this agency as home, but I was wrong.”

  “Home is where your family is. Your support network.”

  “So much for my support network. I’m running out of friends for Sylvia to send away. I guess she got tired of reassigning them and decided coma on the isolation floor would be easier.”

  “The attachment you formed with Travis was too fast for real feelings.”

  “How can you be sure? You haven’t lived my life.”

  “Do you love him?”

  “Yes,” I said.

  “Did you ever tell him?”

  I nodded. “Last night, after he gave me the best day ever.”

  “What was so special about yesterday?”

  “It was just the two of us. We had a normal day.”

  “We have normal days here at least twice a week.” He smiled. “You’re supposed to laugh at that one.”

  “I can’t believe Dad betrayed me.”

  “Donald was an agent long before he was a father. As a father, he wants what’s best for his daughter. It’s not easy for him to do his job while having a daughter with powers like yours.”

  “Not easy… Whose side are you on?”

  “There are no sides. I want to know if you can continue to do your job here.”

  “Technically I’m not employed by the agency. In two weeks I’ll be eighteen. No one here can control me then.”

  He burst into laughter. It took a moment, but Dr. Greene was able to get the laughter under control. “Sorry, that was rude and disrespectful on many levels and… You honestly think that turning eighteen will get you out of here?”

  My heart dropped to the pit of my stomach. “You’re saying it won’t?”

  “With a gift like yours, you’ll be on the agency’s radar for life. The only way you could get off the list is by getting rid of your power or dying. I’m not sure I suggest either at this point.”