by Mary Ting
I would trade her for Justine, who lurked next to me.
“What’s going on?” Justine’s eyes roamed to Drew and Gene. “Sounded like you were talking about something fun. That group is too boring.” She gestured at the group she’d come from by the sofa.
Brooke halted, a scoop of frosting halfway to her mouth. “I’m sure it’s not them. It must be you.”
I glared at Brooke. She had promised me she wouldn’t give any reason for Mitch to punish the team or put her in a detention by herself. If given too many warnings, she would be booted. Being let go meant death.
Justine’s cheeks turned a shade of dangerous red. She could have scorched Brooke with her hateful glare.
“Trust me, Aubrey.” I stepped in front of Brooke, hoping to cool the killer exchange. “You’re safer where you are.”
“I see.” Aubrey nodded, eyeing the two girls.
“You don’t want to be with a bunch of flying hormones, Aubrey,” Drew added. “Especially Brooke. She seems off the chart today. I’m sure she’s not the only one. You have an unpredictable team, Ava. You need to get a better handle on them. I’m surprised your team can complete an MM, let alone a real mission. Luck must have been on your side. I question your officers’ ability to evaluate and execute what’s best for ISAN.”
Fire blazed like a wildfire through my bones. It took every ounce of my will not to ram my fist into his chest. But I could always count on Brooke to get riled up.
“What did you say?” Brooke leaned closer, a wild beast emerging in her eyes, dark as midnight.
Drew held up his chin, angling his chest forward. “You heard me. You need to get your attitude in check.”
“Mine?” she said through gritted teeth. Then her expression softened. “You’re right. Perhaps I’m tired. After a good night’s sleep, I’ll check my attitude.” Brooke tripped on her own feet and slammed her cupcake on his forehead. “Oops, I’m sorry. See how tired I am?”
“Nobody talks to Brooke like that except for me.” Justine smashed her cupcake on his head. On her way out, she tugged Brooke’s arm.
“I’m sorry for doing this, but my team sticks together, good or bad.” Tamara grimaced and placed her cupcake on top of Justine’s. She scurried after Brooke and Justine.
Oh, sweet Tamara. I gave her kudos for trying.
“My team might not have the attitude you expect from yours, but know one thing: we will fight tooth and nail to make sure every one of us makes it out alive. And no one gets to talk shit about my team except for me.” Then I smeared my cupcake on his face and dumped water on him, too.
Thankfully, the music drowned out his roar as water dripped from his hair.
“Goodnight, Aubrey. If you ever want to transfer to my team, ask Russ.” I leaned closer to Drew, who was frozen as an ice sculpture. “See you tomorrow at MM. Mark my words, Drew, my team will have the best score.” Then I marched away.
My team drove me nuts and they didn’t get along, but moments like this when they stuck up for each other warmed my heart. If only they could carry this kind of unity every day.
“Ava!”
The door closing behind me drowned out Russ’s voice as I raced out of there. Damn it to hell! He was always watching. Better Russ than Mitch, though. I could always sweet-talk my way out of trouble with him.
Ava
During breakfast, Drew and his team stayed clear of us, ordered by Drew no doubt.
Mitch and Russ kept glancing over to me. Mitch hiked up his eyebrows but didn’t say a word about last night’s incident. Russ must have told Mitch not to bring it up, that he had it handled.
Drew should feel lucky that dumping cupcakes on him was all we’d done. No, it wasn’t cool. However, we hadn’t hurt anyone, and I had to admit it felt amazing to shoot down Drew’s fat ego.
After breakfast, the four teams going to the ball were paired up. As I already knew would happen, Chelsea’s team went up against Vince’s, and Drew’s against mine.
When I sat on the leather chair, it automatically settled me into a reclining position. Then my seat shifted and hovered off the ground and realigned with my team in a half a circle.
Instead of having tags placed on me, my head was perfectly placed onto a headrest, and a thin, cool material automatically strapped my forehead to lock me in. The officers sitting in their seats raised above came into view, then the wall opened up to a room.
“Why don’t we have this, boss?” Justine murmured to Russ when he stood in front of her.
He had made his rounds, checking the ten of us, ensuring all was well.
“The West is testing out this tech first. If there are no glitches, we’ll get them soon,” he replied, and moved on.
After he examined us, he went out of the room and appeared on the other side of the see-through glass wall next to Mitch.
“Ready, Team East?” Sabrina’s voice vibrated through my head from the headset. “Give me a thumbs up.”
I flicked up my thumb. Justine next, followed by Tamara, and then Payton. Brooke signaled last but then switched her thumb to the middle finger. Tamara and Justine snickered. Payton ran a hand down his face. I about choked on my own saliva.
“Very funny, Brooke,” Courtney cackled. “Team East has a sense of humor.”
Mitch shook his head. “Watch it, Brooke, if you know what’s good for you.”
“Better yet, you need to watch for each other.” Alonzo swiped a finger in the air. “The first team to find the briefcase with the bomb and get on the sub-glider successfully wins. The winning team lead gets to command the group at the ball. You’ll be provided with a Taser. If you’re lucky, you might find one or two of Kendrick’s weapons along your way. Your destination is the department store. Good luck.”
I couldn’t see Drew’s face, but I was certain he wore a gloating smirk.
You haven’t won yet.
After Team West agreed they were ready, I swallowed a hard knot. Never knowing where I would land coiled my stomach in tangles. Before my thoughts ran too wild, an electronic hand detached from the chair and a needleless syringe dosed me with serum in the upper arm.
An electric current zapped through me. Not in a painful way, but a sharp, brief tingle shocked me awake. Everything went dark, and then ...
I landed with my knees tucked to my chest. My fingers dug into the wet soil. The scent of grass whiffed through my nostrils. When my team thumped around me, I stood.
“Where are we?” Brooke surveyed the surroundings.
“A park.” Payton drew his Taser from his waistband.
Behind me, a wall of trees blocked my view. At a short distance, children played on a jungle gym in a giant sandbox as parents on benches watched. In front of me, tall buildings reached for the sky. Though I’d never been in this park before, something tugged at my heart. So familiar. Why?
My father’s video.
I’d been at a park with my foster family. My foster father’s dark curls and malevolent stare flashed in my mind. He had yellow-stained teeth, some missing, and a scar on the right side of his mouth as if someone had sliced his lip.
A man ... no, my father, had stopped me to ask a question at the park. He had been there at the same time as me. It happened shortly after my mom had passed away. I answered and ... why couldn’t I remember what he looked like?
Dr. Hunt doesn’t exist to you. Do you understand?
What had he done to make me forget? Or perhaps I’d done it to myself. But why, if that theory was correct? If I could erase certain parts of my memory, then why would I do it? Had Father asked me to?
My father had called me Pumpkin in one of the memories I’d recalled. I couldn’t remember what he looked like, but I knew his voice.
What did you do, Father? How did you make me forget you and why?
“Ava.” My name sounded muffled as if the person had their hand over their mouth.
“Ava.”
This time loud and clear. I nearly twisted my ankle when someone shov
ed me, but I righted myself.
“What the hell?” I barked at no one in particular.
“Daydreaming again.” Justine blew out a breath, and a strand of her blonde hair shot up and fell.
I snarled, convinced she had pushed me.
“She was thinking.” Tamara faced Justine with a scowl. “Can’t you tell she’s pulling out her map?” Then she dipped her chin and shuffled her feet on the grass to avoid confrontation.
Good girl, Tamara. Look her straight in the eye. Well, you did, sort of.
Had it not been for Tamara, I might have pounced on Justine.
I willed the blueprint of the buildings to the forefront of my mind to find the department store. Blank. It was too far, but I faked my finding. I could home in on the target once I was closer.
“There. I’ve got it.” Casting a glance to the trees, I let go of the ghost of my father and my foster father and dashed to the busy street, wondering where Drew’s team had landed.
I weaved and dodged the gliders landing in front of buildings.
“Will I get hit by a glider if I stop in front of one?” Brooke charged behind me.
“Don’t stop to find out.” Payton pursued behind Brooke.
“I dare you to do it.” Justine snickered.
The blue sky seemed too perfect while the gliders cruised overhead in an orderly fashion. Advertisements flashed on skyscraper walls, and hologram people spewed directions and spoke to citizens. So lifelike, but too bright and too loud, thanks to Helix.
After crossing another street, I turned right, past a coffee shop and bakery, and zigzagged around pedestrians. Being out in the city, albeit virtual reality, distracted me momentarily, reminding me of the time I’d gone to Cleo’s bakery shop.
Jealousy had clenched me in a vise that day. Rhett had told me there was nothing going on between them. I believed him, but from the way Cleo had looked at him, she felt otherwise. I was sure of it. I might not have experience in relationships, but I knew desire when I saw it.
Ugh. Get out of my mind, Cleo and Rhett.
Now in the core of the city, I pulled up my map.
“Here.” I entered through the sliding door to a department store. Had it been real, the poles on either side of the doorway would have scanned my chip.
“Perfect place to hide one.” Payton’s gaze followed computerized families talking and walking past him.
“Now what?” Brooke tilted her head to the dome ceiling and then to the escalator.
“What is this?” Justine pointed at something shiny. A necklace. “Would that be something Kendrick might invent? It doesn’t belong with all this makeup stuff.”
I examined it closer. “Good find, Justine.” I picked up a gold chain choker and tucked it behind my waistband.
“Hey. Why do you get to keep it?” Justine slapped my arm lightly.
“Because I’m the leader.” My brazen gaze and tone shut her up.
“Something feels wrong, Ava.” Tamara’s eyes darted from one wall to the other.
I broke away from Justine. No one except me knew Tamara had a special gift.
I yanked Tamara to the side. “What do you feel?”
Tamara scrunched her face and rubbed at her arms. “I’m not sure, but I think ... Drew.”
Being surrounded by computer-generated people, I saw no hologram bodies in my mental map except for my own team. As soon as she said that one dreadful word, I spotted them coming from the far end of the store.
“Thanks, Tamara.” I whirled to my team. “Let’s go. They’re here.”
I raced up the escalator with a Taser in hand, my team shadowing me. Their pounding footsteps reverberated.
I flashed a glance behind me. “Brooke, do you hear the timer? Which floor?”
We had another advantage. Brooke had extra sensitive ears. After a few long heartbeats, she said twentieth. As resilient as we were, I didn’t think we could race up that many flights of stairs. We’d have to take the elevator.
After three flights, I flinched and pulled back my hand. A Taser pellet had missed me by a hair.
“Watch out.” Payton dove to the side of the wall and jolted up.
More pellets rained toward us, clipping the walls and the handrail.
Computerized people screamed and ducked for cover. I glanced over the side, and sure enough, Drew’s team was two flights below us.
“Your team sucks.” Brooke fired at them but missed.
She took the words right out of my mouth.
“We’re just warming up.” Drew’s voice flickered in and out, bouncing off the walls of the escalator. “I’m coming for you, all of you. You’re all dead. The briefcase is mine.”
Not if I get it first.
Using my map to my advantage, I had a clear shot of not one but two members of his team. If I were to analyze the situation and calculate the risk, my logical side would tell me to get the hell out of there, put more distance between us and them. But what was the fun in that?
“Cover me.” I leaned against the rail and engaged my targets.
They fired as soon as I appeared.
With perfect aim, perfect precision, I shot. Bodies tumbled down the escalator.
Two down. Three more to go.
Then I dashed up a couple of more flights, pushed through the door, and raced for the elevator.
Faster. Move faster.
I frantically pushed the button when I reached the elevator.
Hurry.
The door slid open.
Too slow.
The door moved too slow.
I waited for my team to enter. Justine trembled and thumped to the elevator floor.
Shit.
A pellet had hit its target and knocked her out.
“Hurry up and close it.” Brooke punched the wall.
Drew, Aubrey, and Gene dashed toward us. From Drew’s smirk, I figured he’d been the one who shot Justine. Just before the door closed, I pointed my Taser at Drew and pulled the trigger.
The pellet hit true, but he didn’t budge. He didn’t even flinch. He kept coming like some kind of invincible force.
Drew tugged at his shirt. Something was different about his shirt.
Lucky find.
The door closed and the elevator soared.
“What do we do?” Tamara kept pushing the button as if that would make it ascend faster.
“Get the briefcase, what else?” Payton released an agitated sigh and raked his hair back over and over as if to calm himself.
I didn’t appreciate his sharp tone, and he was not the team leader.
I inhaled a deep, calming breath. “That was not what she was asking.” I gripped Tamara’s shoulders, more to steady myself than her. “It’s no big deal if they’re Taser proof. I’ve got something better.”
I tapped at the gold choker Justine found at my waistband to ensure it was still tucked safely, even though I could feel it. “Here’s our plan. Let’s leave Justine here. Get the briefcase. Take the same elevator up to the roof.”
The door dinged. I squeezed through before it opened all the way. Pulling up my map, I cautiously advanced as I scanned the room. Thankfully, there were fewer customers on this floor.
Where is it, Ava? Find it. Hurry.
Drew’s team would exit the adjacent elevator at any second.
I swung left and passed the men’s clothing and shoe department. Around the bend were the briefcases, neatly stacked in line, some displayed open on the tables.
“Which one?” Tamara squeezed my wrist.
I was her steady boulder in the grip of anxiety. We all needed someone, an anchor, to keep us from breaking apart. My someone had been Brooke, and now I could add Rhett to that list.
Brooke hastily opened and closed one after another. “I lost the sound. The timer, it’s ... it’s dead. Gone. It’s freakin’ gone.” She released an animalistic growl.
Payton and Tamara searched the opposite table.
“There’s no bomb.” Payton tossed asi
de the ones he’d checked. “Are you sure we’re on the right floor?”
“I know what I heard.” Brooke hurled one aside in anger. It hit a pillar and bounced with a loud thud.
There.
Smack in the middle of the display sat a table with an open, black leather briefcase. No one would expect an open one to be the one. I ran my fingers inside the cool, soft lining, and along the sides where I found a bump.
A while back, Lydia had held a week-long course on the types of bombs. She had showed us a specific bomb that was hard to detect—the kind small enough to be inside the lining of clothes, purses, or a briefcase.
Bingo!
Sabrina had tricked us. There was no bomb inside a briefcase. The briefcase was the bomb.
I shut it and grasped the handle, and then I picked up another one identical in size and color. “I’ve got it. Now. Let’s all carry one to confuse Drew’s team.”
“I knew I liked you for some reason.” Brooke showed me her perfect teeth and then blanched.
I didn’t have to ask her what she saw. Pellets darted my way.
“Get down. Follow me.” I dropped to my hands and knees, crawling from one display case to the next.
An upright briefcase exhibited neatly on the table clattered to the floor, its smooth leather mutilated by the pellets. Hiding behind a tall metal stand, I waited to get a shot. When I glanced back to search for my team, Payton and Tamara were close to me, but where the hell was Brooke?
“Come out, little mouse, and give me the briefcase. It’s three against three now. And I doubt you’ll make it to the roof with me right behind you.”
Three? Brooke?
No matter how many times I repeated this wasn’t real, knowing Brooke had been shot wrenched an emotion in me. I let go of the briefcase with the bomb and peered to calculate the distance to Drew.
“Look who I’ve got?” Drew sang haughtily. “I’ll trade.”
He propped an unconscious, listless Brooke in a standing position. She slumped in his arms. Wrath seethed through my veins.
“Fine.” I loosened my white-knuckled grip on my Taser. “Let her go and I’ll slide it to you. I’ll even give you a five-second head start to the roof because you’re going to need it now that you’ve really pissed me off. Is it a deal?”