by Valia Lind
"Princess, stay with me," Logan whispers in my ear, a small amount of pressure in my back and I find control. Glancing down, I find everyone staring at me with a bit of fear in their eyes.
"What?"
"You were ready to pounce, T," Calen replies, coughing a little at the words. "It was terrifying."
"Good," I snap, my anger itching to be unleashed. "I hope Kallos is ready for all the rage I'm about to unleash on their sorry excuse of individuals."
My words are met with silence, but not because they disagree. I hit it right in the bullseye.
"Okay, then. We're doing this. Can we use the bug you found in me for proof?"
"It's no longer in working order," Uncle Freddie replies. "I'm not sure how much proof it provides, considering they can say you got it anywhere. We need something bigger. Something, that once its out in the world, they can back off of."
A thought comes to my mind then, but I'm almost afraid to say it. I don't want to cause Uncle Freddie any more pain, but there is one player that Kallos never wants in front lines. We have to use that.
"Like Barbara lying about who she is?" I ask cautiously. The boy's jerk to attention, but they don't speak. They understand that it took me a lot to even ask, but it had to be done. It takes a second for Uncle Freddie to reply.
"Yes, Hummingbird," he says, turning to look me in the eye, so I don't miss just how much he means his next words. "She's going down, along with the monster of a company she's a part of."
I'm more proud of my uncle than words can describe. It's time to act, and I have the best team behind me.
Kallos is going down.
* * *
While Calen and Uncle Freddie go to rest, Logan and I watch the press conference from earlier. Foster is just as proud as ever, and there's a gleam of satisfaction in his eyes he can't quite mask. The stocks have soared since the little bomb threat and the company has been receiving a lot of "we'll stand behind you" emails in support.
"How can anyone trust him?" I ask from my position in front of the computer. Logan is laying on the couch behind me, resting his muscles. Apparently, he had a quick workout before coming to check on me. Something that I really need to do, but don't have time for at the moment.
"People see what they want to see," Logan replies, sitting up. "If Kallos is promising a cure for cancer, there is absolutely nothing that won't be done to help them make it happen. Sickness makes people do a whole list of things that would be considered desperate." There's something in his voice that speaks of experience, but I won't push. Not right now anyway.
"I hate him so much, Logan. I don't know how my body is even capable of this much hate, but it's in here. Burning holes in my soul because I can't shake it off." My voice catches and it's an unusual feeling for me, this overwhelming desire to be good. I didn't have to think about my actions as much before Logan. I acted on impulse, but now, I consider everything. He kneels in front of me, and I didn't even see him move.
Taking my hand into both of his, he places soft kisses on my knuckles, before speaking, "Sometimes, it's perfectly acceptable to hate. Don't you dare think that this makes you any less of a person. Your emotion is pure and deserved."
I place my other hand on his cheek, running my thumb over the smooth skin. This beautiful boy has seen so much in his life, he can be as bitter as they come. And yet, instead, he takes the time to make sure I don't lose sight of the good in the world. Of the good in me. Before I can reply, there's a noise behind us and Uncle Freddie walks into the room. He only slept for a little over an hour, if that.
He sees Logan kneeling in front of me and a small smile curls up his lips. Logan, being the smart man he is, gives my hand a quick squeeze, before leaving us alone. It's like he could read my mind. I wanted to talk to Uncle Freddie alone. Now is my chance.
My uncle, the man who raised me these last seven years, looks about a hundred years old. He walks to the kitchen, pouring himself a cup of coffee. I meet him at the counter, leaning against it as I try to figure out what to say. But just as always, he has my back.
"You can't feel guilty for this, Hummingbird," he says, after taking a sip of his coffee. I open my mouth to reply, but he's not done. "She made her choices and they didn't include me. Maybe they never included me."
"What do you mean?"
"I don't know," he sighs, a far away look back in his eyes. "Maybe she married me for my money, maybe for my knowledge. After this, I wonder if I was a means to an end to get to your family. I thought we were happy though." Those unshed tears are back in his eyes and it takes so much for me not to get into the car right now and drive to wherever she is, murdering her on the spot. Instead, I reach for his hand, wrapping my fingers around his.
"It would be very hard not to love you," I say and I mean every word. His heart is bigger than anyone deserves, me included. He didn't have to love me, but he did. He gave up his life to help me achieve my goal. I don't know if I could've asked for a better parent to take my father's place.
"I guess she did love me at one point, but it wasn't enough for her." He says, after another long pause. He doesn't outright say it, but I hear it. He thinks he wasn't enough for her. I have absolutely no idea what to say to that. If it's at all possible, I hate her even more. No one should ever feel as if they're not enough. No one should ever make other people feel as if they're not enough.
"The kind of a person she is," I begin, barely controlling my rage, "tells me only that you were too good for her. She didn't deserve one percent of you. You are more than enough, Uncle Freddie."
"Hummingbird--"
"No," I stop him with a wave of a hand, needing to get this out. "I don't say this very often, if ever. But thank you. Thank you for being my everything. Thank you for loving me when I was unlovable, for taking me in when you didn't have to. I was a broken little girl, who was terrified of the world and shattered by the loss of her family. I didn't make things easy, I know. When I told you that I'm going after Kallos, you stood by me because you knew I'd get myself killed without you. You have always been my protector, my rock. You are the best father a girl could've asked for and I'm the one who didn't deserve you."
He stands frozen for good thirty seconds, before he's around the counter and pulling me into his arms. We've never been the affectionate ones. I closed off my emotions the moment my childhood home went up in flames. Uncle Freddie tried, but after a while, let me be my own person. I was harsh, I was unyielding, even as a twelve year old. No one would've blamed him for giving me to the system, least of all me. But he didn't.
He sat with me after I woke up from nightmares that were memories. He stayed in the room, long after I fell asleep, because I'd find him sleeping in the chair the next morning. He gave me the best education, the best training money could by, because he believed I could be something besides an orphaned broken girl. There were many times where he could've walked away, because I wasn't his blood. But he stayed. Every time he could've left, he stayed.
"I'm the lucky one, Hummingbird," he whispers against my hair, his warmth a comfort I didn't know I needed. "I needed you as much as you needed me. We healed each other."
I hold him tighter, clinging to his words and storing them in my heart forever. Blood doesn't make family. Choice makes family. He chose to love me, just like I chose to love him. Even before I knew what love was. I know for a fact my parents are more than okay with my guardian. If I had to pick one person to take their place, it would be Uncle Freddie. Every time.
We stay like that for a long time, clinging to each other like never before. We both need the comfort because neither one of us knows what will happen next. He allowed this vengeance to guide my steps for so many years and now, he's walking that road right along with me.
I'll make him proud. I will. I will.
26.
TASIA
Logan and I leave early in the next morning.
When we decided to go for it, we're not waiting any longer. Uncle Freddie and Calen will follo
w close behind, setting up a command center in the city. A part of me that's used to being along wants to run away again, just so that I'll know they're safe. But I promised myself not to be that person anymore.
The drug is almost gone from my system now, but the affects will linger. There's not doubt about it. If only because I see things in a different way now. I let Logan drive, while I get my thoughts in order.
According to Lucas, bless his soul for having a brain and coming to our side of things, Foster is back at the main offices and on his regular schedule. Knowing that he set up the attack helps us understand his game a little better. He's now playing it up at being the victim, which means he'll have to do a lot of public events to reassure his supporters.
So much of this is like a chess board, with each of us moving on our particular turns. But Logan and I are about to ruffle a few feathers and make a few changes to the rules. If Foster is sticking to his typical schedule, that means he'll have lunch meetings. All we have to do is to pick the right one to show up at. Once we're in the city, Lucas will text us the locations and names and Logan and I will pick.
I glance over at my partner-in-crime now, see the determination plainly on his face. This is it for us. I know it and he knows it. It's hard to image the 'after' but I want to. For the first time in my life, I want to imagine life after this. I've dreamed about death for so long, I forgot how to live. Now I will fight to have a chance at a life.
Logan catches me looking at him, and reaches over to take my hand in his. I lace my fingers through his, giving and receiving comfort. He's about to say something, when his phone beeps. Extracting my hand from his, I reach for the device in the cupholder.
"All three of the meetings are at the same restaurant. Risky with the clients, but he's clearly nervous about his safety." I say, after reading over the list Lucas sent over. "None of these names strike me as important, but I'll have Uncle Freddie check." I shoot the message over to my uncle, receiving a response almost immediately that he got it.
"If there are no flags," Logan says, keeping his gaze on the road. "I think we should show up at the middle meeting. He can't just walk out, if someone is coming. Especially if he wants to look good in front of them. And it's a public place, which helps us."
"Exactly what I was thinking," I reply, smiling. It really is nice to have him on my side. That thought brings up the other issue, and the smile dies on my lips.
"You sure you're ready, Logan?" I ask, and I can tell I don't have to clarify. His shoulders grow tense at my question, but he doesn't hesitate with the answer.
"Yes. I want you to have no concerns on that front," he states, his voice solid. "I'm not going up against my father. I'm going up against the general, a man who is just as crooked and messed up as Foster. So no second guessing, okay?"
"Okay."
We grow quiet after that, both of us thinking over the various outcomes of what we're doing. There are so many ways this could go, I can't even imagine a single scenario. I imagine twenty.
I think about my parents and Kyle, of how much they mean to me, of how brutally they were murdered. I'm taking no prisoners on this. Pulling on all the years of training, on all the times I've thought this over, I'm ready.
I'm an animal.
I'm a hunter.
I'm a predator.
It's what I was before Logan, before the drug messed with my emotional state, before I lost myself. But I'm not afraid of those labels anymore. They are part of me, as much as the emotions are. I embrace every part of myself as the true whole. It's just that today, I need to let the animal come out to play.
Logan's phone dings with a text, as we pull up to the district the restaurant is in.
"Uncle Freddie says there's nothing special about the people Foster is meeting. Just regular donors."
"If they're donors, he'll be less inclined to just walk out. He needs his little charity department to do well."
I nod, my mind going over the mental list of items. My knives are strapped to the bottom of my leg, hidden by my boots, but within easy reach. I have another at the bottom of my back, inserted into my belt. I know Logan is carrying a knife of his own, as well as a gun. He'll watch my back and I'll watch his.
Logan pulls out a little container and passes me a comm for my ear. Calen and Uncle Freddie are at a different part of the city, but they'll be there if we need them. This is for Logan and me. Because I'm going in there alone.
"I still don't like this part of the plan," Logan comments as we get out of the car. We'll go the next few block on foot, checking the surrounding area for signs of danger.
"Tough," I reply, coming around the car to stand beside him. "I have to watch you go through this with the general, remember?" He sighs but doesn't comment farther. Before I can take two steps, he's taking my hand, entwining our fingers together. I look up at him in question, every time he touches me it's still as new and exciting as the first time.
"We're a couple out for a stroll," he grins that mischief smile I love so much. "Just to make sure the locals aren't restless."
I can't help but smiling. Snuggling up to his side is the easiest decision I've made today. As amazing as it feels, I don't relax completely. My mind is on the surrounding area, taking in everything the way it always does.
Precisely.
Logically.
Quickly.
My time under the drug just sharpened those senses, and I wonder if that'll wear off as the time goes on. I can't imagine anything good coming from this chemical, but I'll use it while I still can. I find it quite ironic. The drug that they created is what will be their downfall.
When we round the corner by the restaurant, the first client is just leaving. There's about a forty-five minute break in between, allowing the paths not to overlap. Logan and I wait an hour, cuddling on a small couch at a coffee shop across the way. When my phone vibrates with a timer, I look at the man next to me.
"Watch my back?"
"Always."
Before I can overthink it, I place a quick kiss to his lips and stand. I feel the tingle all the way down to my toes and I smile at the sensation. But the smile dies on my lips the moment I leave the coffee shop. Pulling our my surveillance glasses, I put them on, knowing that Calen is receiving a visual back at the command center. In the span of minutes it takes me to cross the street, I'm once again that ruthless girl who isn't afraid of anything.
I see the moment Foster notices me. He's sitting at the back of the booth, his face towards the door, a move I always make when I'm in crowded places. His eyes find mine and I swear I see a flash of fear in them.
"Hello, John."
* * *
To his credit, the man doesn't whimper. But the look on his face, for that split second, tells me that he wants to. The other man seated at the table looks up puzzled and I offer him a quick smile.
"Mind if I join you?" I ask. The man smiles in response, motioning for me to take a seat beside him. "Thanks."
Seated, I turn to face Foster and am pleased to see that he no longer looks scared. Now he just looks mad.
"I know I'm interrupting and I apologize," I direct that last part to the man beside me and receive a smile in return, "But there's simply a matter that I have to discuss. It's quite urgent."
"If it's private, I would be happy to leave," the innocent man speaks up and I smile again.
"No, please stay," I reply, before turning back to Foster. "I think this is something everyone needs to hear."
"What do you want, Miss Snow?"
In silence, I watch him for a moment longer. I see the creases around his eyes, from stress, not laughter. I see the paleness in his skin from staying indoors too much. This man isn't the same man I met a year ago, but I'm also not the same girl.
"I want you to destroy every single dose of your miracle drug, reunite the children with their families, and then publicly resign from Kallos Enterprises."
There's a long pause at my words, and I feel the man at my side snap to
attention. He's now listening just as intently as I am. Foster, of course, recovers in record time. His laugh rings out a little too loudly.
"You have always been such an imaginative girl, Miss Snow. Just like your father." He's trying to play it off, but two can be good at that.
"My father? Joseph Snow, who you murdered in cold blood, along with my mother and brother?" I ask, raising my voice just a tad, but still not loud enough to attract the attention of anyone else in the room. The goon at Foster's back takes a step forward, but he can't make a scene in a public restaurant. His boss just wouldn't stand for that. I see him growl at me and I return it with a grin.
"Mr. Foster, what is she talking about?" the man beside me asks.
"Like I said," Foster replies, keeping his eyes steady on mine. "She's privy to stories. The bigger the better."
"No, John. The stories are your forte. It's why so many people are dying, literally, to get a hold of one of your precious miracle serums. I wonder if they know just how miracle it really is." The man begins me fidgets again, and I can feel the doubt and apprehension on him like radiation.
"Mr. Foster?"
"Armstrong, escort Mr. Mare out of here please. I apologize, but she's the daughter of an old friend and she's clearly having a mental breakdown." He flashes a quick smile at the donor, and I turn to wave at him as well. Watching his eyes study us, I can see that the doubt has been planted and I hold on to that. Foster's goon and Mr. Mare walk out, leaving me alone with Foster.
"You're out of your mind if you think you'll get away with this," he hisses across the table at me. Like this, he doesn't look as intimidating as I always picture him to be. I guess in my head I just made him a lot more menacing than he is in real life. After all, he's just a puppet of a businessman.
"Listen, John," I ignore his little statement, leaning closer over the table. "The company is going down. We have enough to make sure you never get another donor again and to cast enough shade on your sunshine of a company to make sure your stocks plummet." I feel his apprehension rise, rather than see it and I allow that predatory grin to curl up my lips again. "I want a meeting with Katherine."