by Sophie Davis
Though he pointed a finger in Gretchen’s general direction, Crane was careful not to go after her directly. He’s smart and diplomatic. Very much like Victoria, I thought.
“We failed to realize that, should the Coexistence Treaty cease to exist, the true threat to our survival would come from within.” His voice was pitched low, designed to convey the seriousness and sorrow he felt about the oversight. “We failed to appreciate the depths to which some would sink to advance their own agenda.”
Crane straightened to his full height and tilted his chin up. When he continued, he no longer sounded humble or apologetic. “Our shortsighted outlook does not change the fact that we have always have been—and always will be—dedicated to the protection and safety of the world’s Talented population.” Strength and confidence practically oozed from his holographic pores. “It is why UNITED has claimed dominion over towns such as Interlaken. We must create safe places for our kind, so that we may regroup, rebuild, and move forward as one, unified people.”
Crane’s hologram flickered as though the signal had been interrupted.
Gretchen, I thought. A moment later, his form solidified. Crane went on to his grand finale.
“To those who call themselves Privileged, you are trespassing on UNITED lands. This will not be tolerated. Like all with abilities, you are welcome to remain here and avail yourselves as citizens. Violence, and inciting others to commit violent acts, is prohibited in all such areas. You are ordered to either vacate the area immediately or lay down your weapons if you wish to stay.”
I expected Crane to provide a timeframe for Gretchen to either comply or not, like UNITED did with Mac in D.C. Maybe that would’ve happened, but Gretchen didn’t give him the chance. Her hologram appeared beside his. Gretchen’s arms crossed defiantly over her chest, and she stared down Crane with frosty blue eyes.
“Hello, Ian,” she greeted him coolly.
“Gretchen,” he replied cordially.
Watching them face off, I wished that the end battle could be as simple and neat as two leaders in a boxing ring fighting to the death. Fewer lives would be lost.
“I will not withdraw my forces,” Gretchen stated bluntly.
“Those who wish to leave should be allowed to.” Crane arched an eyebrow, as if to say the ball was in her court.
Most of the people standing at the feet of Crane and Gretchen’s holograms ran. Privileged soldiers ringed the perimeter of the encampment and closed ranks, refusing to let the civilians pass.
Gretchen shook her head. “No. If you choose to attack, you will do so at the risk of thousands of innocents. You claim to protect them, so how will you proceed?”
Crane’s visage winked out of sight. A smug smile curved one side of Gretchen’s lips in triumph. She opened her mouth to address the crowd, but her words were drowned out by sirens.
Then, all hell broke loose.
Chapter Forty-Eight
Erik
I watched from a ledge at the very top of the mountain that overlooked one of the lakes as UNITED agents poured from the hovers above Interlaken. Some innocent civilians ran for shelter, while others fought alongside the Privileged. It was expected and yet still unwelcome. Ian’s speech was good, but it might not be good enough.
“Erik?” Penny’s voice interrupted my thoughts.
“Yeah, I’m here,” I sent back.
“I have a rough location, but I’m still trying to lock down the exact coordinates,” she replied.
Using the giant hologram was a little showy, but we’d all known there was no way Gretchen could resist joining Ian if he did it. It had been Penny’s idea to use the broadcast signal to track Gretchen. She wouldn’t be in the action, since there was too much risk with all the power flying around. Gretchen hadn’t flown down to Interlaken for nothing, though. She was close by.
“What’s her rough location?” I asked.
Penny hesitated. “Ugh, it looks like someone is scrambling the signal. Otherwise, she’s in the lake.”
In the lake? Unlikely.
“Can you unscramble the signal?” I demanded.
“Yeah, of course. Just give me a minute.”
Standing there, high above the action, I felt completely useless. Ian had told me nothing else mattered except finding and killing Gretchen. That was true. Still, having me twiddle my thumbs while Penny worked her crypto magic wasn’t helping anyone.
“I’m going to do a little recon,” I sent back.
“Erik, just wait. I’ll have it in sec,” Penny insisted.
“Tell me when you do,” I relied. “In the meantime, I’m going to spread my wings.”
Stepping back from the ledge to get a running start, I morphed as soon as my feet left solid ground. Below, the fight was quickly escalating. Dressed in crisp white, Gretchen’s soldiers were a sharp contrast to UNITED’s agents in their black battle gear.
The Privileged may have received multiple rounds of the creation drug, giving them numerous abilities, but none were strong enough Telekinetics to bring down a hover. Instead, they launched kinetic bombs from the ground. Fliers took the skies, landing on UNITED’s crafts. They hurled balls of energy and fire at the windshields.
“Any luck, Penny?” I asked. Circling the encampment, I dipped lower and lower each time.
A female flier with magenta hair whizzed past me. She must’ve realized I was no ordinary raven. Somersaulting to flip back around, the girl sent a ball of bluish silver light straight at me. I dodged it easily, only to have another hurdled my way.
“Just another minute,” Penny sent. I caught sight of a second flier out of the corner of my eye.
Energy orbs came at me from both directions. Diversionary tactics weren’t going to cut it for much longer. I needed to get out of there, but I’d waited too long. Four fliers surrounded me like compass points. They fired in tandem. I deflected the first round. And the second. By the third, I only managed to rebound two of the orbs. One clipped my right wing, knocking me off balance. The second skimmed my back.
White hot pain shot down my spine. A screeching caw escaped my beak. I’d barely righted myself when four more orbs converged on me. I didn’t have time to react. They hit me in tandem.
Stars exploded in my line of vision, and then everything went dark.
Chapter Forty-Nine
Talia
When the fliers filled the skies, UNITED’s hover fleet made a tighter grouping around the center craft. Crane’s still onboard, I realized with alarm. I didn’t hesitate.
Small and quick in bird form, I had no problem zipping through the Privileged soldiers gunning for Crane’s hover. Still, I wasn’t prepared for the explosion and subsequent shockwave. I tumbled through the air. Chunks of metal rained down around me. Dark gray smoke made my eyes water and obscured my vision.
A sharp pain just under my ribcage made me gasp. When I looked down, my feathers were with slick with blood. A razor-like shard of metal protruded from my side. I tried to shake it loose, but the shrapnel refused to budge. I couldn’t reach the sliver with my beak, either; wings weren’t great for gripping anything.
The smoky haze cleared enough for me to get my bearings. The explosion hadn’t knocked me as far off course as I’d assumed originally. Quite a few fliers were still aiming for Crane’s hover, and even more had dropped from the sky.
Pinning my wings to my sides, I used my own energy to catapult myself toward the target. Five fliers were busy prying the hover’s side doors apart. I knocked two aside with my mind and ripped a wing from a third. The remaining two Privileged slid inside the craft, and I followed closely behind.
The sight that met my eyes nearly gave me a heart attack. One of the fliers had a guy with dark hair and vibrant eyes pinned on his back. Blood coated one side of his face, stemming from a gushing head wound. Rage overshadowed reasoning, and I morphed back to human.
“Erik!” I screamed, his name tearing from my throat. The flier looked up at me over her shoulder.
&nbs
p; She’s so young, I thought.
It was true, but her dead eyes invoked no sympathy. She lunged for me. It was no contest. I batted her aside with my mind and rushed to Erik’s side.
Except, the boy on the ground wasn’t my boyfriend.
“Evan?” I choked, feeling only slightly guilty when relief flooded my system at the sight of Erik’s brother. “What are you doing here?”
He stared up at me with unfocused eyes.
“Talia?” he asked. Evan reached for my face. The boy reached for me as though I wasn’t really there.
“Yeah. It’s me. Don’t try to move.” I pushed him gently back down. “Just stay put. I’ll find help.”
Lifting one trembling finger, he pointed over my shoulder. “Behind you,” he wheezed.
I spun as the young girl flew at me feet first. The heel of her boot connected with the shard wedged between my ribs and drove it deeper. With a howl of pain and fury, I tore the wings from her suit and heaved her through the open doors.
“Talia?” Crane emerged from the passenger cabin, his gun raised and posed to shoot. He lowered the weapon as he ran to my side.
“I’m fine,” I breathed. One hand covered my wound, and I tried to grip the metal sliver. Between my shaky fingers and the blood, I couldn’t pull it free. “Just help Evan. He needs a medic,” I insisted.
With a deep breath, I shoved the metal loose with my telekinesis.
Crane knelt by Evan’s side. Erik’s little brother was no longer conscious, but we had more immediate problems. Ten fliers torpedoed straight for the open doors. As I slammed them shut with my mind, Crane dragged Evan’s limp body into the passenger bay. At least one of the Privileged hadn’t been able to stop in time. A dull thud echoed inside the hover upon his impact with the doors. Breathing heavily, I followed Crane and Evan.
“Where did you come from?” Crane asked me. His relief was palpable.
“It’s a long story.”
He glanced at the hand I used to staunch the blood from wound. “How bad is it?”
“I’ve had worse.” I shrugged. “Nothing compared to a bullet.”
Crane pursed his lips. “We don’t have any medics onboard; they’re all back at basecamp. Take Evan and one of the pods. Go back, now.”
Incredulous, I shook my head. “No damn way that’s happening.”
Screeching from the cargo bay assaulted my ears, and I winced. With no time for arguments, the remaining fliers had reopened the outside doors. They’d be inside the passenger cabin any second. Several UNITED agents rushed in from the other end of the cabin.
Brand did a double take. “Talia? What happened to you?” he demanded.
Did I look that bad?
“Cooper, Elway—get Agent Kelley on a pod. Now!” Crane barked.
Two of the agents nodded. Slinging Evan’s arms around their necks, the UNITED guys dragged him back the way they’d come.
“Ian, we all need to get out of here,” Brand interjected. “They hit one of the engines. We’re leaking fuel. I already gave the plane evacuation order. We’re flying on auto.”
A resounding boom from the cargo bay made the ground shake beneath my feet. The doors burst open, and the fliers charged in.
“Get her out of here, Brand!” Crane hollered.
Penny’s boyfriend was a better soldier than I was. He obeyed without question, dragging me by the wrist to the front of the hover.
“We can’t leave him,” I growled, twisting out of his grip.
“He’ll be fine, come on.” Brand grabbed me a second time as the hover dipped to one side. “Now. Talia.”
More agents rushed passed us to Crane’s aid, and I let Brand drag me to one of the pods. He pushed me inside gruffly and jumped in after me. Seconds later, we zipped from beneath the main hovercraft. When I turned to look back, the ship crashed into the mountain and erupted into a mass of flames.
Chapter Fifty
Erik
“The signal keeps scrambling, but I think I’ve got her.” Penny’s voice woke me with a start. “Erik? Erik, answer me!”
“I’m here,” I grunted.
“Are you okay? What happened?” Penny demanded.
“Not important,” I groaned, struggling to sit up. My body ached all over. When I flexed my fingers and tried to move my legs, everything worked. Good sign. No broken bones.
I looked down and blinked.
How hard did I hit my head? My body was…glowing? Seriously? Electricity crackled along my arms and legs, the same blueish-silver hue as the orbs that had knocked me down.
“Erik?” Penny snapped.
“Yeah. I heard you. You’ve got Gretchen’s location? Where is she?” I sent back. Crawling to my feet, I stared at the weird swirls of light.
“She’s running,” Penny informed me.
“Running, where?” I demanded, suddenly much more alert. Which was a good thing; I had company.
Privileged soldiers running in perfect unison came at me from the left and right. Behind me, there was only water. You’re on the edge of a lake, I realized. I’m cornered. Awesome.
I was about to morph, since my only real option was to flee up. Then, I remembered the fight with the bounty hunters at the McDonough School. When the idiot had poked me with an electrified cattle prod, I’d absorbed the electricity and reversed it back on him.
Is that why I’m glowing? Did I absorb the energy from the orbs?
There was only one way to find out. I held out one hand in either direction and sent pulses of telekinetic energy toward my attackers. It was like bowling. With human pins. When I used my talents, it was intoxicating.
“Gretchen’s getting away!” Penny shrieked inside my head. “I’m going after her.”
The buzz of from my powers had gone to my head, and it took me a minute to appreciate Penny’s words.
“Penny! Don’t! Just tell me where she is,” I sent back frantically.
Nothing.
“Penelope. Listen to me. Don’t go after her.” I backed the command with enough compulsion anyone would’ve obeyed.
It was too late. Penny had shut me out.
Chapter Fifty-One
Talia
“What do you mean Penny went after Gretchen?” Brand snapped. He was yelling into the pod’s comm system. “She went where?”
“I’m not sure.” Frederick hesitated. “She’s been trying to get a lock on the hologram transmission. Five minutes ago, she said she had it. She said she was passing it along to Erik.”
“Erik?” I interjected.
“Talia?” Frederick asked uncertainly. “Are you with Brand?”
“Yes. Don’t ask. It’s a long story. Is Erik okay?” I demanded.
“I don’t know. I think so,” he rambled, clearly frazzled between dealing with Brand and me. “Penny kept talking to him. So, yeah, most likely.”
Our individual tempers were bad enough. Combined, they were a nightmare.
“View her,” Brand growled. He was speaking to Frederick but glaring at me.
“It doesn’t really work like that,” Frederick replied uneasily.
“Make it happen.” Brand’s fist slammed into the window beside him.
We were flying above the battleground in the escape pod. Until Brand got Frederick on comms, we’d been planning to land and go in search of Crane. The crash was bad, but a few survivors had emerged from the wreckage.
I closed my eyes and reached out to Erik. “Where are you?”
“Talia,” he replied, his voice heavy with emotion. “Oh, thank God. Are you with Gretchen?”
“No, Brand, actually,” I replied.
“Gretchen fled—”
“I know. Frederick just told us. Where did she go?” I interrupted.
“Penny wouldn’t say. She’s blocked me. Where are you? I’ll come meet you.”
“One of the escape pods,” I told him. As I said it, something—or someone—landed on the roof. With one concentrated burst of power, I shoved the Privileged sold
ier off. I’d learned my lesson with the little girl, though; knocking these people down wasn’t enough. They’d just come back. When I saw the would-be attacker tumble past my window, I hit him again.
Maybe it was my worry over Crane any Penny. Maybe it was just an adrenaline rush. Either way, the telekinetic wave was so intense that the flier dropped like a stone. He tumbled straight into one of the lakes.
“I see her!” Frederick exclaimed. “She’s in a hover. Flying over water. The ocean, I think. Yeah, it’s definitely the ocean.”
The ocean? That didn’t make any sense. There wasn’t an ocean between Interlaken and the Institute.
“You’ve got to do better,” Brand insisted. “A landmark. Something.”
“Are you hearing all this?” I asked Erik.
“Yeah. Does Gretchen have another hideout somewhere? Maybe she’s going to New Mexico?” Erik suggested.
Through our bond, I felt a spark ignite in Erik. Images—or maybe memories? —flashed through his mind. Either way, I was pretty sure they’d come from someone other than Erik.
Then, I saw Gretchen. A hologram version of Gretchen, anyway. She was addressing a room of Privileged. These weren’t the young kids I’d seen flying mindlessly around Interlaken; these were higher-ups. Some of them had more silver on their skin than pigment. I recognized a few of them from TOXIC.
“Natalia must be brought to me alive,” Gretchen told the group.
“Forgive me for asking, ma’am,” Anya Pritcher began. “But Natalia is going to be very difficult to capture. She’s slipped through our fingers multiple—”
“She slipped through your fingers, you mean to say,” Gretchen snapped, eyes blazing blue fire.
“Of course, that is what I meant to say.” Anya blushed but continued. “Maybe it is time to eliminate her. Permanently.”
“Did I ask for your opinion? No. Because you do not have one, unless I give it to you.” Gretchen was so calm, it made her words even more chilling. “That goes for all of you. Inflict whatever damage you’d like to her body, but her mind must still function. The key to our survival is inside of that girl’s head.”