Varick's Quest (Devya's Children Book 4)

by Gilbert,Julie C.

  That was the end of our first conversation. Our second communication consisted of a series of pictures of Danielle, including some I intend to make Lanier pay dearly for. In every one, she was unconscious and helpless.

  The Matheson and Blairington households are understandably concerned, but I believe Dr. Robinson’s involvement has eased their minds. She represents power they understand. Both families trust my word that I will pursue their daughters’ captors, but to them, I am still a lad who has not yet reached majority.

  I get the feeling Danielle hasn’t told her mum and dad about us, for which I am grateful. They don’t need more reasons to hate me right now.

  Danielle probably sees me as Jillian’s barmy brother, but one day, I hope to be more to her. I love her. I haven’t told her, but I’ve fancied Danielle since she started speaking Russian the day we brought down the slavers and rescued Marina. The fire in her eyes was a lovely sight. She’s not a reckless person, but she’ll knock a friend out of a bullet’s path if necessary. She’s been a source of strength for Jillian and a friend to Malia and me.

  I have Dr. Devya to thank for enough emotional conditioning to function during this time. His moment will come someday, but there are many more problems to solve before that one.

  Jillian says Darren holds Dr. Carnasis and Nadia. Although this Lanier fellow is probably the more pressing concern, keeping me out of his range is as important as rescuing Danielle. It hurts to leave her fate in others’ hands, but Nadia also needs my help.

  Are you sure you’re safe? Remember to check for followers as you go about your daily business.

  Your servant,

  Varick

  ***

  ITEM 205: Jillian’s second letter to Nadia

  Item Source: Jillian Blairington

  Dear Nadia,

  I am letting Malia’s program direct the quill this time.

  Dr. Lanier’s the bad guy. Well, one of ’em anyway. He ain’t the guy who has you and Dr. Carnasis, but he’s made quite a collection of people we care about. Cora, Dustin, and Danielle are here with me in Dr. Lanier’s big, old mansion in the middle of New York.

  I’ve gotten better with maps and given Varick all the information I can. I think he’s coming after ya now. Dr. Devya, Aiden, and Maisha are in Wyoming, and you and Dr. Carnasis are in Kansas. Danielle would probably have a Wizard of Oz joke for ya, but I don’t think like her. Nana says humor and honey make life sweet, but I’m struggling to find reasons to smile.

  If what I tell ya next works, I’ll never have reason not to smile again. I think I can help ya wake up. Dr. Lanier’s been forcing me to practice reaching people in very deep sleeps both natural and unnatural. Obviously, you’re in an unnatural sleep, but the only thing keeping ya there is a chemical.

  You and I once showed Malia how to reclaim the nanomachines lying to her body about the strength of her heart. Malia and Michio recently proved that bad cells can be removed. You need to do both. You need to retrain each nanomachine to find, destroy, and dump every last bit of that nasty chemical.

  If you can find these letters, then enough of you is still fighting. I’ve given this speech to Dr. Carnasis in a dream too and asked her to whisper it to ya when she can.

  The man who has you, Darren, is almost through his negotiations to sell ya. I wish we had more time, but we don’t. We need you awake very soon. That said, wake up slowly. If you snap awake, Dr. Carnasis will be in trouble ’cause Darren is afraid of ya. He will control you through her.

  Your body’s probably very weak from the long spell of not moving. Dr. Carnasis agreed to increase the nutrients and try to stimulate your muscles more, but do what you can to cautiously help her keep your body in good condition.

  To help ya, I’m enclosing a written version of our notes on freeing Malia and some notes from her on the work with Christy’s momma. We guessed you might not be able to access your version of these notes. Use ’em well.

  Still your worried sister,

  Jillian

  Chapter 22:

  ATM 2: Fire

  ITEM 206: Jillian’s 101st post-kidnapping journal entry

  Item Source: Jillian Blairington

  After making sure Danielle was resting, I fell into an almost dreamless sleep for a few hours. When one of the guards tried to wake me, I sank myself deeper ’cause I needed to get some work done. The training exercise that almost got Danielle killed told me I had to get her away from Dr. Lanier as soon as possible.

  My search for Nadia and Dr. Carnasis had taught me how to read maps and plot the interesting points on the program Dr. Das started long ago. I discovered that many people keep maps in their heads, and a fair number of those dream about it often. The most useful maps came from truck drivers, mail carriers, and tourists.

  Truck drivers know long routes connecting far places. Mail carriers and tourists tend to have a lot more detail about much smaller sections of the country. By combining the information from people with useful jobs and random dreamers, I managed to get a good location lock on the two places I needed to find.

  I sent the whole map to Varick without much of an explanation. He’d know what to do with it but wouldn’t get the information for some time ’cause I’d been working mid-day. I’m glad Nadia showed me how to place time delays on dream messages.

  About the time I finished my message for Varick, Dr. Lanier got nervous and had Danielle summoned to wake me. I’m not sure what he woulda done if I’d truly been beyond reach, but I let myself wake up so I didn’t have to find out. Dr. Lanier had his men send Danielle away to eat before I really got a chance to see her, but at least I knew she was safe. First thing I did when my hands were free was rip that earpiece out and place it on the bed next to me. I wanted to throw the thing across the room, but I didn’t want to anger Dr. Lanier.

  One of the guards took me to an upstairs restroom where I showered and put some cream on my wrists and ankles. Then, I was locked in the room I’d been working in all night and morning. I spent some time pacing the tiny room ’cause the only place to sit down was on the hospital cot with the straps. Somebody brought me a ham and cheese sandwich and some water. I consumed ’em slowly so I’d have something to do. My feet started aching, forcing me to climb onto the horrible hospital cot to rest.

  Kicking off my shoes, I braced the thin pillow against my knees and leaned forward against the cushion I’d created. When I dozed off, I prepared quick messages for Momma and my New Daddy. I thought about letting ’em know where to find me, but I decided against sharing the information. The police probably wouldn’t believe their story, and that would lead ’em here alone where they would become more for me to worry about.

  Early afternoon, Dr. Lanier came in and told me Cora would take Danielle’s place in the training. In preparation of the evening exercise, he had me practice waking Cora from various levels of sleep. I spent the whole afternoon and part of the evening practicing.

  Waking people is much harder than making ’em sleep. I don’t naturally have Malia’s Gift for jolting people awake. She stored the knowledge in me, but I try not to use it much. I don’t know how long it will last. I’d recently used it on Danielle only ’cause I was desperate. My usual method for rousing somebody involves disturbing their dreams enough so they wake themselves. It’s much harder to do when the person’s been given something to aid sleep.

  I got to eat and walk around the house for a half-hour before returning to the room for the second advanced training module. I expected to see Dr. Lanier when the door opened, but instead, I found Danielle. The cuffs I’d worn for the walk made the greeting awkward, and I ended up stepping close and letting her draw me into a tight hug.

  “You up for round two, kid?” Danielle asked, pulling back and placing a hand on each of my shoulders. Despite her obvious concern, she kept her voice light.

  “I guess,” I answered, shrugging.

  “Aw, that’s not good enough. Put some oomph behind that claim.”

  “But
what if I’m not ready?” My mind focused on each of the struggles and failures from the afternoon training session. “What if I get her killed?”

  Dropping the cheerful act, Danielle pulled me in for another, more gentle, hug and rested her chin on my head.

  “This whole thing’s unfair and wrong in so many ways. And I wish I could change it for you.” Squeezing me tighter, she added, “But you are ready, and you will save her. Cora and I both believe that, now it’s your turn to believe.” Danielle turned me loose and handed me the earpiece.

  Nodding thanks, I accepted it. I wanted to respond to Danielle’s encouragement, but the best I could manage was a nervous half-smile. Instead, I slipped the earpiece into place.

  “I’m here.”

  “Good evening, Ashlynn,” Dr. Lanier greeted. “I’m eager for you to begin the next training session, but Miss Matheson insisted I move you to more comfortable accommodations. Allow the guard to prepare you to travel, and he will show you to a new room.”

  Following the instructions, Danielle and I found ourselves in a nice upstairs room with a king size bed, a huge dresser, a few end tables, a couch, and even a fireplace. When our hands were free, Danielle moved to the bed, took off her shoes, climbed up, and rearranged the many pillows. She directed me to the spot she’d cleared then settled next to me, taking hold of my right hand.

  “I’ll be right here,” Danielle promised.

  “There’s not much of a briefing for this one as I’d like to know what information you can draw from the one who dreams,” said Dr. Lanier. “Suffice it to say you’ll need to act quickly, though I will tell you she’s not here.”

  Since I didn’t have time to fall asleep naturally, I forced myself into a medium level sleep. During the afternoon session with Cora, I’d put a mark on her. Dr. Lanier’s men must have given Cora a strong dose of something ’cause I had a hard time connecting to her dreams. I finally found her in an abandoned motel near Old Forge, New York.

  Catching hold of Cora’s dreams was like trying to snag a fly with chopsticks. Every time I felt close, the dream would zip away. Knowing I couldn’t work like that, I went with the theory that Cora could follow my instructions even if I didn’t sense a specific dream. I imagined her body feeling super-hot, like Aiden-level warm, and hoped she’d sweat off some of the sleeping drug. It worked, but then I had trouble cooling her down. She woke up long enough to have a coughing fit. I pulled her to sleep so I could analyze what she’d witnessed in that moment.

  The room was on fire.

  I’d been prepared for a bad situation, but not that. Cora’s glance revealed a small window and a chair, but I didn’t hold high hopes for getting her alert enough to use the chair on the window and climb free. Panic made me cast my mind about in a frantic search for help. I sensed two people standing about fifty feet away from the blazing building, my old friends Mr. Jones and Mr. Clark.

  Using certain parts of my Gift from a distance without either Malia or Nadia’s help can lead to some painful consequences. I can’t always connect with waking people either, but Mr. Jones and Mr. Clark were both worn out from the long day. Trying to kill people tuckers a body out. Soon as I sensed ’em, I pulled the men into a light sleep and made Mr. Jones think his phone was ringing. His hand fumbled for his phone, but I didn’t have time to let him act it out for real. Instead, I sped him through a short conversation with Dr. Lanier which instructed him to collect Cora. It ain’t nice to lie to people even in dreams, but putting a lady in a burning building is far worse.

  Mr. Jones didn’t want to believe me ’cause he knew the order went against previous instructions. Giving up on him, I put Mr. Jones into a deep sleep to keep him out of the way and tried the phone trick with Mr. Clark. He didn’t hesitate ’cause he’d been hoping for the order.

  Switching back to Cora, I brought her almost to consciousness then paused to explain the situation to her avatar.

  “Mr. Clark should be there soon, but keep low and move toward the window. The fire’s coming from the door. Grab the curtains if ya can and use ’em to smother some of the flames. Then wait by the side of the window.”

  I had to let Cora wake up to carry out the instructions. The wait was awful. I felt like a momma bird who’d kicked the baby bird free and was waiting to hear the flap of wings or the splat of failure.

  Sensing a new dream nearby, I seized the distraction and found myself in Dustin’s dreams. A memory played like a movie.

  “Do we have a deal?” asked Dr. Lanier.

  “I’ll do my best, but Father doesn’t want to come,” Dustin answered. “Nadia’s not even with him. She got taken by Darren.”

  “Where is she?”

  “I don’t know. Father doesn’t know.”

  Dr. Lanier’s expression hardened.

  “What’s he doing about it?”

  “He’s going to ask Varick.” The fear stabbing through the memory musta shown on Dustin’s face.

  “How would Varick learn where to find Nadia?”

  Dustin refused to answer until Dr. Lanier shook him.

  “Tell me.”

  “Ashlynn.” Guilt flooded the dream, which I think is how I got drawn into the memory.

  The response thrilled Dr. Lanier.

  “Really? I’ll have to ask her about that after the training session tonight.”

  The dream ended, leaving me with nothing but unease. I’d have to lie to Dr. Lanier—and lie very well at that. If I outright refused to answer, he’d hurt Danielle, but I couldn’t tell him how to find Nadia. Turning her over to Dr. Lanier would only be slightly better than letting Darren sell her to the highest bidder. Varick needed more time to rescue Nadia.

  Chapter 23:

  Interrogation and Emotional Aftermath

  ITEM 207: Danielle’s fifty-ninth letter

  Item Source: Danielle Matheson

  Dear Dr. S.,

  I fell asleep next to Jillian and didn’t stir until Lanier bounded in to give us the good news.

  “She did it. Cora’s alive. Wake her. I have a question to pose.”

  Calling her name and gently shaking her shoulder, I slowly reeled Jillian in from the dreamlands. Her eyes focused first on me then swung left to face Lanier. She flinched. Poor thing.

  “You won, kid,” I said, tightening my hold on her shoulder. “Cora’s probably showered, fed, and sleeping like a baby a few floors down.”

  Jillian’s eyes darted back to me, and the fear I saw made my gut clench. She swallowed hard and propped herself higher on the pillows.

  “He tried to burn her.”

  I’d been leaning over to give Jillian my full attention, but her statement made my head fly right so I could fling a death wish at Lanier. I let go of Jillian’s shoulder so I wouldn’t hurt her with the force of my grip.

  “Never mind the exercise,” said Lanier. “Ashlynn, where can I find Nadia?”

  Slowly sitting up, Jillian glanced nervously at me, avoiding Lanier’s intense gaze.

  “I haven’t found her yet.” Jillian’s not the world’s smoothest liar, but she said it rather convincingly.

  “Dustin said you would know,” Lanier accused.

  “I’ve been looking for her for weeks.”

  Now that I had the comparison of a truth, I knew Jillian’s earlier statement to be a lie. She had found Nadia. Before the realization could paint the truth on my face, I flipped my attention to outrage over the training exercise.

  “Where is Cora? I want to see her.”

  “She’s fine,” Lanier answered. His mind was a million miles away. He stared at Jillian like a man mentally dissecting a bomb. Time stood still as Lanier glared at Jillian, she eyed me, and I stared at him. “What do you think, Miss Matheson? Is Ashlynn telling the truth?”

  The query startled me, but I took my time responding.

  “If she says she’s searched for weeks, then she has.”

  Lanier made a non-committal noise, stuck his hands in his pockets, and murmured, “Let’s test a
theory.”

  In response to an unseen signal, two suited lackeys entered.

  “Miss Matheson, go stand with Mr. Jones and Mr. Clark.”

  As I slowly moved to obey, Jillian’s hand shot out and clamped around my left forearm. Her expression begged me to stay put, but her grip slipped when I touched her hand. She let the hand flop to the bed, bowed her head, and clenched her eyes shut like she could wish us away.

  I paused to watch Jillian’s strange reaction. A tug on my sleeve got me moving again. With Mr. Jones and Mr. Clark at each elbow, I stumbled back a few steps, halting near the end of the bed. Danger sense belatedly kicked my heart into a faster mode when Mr. Clark held both my hands together behind me and pulled down. He used only his right hand as his left was heavily bandaged. The move drew my shoulders back and brought my head up in time to see Lanier motion for Mr. Jones to proceed. Something cold and hard nestled against my right temple, making me twitch my head left.

  “Ashlynn, look at me,” Lanier ordered. “Where is the Minder?”

  Silent pressure mounted in the room.

  Jillian still had her eyes glued shut. She trembled either from the effort to speak or not to speak. I couldn’t tell which. Finally, she whispered one word.

  “Kansas.” The admission sapped her strength, and she collapsed against the pillows.

  “See? I do know how far I can press her,” Lanier gloated.

  Mr. Jones chuckled and squeezed the trigger three times in my ear so I could hear the empty click.

  Shaking off Mr. Clark’s slackening hold, I leapt onto the bed, crawled to Jillian, and gathered her into my arms. My touch released the sobs she’d suppressed. I babbled a stream of words I’m pretty sure she didn’t hear.

  “It’s okay. It’s over. It wasn’t real. The gun wasn’t loaded. It wasn’t real. It’s over now.”

  “Stay with them,” Lanier instructed his men. “When she calms down, I want her questioned about specifics.”