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

by Gilbert,Julie C.

“I suppose you know why they’re not feeding us, too,” I said, plopping onto the unoccupied bed. I couldn’t decide whether her knowledge was comforting or frightening.

  “Weak people fight less and can’t run,” Dr. C. answered. She offered me a thin smile. “They’re making us dependent upon them. Food is just one hold, as is keeping Jillian like this. I imagine they’ll explain other incentives to stay.”

  My right hand clutched at the heavy necklace with its powerful threat and stupid name.

  “They excel at placing holds on people.” I looped my thumb through the chain so I could display the pendant.

  “May I see the necklace?”

  “I don’t think it comes off,” I said, “though to be honest I haven’t tried to remove it since defying Ethan by wearing it instead of putting it on my sister.”

  Dr. C. motioned me over but couldn’t see anything due to poor lighting. To fix the problem, I sat on the floor near the nightstand with its tiny lamp and pulled my hair off my neck to give her a clear view of the clasp.

  After almost a full minute of careful study, Dr. C. said, “The design is rather simple, but it’s a good thing you left it alone.” She gently pulled my hair back into place and squeezed my shoulders. “Opening the clasp would release whatever that pendant is holding. What did they tell you it contains?”

  “A neurotoxin,” I replied, pushing myself off the floor. Perching on the bed opposite Dr. C., I added, “I didn’t ask for details on how it would kill me.”

  Once again, Dr. C. smiled faintly.

  “Cora was right about you.”

  “In what way?”

  “You have whatever strength you need.” Dr. C. didn’t get to further explain because Lanier and his henchmen returned.

  Their entrance would have been impressive if accompanied by sinister music. Lanier strode in wearing a fresh dress shirt, dark pants, and a confident expression.

  “I’m told you have a word for me about the care of our young Dreamer. Will you share your wisdom, Dr. Carnasis?”

  “You need to wake her every few hours if you don’t want to damage her Gifts or endanger her life,” Dr. C. explained. “You should also feed her and her friend regularly.”

  “But not yourself?” questioned Lanier.

  “You only need one of us physically incapable of escaping. My weakened state makes me the logical choice.”

  “You think you have everything figured out.”

  Lanier’s obvious disgust made me tense fight or flight muscles.

  Dr. C. nodded slowly.

  “You already control Danielle with the necklace, and Jillian would never leave either of us. That leaves you with two options for dealing with me, weakness or wound.”

  “Please, stop talking,” I begged her. Lanier did not need any more ideas.

  The look Lanier gave Dr. C. told me both options had been considered but now lost their appeal once she’d voiced them.

  “I’m sorry you have such a low opinion of me. Dr. Devya values you very highly. You will remain my guest until we can speak with him tomorrow. Until then, my men will see to your needs and those of the young ladies. You’ll have to wear restraints overnight, but for now, you may remain free.” After unloading his speech, Lanier gathered his goons and exited with his head held high.

  I stared at the closed door for five seconds before turning to my fellow captive.

  “How did you know?” My voice shook with suppressed shock and a touch of awe.

  Dr. C. had closed her eyes, bowed her head, and was drawing deep, deliberate breaths. She let three beats pass before replying.

  “I guessed he needed to be right and generous, but I also figured him for a man of extremes.”

  “So, it was a gamble?”

  “A calculated risk,” Dr. C. corrected.

  “A gamble,” I repeated.

  That was the start of a very long conversation wherein Dr. C. insisted we had moved far beyond formalities. I agreed and explained how Lanier and his ilk had permanently turned me off from the formal version of my name. We exchanged tales of what brought us to the current predicament and bandied idle escape plans. Unfortunately, her earlier summary to Lanier had been accurate. We were quite stucky, as Katy would say.

  On the positive side, Dr. C.’s reverse psychology prompted Lanier and company to be particularly generous when ordering Chinese food for dinner. He even came through on waking Jillian. By that time, Dr. C. lay almost as still as Jillian. I ended up practically spoon feeding both of them, which was messy business with cheap plastic forks. At least the predicament garnered a few laughs. That’s something we’re running short of around here. On the other hand, it’s amazing what a meal can do for morale.

  The Sated One,

  Danielle Matheson.

  Chapter 32:

  Dr. Robinson’s Other Mission

  ITEM 216: Jillian’s 107th post-kidnapping journal entry

  Item Source: Jillian Blairington

  Finding Cora as the mysterious Gray Lady we needed to rescue and who in turn saved us gave Varick and me a good shock. We chatted a bit with the game character, but she couldn’t tell us much about why Nadia would write the story that way.

  Since I still wasn’t allowed to wake up yet, I searched for Cora’s dreams. When I couldn’t find any, I brought my consciousness as closed to the surface as possible and waited, hoping to be sucked into a real-world dream featuring Cora. I’d never tried something like that before. Usually, those sorts of dreams find me at any old random time they feel like. It was like fishing with a mile-long pole in the lake next to me. I’m not sure if what I caught was a recent memory or happening the second I saw it.

  The view started from Cora’s cot in Dr. Lanier’s place and showed the metal door of her cell swinging open. Three men in black armor holding large guns entered, but they quickly made way for a lady I knew.

  “Hello, Kari. Have you come to save me or change my surroundings?” Cora’s welcome was cool, but I felt her hope warm up the dream.

  “You’re free to go, but I need to speak with Dustin before you disappear,” said Dr. Robinson. The sharp business suit and the way her shoulder length dark hair flowed made it seem like she was coming or going to an important meeting. The image didn’t look right with the

  gun she held in her right hand, but at least she kept it pointed at the ground.

  “I have not seen him since our arrival,” said Cora. “I’m not even sure where they’ve kept him all this time.”

  “Call to him,” ordered Dr. Robinson.

  Cora shook her head and climbed off the cot.

  “I can’t. A few months back, Dean had a change of heart about our private conversations. Fearing Dustin would become too attached to me, Dean forbade him from using his Gift with me.”

  Dr. Robinson looked frustrated and sympathetic, but she merely directed her men out of the cell. One of the men clamped his left hand to his helmet and listened hard. Seeing this, Dr. Robinson held up a hand for everyone to be still.

  The man slipped over to Dr. Robinson and spoke softly.

  “Ma’am, we have a problem. The boy has Landry’s gun and says he’ll use it on him if we don’t produce a car and his mum in five minutes.”

  “Well, we have his mother here, and he can take any of the cars he wants from this place,” Dr. Robinson told her man. Turning to Cora, she asked, “Are you willing to go with him?”

  “He would never hurt me,” Cora declared, answering the unspoken question written in Dr. Robinson’s dark eyes.

  “But he will either lead you to Dean or Lanier. You have no idea which one. My advice is that you leave with me.”

  “What about your man?” asked Cora.

  “Would Dustin really kill him?”

  Cora’s confusion sent waves of uncertainty through the dream.

  “I don’t know. I’d like to think not. He’s just a lad, but I hardly know him.”

  “Ma’am, we need a decision. Jordan says he has a shot through the wa
ll.” The soldier didn’t look happy about delivering that news.

  Panic shot through Cora.

  “No!” She gripped the soldier’s left arm, but directed her words to Dr. Robinson. “Let me go to him, Kari. Please. I’ll take him away from here.”

  Dr. Robinson frowned at Cora, but finally, she turned to her soldier.

  “Where are they?”

  “Second floor, last bedroom on the left.”

  “Show me.”

  The soldier sprinted out of the cell followed in quick order by Dr. Robinson, her remaining men, and Cora who was carrying her shoes. They raced up a flight of stairs, through some mansion rooms, up a fancier set of stairs, and down a long hallway. I got dizzy watching ’em go so I left a mark on Cora and waited until I sensed she’d stopped moving before focusing my attention close again.

  Dr. Robinson halted the group outside of the correct room.

  “Dustin? We’re here now. Let Landry come out please.”

  “Is my mum with you?” Dustin sounded like they was talking about what time to serve tea. “Is she free?”

  “I’m here, Dustin,” called Cora. “I’m safe. Please let the man go. They’re not here to hurt us.” One of Dr. Robinson’s men barred the way so she wouldn’t rush headlong into the room, but he wasn’t even touching her.

  “Come to the door,” Dustin demanded. “Make the others go away.”

  Cora and Dr. Robinson waged a quick war of wills with flashing eyes and silent gestures, but eventually, Dr. Robinson tossed up her hands and motioned her man to step aside. Cora cautiously approached the door and peeked in. Dustin stood in the far left corner pointing a rifle at a soldier who was kneeling beside the bed with his hands raised.

  “Dustin, this is Dr. Robinson. I used to work with your father. As you can see, your mother is safe. I’ve brought her to you. Release Landry and we’ll go. If you wait five minutes, my people will be out of here.”

  “Why are you here?”

  “Your brother Varick sent me when your sister told him where to find you.”

  “But you don’t like Varick, and you walked away from Father. You can’t be trusted.”

  “My differences with your father are a thing long past,” Dr. Robinson assured. “The history I have with your brother is complicated, but for now, we have common goals. My mission here was to set you and your mother free. I have done that, but I will need Landry to help me on another mission for Varick. Read me if you must. You know I speak truth.”

  “Tell me of your other mission,” Dustin demanded.

  “No. Doing so would endanger that mission.”

  “Father would want me to stop you.” Dustin’s voice sounded nervous, and he gripped the rifle harder.

  “You can’t stop me,” Dr. Robinson pointed out gently. “Killing Landry would slow me down, but not for long. He’s a man, Dustin. He has a family. He has children who want him to return, one who’s no older than you are. Read him if you don’t believe me. Let him finish his job so I can send him home. You’ve never killed before, and this is a terrible time to start.”

  Dustin’s expression revealed his inner battle. In that moment of indecision, Cora stepped in front of the rifle. Landry saw his opportunity and whipped a knife out of his left boot. Before he could grab Cora though, Dr. Robinson rushed in and leveled her gun at Landry.

  “Stand down, Landry,” ordered Dr. Robinson. “I know your pride’s hurt, but we have bigger problems to deal with. Our work here is finished. Let’s go.”

  Landry hesitated, but Dr. Robinson’s hard tone eventually made him see reason. He slowly returned his knife to the ankle sheath, straightened, and marched toward Dr. Robinson.

  “Yes, ma’am,” he grumbled as he passed her.

  “Stay away from Dean if you can,” Dr. Robinson called to Cora before instructing her men to sweep the mansion one last time then head out.

  I couldn’t decide whether to stay with Cora and Dustin or switch to Dr. Robinson. The idea of a second mission stirred up great gobs of curiosity in me. Marking Dr. Robinson, I prodded the dream to move faster. I woulda skipped to the next emotional spike, but I didn’t wanna miss anything.

  Dr. Robinson’s people finally filed out and piled into three black SUVs. Before leaving, she asked the other two teams to report.

  “Blue team was successful, ma’am,” informed one team leader. “All files, records, and samples have been destroyed.”

  “Green team also had a good day, ma’am,” said the other team leader. “Security videos have been secured, and I personally notified the proper sweep teams to collect the dangerous animals and handle the chemical cleanup. Do you need anything else?”

  “No, thank you. Well done all around. I need to borrow red team for a little longer, but the rest of you have risked enough for me tonight. I will see to your compensation as quickly as possible.”

  The other team leaders signed off, and Dr. Robinson had her driver start the vehicle. Her team was one man down ’cause at the last moment, she sent Landry to squeeze into one of the other SUVs. Nobody questioned her, but Landry looked furious.

  They drove for a long time, but it only took me a few minutes to fast forward to their destination. The building they arrived at appeared abandoned, but the high chain-link fence topped with barbed wire said somebody didn’t want company.

  One of the soldiers hopped out and shot the big padlock off the chain holding the two halves of the gate together. Within seconds, he pulled the chain free and tossed it to the side before shoving the metal gate open one half at a time. The driver sped through, pausing long enough for the man to jump onto the running board and grab hold of the balance bar. They stopped by a plain door on the far left side of the building.

  The team formed up quickly with Dr. Robinson taking a rear position. One man grabbed the handle and yanked the door open, while another entered with his gun leading the way. They moved through the place with quick efficiency that said the team worked together a lot. I wondered how Landry had gotten separated from his team in the first place, but since the knowledge seemed to mean nothing to the new mission, I laid it aside.

  The tension was making me nervous, so I moved the dream along until they walked into a tiny back office. Dr. Robinson stepped close to the far side and placed her right palm in the center of a gray plate. A red light scanned her palm.

  A metallic female voice said, “Welcome, Dr. Karita Robinson. I apologize. Your access has been revoked by authority of Dr. Dean Devya. If this is a mistake, please enter an override code on the panel below.”

  A small section of the wall slid down, revealing a keypad.

  “So much for the easy way,” muttered Dr. Robinson. After checking to see that her men stood ready, she fired twice into the gray plate that had read her palm.

  Alarms started blaring and two ceiling panels slid aside to let guns drop down, but the soldiers with Dr. Robinson were ready for both problems. Two of ’em unleashed a wall of bullets up into the ceiling, causing white bits of paneling to rain down on everybody. The third man stood tensely next to Dr. Robinson in case something bad came out of the plate she’d shot.

  When the dust settled, Dr. Robinson pulled off the gray plate and fiddled with the wires she’d uncovered.

  A minute later a distorted version of the female voice welcomed Dr. Dean Devya. I thought they’d enter a large secret room, but instead, another part of the wall got sucked into the floor, revealing four shelves filled with tiny vials. White smoke escaped from the space.

  “Are you sure you want to do this, ma’am?” asked the soldier hovering by Dr. Robinson’s shoulder.

  “Not at all,” Dr. Robinson confessed, “but I believe Varick when he says this location is compromised. I would rather see them destroyed than sold.”

  “They’re worth millions,” said the soldier.

  His tone made Dr. Robinson’s head dip toward her chest.

  “I wish you hadn’t said that.”

  “I’m sorry.” The man ste
pped back from Dr. Robinson and pointed his rifle at her head.

  The other two soldiers had already adjusted their aim.

  “Step aside, ma’am. There’s no reason to die over this.”

  Three muffled pops rang out, and the soldiers with Dr. Robinson dropped before they even heard the shots.

  “Thank you, Landry,” said Dr. Robinson, not bothering to turn around. “I’m glad you made good time, and very nice acting before.”

  “We should kill them,” Landry said, entering the room.

  “They deserve a second chance,” replied Dr. Robinson.

  “If that sentiment gets me killed, ma’am, I’m going to be highly upset.”

  A half-smile showed that Dr. Robinson’s spirit lightened for a moment.

  “Me, too, Landry.” She let the smile fade, and added, “Friends are hard to come by. This war is hours’ old and already I’m tired of Nadia being right about traitors.”

  Dr. Robinson picked up a vial at random and eyed the messy marker writing on the side. It read: Evelyn.

  Chapter 33:

  Animosity

  ITEM 217: Jillian’s 108th post-kidnapping journal entry

  Item Source: Jillian Blairington

  I wanted to stay and watch what Dr. Robinson and Landry would do with the vials, but somebody woke me up. A sore spot on my left arm told me where Mr. Jones had injected something. I didn’t get a chance to thank him ’cause he was already headed for the door, and Danielle was leaning over me looking both mighty anxious and relieved.

  “Did you have a nice nap?” Danielle’s voice sounded strained and tears slipped out despite her efforts to contain ’em.

  “I saw lots,” I whispered, wishing my voice was stronger.

  Danielle musta seen me glance about for water ’cause she leapt up and fetched a bottle from some packages sitting on a bureau.

  “You’ll need to keep hydrated,” said my Second Momma’s voice from right next to me.

  I tried to sit up so I could look at her, but I barely managed to turn my head toward her. Danielle put the water bottle on the nightstand next to me and lifted me to a sitting position.