The Sensorians: Trust

by Brigitte Morse-Starkenburg

  “Right. Tell me everything you know,” she asked matter of factly.

  “I don't know anything else. That's all. It all went very quickly, Ma'am. Wait. Eliza sped off in a blue BMW.”

  “Number plate?”

  “Didn't get it.”

  That annoying little bratty girl bumping into me! Vivian wasn't impressed but carried on. Cool as a cucumber.

  “What did the Sensorian look like?”

  “Tall, five foot eleven-ish. Dark blond hair and broad. Stern face. Name might be Eilena, or Rena or something. I heard Eliza mention a name like that.”

  “We need to inform Markus and get a team on it. We want to know as much as we can before they contact us. Because, that, they will. I'm absolutely certain they will use her as a pawn or some sort of bargaining chip. I'll deal with you later. Time is of the essence now.”

  She stormed out the door, clicking her fingers at me, fully expecting me to follow her like a dog. I didn't think it wise to challenge her, so I gritted my teeth and sped after her.

  CHAPTER 34

  Eliza

  A soft knock on my door woke me up. I must have fallen asleep the moment I'd thrown myself on my bed after we came back. Being so on edge and having to prevent a sensory meltdown all day had exhausted me mentally and physically. The welcoming party threw me off even more and I just had to withdraw from everything and flee to my room.

  It was Daniel. He came in and sat on the edge of my bed, his hand nonchalantly placed on my legs. All my worries flooded back and I sat up in a slight panic.

  “Where's Zaphire?” I tried to say as calmly as I could muster. Daniel looked puzzled.

  “Who?”

  “Zaphire,” I emphasised as if that would jog his memory. It did seem to bring something to the surface.

  “Oh her. What do you mean. How am I supposed to know where your ex is right now?”

  He still looked utterly confused. He clearly didn't know anything about what had happened earlier today. I shook my head and felt irritated. Everything was a battle. All the time. I was growing tired of it.

  “Just forget it,” I snapped to add to Daniel's bemusement.

  “Fine. I just came to see if you were alright, but I'll go.”

  He moved abruptly and made his way out.

  “No, no. I'm sorry. I didn't mean to upset you. Stay. Please?”

  He slowed down, turned around and smiled. He forgave easily. He was a kind soul. He sat back on my bed and sighed.

  “Do you want some food? That always helps me out of a grumpy mood?” he winked.

  “Grumpy? Me?” I playfully threw my pillow at him and we both laughed. “Let's get some,” I agreed. “And then I want to see my father.”

  ◆◆◆

  “Where is Zaphire?” I demanded to know as soon as Rick walked into my room. He stopped dead and observed me for what seemed like an eternity. It turned my legs to liquid and made my stomach somersault, but I held his gaze. With difficulty.

  “She's in a safe house. She'll be brought to our main compound when we're sure she's not followed,” he answered finally.

  I could feel he was still assessing my allegiance. Though he had welcomed me 'on board', it was by no means a done deal. I had to keep up the facade, and convincingly at that.

  “We have a main compound?” I redirected the conversation slightly.

  “Yes and, in fact, I'm inviting you to visit it tomorrow. Interested?”

  “Absolutely. It'll be nice to see where my father hangs out most of the time.”

  He picked up on my slightly sarcastic tone, giving me another stare.

  “Given we're family, and we're supposed to be able to read each other quite easily, you are a bit of a hard nut to crack, Lizzy. I hope my trust in you won't bite me in the arse in the future.”

  I laughed loudly, trying to cover up my anxiety. I took a deep breath and steadied myself.

  “I believe you have good intentions and I'm fully behind those. But, I have issues with trusting you which, I'm sure you'll understand, stem from you abandoning me and mum. It will take time, so you'll always pick up some ambiguous vibes from me. You'll have to cast them aside or decide to cast me aside,” I answered.

  This time I stared him down. He lowered his eyes, nodded and walked briskly out of my room. I think I won that round. Though I was still none the wiser where Zaphy was and what Rick wanted to use her for. Round two was coming up.

  I bumped into Daniel on the way to the gym. I call it a gym, but it was basically a bedroom with a few bits of gym equipment and it was heavily overused. In the short time I'd been at the house I got so frustrated that nine times out of ten it was full, I had devised a spreadsheet for people to sign in and it worked a treat. I did suspect Daniel manufactured it so that he would end up in the gym at the same times as me, but I enjoyed spending time with him so I didn't challenge him about it, too much. I couldn't help myself but poke some fun though.

  “Hey, what a coincidence Daniel. You're here again.”

  He went slightly red in the face and his heart jolted a little. Bless him.

  It was nice pounding away on the running machines in unison. We didn't feel the need to talk but enjoyed listening to the same music so we shared headphones. He always got a bit frustrated as I kept turning the sound down and he would sneak it back up again, not realising it would physically hurt me. When it got too much, I stepped off, opened up another window to let some fresh air in, and then did some weights. It felt good challenging myself and keeping my mind off Zaphire.

  “Have you worked out where your ex is?” Daniel asked hesitantly.

  I sighed. My temporary sanctuary was disturbed and my brain went into full worry overdrive. I grunted in frustration.

  “In a safe house somewhere. Do you know how many of these houses exist?”

  I noticed Daniel got slightly excited.

  “I know of four, not sure if that's all. I can try and do a little bit of digging for you?”

  “Would you? I don't think Rick would approve.”

  Apart from a few tiny muscle movements, he didn't flinch. He looked me in the eyes and spoke with reverence.

  “I don't think he would mind. He would see my good intentions; to help you. Even if he wouldn't agree with it, he wouldn't be angry with me. He's a fair man, Eliza. It's time you start seeing that.”

  There was not a part of him that wasn't convinced of this. I wasn't so sure about it. In fact I would like to see Rick's reaction when he finds out. It would tell me an awful lot about him.

  “Okay then. Yes please. See what you can dig up. That'll be great. Thanks,” I smiled and I felt his body warm up instantly. Poor boy. I didn't want to take advantage of him, but I needed all the help I could get.

  CHAPTER 35

  Zack

  “What else do you know Zacharaya? Answer me, damn it.” Markus slammed the table in frustration. I told him all I could but I had to keep Eliza's text message to myself. There was no way I was going to betray our plan yet, even if it meant enduring Markus' relentless grilling.

  “You are hiding something from me. Why? It doesn't make sense. Your sister's life could be at risk. It is of utmost importance you tell me everything you know!”

  His stare was steely cold and it made my insides physically chill. Never had I kept anything this important from him and it was hurting me, but I firmly believed it was possible to find Zaph and keep Eliza's mission alive.

  “Sir, please. Stop. There's nothing more to tell. I'm sorry I can't be more useful but I swear I will do everything I can to help find her.” I pleaded, pouring all my sincerity into the last statement in a bid to convince him to let it go. He grunted and paced up and down the room.

  “What I want to do is lock you up until you tell me the complete truth, but I need your help now. You better have an explanation for withholding from me, because when I find out you will need it to keep your arse out of isolation. Understood?”

  “Yes Sir.”

  I waited
for further instructions, trying to be as compliant as possible. I hoped to fuck it would all work out and that Eliza would come up with something soon. I didn't allow myself to think I could fail Zaph. That simply wasn't an option. I needed to find her, without compromising Eliza, but if push came to shove, I would choose Zaphire. To hell with the whole mission.

  “You will go over the CCTV footage and locate the car they used to transport Zaphire, then see if you can track it down. It's highly likely the same car that you saw Eliza get in as they probably would have waited for her to come out. Tristan managed to give us access to all CCTV in the area, and we will be given it for any area we need. It's not going to be easy as the CCTV just outside the school is corrupted, so you need to look at the surrounding streets. Don't come out of that room until you find me something useful. That's an order.”

  Markus had regained his calm but I knew not to mistake that for complacency.

  “Yes Sir. Permission to go?”

  “Granted. Vivian, a word please.”

  I didn't hang around. I needed to find something on that CCTV and fast. Tristan was a fucking legend. He worked for the police and had been able to tap into CCTV on more that one occasion for us. We needed something soon as the phone in my pocket stayed awfully quiet. No news from Eliza yet.

  “Hey mate!” Brody shouted, slightly out of breath from running to catch me up. “Where are you heading? Haven't seen you for a while?” He gave me a friendly slap on the back and laughed, but picked up on my mood immediately. “What's wrong, man?” he suddenly asked seriously.

  “Don't ask,” I sighed, paused but decided to ask a favour.

  “Are you busy or can you give me a hand with something?”

  “Whatever I was doing can wait. What do you need me to do?”

  Brody was a legend too.

  Whilst trawling through the footage I told Brody what he needed to know. He was worried for Zaph and furious at Eliza.

  “That fucking bitch. She has really screwed us over,” he cussed.

  “I don't know,” I tried to say as neutrally as I could. He picked up on it straight away.

  “How can you not be cursing that girl? She got your sister captured!”

  “Well, that is what I picked up from her sensory output, but I can't be sure,” I tried to explain.

  “Since when are you ever wrong Zack? Just accept it. She's the enemy and needs to be put away.”

  “Easier said than done, Brodes. She's under Rick's full protection. It's all so fucking messed up,” I sighed.

  “Yeah, and you still have a thing for her,” Brody whispered under his breath, knowing full well I could hear him just fine. I snapped. I grabbed him and pushed him against the wall, my face inches away from his. He didn't flinch and stared right at me, not fighting back. I let him go.

  “Sorry mate,” I mumbled slightly embarrassed.

  “No probs. Probably deserved that,” he shrugged, straightening his top.

  We carried on trawling through the footage in silence for a while. Still we found nothing note worthy. At one point Brody had to go, leaving with the promise to come back later. I lost complete sense of time and when he did come back hours later, I hadn't moved, bar from taking a piss in a bottle, which I'd shoved in the corner of the room.

  “Ugh, fuck, it reeks in here!” he exclaimed with disgust on opening the door. “Open the bloody door for some fresh air, mate! You've got to come out and get a bit of exercise and food. Have you actually had anything to eat or drink since you started?”

  “Nope,” I answered absent minded, focussing totally on the images in front of me. Brody grunted in frustration.

  “Come with me Zack. You'll be able to concentrate better after a little break,” he tried, but I knew I couldn't leave that room until I found something. They were Markus' explicit orders and I wasn't going to give him any more reasons to punish me.

  “I'm concentrating just fine. Just leave me the fuck to it,” I replied rather grumpily. Brody sighed and left, leaving the door wide open. I didn't really pay much attention and carried on staring at the footage, though my eyes were stinging from the hours of continuous screen use. I singled out a few images of cars that caught my eye that could possibly be the one they'd used. If only I got the damned registration number. I just couldn't be sure, but they were worth following up. I passed on the number plates of the cars from the CCTV to Tristan and was waiting for some results as to whom owned them, but in the mean time I kept checking more footage, hoping to spot something obvious.

  The most delicious scent of Chinese take away entered my nostrils, way before Brody swanned back into the room and slammed the food on the table.

  “Eat,” he ordered. No point resisting and I was extremely hungry, so ate eagerly, indulging in the sumptuous smells and tastes. Next minute, I felt the phone in my pocket vibrate. A message from Eliza. My stomach lurched and my heart skipped a few beats. The hunger deserted me immediately. Brody looked at me with suspicion. I leapt up from my chair, grabbed my stomach and sped out.

  “I need a shit,” I grumbled on the way out as if in pain. Didn't think it fooled him but it bought me some time.

  CHAPTER 36

  Zaphire

  I was in deep shit. When I was bundled into the car, the bitch had injected some drug into my arm and I was out for the count within minutes. I don't know how long I had been unconscious for but when I woke up, I was locked up in a dark room with nothing in it, apart from a mattress and a bucket. I had no idea about time or how long I'd been there but it couldn't have been more than a day. I felt lonely and betrayed and my anger for the girl who I'd thought loved me started to fester.

  Why the hell is she doing this to me? I had trusted her and given her the benefit of the doubt when everyone else thought she'd turned her back on us. They were all correct. I should have listened to Zack. But even after all this, I still had the tiniest bit of hope that it was all a mistake and she would open that door and embrace me, making it all go away. I knew I was kidding myself. I had to face up to the fact that Eliza had shown her true colours and it was up to me, me alone, to get out of this mess. The trouble was that as long as I was in this room there was fat chance I could get out. I had to wait till their next move, whenever that was going to be.

  It turned out I didn't have to wait long for some action, but if I thought I could somehow use the change of scenery to my benefit I was sorely mistaken. These guys knew what they were doing and before I'd even moved I was gagged, blindfolded, my arms and feet bound simultaneously and I was sprayed with something so overwhelmingly powerful, it deadened my sense of smell completely. They placed something which I assumed were noise cancelling earphones over my ears, so I could barely hear. I had never felt so claustrophobic and disorientated before, being deprived from all my senses. I was helpless and I felt absolutely enraged. I wanted to kill Eliza. Right there. Right then.

  I was carried out, shoved in a car and we drove a few hours. Why had they not drugged me again? They did this on purpose. They wanted to hurt me and make me weak. Intimidate me. Never. I wouldn't give them the satisfaction. All I would show them was my contempt.

  I must have passed out eventually, as when I opened my eyes I was sat in a small study. The blindfold and gag were removed and I was able to breathe freely. Books were everywhere, a huge desk with piles of paper scattered about so there was not much space left to work. A laptop was balanced on top of a couple of books. I tried to lean forward to have a little peek at the computer, but I couldn't move. I was strapped into the chair. Shit. I tried to control my breathing and simmering anger. I had to stay calm.

  I heard someone approach and stop a few metres behind me. The spray still obscured my sense of smell somewhat, but I could just about detect that whoever it was, it wasn't Eliza or Irena, There was something familiar about the scent, though. Then it hit me. It was none other than Rick himself. I suddenly became uber aware of him. My adrenalin kicked in and made my senses even stronger than normal. I heard
his heart beating, it was only slightly raised. His breath was steady but just the tiniest of hitches gave away he was tense too. I could feel his heat increase as he approached slowly. He was now only about thirty centimetres away from me, and I felt his breath caress the back of my neck. Goosebumps reared their ugly little heads all over my body. I was fed up with being the victim and took the lead.

  “Why am I strapped to this chair? Are you scared I'm going to overpower you?” I sneered.

  “I don't trust you. But given that Eliza so easily beat and captured you, I don't think I need to be scared of your fighting skills,” he scoffed.

  I huffed.

  “She took me by surprise,” I admitted slightly sheepishly.

  “You thought she would fall into your arms and regret everything she'd done, didn't you?”

  He laughed sarcastically. I could punch him. The annoying thing was that he was more or less right, even though I didn't want to admit that, even to myself.

  “Well, she doesn't regret what she did. But there may be a chance of you two being together again, if that's what you want? I want Eliza to be happy and if that involves a relationship with you, then so be it.”

  I couldn't believe what I was hearing. The cheek of it.

  “Is that why I'm here? Is that what she wants?” I couldn't help asking though.

  “No and yes undoubtedly. In that order,” he answered measuredly, trying to work out where I stood in this.

  He must have felt my scorn, but also my longing for a chance we could somehow work this out and be with Eliza again. I knew it was impossible but my heart was aching for her, looking past her betrayal. My brain couldn't though. It hurt. A lot. I let out a deep sigh that probably told him everything.

  “You have a choice. You could join us, be with Eliza and help 'persuade' Markus to give us access to the compound to address all Sensorians and give them the opportunity to work with me, without repercussions for them or me. Or you could refuse. Then I have no choice but to use you to force Markus into submission. However, I would never allow you to see Eliza again.”