“Apparently not. You might as well get used to it, girl. This is going to be your life for the foreseeable future. Make things easy on yourself and cooperate.”
Cooperate. That seemed to be everyone’s favorite word in here.
“It would be easier if you hadn’t injected me with something that makes me want to throw up,” I pointed out.
“We all know what you people do if you’re not injected.”
I wondered exactly what had happened before. Had one of us been allowed to keep their powers and hurt one of them? Good, I thought bitterly. I hope they died.
I staggered to my feet. “I need to use the bathroom.”
Not giving him any time to reply, I managed to wobble my way over to the steel sliding wall. I slammed my palm against the wall, the blue light appearing beneath my fingers. The wall started to move, forcing me to stand straighter so I didn’t lose my balance and fall with it. I managed to get into the bathroom, and the wall slid shut behind me.
I closed my eyes briefly and exhaled a breath. This was all kinds of messed up. I wanted to cry, wished more than anything that I could see my dad, or get to speak to my sister one last time, but I knew it wouldn’t do any good.
Pulling down my jeans, I used the toilet. Several green and blue bruises, and dried pinpricks of blood, marred the skin of my thighs where the needles had found their mark. I needed to figure out how to get them to stop injecting me.
A hollow metal bang on the wall made me jump. “Hurry it up in there!”
I scowled at the divider, and finished up and washed my hands, then splashed some cold water on my face. It helped wake me up a little, though I was feeling the effects of what I’d been given. At least they hadn’t given me the injection I’d had in the parking garage. The thought of being paralyzed like that again terrified me. I might not be able to use my ability, but at least I could move and talk.
Earl took me back to the lab I’d been in the previous evening. Two security men were standing outside the door of the lab this time, as though waiting for me. They both wore suits and stood with their hands crossed over the front of their body. Their expressions remained stoic as I approached, staring straight forward, and I couldn’t help but make a face at them both. Yeah, it might have been childish, but I didn’t care. It wasn’t as though it garnered me a reaction, anyway.
Did Middleton expect me to cause trouble this time? Was that why these two had been called in? I didn’t know what problems they thought I’d cause when I was drugged, plus exhausted from the previous day and the poor night’s sleep curled up on the floor. My stomach felt hollow, aching with a sick feeling that I wasn’t sure was down to my hunger or the concoction I’d been injected with. Despite his promise yesterday (Had it been yesterday? I was losing track of time.) Middleton hadn’t sent me down any food as a reward for being cooperative the last time. I’d waited, hoping for something to be lowered down to me, but eventually had given up and fallen asleep.
We walked into the lab, Earl close behind me. The woman, Amanda, was already working on her slides, and the other male scientist was at his position in front of the computer. It occurred to me that these people must live somewhere on site. The facility was too far away from any civilization to allow for a reasonable commute.
“Are you all set up, Duncan?” Earl asked the male scientist at the computer.
The other man lifted his head, glancing over at us, and nodded. I felt his gaze linger on me a little too long, assessing me with blue eyes. What did they think of me—that I was some kind of freak, or did they revere me in some way because of what I was able to do?
No, these people didn’t respect me. I was no more than a lab rat to them.
“Good morning, Arianna.” Middleton walked in holding a tray. The heady aroma of coffee and warm pastries immediately made my mouth water. He must have noticed. “You’re a fan of croissants? I wasn’t sure what you liked, but figured not many people didn’t like a warm croissant with real butter.” I thought I might cry with hunger. “You can have this, but it comes with strings attached.”
I sank back. “What?”
“More tests. You play nicely, and you’ll be treated nicely. It’s as simple as that.”
“What kinds of tests?”
“More of what you had last night. Some of your readings were off the charts, Arianna. I want to figure out what makes you different from the others. They have an amazing ability, that’s for sure, but they don’t have the power to quite literally make the earth move.”
I couldn’t tell if he was trying to be funny. I eyed the croissant and coffee longingly. I felt like I was betraying myself by accepting them, but surely I needed to stay strong if I was going to get out of this. I needed to keep my wits about me, and I couldn’t do that if I was wasting away. Besides, I was sure I’d read something about caffeine reducing the effects of drugs. Or maybe that had been increasing the effects. Dammit. I couldn’t remember. Either way, I wanted that coffee.
“Okay, fine. Do what you want.” He’d be doing that anyway, I had no doubt. I might as well get something out of it as well.
A slow smile crawled across his face, and he handed me the tray. I slid it onto the counter, together with all the scientific equipment, and picked up the croissant. Pastry flakes stuck to my fingers. I took a bite, and then dunked the croissant into the small dish of butter, before stuffing it into my mouth again. The whole time, I looked around for something I could use as a weapon. The small ceramic dish which held the butter. The mug of coffee. I could throw the hot liquid in his eyes, smash the mug against the side of his head. But his people would have this place on lockdown within minutes, and I’d end up back in my metal container. I couldn’t do anything from there.
When I finished the croissant, I picked up the coffee. It had cooled enough to be the perfect drinking temperature, and now my stomach had been sated—for the moment, anyway—I took my time to savor the coffee.
Disappointingly, I reached the bottom of the cup all too soon. I wasn’t sure how my stomach was going to handle the rich food and drink, but after a couple of twinges of cramping, it settled.
I turned to find Middleton watching me. The scientists were busying themselves preparing for the test, but his only focus was me. It was intense and creepy. I’d never felt more like something inside a Petri dish in my life.
“Better?” he asked.
I nodded, and he gestured to the chair. With a sigh, I stepped back over to the seat and slid into it. I was about to lie back when I figured I might be missing a trick, and sat back up again. “Can I ask a question?” I said.
He frowned. “That would depend on the question. Seems to me you are far too fond of asking them.”
I plowed on regardless. “How many of us are you keeping here?”
“You know I’m not going to answer that.”
I shrugged as though it was no big deal. “I just wondered if you’d ever been able to work out what causes what happens when you get two of us together.”
His frown deepened. “Why would I get two of you together? So you can conspire?”
I hoped my acting skills were up to it. I twisted my lips and glanced away, drawing my brows together. “Oh, no. It’s nothing. Forget I said anything.”
“Come on, now, Arianna. You don’t think I’m going to just forget it, do you?”
I spoke tersely. “There’s nothing to forget.”
“You say something happens when you are brought together?”
“No...” I deliberately floundered. “I just wondered if you’d looked into it yet.”
“Why would I look into it? Tell me, Arianna. Don’t make me have to drug you again. Don’t forget what I can do to you if you become uncooperative.”
I shook my head slightly and then sighed as though I was giving in. “Some of us have the ability to heighten the skills of others. Not all of us, but some.” I thought of the twins. “There are even some of us who have no ability unless they’re with the other person.
I have no idea why—that’s why I was curious as to whether you’d tested it yet.”
His ice-blue eyes narrowed at me. “Are you one of those people? Do your abilities cause others to be stronger?”
I pressed my lips together and stared angrily at a spot over his left shoulder.
“Arianna?” he snapped.
I still refused to respond.
“Fine,” he huffed. “Have it your way.”
He jerked his head at the scientists, and they stepped forward, surrounding me. A needle was jabbed into my inner wrist, collecting more blood, and electrodes were attached to my head, sending information to a computer. It occurred to be that they’d get far more accurate results were I not drugged. How could they expect to discover anything about my ability when they’d deliberately sabotaged it? I guessed they were in a catch-22. If they didn’t keep me drugged, they knew I’d escape, but if they did, they’d never get the full picture of my ability. I stored the thought to the back of my mind to mull over later as the scientists worked on me, poking, prodding, sticking things where they weren’t wanted, as though I was an object instead of a person. Was it something I could work to my advantage?
Finally, they were done.
“Get her back to her room,” Middleton said to one of the security guys.
Slowly, I got to my feet, feeling dizzy and nauseated again.
The bigger of the two guards marched forward and caught me by the upper arm, but I shook him off.
“I know where I’m going. I don’t need you to drag me there.”
Summoning all my strength, I left the laboratory and walked back to my box, the guard close behind me.
I hoped I’d done enough to put the seed of an idea into Middleton’s head. That was the thing with men like him, he’d never think something was a good idea unless he’d come up with it himself.
Chapter Twenty
Back in my cell, I spent the next few hours focusing inwardly and trying to connect with Dixie again. The lack of contact worried me. I knew from the conversation I’d had with her in the car, when I’d been unable to move, that the drugs they gave me didn’t affect my ability to speak with her, but she’d been silent ever since. Was it the physical distance between us which caused the silence? We’d probably driven several hundred miles from Los Angeles, but I had managed to contact her before being brought inside. However, if Dixie and the others had gone in the wrong direction on their search for me, they could easily be a huge distance away. Though I didn’t want to think of them as far away, I preferred that excuse to the other one, which was that I would need to be paralyzed again in order to connect with her. Either that, or someone else had caught up with Dixie and the others, and I couldn’t hear her anymore because something had happened to her.
The thought made tears prick my eyes. How would I cope if I lost them, any of them? After losing my sister, they had helped fill that empty hole in my life. No, it would never be the same as having Karina back, but compared to my previous existence of sitting at home in my room, alone, it was definitely preferable. I didn’t know how I’d handle it if the worst had happened.
Above my head, the roof slid open again. My heart thrummed, my mouth running dry. Now what did they want? More blood? I was starting to wonder if this was some kind of guise, and I was actually being siphoned off to feed an army of vampires.
The lifting platform came down empty.
I clambered to my feet and stared at it, and then up at the space above me. The beefy security guard who’d tried to man-handle me peered down at me. “Well,” he said, “are you coming, or what?”
There was no point in refusing. If I could no longer hear Dixie, there was nothing more I could learn being down here. At least no one had tried to inject me this time.
I moved over to the lift and stepped onto the platform. I always felt wobbly on this thing, unused to having space around three sides of me as I was lifted. I stepped off and followed the security guy down the corridor. We passed the lab I’d been in previously and continued walking. I kept my eyes peeled for any signs of exits. Surely a place like this should have fire exit signs? Finally, we stopped at a door on the opposite side of the corridor, and the guard leaned in and pushed it open.
It revealed a different laboratory this time, much larger, and my heart dropped at seeing another lab. But windows were positioned across the far wall, and the sight of the sunlight warmed my heart and renewed my energy. I’d thought I’d gotten used to living without light by spending so much time in the Cavern, but it was different when you knew you could go outside at any time to simply turn your face to the sun, if you wanted. It was different when that choice was taken away.
Instead of the expanse of the desert, the windows looked out onto an internal garden which had been landscaped to match the exterior—a sandy ground with tall succulents and other cacti growing. I tried to piece together the shape of the building. It had appeared a rectangle from the outside, but I’d only come across one long corridor so far. However, the presence of this garden, with four walls surrounding it, made me think the building was built in a rectangle around it. If we were at the back, I should be able to run down the corridor in either direction, take the first turn, go straight ahead, and end up at the front of the building. Of course, it would be easier if there was an exit at the rear of the building that I could sneak out of, and I expected the front of the building to be heavily manned with armed guards. Not that it made any difference. I constantly had someone watching over me, plus the injections to keep my ability at bay. How long had it been now since the last injection? That morning? I had no way of knowing the time, but I figured it must be a few hours. I wondered how long it took to fully wear off.
I’d been distracted by the window and the sunlight, but now I turned to assess the rest of the laboratory.
I stopped short, my eyes widening. Middleton was here, as usual, as were the scientists, Earl, Amanda, and Duncan, but so was someone I’d never seen before, and it definitely didn’t look as though she worked for the Myriad Group.
“Hello, Arianna,” said Kit’s father. “I’m sure you see you’re not alone for this session. I gave your comments some serious thought and figured it was something I needed to see for myself.”
My gaze darted to the girl who’d caught my attention. She looked back, but her gaze shifted away, distrustful. I didn’t think Middleton had told her that I was the same as she was.
I offered the new arrival a cautious smile. She was taller than I was, with striking cheekbones, full lips, and a head of beautiful hair in a natural afro. She looked thinner than she should be at her normal weight, and there was a dullness to her ebony skin and deep brown eyes. A result of being kept locked away from natural light for far too long. She was dressed identically to me, in a white v-neck t-shirt and loose white pants. All clothes provided by Middleton. Her feet were bare, like mine—a deterrent to prevent us attempting to run across the desert to freedom, should the opportunity ever arise.
“Hi,” I said. “My name’s Ari, and I’m like you.”
She shot a glare toward Middleton. “You’re working for him?”
I shook my head, horrified she’d think such a thing. I’d been looking for allies, not to be lined up with the enemy. “No, never!”
Her features softened slightly. “Then why are you here?”
Middleton moved forward. “We want to try something. Nadia has only ever been able to achieve the smallest of things—pushing a pen off a table with her thoughts, or tipping over a glass.” He turned to her, addressing her. “We want to see if having Arianna here will help magnify your abilities.”
She glanced at me. “Why would it?”
I spoke up. “I know people who need to have others with them to be able to do anything. I thought me being here might help.” I wished I could push my thoughts into her head in the same way I did with Dixie. I wanted to tell her I only wanted to meet her, and that when I found a way out of here, I’d take her with me, somewhere
safe. I hoped my plans weren’t going to get her in trouble in any way. What would Middleton do when he discovered I wasn’t able to help her? Would he bring someone else up instead, so I could try with them? How many others were here? Would Middleton allow me to meet each one to try to get this to work?
“I have vials here ready to inject you if you try anything,” Kit’s father continued. “Don’t think for a moment that I haven’t considered this is some kind of trick.”
There was no trick—not in the way he was thinking. I simply wanted to meet the other people who were kept here. Other Kin who might not even know what they were yet.
Several hours had passed since I’d last been injected to suppress my abilities. He couldn’t allow it to be too long, having already experienced what I was capable of, but he must have realized that to stand any chance of this working, I couldn’t have my skills completely muted.
He looked at me. “So, what do we need to do?”
“Nothing,” I replied. “I just stand with her and try to pass some of my energy on to her. Of course, it would be far easier to do if you hadn’t drugged me...”
“Don’t try to mess with me, Arianna,” he snapped.
“I’m not. I’m telling the truth.” I didn’t want to push him. I wanted to meet the others, and if I put him on edge, that would never happen.
The scientist wired both of us up, side by side. Nadia looked nervous, chewing her lower lip and shooting glances at me while never quite making eye contact. Had she been punished for not being able to do more in the past? It was different for her. She wouldn’t be able to use her abilities to escape, so Middleton and his cronies had nothing to fear from her. The thought only served to increase my anger. It was one thing fighting against a strong adversary, but it was another to lock away a young woman who was barely capable of rolling a pen across a table.
Could I do something to help her? I’d made up the part about people being able to affect others—the only ones I knew of who needed other people were the twins, and they needed each other rather than improved the other one’s abilities. I wondered how Middleton would be able to tell if it was me moving something, or if I was simply helping Nadia to achieve what he wanted.
After Flux (The Flux Series Book 2) Page 15