by Nana Malone
Garrett finally drifted to the bed and shut his eyes as he exhaled. Symone hoped the pain was abating. His voice still sounded hoarse when he spoke though. “So what? You’re going to keep me tied up in the basement forever?”
“I can try and wipe the memory of Symone and this place from your mind. But I’ll need your permission to do so. Otherwise it’ll be too unpleasant for both of us.”
His memories? Symone darted a glance at him before studiously fixing her gaze on the frayed corner of the rug. She set her jaw and slumped her shoulders. She knew the despair was futile, but she couldn’t help the rush of it.
“And by wipe my memory, you mean, I won’t remember coming here. Won’t remember Symone?”
Cassie nodded. “I can try and erase your past with the Trackers if you want, but they’ll come for you one day, and I don’t want you caught unawares. It’ll be a death sentence. And you need to go back for your brother. You’re telling the truth from what I can see, but I cannot risk my team to help you.”
“And what if neither of those options sounds good to me? You going to force my hand?”
Cassie stopped leaning against the desk and rose to her full height of five feet. “I can’t force you, but you know that every minute you’re here puts Symone in danger, puts us all in danger. Would you rather have her killed?”
Garrett set his jaw. “Fuck no. But she had a point. I know the location of the compound where the team last was. You could strike. We could strike. Neutralize the threat. I’m not running. But I don’t want Symone in danger. The rest of you…” He smirked down at Jansen. “Are not my concern. But I need help getting my brother out.” He exhaled. “He’s just a kid. Not much older than some of you when you were taken. I can’t just leave him there with that nut job.”
Jansen used his still trembling hands to push himself into a sitting position. “Cass, it’s a trap. You know he can’t be trusted. He’s trying to get us all killed.”
Cassie and Seth stared at each other for a full minute. Symone knew them well enough to know they were having a full-fledged conversation.
When Cassie spoke again, she addressed Garrett. “Can you get us close enough to Peter to neutralize him?”
Garrett nodded, still holding his head. “I can do you one better. I can give you the tool he’s using to find you.”
Chapter Fourteen
Symone joined the rest of the team on the expansive lawn of the house. When she saw Garrett’s cat-like stride making his way up the hill, she narrowed her gaze. “Just where the hell do you think you’re going Mr. I-believe-I-can-fly? New powers mean you’re a liability. We’ll handle it.”
He grinned. “Over my dead body you’re going in, and I’m not.” He shrugged. “Besides, it’s not your call.” He moved around her, and she hurried to catch up. She wasn’t small, but his legs had several inches on hers. The swagger in his step had her gnashing her teeth. Overgrown brute really did think he was superman. Though, given the new wings, he was pretty darn close.
The moment Symone caught sight of Cassie, she tried to talk her out of her decision. She didn’t need any emotional entanglements following her around. She needed time to process everything that had happened in the last day and a half, but she couldn’t process with Garrett always watching her, his eyes tracking her every move. How the hell hadn’t she realized she was being followed?
“Cassie, you can’t let him come. He’ll only get in the way.”
“You are so sweet to worry about me, darling,” he drawled. “But I’m a big boy.”
When they met up with the others, Jansen handed out weapons of choice. Cassie never took one. She usually didn’t need one with the telekinesis. Seth selected a Glock. Morgan grabbed a nasty looking hunting knife and several throwing knifes. Alex shook his head and snickered. “What’s the line from that Tarantino film?. ‘You know what happens to people who carry knives?’”
Morgan smirked. “Yeah, they got their opponents.”
Alex shook his head. “Nope. I’m pretty sure it’s like that saying about bringing a knife to a gun fight. When are you going to graduate to the big leagues?” He picked up another gun and shoved them both in the holsters.
“I don’t need guns if they can’t see me coming.”
While the two of them bickered, Jansen kept handing out weapons to the rest of the crew. The young ones were staying behind with Lisa.
Symone pulled Cassie aside. “You can’t let him fight. His powers can be unstable. You remember how Seth was. This is suicide if he goes.”
Cassie’s expression was gentle. “I’m glad to see you giving a damn, Symone. It looks good on you.”
Symone sneered in response.
“But Garrett’s not one of mine. I can’t tell him what to do. And as he reminded me, he’s a grown man. Not to mention, he’s not like Seth. Seth was a normal human. It took some time adjusting to the new powers. Garrett’s already a Tracker. He burned, but only for a short time. Already he looks more agile than when you brought him in.”
“You know what? Let’s take Jeremy. His telekinesis and pyrotechnics will more than make up numbers.”
Cassie shook her head. “There’s no way I’m potentially handing Peter a nice young victim. Anything goes south, the youngest ones will be protected. I’m not taking chances with their freedom.”
Cassie had a point, but it didn’t make Symone any happier. She glared at Garrett over Cassie’s shoulder.
Cassie then turned her attention to Garrett. “We have the map. Is there anything else you can tell us about Peter’s enhancer?”
Garrett shook his head. “Just what I’ve told you already. It’s kept in the safe of his office. Upstairs, north corner of the house. Last I was there, it’s not guarded, but has three industrial deadbolts on the door. The safe will also give you problems.”
“Not me.” Morgan piped up and grinned. “If Peter ever did anything good, he turned me into an excellent thief. Trained me himself. It’ll be nice to pay him back for the favor.”
Garrett nodded at Morgan, then smiled at Symone. “Looks like you’re stuck with me, sweetheart.” He sauntered over with knives in their sheaths and a gun on in his holster.
“I though Jansen didn’t have a weapon for you.”
“Lucky for me, he’s not calling the shots. Otherwise, I’d have been target practice for your guys.” He slid a glance over the group. Garrett lowered his voice to a pitch only Symone could hear. “You know, we should probably talk about what happened.”
A chill ran up her spine, followed by the slow melt of her insides. That was not a conversation she wanted to have. “Nothing to talk about.” She shook her head. “I was out of order with Jansen, but he had a point. I never should have—”
“Fuck Jansen and what he thinks. I was talking about what happened between us. I can smell you—you want me. Shit, everyone else can smell it too. When are you going to admit it to yourself?”
She might want him, but there would come that inevitable time when he didn’t want her. She hoped she wouldn’t be around for that.
Chapter Fifteen
Symone held on tight to Garrett’s hand as the seven of them landed on the other side of Alex’s wormhole. The transport holes Alex could open were somewhat unstable, and the landings were almost always rocky. Not to mention, if they all held on to each other, it made it easier for Morgan to cloak them all.
The warmth of his hand reassured her, even though they were in the enemy’s camp. As if he alone could protect her from Peter.
Garrett indicated the guard shacks next to the house. He muttered under his breath, so soft a normal human would have thought it was the breeze. “There are two guards per each shack. In the main house, there will be ten soldiers and five training underground. Remember what you want is actually in the first guard shack—at least it was there two weeks ago. Reaper moves it around usually about once a month. If the enhancer isn’t there, then it’ll be in the main house, and that will be a little trickier.”
“Good thing my specialty is tricky,” Morgan said, letting go of Symone’s other hand.
As they made it to the tree line for cover, Cassie’s voice was full of steel. “Remember, don’t kill anyone unless you have to. Better to let me try and wipe them than to kill them.”
Seth’s jaw clenched, but he said nothing. Instead, he tapped Morgan on the shoulder. “You’re up. Try and keep it clean.”
She rolled her eyes. “Right, right, don’t kill anybody.” She grinned. You didn’t say anything about maiming.”
Morgan and her pale blonde hair and sassy grin slipped into the darkness and became invisible to their eyes. When she reached her position, their ear coms all went off. “War bird in position. Proceeding to mark.”
Jansen muttered a curse. “Are you kidding me with the code names?”
Cassie grinned. “If my idiot brother gets one, I sure as shit want one.”
There was a flurry of activity in the guard tower. All Symone could see were shadows moving. From her vantage point, it was impossible to tell what was happening. After several tense moments, the door swung open, and Morgan stumbled out holding her left side. Alex tried to run to her, but Symone placed a hand on his shoulder. She shook her head sharply once. “No.” She pointed out three Trackers running from the east.
Garrett grumbled. Those guards must have been able to trigger the silent alarm. Just as the tree Trackers with guns took aim, Morgan vanished into the ether.
What the—” Garrett mumbled beside Symone.
But there wasn’t time to explain Morgan’s vanishing act and why she’d reappeared in the first place. They all had their powers, and they all had a tipping point when their powers were ineffective. For Morgan it was pain. If she was in enough of it, she’d reappear until she got it under control.
The two side doors burst open, and armed men spilled from the house like ants on a picnic raid.
“Show time,” Jansen said as he stepped into the clearing. “You boys are slow. Who lets the enemy raid their line without so much as a motion alarm? Sloppy work.”
Gunfire filled the night air, and Jansen rolled to safety behind one of the Jeeps parked to their far left. The remaining five of them sprinted out, using the full force of Cassie’s telekinetic power to support them. Cassie tossed Trackers aside like they were children’s toys. Never leaving Symone’s side, Garrett fired at the knees of the oncoming Trackers.
He made it no more than twenty yards when a bullet clipped him in the shoulder. The soldier in front of them was the same boy she’d seen through his memories. Taller now, stronger, muscles bulging.
When he spoke, his voice was monotone. “Safe. Right. When you went off reservation, Reaper told me what you were up to. You left me here to fend for myself. You’re a traitor.”
Garrett grimaced. “I’ve come back for you. You’re the only reason I’m back here. Look I’ll explain later, but we have to go. It isn’t safe. I’ll explain on the way.”
His brother shook his head and leveled a gun at him. “I don’t need an explanation. You chose a terrorist over your own family.”
Garrett darted a look at Symone. “Look, you have to listen to me, Michael. We haven’t been told the truth.” His words came out in rushed shouts as he struggled to be heard over the din of gunshots. “Symone—Reaper wants her back to do more experiments on her. She’s not a terrorist.”
Michael frowned, and he shook his head as if trying to shake a thought. “No I-I-I know what she is.” He leveled his gun again.
They only had another two minutes before Alex would open the portal again. They didn’t have time to argue with the kid. Desperate to diffuse the situation and get the show on the road, Symone threw herself in front of Garrett, her palms outstretched. “Look, I know you think—” Before she could call back her power, she actually witnessed the electricity zing through her hands and pass to Michael in a flash of light. The kid sailed ten feet into the air before landing in the grass with a thud, his weapon loose in his grip.
As soon as the sparks hit Michael, he shuddered and went down, but not before getting off a shot. Rolling out of the way, Symone crawled over to Garrett. “Get up, we have to go.”
He rolled, clutching the entry point of his shoulder. He moaned, but made no move to get up.
“Garrett, come on. There will be more coming. We have to go.”
The comm unit in her ear blared. “You all better get a move on. We have the device and have set the charges, this place is going up in smoke. Get your asses to the egress location.”
“We’re on our way.” Grabbing Garrett’s good arm, she wrapped it over her shoulder and pulled him into a sitting position. Why the hell hadn’t he already started healing himself? Unless—She leaned in and examined the wound. Two puncture points. Green fluid leaked out the smaller hole. Shit. Nisulin again. Those bullets had stripped him of powers. He was no better off than one of the kids right now. Worse, he probably hadn’t fully recovered from the last round with the Trackers.
“Listen to me, Garrett. You’ve been shot again with Nisulin. We’ve got to get you out of here.” Carrying his dead weight, she dragged him across the back lawn in an effort to get him to the tree line. His feet dragged.
His breathing was harsh and ragged.
“Just—” He let out a hoarse puff. “Leave.” Another hoarse puff rasped from his throat. “Me here. You have the device. Just go. You’ll be safe. Leave.”
“You’re the one who wanted to spend some quality time with me. Now you’re so eager to get rid of me?” Her legs pumped one after the other. Keep your head down. Almost to safety. Just keep your head down. You will save his life. She had to. She had a debt to repay.
But as they rounded the house to the front lawn, she watched as one by one her team disappeared through the portal Alex had opened. Jansen waited on this side. In her ear, she heard him say, “Leave the asshole, and get over here. We can’t keep it open for much longer.” He fired shots at the advancing Trackers. “I’m not leaving you behind.”
Symone judged the two-hundred meter distance between the two of them and the portal and took a scope of the Trackers. She knew the truth. With Garrett, she wouldn’t make it. He could barely manage the shuffle they had going now, let alone the all-out sprint they needed. “Leave him, Symone.” Jansen took a step toward her and Garrett. But she already knew the truth. She wasn’t going to make it, and leaving Garrett wasn’t an option. Tracker or not, he’d saved her life. And you can touch him. As selfish as that was, she wasn’t ready to let go of that yet.
She leaned Garrett up against the side of the house. She could try and pretend he didn’t affect her all she wanted, but she wasn’t leaving him behind.
Garrett nodded if Jansen’s direction. “He’s right you know. Norse god. He’s right. You have to leave me. It’s your only chance.”
A Tracker came around the corner, and Symone sent an electric charge his way without even thinking about how she’d managed it. She simply outstretched her hand. She stared at her fingers for a moment, then hit her comm. “You have to go, they have nisulin bullets. Alex keeps that portal open, and who knows what bullets are landing on the other side. I won’t risk the others. Go through it and shut it down.”
Jansen looked at her and shook his head. As if to drive the point home, the Trackers let loose a spray of bullets toward the portal. “Shit. Symone. I—”
She shook her head. “Go. I’ll get back. I’m too stubborn to die.”
She knew Jansen. His mutinous expression flitted over his face until he faced the inevitability. Shouting curses, he sprinted for the portal and dove through it, even as Symone witnessed the edges start to fold in. But before the portal closed, she watched in horror as two Trackers came out of the shadows headed for the barely open wormhole. Without a thought, she sent all her power across the expanse of lawn. Sparks flew out of her hands like lightning bolts and traversed the lawn with ease. The lawn lit up like the sun had come out to play. One of the T
rackers was halfway through the threshold when he went down. There was an explosion on the edges of the gateway, and she sucked in a gasp of air. He’d had a bomb. Had she inadvertently ignited it? Were her friends okay? The lower half of the Tracker’s body slumped to the ground. The top half was nowhere to be seen. Bisected. She grimaced.
That was it. She and Garrett were on their own.
Chapter Sixteen
Cassie tried to claw out of Seth’s grasp. “Symone. We have to go back for Symone. Oh God, Seth. Let me go.” She could feel her power building, and she didn’t need him hurt as well. “Let me go.”
“Why? So you can force Alex to open the portal again? No. Baby, it’s too late. We can’t go back that way. We have to find another way to get her.” He hushed her. “You’ll hurt yourself if you keep going like this. Symone is strong. She’ll find a way. She knows how to take care of herself. She’ll rendezvous at a safe house and call.”
“You don’t know that.” She all but screamed at him as she sat up in the damp grass of the Lair. “She’s all alone out there. We abandoned her. Just like her parents and just like we let her leave before. Don’t you get it? She thinks she doesn’t belong here, and now we’ve gone and left her behind.”
Seth held her tight, whispering nonsense words in her ear. It took her several moments to realize he wasn’t hushing her. He was talking to their baby. Well shit. He was right. She did have to calm down. No telling what surges of power would do to the little alien growing inside her. Nodding, she inhaled deeply. “You’re right. Where’s Jansen, we need an alternate—”
It was only then that she surveyed the grounds. Something was wrong. No light came from the floods on the front lawn. No light came from the house. Was there a power outage? But why weren’t the generators on? She saw them then, half her team—Morgan and Alex lying unmoving on the ground. Jansen leaned over Morgan. Lisa had come running from the house with a flashlight and her medical bag. Half of a dead Tracker lay just a few yards from their position.