I doubted it, so I pressed myself close to the wall, and as she passed right next to me, her eyes met mine. So close. She was so damn close, and yet I couldn’t do anything. The crowd still shouted her name, but they didn’t notice her slipping away right under their noses. She went for the main street, and I rushed after her, shoving away any person who got in my way. When I finally emerged onto the street, I spotted her not far from me.
I ran forward, planning to talk to her and maybe pretend to be one of the supporters before revealing myself, because there were still people on the street and I didn’t need witnesses who would give Sophia exactly what she wanted. I dashed toward her and got in her path, but as the hooded woman lifted her head, a pair of unfamiliar dark eyes stared back at me.
“Out of my way, child,” the woman hissed. “You ain’t robbing me. Shoo!”
My mouth falling open, I stepped aside and let the woman pass. Shit! The woman was dressed identically to Sophia and was about her height, but it wasn’t her. She must have found some secret passage and switched with this person. Smart, and so damn annoying.
I went back toward the alley, checking every corner for a passage she could’ve used, but considering she could probably turn into air, maybe she’d made sure no one could see her and then disappeared. The people on the street wouldn’t have recognized her in the hoodie anyway or wouldn’t have expected to see her just walking alone at night.
A shadow caught my eye and I hurried toward it. If Sophia had been here, maybe Terry was still somewhere here too, because I hadn’t seen him leaving with her... unless he’d used a different path since no one knew him as his face hadn’t been all over the news. Or maybe he wasn’t working with her at all.
“She was here, I’m telling you, man. I saw her!” the man said excitedly and I realized he was talking on the phone. “She’s freakin’ hot and... so damn amazing.” He leaned his hand against the wall of the building in front of him. “No, man, I’m not lying. She was here and held a speech.”
Wow, some people really liked Sophia, and one part of me wasn’t surprised. She didn’t even need mind control to give a bunch of scared people a reason to unite and make them feel like they have a purpose and that they could do something against the threat that was hanging over their heads.
I let my air seep out of me and toward the man. I didn’t know for how long he’d been standing there, but maybe he’d seen something. It didn’t make me happy that I would be entering his mind without permission and confirm his belief that tainteds lacked control and moral compass, but Sophia’s end game might be more dangerous for everyone, and not just tainteds. The man didn’t even flinch and kept talking on his phone as I checked his brain signals, which were all untouched.
“Yeah, well, I’m tellin’ you the truth. You don’t have to believe me.” The man scoffed and forcefully ended the call, tucking the phone into his jeans. His eyes were empty as he turned toward me.
“I saw her when she held her speech. Haven’t seen her after that,” he answered to the question my element asked.
“You won’t remember this,” I said, and quickly called my element back, disappointed that we were back at square one. Unless Jaiden had found something.
Chapter 15
I ended up back in the alley, but people were still there and it seemed they were having a great time partying after Sophia’s speech. Drinks were being served and someone had turned on loud music. Some were dancing... or trying to. As they swayed on their feet, I had to avoid them so they wouldn’t spill their beer all over me. I made my way through the crowd, but I couldn’t see Jaiden anywhere. When I reached the elemental fire, I noticed that the men who were protecting Sophia were gone now.
After pushing back through the crowd and reaching the main street, I breathed in a big gulp of fresh air and shivered. It was hot in the alley, but here... not so much. I grabbed my phone and pressed the jacket closer to myself. After a few rings, I heard the click on the other end of the line.
“Jaiden?” I said immediately.
“Moira? Where are you? I’ve been looking all over for you,” he said.
“I’m two houses away from that alley where Sophia was.” I lounged against the wall.
“I’ll be right there.”
Putting my phone away, I let out a long sigh. I’d been so close to Sophia and yet she’d managed to disappear again. I should’ve tried carrying a tracker with me and then stuffing it into her pocket, but I didn’t have any handy devices like that. Lily was unable to help and Jack didn’t want to. A smile popped up on my lips as I saw Jaiden swaggering toward me.
“Any luck?” I asked.
“Nope. Just a bunch of people who support Sophia’s views.” His lip curled a little. “I checked their minds, but they were either too drunk to notice where she had gone or how she had gotten here, or they simply didn’t care.”
“I saw her. She was only a few inches from me. I looked her straight in the eye and couldn’t do a thing about it because of the crowd.” I pushed myself off the wall because its coldness was starting to break through my jacket and shirt. “I followed her, but... I lost her for a moment while trying to push my way through the crowd, and by then, she somehow switched with another person who was dressed exactly like her.”
“Great.” He groaned, then put his arm around me. “Maybe we’ll have better luck next time.”
“I really hope so,” I said, because I didn’t want Sophia to get her way. We just had to be better prepared next time we saw her.
“Should we fly and see if we can spot anything? If that energy detector is still down...” He gave me a questioning look.
“Okay.” We didn’t have much to lose. I took Jaiden’s hand and we went to a secluded corner where no one could see us vanishing into thin air. As we were flying over the city, I wondered if the government would finally release an official statement regarding tainted elementals. They were awfully quiet and I didn’t like that at all.
Sure, they might be after Sophia for disturbing the public peace, but they weren’t trying too hard to catch her. And if they couldn’t do it, then they should’ve at least tried to discredit her statements, but no one had stepped up to do that. Maybe they were still trying to see how many supporters Sophia could get before they made a decision, but that was tricky. If Sophia could mind-control people and turn them into her supporters without anyone even suspecting she could be one of us, then she could take control of the whole city. We couldn’t let that happen. Not if she threatened to wipe us all off the face of the earth.
“See anything?” Jaiden asked.
“Nope. Just the old, boring city.” The lights were flickering underneath us, the sky incredibly dark and looming. People milled around, cars rushing up and down the streets, but there wasn’t anything that seemed different or out of the ordinary. There wasn’t even a shimmering cloud anywhere, and I wondered if tainteds were now being more careful and avoided using their elements. Our kind had always been hunted by someone, first by Elemontera, and now by Sophia and her supporters. The latter were far more dangerous because anyone could rise against a tainted elemental, and not just a trained agent that could be easily recognized as a potential threat.
“Then let’s head back to the lab. Maybe the others had better luck.”
“Okay.” Jaiden and I had only been to one part of the city, so hopefully the others had noticed something of interest. They hadn’t been flying, so they had a better chance of overhearing something helpful about Sophia’s whereabouts or future plans.
After making sure no one was following us, Jaiden and I got back to the lab. Marissa, Nick, Ashley, and Sam were waiting for us, and I offered them a small smile when they looked up from their seats at Jaiden and me. They’d dragged more chairs to the computer room.
“Your parents went to sleep,” Marissa said before I could ask anything. “They’ll come back in the morning.”
“Okay.” I dropped into an empty chair, my body suddenly feeling heavy, my b
ack hurting. “Did any of you see anything?”
“Not really,” Sam said. “Everything was normal and no one even mentioned Sophia or tainteds.”
“We ran into one of her gatherings,” Jaiden said and everyone leaned forward, their eyes filled with curiosity. “But she managed to escape and we didn’t get any useful info out of the others.”
“Shit.” Nick said. “I was hoping you would at least get something.”
“Have you seen or heard from Noah?” Ashley asked.
I shook my head. “Why? Isn’t he here? I thought we’d all be here once we were done.”
“He didn’t come,” Marissa said, twisting a strand of her hair around her finger. “We called his cell, but he’s not answering.”
“What?” I blinked. “Where was he supposed to go?”
“Um, he was investigating an energy spike downtown,” Nick said. “But he called me and told me it had been a false alarm. It was just a fight with elements involved.”
“Are you sure?” I was at the edge of my seat, my pulse speeding up. If Noah had been mind-controlled, he would’ve said whatever the controller told him to. “Just because he told you something doesn’t mean that really happened.”
“We found an article about it on the net, so I guess there really was a fight. There were even some videos uploaded,” Ashley said.
“Did he say he wouldn’t be coming?” Surely if someone had mind-controlled him, they would’ve made sure not to raise any suspicion.
“No, he didn’t say anything,” Nick said. “Maybe he went to check on those tainteds he found. Or he spotted someone new at that fight and has to deal with them.”
“But his phone is ringing, right?” I asked.
“Yeah, he just isn’t picking up,” Marissa said. “He could be busy, so he doesn’t have time to answer.”
“Did that ever happen before?” Jaiden asked. “He used to not answer his phone back when we...” He bit his lip. “Is he still doing it?”
“Yeah,” Sam said. “Sometimes.”
“Okay, let’s not panic,” I said. “If Sophia was in our part of the city with her men, then she probably wasn’t anywhere near that fight. Can you track his phone?”
“Not without the right equipment.” Nick grimaced.
I was so tired I wanted nothing more than to just fall into bed next to Jaiden and forget everything. Even my eyelids were drooping. “Can you find it? Borrow it?” And by borrow, I meant take without permission and hopefully return later.
Nick looked thoughtful for a moment, but then just shrugged. “I guess I could try.”
“Okay, do that, and then try to track the phone. Will someone stay up to keep watch? Because I’m about to fall asleep in my seat.” I rubbed my eyes. Please Noah be fine.
“I will,” Ashley said. “The rest of you can go to sleep.”
“Okay, you keep watch and try to reach Noah. Maybe he stayed with tainteds, got tired, and fell asleep before he could tell us he wouldn’t be coming.” I really hoped that was what had happened. “Nick, you get the tracker. If you don’t hear from Noah in three hours or if you track him down, come for us.”
They both nodded, and I pushed myself to my feet, nearly stumbling. Yawning, I took hold of Jaiden’s arm and dragged him toward the room we’d used when his elements had been waning. The bed was big enough, and we’d moved all the equipment to a corner so it wouldn’t bother us but was still close enough and ready in case of emergencies.
“I hope he’s all right,” I murmured as I settled on the bed with Jaiden, my head resting on his chest.
“He will be. Probably forgot his phone or fell asleep,” Jaiden said reassuringly, caressing my hair. “Get some sleep.”
I nodded, closing my eyes. If something had really happened to Noah, I would need energy to be able to find him. I just hoped that I wouldn’t have to go look for him because he’d be waiting for us here in the morning.
Chapter 16
A knock on the door roused me from sleep and I forced my bleary eyes open. Ashley was standing in the doorway, a worried expression on her face. I immediately sat up, my heart thudding loudly in my chest.
“Noah? Did you find him?” I asked, although I already knew the answer.
“No. We checked that shelter where he took the tainteds, but he’s not there. No one has seen him ever since he went toward that spike of energy,” Ashley said. “We’ve tried to contact him, but the phone just rings. I don’t think...” Her voice cracked. “I don’t think the phone is still functioning. You know that even when the phone is destroyed, the cell tower still searches for it and that’s why it rings and...”
“Okay, find the last location where Noah was supposed to be. Jaiden and I are going there.” I immediately threw the covers off me, and Ashley nodded, closing the door behind her. Jaiden woke beside me, his eyes bloodshot.
“They didn’t find Noah,” I said, my voice filled with panic. “We need to go.”
“Okay.” Jaiden got up, searching for his clothes. There was no time to bother putting the colored contacts into my eyes, so I hoped no one who could recognize me would be out this late. As soon as I was done dressing, I quickly ran my fingers through my hair and looked at Jaiden, who was putting on his jacket.
We rushed into the hallway and nearly toppled Marissa. She was wearing a nightshirt and rubbing her arms as if she was cold.
“Thank God you’re up,” she said, offering me a phone. “Here’s Noah’s last known location. Do you think he...?”
“Not now.” I took the phone from her and studied the map. “We’ll find him, okay?” I met her eyes, and she nodded. There was no other option because I wasn’t willing to accept it. Jaiden and I immediately turned into air and rushed out into the quiet night.
We landed in the middle of the street where the fight had happened. The street was now completely empty, not even a stray cat skulking in the darkness. I looked around, trying to find any clues, or anything that could help us figure out where Noah was.
“I see traces of a fight, but that could be from those elementals,” Jaiden said.
“Yeah.” I could see where the asphalt had broken because of something heavy or perhaps an earth element hitting it, and the grass was singed where fire must have touched it.
“Hey,” Jaiden said, and I looked up at him. “See those?”
I followed his gaze, squinting my eyes. There was something metallic on the nearby building. “Cameras?”
“Let’s hope they work.” Jaiden started toward the building, and I followed, wondering if the cameras were still filming us. We were so worried about Noah that we hadn’t even noticed them before. Who knew if they’d recorded us appearing out of nowhere? Not that it mattered if no one actually watched the footage. If those were just security cameras, someone would watch the tapes only if something happened in the building or around it that warranted such a boring and difficult activity.
“I can see an open window,” Jaiden said, and I surveyed the building until I spotted the window on the second floor that he was talking about. It was just above the camera and it was cracked open, but it was enough for us to enter. Making sure no one was there to see us and alert the cops, we turned into air and slipped through the gap. Once we were inside the building, we headed down the dark hallway to find the room with the camera footage.
“In here, I guess,” Jaiden whispered as he pushed open the door of a small room that looked like storage. I let my fire come out enough to just coat my hand so we’d have a bit of light, but not enough that would alert anyone or that could trigger a smoke alarm or an element detection system. Jaiden went to the computer that was on a small green desk and started it. I looked around and noticed only shelves with stacks of papers. Luckily for us, no password was needed for the computer, and Jaiden easily found the folder with the latest camera footage.
“Oh, look, there’s us.” I groaned, leaning over Jaiden’s shoulder.
“Yeah, let’s delete that.” Jaiden pressed a co
uple of buttons and the video was gone. He fast-forwarded through the rest as we both had our eyes glued to the screen.
“Stop!” I yelled as soon as I spotted a person who looked a lot like Noah. Jaiden did as I asked and slowed down the video. We could see Noah walking by, his hands in the pockets of his pants, his eyes looking at something in front of him, but he didn’t seem worried. Then he took out his phone and talked for a while, probably with Nick. After that, he went toward the houses at the other end of the street and disappeared from view. Where could he have gone? Jaiden fast-forwarded through the rest, but Noah didn’t reappear.
“We should go in that direction,” he said. “He had to have found something there or...”
“Yeah.” Straightening my back, I took a deep breath. Hopefully Noah would be somewhere around here. Maybe he’d seen some tainteds and was trying to talk to them in their own home or something. Jaiden and I turned invisible and zoomed through the air until we reached an area outside the camera’s view, then materialized.
“This is a quiet area,” Jaiden glanced at the nearby houses that were mostly in the dark. “And there don’t seem to be many people here.”
I looked up at the houses. Most of these looked like family homes and private properties with huge yards. Jaiden was right. There were maybe five or six families here. If Sophia had tried to take Noah here, there would’ve been witnesses, especially if everyone had come out because of the fight. “Who was it that got into a fight? The neighbors?”
“From what I could see on the computer screen behind Ashley’s back, it was between the sons of two families here. Something about a car.” He scratched his head.
“Then we should go check if anyone here has seen Noah.” In different circumstances, I would’ve waited until morning and maybe tried to start a civilized conversation with someone, but Noah didn’t have that kind of time if he’d been taken. It was getting really hard not to use my elements on unsuspecting people.
Hunted (Tainted Elements, #5) Page 9