I nod my head, smiling, my eyes tearing.
He scrambles away from me so fast that you'd think I had tried to kill him. He bumps his head on the top bunk as he jumps from the bed and turns on the light.
Rubbing his head, he says, "What the hell are you doing here?"
His face is red, and eyebrows pinched. Whatever nightmare he was having before, my presence seems way more upsetting to him.
"I… uh…" I stutter. He's taller than I remember and more intimidating. It reminds me of the time I first met him in the club when Anthony was trying to hide me. Colt had been scary then too.
"You're not supposed to be here!"
"I came with Tank," I say, finally finding my voice.
His jaw muscles bulge as he clamps his mouth down. Without saying another word, he flings open the door and storms away.
"Wait!" I call and hurry after him. "Let me explain."
He won't look at me, and he doesn't slow down.
"Colt, please! I need to talk to you."
He turns a corner and presses the button to get into the elevator. His fingers on both hands curl into fists.
"I know you're upset, but if you could just listen to me, you'll understand," I beg, wanting desperately to tell him about Stella and my mother.
The elevator doors open, and he steps inside, still looking like he's going to blow his top. I hurry in after him, but just as the elevator doors close, he slips back out, leaving me alone.
I stand there with my mouth open, utterly shocked. I figured he would be upset, but I didn't think he would outright ignore me! I'm so stunned, that I don't even notice the small space. The elevator doors open a few seconds later. From down the hall, Colt is yelling Tank's name. He must've taken the stairs. I rush after him, determined to make him listen to reason.
I almost catch up to him, but then he flings open the door leading to operations, the room Tank didn't want me to see. I stop in the entryway. The room is big inside. There's maybe a dozen people sitting at desks or staring at screens. In the center of the room, a round table projects the image of the city. Little red dots, some of them moving, sprinkle different areas of the projection.
"Tank!" Colt yells.
On the other side of the room, Tank straightens and turns around. Anthony is sitting at a desk next to him. When Anthony sees me behind Colt, his golden eyes widen in shock. Mine do too when I see an inch wide scar starting at the top of his scalp and ending at his chin.
"What's up, Bro!" Tank bellows. "Can you believe I survived?"
"I'm going to kill you!" Colt says and runs at Tank. He jumps over a desk, scattering papers everywhere, and takes a swing at Tank's jaw, but Tank easily dodges it.
"Easy there," Tank says. "What's your problem?"
Colt breathes heavily through his nostrils, his face a deep red. He points a sharp finger toward me. "What is she doing here?"
Tank's gaze goes from Colt to me. His Adam's apple moves up and down. "Well, that's a long story. One we should have in private and not in front of all these people."
"There's a lot you don't know," I say, my voice quieter than I anticipate. I grip my bandaged arm. It's suddenly hurting again.
Colt whirls around. "Don't speak!"
"Colt!" Anthony admonishes, coming to his feet.
I want to yell at Colt, but I'm acutely aware of everyone looking at me. Their weighted stares make the room feel smaller than it is. I suck in a deep breath, then another. Focus.
A tall, thin woman breaks the silence when she walks over to Colt, smiling coyly. Her hair cascades down her back into big, blond curls and her deep-set eyes are a stunning violet. She's one of the most beautiful Primes I've ever seen. That is until she links her arms through Colt's and presses her palm to his chest with her other hand.
"Don't raise your voice," she says, her voice deep and sultry. "I think we're upsetting the Original."
I glance between Colt and this exotic woman touching him. He's not moving away. It's then that I realize I've made a terrible mistake. Tears burn my eyes no matter how hard I try to hold them in. Before they can fall, I flee the room.
17
I keep running until I turn the corner and am out of their sight. My footsteps slow to a crawl. I shove the palms of my hands into my eyes, as if I can somehow squish the emotions back inside me. If others see me crying, it will be taken as a sign of weakness. As an Original, I am already weak enough.
I inhale several deep breaths. Eventually, my pulse slows. Colt and I have been apart for six months. For me, it was a very long six months. For Colt? I'm not really sure now. Technically, we weren't even a real couple. We'd only known each other a short time, but I had fallen hard. Colt had confessed his love for me, but maybe, after I left, his feelings had changed. It sure looks that way.
"Sage!" a voice calls.
I stop and turn around, realizing that I had just passed the entrance to the cafeteria. It's mostly empty because of the time of night, but it looks like they are still serving food. A counter has all kinds of breads, cheeses, and other snacks laid out.
Link waves his arm, motioning me to come to his table. A few Primes are sitting across from him and Smoke. I wipe at my eyes one last time and put on a smile before I walk over to them.
"This is Sage," Link says to one of the women. Her eyes are a vibrant aqua blue color. That, accompanied with her red hair, tell me she is a Raze, a Prime with fingernails as hard as steel. They are often filed into points so they can be used as deadly weapons. I glance down at her hands for confirmation. Sure enough, it looks like there are dagger tips glued at the end of her fingers, and she's painted them a shiny silver.
"You're prettier than I expected," she says, matter-of-factly. "I'm Maisy, by the way, and this is Jet." She motions her head to the right of her.
"So you're really William Radkey's daughter?" Jet asks. His chin-length, caramel-colored hair is swept back behind his ears, and his eyes match his hair color, which means his genetics haven't been tampered with as much as the others. If he has some kind of special gift, it will be small.
"I am," I answer, my face reddening, but not because I'm embarrassed. I just realized that since being back, I haven't even asked about my father. I did miss him, but the last time we parted, we weren’t on the best of terms. He had made it pretty clear to me that his experiments would always come before his family. Still, though, I should've at least asked.
"It's a good thing you came in the middle of the night," Jet tells me.
"Why's that?"
His eyebrows lift. "Because of who you are. Radkey's daughter? Most Primes here have never seen an Original, let alone the daughter of the most famous one."
I puff air from my mouth. The last thing I want is attention. I'll have to remember to stay out of sight tomorrow.
"They've got sandwiches over there," Smoke says through a mouthful of food. He points behind me.
"I met Radkey once, you know," Maisy says.
Jet laughs. "You did not."
While Maisy tells the others how she knows my father, I grab a sandwich and a drink from off a shelf. There's a woman standing next to it wearing an apron. She gives me a small smile and offers me a napkin. When I return, I slide in next to Maisy and ask, "Do you know where my father is?"
She shakes her head. "Last I heard, he was in DC."
"I bet Colt knows how to get in touch with him," Jet says. "I can talk to him for you, if you want."
"Colt's the man in charge around here," Maisy explains.
My brow furrows in confusion. They obviously aren't aware that I already know Colt, which surprises me. Wouldn't everyone know about how he saved William Radkey's children? But then again, Colt wasn't the type to brag. But Jenna sure would have. Where is she anyway?
Link rests his elbows on the table, his sandwich half-eaten in front of him. "What's Colt like?"
He doesn't know that I know Colt either. I wonder what he would think if he did.
Maisy smiles, almost dreamy-like
. "He's amazing. Kind, strong, yet mysterious. Everyone's always trying to get close to him, but he has this intense focus, and it's like no one else is around. I remember this one speech he gave a few months ago where he talked about a better future for everyone. A future where we could actually enjoy life and not worry about when we're going to die. He said the key is in protecting Originals, their blood. I think he recruited over a hundred Primes that day."
"I'd like to meet him," Link says.
"You might get the chance when they take you guys to Eden."
Smoke, Link and I straighten in our seat.
Smoke coughs out part of his sandwich. "Eden? Why would we go back there?"
Jet glances at Maisy and then back to Smoke. "Back?"
"We just came from there," I explain. "We returned with Tank."
"But why?" Maisy gasps. "Your lives are in danger here! Besides, I didn't think we let Originals leave."
"Let us leave?" I enunciate the words slowly.
"Well, yeah," Maisy snorts. "I don't know about other Primes, but I don't want to waste my time saving Originals if they're just going to leave and get caught again."
Smoke leans back and folds his arm to his chest. He opens his mouth to speak, but I beat him to it.
"Did you ever stop to think that Originals actually hold some value other than pure DNA? We can be smart, tough, brave, kind—"
"I can't believe you're still spouting that crap," a voice behind me says.
I whirl around ready to fight, but my anger melts when I see Jenna.
"I heard there were stowaways off the island and just knew it would be you. I'm surprised it's taken you this long," she says, smiling big. She's at least two inches taller from the last time I saw her, and her blond hair is longer. It's shaved just above her right ear, which is sporting a big circled earring. By her appearance, you'd never guess she wasn’t even fifteen years old.
I jump to my feet and throw my arms around her, but she squirms free.
"What the hell, Patch?" she growls. "This shirt wasn't cheap!"
"I've missed you, too," I say.
"Seriously! You can't go around touching everyone. It's creepy and weird." Her gaze flashes behind me. "Who are these mutts you brought with you?"
Smoke coughs. "Mutts?"
Link comes to his feet, looking back and forth at Jenna and me.
"Wow. I take that back," Jenna says to Link. "You're more like a prize Doberman." In my direction, she whispers under her breath, "Is he for me?"
I stifle a laugh. "Jenna, meet Link and Smoke. They helped me and Tank get off the island."
Jenna gazes longingly at Link, whose face has reddened, then turns to Smoke. "You've got to be the crustiest person I've ever met. How did you manage to get here without having a heart attack?"
Smoke pushes back his chair and stands. "That's twice now you've insulted me. One more time, and I'm going to have to turn you over my knee and teach you some respect."
Jenna wrinkles her nose. "So he's a crustie and a pervert? Where do you find these guys, Patch?"
I'm about to tell her to shut up, but a voice stops me.
"Sage."
My heart skips a beat. It's Colt. I turn around slowly.
"Uh-oh," Jenna says. "Here comes the drama."
Colt's face isn't as tightly scrunched as it was before, but his eyebrows are drawn together, and by his rigid stance, it looks like he's still trying to control his temper.
"I need you—" Colt clears his throat. "I mean we need you in operations."
Link hurries to my side and stands straight. He's almost as tall as Colt. "I'm going with her."
Colt's gaze slowly goes to him. "Who are you?"
Link casually puts his arm around my shoulders. "The guy that's going to keep her safe."
I don't move away, but my muscles tighten. It's a motion Link has done a hundred times before, but it feels uncomfortable in front of Colt. It shouldn't though, I realize.
Link sticks out his hand at Colt. "I'm Link."
Colt stares down at Link's hand, his nostrils flaring.
"And I'm Smoke and very tired," Smoke says. "Is there somewhere I can lie down?"
"Won't you turn to dust?" Jenna asks.
"Shut up, Jenna!" Colt and I say at the same time.
She glances back and forth at us incredulously. "So it's like this again?"
Colt ignores her. "Maisy and Jet, will you please show Smoke to one of the extra rooms?"
They quickly jump to their feet to obey. Smoke follows them out. As he passes Jenna, he spits a wad of tobacco in a garbage can next to her. She squeals and jumps away.
"Let's get this over with," Colt says and walks away.
Jenna snickers and follows after him.
I walk behind them with Link by my side. Even though I'm not that close, every few seconds I catch a whiff of Colt's familiar scent in his wake. It sends a shiver across my skin as I remember our kiss less than an hour ago. My pulse races, and I wonder if Colt's special hearing can detect it.
Without looking at me, Colt turns back and asks over his shoulder, "What happened to your arm?"
I glance down at it, surprised he noticed. "We ran into some trouble getting off the island. Tank was hurt worse than I was."
He keeps walking forward. After a few seconds, he adds, "I heard about your mother. Somehow we'll find a way to get her and the others back safely."
I'm about to thank him, but before I can, he walks into the operation room. As soon as I enter, Anthony engulfs me into a tight hug. "I've missed you so much! Sorry I didn't do this right when I saw you. I thought I was seeing a ghost earlier!"
"I've missed you too," I say, hugging him back just as fiercely. He was the first Prime to show me kindness when I escaped the Institute. If it wasn't for him, I would be dead right now.
I pull away. Anthony looks the same except for that scar. "What happened?" I ask.
"Later," he answers. His eyes flash to Link, and he smiles. "Who's this?"
"This is Link. He came with me and one other Original from the island. Link this is Anthony, one of the nicest Primes you will ever meet."
"Good to meet you," Link says. This time he doesn't extend his hand, but Anthony does.
"He's not like the rest of the emotionless Primes here," I say to him under my breath.
Link grins and shakes his hand.
Jenna snorts and drops into a nearby chair and swivels around in a bunch of circles.
"Let's get started," Colt says. He's on the other side of the room in what seems like the furthest spot away from me. The girl who had touched him before stands near him. In addition to them, there are about ten others scattered throughout. Tank is sitting on a chair not far away, his legs splayed out in front of him. He winks at me when our eyes meet.
Colt looks at everyone in the room but me. "This is Sage and Link. They are the Originals Tank mentioned. The third one, Smoke, is resting. As Tank just told us, Sage is supposedly the only one who can get inside Enfield. That's still up for debate, but one thing that isn't is we need to obtain two items. The first is a security badge used at the Institute in Boston. The second is Ebony's DNA. I'm opening the room to suggestions."
Tank speaks first. "Getting the security badge will be easy enough. I know where the guards party on the weekends. I can have one of my lady friends swipe one from them. It's the DNA that will be difficult."
"Near impossible," a man mutters next to him.
"Before we discuss any of this," the girl who had her paws on Colt earlier says, "we need to ship these guys back to Eden. I say we just make this Original," her eyes flash to mine, "write down the directions in her head to Enfield. This is no place for them."
"While I agree, Raven," Colt says, giving a name to the vixen, "if what Stella said is true about the electric force field around Enfield, then we may need her."
"Nobody needs an Original," she snaps. "They are only good for breeding."
"Hey!" Link says, his body suddenly tense.
I step toward her. "Shut your mouth, or I'll shut it for you."
Jenna laughs. "This is so good."
Raven walks toward me. "I'd like to see you try."
I meet her halfway, knowing her weakness full well now that I recognize her kind. All I need to do is kick solidly under her kneecap, and she'll come tumbling down. Even though Soros can be incredibly strong, her bones are weak and will shatter under a direct blow. Soros come from a long line of humans who had manipulated the strength gene to the point of disaster.
Link pulls me back, and Colt does the same to Raven.
"We don't have time for this," Colt says.
"I'd like to see them fight," Tank says and chuckles.
"Me too," Jenna adds. "My money's on Sage."
"We will discuss the Originals later. For now, we need to figure out how to get Ebony's DNA. Any ideas?" Colt asks, his voice hard.
Raven looks at me smugly and crosses her arms over her chest. I give her an equally venomous look.
Several suggestions are presented. Tank's is to storm the Institute guns-a-blazing, but his idea is shot down for good reason. The Institute is guarded by many Titans, Speeders, and a whole other slew of powerful Primes, even more so than when I was there, by the sound of it. Ebony would also bolt before we could get to her.
Others suggest luring Ebony out of the safety of the Institute, but that would involve a ground fight in a location we might not be familiar with or have control over, which could present a lot of obstacles.
"What about our guy inside the Institute?" a man with blue hair asks. "Could he get to her somehow?"
Colt shakes his head. "He's low level. They won't let him anywhere near the fourth floor, let alone Ebony's office. Besides, he's our only eyes and ears inside that building. We can't risk exposing him."
Fourth floor? That's were Ebony held me the last time I was captured.
"So the rest of us are supposed to stick our necks out?" Raven asks.
Tank snorts. "When has your neck ever stuck out?" His voice is surprisingly bitter, which makes me wonder if they have a history.
Colt flashes him a dark look. "Any other suggestions?"
"I have one," Link says.
Escape from Eden (Original Series book 2) Page 11