EVO Nation Series Trilogy Box Set

by K. J. Chapman

  “Then, I’m a monster too. Only, I actually did the deed, and I’d do it again to keep you all safe,” I say.

  Emiko places a hand on my shoulder. “That’s different.”

  I shrug. “Is it though? The funny thing is that even Isaac said that I wasn’t any better than him. Do you know the last thing I said to him? ‘Maybe it takes a monster to kill a monster.’ I said that to him, and then I drowned him,” I say, walking away.

  ***

  Showering feels like another motion to keep time moving forward, and going through the motions is all I can do right now. The bathroom is also the only place that I can get time alone.

  I put my dirty clothes back on and open the door. Adam and Yana sit against the wall waiting for me, playing a silent game of ‘who can throw the balled up sweet wrapper into the cup’. I sit with them, and Yana hands me the sweet wrapper. I miss the cup miserably.

  Adam slips an arm around my shoulder, pulling me into him. “You saved my life, and everyone on this boat is alive because of you. You’re not a monster.”

  Yana takes my hand and laces her fingers through mine, resting her head on my shoulder. Adam stretches his arm over, so Yana’s included in our embrace.

  “And then there were three,” she says, sighing.

  “We’ve been through some shit, haven’t we?” says Adam.

  Both Yana and I nod. We share such a horrendous experience of Facility One, and we all fell for Isaac’s charade and lost friends and family because of it. That, in itself, binds us forever.

  “Do you think the others understand the situation back home? I mean really understand it- the way that we do?” I ask.

  “How can they?” says Adam.

  Part of me wishes that Isaac was still alive to see the mess he has caused. He exposed EVO everywhere and ignited fear in the Non-EVO, but his master plan has monumentally back fired. The thought of EVO kids being tested on and tortured makes me feel sick to my core. All he has done is given Towley an excuse to exploit us all the more.

  “I’m sticking with Jude,” I state. “I know he can be a bit of a dick, but Jude is Jude. There is no front with him. I like knowing where I stand and I trust him. That means a lot to me now, especially after Isaac.”

  “And Haydn,” Adam adds. “I’m sorry, but he betrayed all of you. If something had happened to you...”

  I can’t and won’t think badly of Haydn. He was naive, nothing more, nothing less. “I don’t want to talk about it. I love Haydn and he’s forgiven,” I say. “He was put in an impossible position.”

  Adam smiles and his eyes soften. He looks at me like it’s the first time he’s seeing me. I know the look because I look at him like that every time.

  “Adam’s right, Teds. I can’t forgive him either,” Yana sobs. She springs to her feet and darts into the bedroom, slamming the door behind her.

  A familiar weight of responsibility falls on my shoulders. I need to stop feeling sorry for myself and pull my head out of my ass. The people who have been there for me need me too. I’m not the only one grieving.

  CHAPTER THREE

  Yana’s small frame is curled under the silk sheets, wracked with sobs. I climb into the bed beside her and wrap an arm over her body. Taking my hand in her own, she pulls me tighter around her. Her cropped hair has grown surprisingly fast in the past fortnight and tickles my face as I sidle up behind her.

  “I want to forgive him. I do love him, but I hate what he did,” she says.

  “He was trying to do what was best for everyone. Isaac gave him no choice, and Haydn grasped at Isaac’s lies about keeping us all safe.”

  “He was just a coward you mean?” she sobs.

  “No. He wasn’t a coward. Don’t ever think that. He made a mistake, that’s all.”

  “A big mistake.”

  “Yes it was, but it wasn’t done in malice. Haydn didn’t have a nasty bone in his body. You’re allowed to grieve for him, Yana. I am.” My own voice betrays my emotion. “And for Golding.”

  More sobs send tremors through her body. She rolls around so we’re face to face, both of us crying, and both in unimaginable pain. She snuggles against my chest, and I rest my chin on the top of her head.

  “I can’t believe how much has changed,” she whispers. “Don’t leave me, Teds. Promise me that I’ll always have you.”

  “I promise that I’ll always have your back. We’re family, right?”

  I hold her until I hear the soft purrs of her snoring, and I finally allow my own eyes to close once more.

  ***

  Yana snores gently beside me, but a hand twirls strands of my hair. It’s Adam. The crackle of electricity I sense anytime he is near is better than any drug. He talks quietly to someone.

  Untangling myself from Yana, I push myself up on my elbow. “What’s going on?” I ask.

  Adam sits beside me. Jude, Wheeler, and Seth stand at the end of the bed. Adam’s serious face worries me, but his eyes are gentle as he smiles.

  “It’s Maggie,” he says, quietly. “I was just coming to wake you.”

  Jude’s face is beetroot red and the vein in his forehead pops angrily. “You need to have a word with that doc, Princess. I just caught her with the satellite phone. She was turning us in.”

  “We don’t know that,” Adam says.

  “Who else has she got to call?” Wheeler whispers. “Emiko doesn’t feel comfortable around her. She said Maggie was talking to herself yesterday, pacing on the deck like a mad woman, and she has been drinking non-stop today.”

  Yana stirs and her little face is a mix of surprise and confusion. She looks to me, but I shrug. I can’t process what is happening. Maggie had the phone, Jude is pissed off, and even though he is acting calm, Adam looks as worried as hell.

  Jude swings the door open and walks away mumbling about seeing what colour Maggie’s hair will turn when she hits the water.

  “Tell me exactly what has happened,” I say, getting to my feet.

  Adam looks over his shoulder and closes the door. “The others don’t know, yet. We don’t need Cooper and Fabian jumping the gun. It was hard enough convincing Jude to keep his mouth shut. He’s understandably pissed off.”

  “And you are worried,” I say, looking straight into his eyes. “Why would Maggie have the phone?”

  Yana’s mouth falls open, but she doesn’t speak.

  Adam shrugs. “I don’t know, but Emiko is right, Maggie hasn’t been acting herself. If she was going to call us in—”

  “Why would Maggie do that?” Yana gasps.

  I shake my head. “She’d be turning herself in too. Let me go and talk to her. I’m guessing this is my fault. I shouldn’t have poked the hornet’s nest earlier. Why’d I open my big mouth?”

  I step out of the room and close the door behind me. A knot tightens in my stomach at the thought of talking to Maggie after what I said to her. I won’t backtrack, but I need to sort this mess. What reason would she have for taking the phone?

  Adam slips out after me, grabbing my arm. “Why do you do that? Why do you blame yourself every time?”

  “Because lately, everything has been my fault. Everyone on this yacht, and everyone who died, did so because I’m a Dual-EVO. Isaac planned everything to use me like a puppet.”

  “And I’ll ask you again. Why do you blame yourself?” There is an angry edge to his voice, but I know it stems from love and concern. “None of this is down to you having dual ability. This is down to Isaac being a bloody psychopath. Stop shouldering the weight of the world, Teds. It drives me crazy. You’re expected to look after everyone else, but you need looking after too.”

  “I have you to look after me,” I say, sliding my arms around his waist. “Fifteen days ago, I didn’t have any friends, let alone know how to be one. I’ll take the weight of the world over loneliness any day.”

  Tucking my hair behind my ear, he sighs. He’s exhausted; his eyes more blood shot than usual.

  “You need to sleep.”

>   He raises an eyebrow in mock sternness. “No worrying about me. I’m made of tough stuff.”

  “Hard-core,” I say, and we both grin. “But I’m afraid, Mr. Lovick, that worrying about you comes part and parcel with loving you and... I love you- I love you- I love you.”

  Yana and Wheeler appear from the bedroom. “Let’s do this together, Teds,” Yana says, softly. “I’ll share some of that weight.”

  I don’t care that they overheard our conversation. In fact, an unexpected surge of relief floods my body. I take Yana’s hand and head out to find Maggie.

  The brilliance of dawn has been replaced with grey cloud and the threat of rain. I prefer the weather gloomy, it reflects my mood much better.

  At first, I don’t see Maggie sat with her legs curled against her chest, looking out at the horizon. She has slotted herself between a lounger and a railing, clearly looking for solitude. I know we’re intruding, but I don’t care. Jude sits in the cabin watching Maggie like a hawk. His jaw is squared and his lips form a taut, thin line.

  Maggie looks our way as we take a seat on the lounger. “Did he send you?” She nods toward Jude. Her words slur, and her breath reeks of alcohol.

  “No, we need to hear your side of the story,” I say.

  “I thought you’d believe anything Uncle Jude told you.” Her eyes narrow, daring me to take the bait. I have seen Maggie irritated, devastated, even raging with anger, but I’ve never seen her bitter.

  “Why did you have the phone, Maggie?” Yana asks.

  I know Yana feels the betrayal as keenly as I do. I think she knows the reason as well as I do too, but we’re both in denial and daren’t voice it out loud.

  Maggie laughs into the air. “I’m done running.”

  There it is.

  Yana springs to her feet. “So, you were going to turn us in? You know what they’d do to us- you included. What is wrong with you?” she shouts. “I never thought you’d stick the knife in.”

  “You never thought Haydn would either, but he did. Perhaps, you’re in need of a wakeup call, Yana. It seems to me that you don’t just play at being a ditzy blonde.”

  Yana recoils from Maggie’s words, but doesn’t retaliate. She throws me a tentative look.

  “Haydn had no choice,” I reply on Yana’s behalf. “You have a choice, Maggie.”

  “Don’t you preach at me.” She stands, swaying as she steps closer, and pointing a finger in my face. “Don’t you dare say a damn thing to me.”

  “Maggie you’re drunk. Okay, you were going to turn us in, we can’t change that, but I think you need to calm down, sober up, and then we’ll talk about it.”

  Cooper, Fabian, October, and Seth emerge on deck. They hover a few metres away, unsure of what they have walked into.

  Maggie rises to the challenge at the sight of them. “No, let’s do this now. I want to hear what Miss Two Faced has to say. You’ve come out of this pretty unscathed- an Uncle- a boyfriend.”

  Her words hit me like physical blows. “Are you serious?” I say. It’s more of a rhetorical question, but she nods anyway. “I’m grateful for every person I have in my life now, but don’t you dare undermine the importance of the people I have lost.”

  Jude flies out of the cabin, his temper flaring, but one look from me stops him in his tracks. If he opens his mouth it will only escalate the situation.

  “You undermine the importance of the person I lost every moment you stand beside the man who had him murdered,” Maggie screams in my face.

  Adam, Wheeler, and Emiko rush out behind the others. Adam pushes his way through Cooper and Fabian, but Jude places a hand on his chest to stop him intervening.

  “Isaac had him murdered. Your friend- Boyd’s friend- wanted him dead. That’s the issue here, not me,” I retort. “I don’t know what you want me to say, Maggie? Jude is my uncle, and whether you want to admit it or not, he is helping all of us. I’m not going to talk to you when you’re like this. You’ll regret it once you’ve slept it off.”

  “I’ll tell you what I regret. I regret ever allowing Boyd to talk me into Isaac’s rescue scheme. We should have left you to rot in Facility One. If it wasn’t for you, none of this would have happened.”

  “That’s enough, Maggie,” says Adam. He shakes his head in disgust, but she turns away from him.

  “The way I see it, it is you they want. You and your Uncle are the ones of interest to them. The rest of us can get registered and carry on with our lives- what little lives we have left. If we get rid of you, we get rid of our problem.” She pulls a gun from her waistband, pressing the barrel against my forehead and releasing the safety.

  My breath catches in my throat.

  Both Adam and Jude jump the railings, landing just feet away. Adam’s palm ignites in a flash of blue, and Jude’s hand is outstretched.

  Yana lunges forward, knocking the gun out of Maggie’s grip, and her hand meets her cheek with a resounding slap. Maggie staggers away from her, the shock sobering her up somewhat.

  “You can say what you like to me, but don’t you ever, ever threaten my family,” Yana screams at her.

  Maggie’s eyes bulge in their sockets. “Yana, I’m—”

  “No, don’t you dare try to justify yourself. That can’t be undone. If you point a gun in my sister’s face, you better have a spine to go with it.”

  “She is not your sister! You need protecting from her. You all need protecting from the pair of them. We will all die, and these two—” She thrusts a hand into my chest, shoving me backward into Jude, “These two will be stood on top of our bones.”

  My whole body shakes as I back away from Maggie, stumbling over the lounger. Adam’s at my side in a split-second. “What- I don’t- She just—” I stammer, clutching at his chest.

  “Adam, take Teddie downstairs,” shouts Yana. I’ve never heard authority in her voice before and it’s quite something. She turns back to Maggie as Adam leads me away. “That girl allowed me to almost drown her, so she didn’t have to use her ability against me. She took a bullet for me. She killed Isaac to save us. Don’t tell me who I need protecting from.”

  “She has blinded you. You’re blinded, Yana.”

  “Don’t talk to me like you know me. Tie her up.”

  The door to the stairs closes, and the movement of feet ascending on Maggie disappears behind us.

  ***

  Words fail me. I want to say something to Adam, I just have no idea what. My mouth opens and closes like a fish. I’m not even sure if that really happened?

  “Did Maggie just pull a gun on me?” I finally whisper, the words followed by vomit. I swallow it back down.

  Adam holds me to him. “Yes, but that is the first and last time. I promise you, next time, I’ll kill her.” His voice is full of hatred, and I’m glad. If the shoe was on the other foot, I’d kill anyone who threatened him. I have proven that already.

  Jude enters the lounge. The three of us just stare at each other.

  “Where’s Maggie?” Adam asks. Every muscle in his body is tense.

  “She’s tied up on deck. I left Wheeler in charge of her.”

  “I want her off this yacht and as far away from Teddie as possible.”

  Jude nods. “I’m working on it.”

  Adam’s arms tighten around me. “Until then, she will remain tied up, someone will watch her twenty-four seven, and we’ll take watch in shifts.”

  Jude agrees and hands Adam a gun. “There are three guns on this boat. Wheeler has one, you keep hold of this one, and I’ve got one.” The one he turns over in his hands is the one Maggie had stuck in my face.

  He sees me looking. “She must have taken it when I was in the shower. I’m sorry, Princess. If anything had happened to you…Yana was quick on her feet. That girl is growing on me.”

  “Yana was on top form,” Adam says. “But she won’t need to be again. You’re not leaving my sight.” His look is as straight as a die.

  “Isn’t this all a bit—”


  “No, Teds. I’m not letting you out of my sight. I left you alone with Isaac and he almost took you from me. I’m not making that mistake again.”

  “Maggie’s not Isaac. Anyway, I can look after myself.”

  Adam scratches at his temple with the gun. “Just indulge me. I need you with me, for now. Can you please do this for me?”

  I roll my eyes at him. He’s making me melt again, making me feel safe, cocooned, but that’s not necessarily a good thing. I know how ugly the world can be and I need to be prepared for it. I need to be on my toes, not slipping into a false sense of security.

  “It’ll make me feel better,” he says, softer.

  “Actually, I’d also feel better if you stick with Adam,” says Jude. Adam and I gawp at him. “What?” he asks.

  “You just called me Adam.”

  Jude stalks out of the room. “Well, that’s your bloody name, ain’t it?”

  We smile to each other. Jude calling him Adam and not Lovick is monumental. There has been a shift in the dynamics. Jude sees him as a friend, or at least trusts him.

  Adam throws an arm around my shoulder. “Please, stay close to home,” he whispers into my ear, kissing my neck.

  He is my home; the only home I have and I never plan on moving out. “Okay, I’ll be on house arrest, but only because you asked so nicely.”

  A smile curls at the edge of his lips. “How are you doing?”

  Someone must have just made coffee as the hot scent calls to me. I walk away from Adam. I know he watches me, he has a knack for seeing passed my front and it makes me feel exposed.

  “Do you want some?” I ask, pouring a mug for myself. It’s better to do something, anything other than talk about what just went down.

  Adam sighs. “Teddie, I know you. Talk to me.”

  A phone rings, scaring me, and I almost spill the coffee all over myself. The bulky contraption vibrates across the breakfast bar. Adam picks it up, but before he can answer it, Jude rushes into the room and snatches it out of his hands.

  He listens intently. “Okay, you know what to do,” he says into the receiver, and then hangs up.

  I drop my cup into the sink. Jude has turned as white as snow.