Surviving ELE (ELE Series #4) (12 page)

Instead, I focus in on the cameras that are dispersed around the room, each of them angled towards the center of the area. A large mirror covers an entire wall. I’m wheeled into the center of the room and turned to face the mirror.
The brakes are applied on the wheelchair and I’m locked in place. My mind feels fuzzy and numb from all of the injections I’ve received.

Tony catches my eye in the mirror behind me. I gasp when I see his eyes. The red is giving way to a strange combination of twists and curls of neon yellow. A stark realization is starting to peak in his expression. Two large men come into the room instantly, grabbing a hold of Tony. I see him struggle with them for a moment in the doorway before his eyes turn red again. Then he shrugs them off
and straightens out his shirt before he exits the room, leaving Blake and me alone.

Blake turns away from the mirror and looks straight at me.
“No funny business or I’ll make sure that Tony never sees the light of day again. Understood?”

I nod my head, not wanting anything to happen to Tony. I can’t help but wonder what just happened though. Is Tony starting to break through? Did Zack momentarily lose control?

A fake smile overtakes Blake’s face as he turns towards the mirror. I can’t help but look at myself. My face is haunted and pale. My eyes have dark shadows underneath them and the colors in my irises look dulled, like how colors get faded by the sun. My hair is literally all over the place as if someone teased it and then left it to its own devices. I don’t really care what I look like though, I’ll be lucky enough to make it out of this nightmare alive.

Blake presses a blue button on the side of the glass and a room full of people appears where my reflection once was.

Two-way glass, I should have known
.

He walks around the room, methodically turning on each camera. My stomach sinks more and more with every red light that appears below each one. My mouth goes dry at the thought of who is watching me. How many people are in on this evil plot to purchase my blood? Looking towards the room on the other side of the glass, I notice at least ten people are seated inside. How many more are on the other side of those cameras?

“We’re live,” he says to me before leaving the room. I hear the click of the door that seals my fate.

A tall man with balding, grey hair and a long, pointy nose approaches on his side of the glass.
He pushes a button, activating an intercom system. “Good afternoon, Willow, my name is Mr. Gables. I’m the director of one of the compounds in the south. From what we’ve heard about your abilities, well, you’ve become quite the talk.”

I wonder why he would tell me his name and his position. My stomach churns as I contemplate the fact that he obviously doesn’t foresee me ever getting out of this imprisonment. Nods of approval emanate from the remaining people behind the glass.
I swallow hard. Like vampires, these people will be bleeding me dry before long. The thought makes me nauseous. I try to squirm in my chair but I’m unable to move more than a fraction of an inch.

He releases the button and turns to speak to a man behind him. I can’t hear what they’re saying. All I see are nodding heads and lips moving. They talk for a moment and then he turns back to me.
The static over the intercom tells me he’s about to say something again. “We’ve been told that you’ve been given an injection that limits your abilities for safety purposes. Can you show us anything you can do while still on the medication?”

I scoff at him.
Is he serious? Does he honestly believe that I’m just going to sell my soul to the highest bidder? I laugh under my breath. He lets go of the button again and turns back around to the same man. I can see the irritation in his stature, his face reddening. The man behind him puts his two hands up, trying to appease the other man. I can see him apologizing profusely before he scurries out of the room. I ignore them and stare down at my knees like they are the most interesting thing in the world. I refuse to look up at these sorry excuses for human beings.

A few minutes later, the lock clicks on my door and in walks Blake. His face is red and contorted with rage. “We should have known you were going to try and make a fool out of us,” he says angrily under his breath. He turns and smiles towards the people on the other side of the glass, then turns back towards me, a frown hardening on his face.

I look away from him and try to ignore the shuffling of feet headed in my direction. I wonder if Blake is going to slap me again. Then I hear a grunt as someone is thrown at my feet. I see his copper hair first. “Tony,” I say breathlessly. His hands are bound and he looks badly beaten. His eye and jaw are black and blue. Dried blood cakes the side of his face. I choke a sob. I try to get my arms free so I can help him, but the bindings won’t budge.

Blake drags Tony to his feet.
“The next time your boy won’t just be roughed up. Since we don’t need him to hunt you down anymore, there’s no reason to keep him alive. You get what I mean?” He opens the side of his white lab coat so I can see the shiny revolver he has in a holster. “So, I’d suggest you make nice and do what these people ask. Mmm-K?”

I look down at Tony, whose breathing is labored, his arm bent at an unnatural angle. “His bone is broken!” I yell, my stomach twisting in knots. I look up at the people behind the glass. Nobody seems concerned at all to see Tony in such a state. How can they be so heartless?

Blake laughs. “Well, he tried to fight back and you know Tony. He’s strong, so we couldn’t really take it easy on him, now could we?” He checks his watch, tapping on the glass.

I glare at him. The fact that this jerk face has to end everything in a question makes me want to smack him in the face with a fireball. Why can’t I have that gift?

He looks back up from his watch, letting me know how much time I am causing him to waste. “Are you going to play nice?” He smiles, realizing that he hit the sweet spot by threatening the man I love.

I grit my teeth. “Yes.” He smiles triumphantly and begins dragging Tony out of the room. “Stop!” I yell.

He stops and looks at me with feigned annoyance.

“You want me to show them my powers? Then bring Tony here; I want to heal him. But you will have to free up at least one of my hands,” I demand.

He opens his mouth ready to say no, but then looks to the people behind the mirror and back at me. His lips spread out in an unnatural grin and I can see his sense of reasoning go out the door with the promise of large sums of money. “Fine. But you better not try anything. You don’t want us to mess him up even more, do you?” he asks, giving me one last threat of what’ll happen to Tony if I choose to act out.

I take a deep breath to avoid telling off this jerk. I want to punch that stupid, fake grin off his face but instead I say, “Yes. I’m just going to heal him.”

“Assistance!” Blake snaps to some goons who I hadn’t noticed standing at the doorway. They step in and pick Tony up under the arms.

Tony groans, still unconscious, as he’s dragged across the room. Blake loosens the binding around my left hand and gives me the evil eye when I’m able to finally pull my hand free. “Watch your step, Mmm-K?” he says.

I roll my eyes dramatically and stretch my hand out towards Tony, but I can’t reach him. The men drag Tony closer and drop him at my feet like a sack of potatoes. Since that was the end of their assistance, I have to reach down and use my fingertips to grab the fabric of his sleeve. Using one hand is hard! Especially since they released my non-dominant, left hand. I pull on his shirtsleeve and bring his arm to where it’s sitting limp on my lap. I examine the broken bone, his arm bent at an unnatural angle. Placing my hand gingerly over it and close my eyes, I focus on calling my powers. It feels like I’m intoxicated as I reach through my fuzzy mind to focus on healing. I concentrate and push myself through the hazy fog of medication, trying to fix him. After a few minutes of exerting all of my mental power, I feel the sweat dripping off my brow.

The sound of Tony taking in a loud breath makes me open my eyes. “Willow?”

I gasp. My Tony is here with me. Not Zack. I stare into his beautiful, yellow eyes. His face contorts with horror as he realizes where we are. Then the anger takes over and he moves to stand up, but the pain has him doubling over. I fixed a bone but not the other internal damage. I have no idea the complete extent of his injuries.

Blake starts a slow clap. “Bravo!” He nods to his men. Understanding the signal, they come and subdue Tony so he can’t try anything. Then Blake looks at the people behind the glass and says with a raised voice, “You see, if she had full control of her powers, she’d be able to heal him completely. However, as you just saw, she did a wonderful job of healing his broken wrist.” He clucks at the men and they bring Tony closer to the glass, forcing him to hold out his wrist to them for inspection. He forces him to move his wrist in a circular motion to prove it’s healed.

Several people push up against the window to get a better look. Then I watch in disgust as they begin smiling and clapping. Who are these sick people?

An older woman with ginger hair and a shrewd expression, steps up to the intercom. “We see that her gift is quite impressive and would love to see her full powers outside of sedation sometime. But, I still fail to see how her blood will allow us to possess her same gifts.”

Blake walks closer to the glass and points to his eyes. “If you can see my eyes, you will notice that I have several different colors present in my irises. Each of these colors represents a different ability. I gained this yesterday, when I was injected with a very small amount of Ms. Mosby’s blood. To better show you my gift, I will finish healing this man so he can tell you more about the process.”

The people behind the glass watch him with perplexed expressions. Blake puts his hand on Tony’s shoulder and I watch as his eyes turn a deep, navy blue. Eventually, Tony goes from doubled over to standing up without help. Blake removes his hand and looks at the people who are clapping again in complete bewilderment.

Tony turns to look at me. His lips spread apart in that Cheshire grin. His eyes are beet red.

My stomach flips upside down as I realize that Zack only left Tony while he was being beaten. What a coward!

Tony turns to address the crowd. He takes a bow first. “My name is Zack Hastings, son of Dr. Hastings. After my late father and I extensively researched the reasons behind Ms. Mosby’s multiple abilities, we found that her blood held the key to recreating her powers. At first, we spent time trying to configure what mixtures of inoculations caused this, but that research came back inconclusive. We only confirmed the fact that Ms. Mosby is obviously a very special girl.” He dramatically waves his hand towards me.

I send mind bullets his way, but they have no effect. If only I had that ability too.

He continues. “After much deliberation, we decided to test out injecting a small amount of the sample into my bloodstream. This was the ultimate key to replicating her powers. So, we are here today because I am willing to share this new ability with you. For a price, that is.”

Mr. Gables walks up to the intercom again. “I met Dr. Hastings’s son, Zack, a few years ago. I don’t know who you are trying to fool, but you are
not
Zack Hastings.”

“Touché! I was wondering if you would take notice. I remember meeting you too, Mr. Gables. How is that granddaughter of yours doing? April was her name?” Tony smiles as the man lets off a bewildered expression. Tony answers his unasked question. “I am controlling this man that you see before you. Circumstances prevented me from attending this conference in physical person, but I am mentally here.”

The entire crowd gawks at him, stunned. Mr. Gables presses the intercom again and asks, “How are you controlling this man?”

“I’m not ready to divulge that secret just yet.” When they look outraged, he adds, “Don’t worry, one great thing at a time. Trust me; you all will be the first people I’ll call when I’m ready to market this particular shot.” Tony, I mean Zack, doesn’t wait for them to calm down. He finalizes the conversation by lifting his hands. “Let the bidding begin.”

The people behind the glass pull out their tablets and begin furiously typing on them. I assume there is some sort of electronic bidding process that they are partaking in. Every once in a while, one of them will look at me and seem to make a decision, then they type some more on their tablets.

Blake presses the button on the glass, turning it back into a mirror. Then he leaves the room with his goons in tow.

Tony, who has focused on his tablet, turns to exit a moment later. He stops and smiles at me with an air of superiority before he exits the room melodramatically and with flair. The lock clicks in place, leaving me alone with my thoughts.

Something breaks inside me. My breathing is completely unnatural, coated with fear. Tears blur my vision as I try to hold it together. I’m going to be bled dry for these people. How can anyone allow this to happen? I’m not sure
how much more I can take. How can those people see me in my shackles and not care that I’m being held prisoner? Can’t they see that I am still a human being?

Something tickles at my memory. That’s when I look down. In the heat of the situation and the excitement for the money to be made, they forgot to secure my left hand. I can’t see the people on the other side of the mirror. In fact, they could have left for all I know, but I can’t be sure that they won’t be witness to what I’m about to do. Careful not to draw attention to myself, I slowly move my hand up to my right arm and pull the IV needle out of my vein. Blood pools in a small dot on my hand. Then I start working on the constraints.