Mind Slide (31 page)

He took a few deep breaths and relaxed as best he could. Something was missing, and reached out to turn on the radio. He found a classical music station and turned the volume down low.

“
Do you need me to do anything?”

“
No, but thanks.” He smiled at her. Kelly would be the first person outside the lab to actually watch him mind slide. “I'll be right back.”

Kelly felt a shiver go up her spine. She remembered once again that Mason was the person who saved her life, and she would get to see how he did it up close.

*****

Mason couldn't see anything. For a moment he was afraid the mind slide had gone wrong somehow, which would have been a first. But he felt the floor under his feet. He was somewhere. It was just completely dark.

A voice cut through the air, a few feet next to him.

“
Let me out of here! Please!”

It was Lisa.

He ran to her voice, his hands low in front of him. His fingers dipped through some hair, a skull, and finally brain matter. He could hear her breathing.

“
Lisa.”

“
You found her?” Kelly asked.

He felt around as best he could, his hands passing through different things. A metal chair, handcuffs around her wrists, rope around her waist.

“
Yeah, I found her.”

“
Are you okay? Your face is tensing up a little.”

“
They got her handcuffed to a chair in a dark room. I've gotta find out where we are.”

He walked away from Lisa until he felt a wall. He pushed his arm all the way through and felt space on the other side. He stuck his head through and saw a well lit hallway. Two armed men passed by, not saying a word to each other.

Mason pushed the rest of the way into the hall and walked slowly, studying everything he could. Offices on both sides of the hall, water fountains, an elevator.

“
I think we're in an office building.”

“
Can you find out where? Get an address?”

Mason closed his eyes. He would do something he rarely did. Gravity meant nothing to a mind without a body. But gravity was a hard rule to break. There were more mental barriers than anything else, like expecting to fall to the ground. He had seen at the mall that Gabriel was experienced at flying, but it was something that Mason did little of over the years.

He jumped straight up. He floated through the ceiling, then another floor. He pushed through the roof and felt the night air on his face. He flew up until he could get a view of their surroundings.

“
Mason, you're sweating,” Kelly said, touching his forehead. “What's wrong?”

The truth was flying was incredible, but it was also terrifying. He could feel the wind passing through him. It felt like he should be flying around like a leaf. His mind stayed still, fifty feet above the roof.

“
I'm fine,” he said. “We
are
in an office building. I think I recognize it. Old Patapsco Park.”

Kelly knew the place. It was about an hour's drive away, near the city.

“
Most of the buildings over there are abandoned. A good hiding place.”

“
They got lights, guards, the works.”

He heard a ringing, and realized it was his phone. He slid back to his body. Kelly's hand felt good on his forehead. He looked up to see her holding his phone.

“
Unavailable number,” she said.

He took the phone and answered it.

“
Hello?”

“
I'm sorry it worked out like this.”

Suit. Mason clenched the phone in his hand.

“
You miserable bastard.”

“
I'm sure you know now we have a friend of yours. You probably even know where she is. Trust me when I say we
don't
want to hurt her. But please don't go rushing to her like a hero.”

“
Everything you told me was a lie, wasn't it?”

“
Not everything. In fact, I was mostly honest. Believe me when I say we had nothing to do with the research team being murdered. Those were
my
people, including Doctor Rierson. You have Gabriel to thank for that. We're not murderers, but I need that flash drive you have. Do
not
give it to Gabriel.”

“
Why not?”

“
Well, the best reason, your friend's life depends on it. No police, let's keep them out of it. I'll contact you soon.”

Suit hung up.

Mason sat still, staring straight ahead. The nausea had passed, but he didn't bother sitting up.

“
So?” Kelly asked. “What do we do?”

He frowned. “Nothing, except wait,” he said, then his eyes lit up. “I need to see Brian. Make sure he's okay.”

“
You mean mind slide to him?”

“
No. I need to talk to him. We need to go to the hospital.”

She put a hand on his shoulder. “Are you sure that's a good idea?”

“
I don't think they'll try anything in a hospital. At least I hope not.”

He started the Jeep and pulled into the street.

Mason found a spot in the hospital parking lot. He glanced around to look for anything out of the ordinary. There were a few nurses smoking outside. A couple left and climbed in a car. He didn't see any men wearing suits with guns waiting for him.

“
You know it's past visiting hours, right?” Kelly asked. “Assuming he's not in surgery or something crazy.”

“
I know. We'll be quick.”

He gave Kelly a long look. She met his stare and blushed.

“
What?”

He tried to think of what was best for Kelly. Part of him wanted her far away, hidden in a hotel room somewhere. But she was as much a target as he was. If they were together, they could watch each other's backs more closely.

Guilt started to creep in. He wished she wasn't involved at all.

“
You don't have to come with me,” he said. “Do you want me to take you somewhere?”

She rolled her eyes and left the Jeep. He stuffed the flash drive in his pocket and joined her near the front. She held out her hand, which he gladly took.

“
Wherever you go, I go.”

She gave his hand a squeeze.

He smiled and nodded.

“
So,” she said as they crossed the lot. “You ever mind slide on anyone in the shower?”

“
Not you, if that's what you're asking.”

“
Ah, so you have?”

He laughed. “I used to mind slide in my sleep, before I really knew what I was doing. I would wake up in different places. Sometimes it would take a few minutes to figure out if I was dreaming or not. One time I woke up in England, in a girls' locker room.”

Kelly grinned. “And you stayed?”

“
Probably longer than I should have. I was a kid.” He felt his face turning red. “I did watch you at work once.”

She glanced at him. “That might be a little creepy, Mason.”

Creepy or not, she would have done the same thing, if not more.

They walked into the hospital and approached a young woman at the front desk. She looked bored, filing her nails. She perked up when Mason put his hands on her desk. Kelly felt a flash of jealousy at the look the woman gave him. She moved closer to him.

“
Hi. I'm looking for Brian Lowdry.”

The woman smiled and typed away at her computer.

“
He's in room 409, on the fourth floor. But visiting hours aren't until tomorrow at nine.”

“
That's okay. There's a waiting room on the fourth floor, right? We're gonna take turns napping and running out to get food.”

“
Yeah, there is. But it's not very comfortable. It's right outside the elevator.”

“
Thanks.”

They rode the elevator to the fourth floor and found the waiting room. It wasn't as much a room as it was a space with chairs. There was a television in the corner and a table with magazines more than a month old.

“
I'll go check on him,” he said. “If security isn't crazy, I'll sneak you in there.”

She nodded and took a seat. She crossed her legs and grabbed a magazine, looking very sexy. Mason shoved the thought from his head and focused on the dangerous situation they were in.

There was no need to sneak his way into room 409. He passed three doctors, two nurses, and a single security guard, who gave him a simple nod. He made sure the hall was empty before stepping into Brian's room and closing the door behind him.

His breath caught in his chest.

Brian lay motionless on his bed, sound asleep. There were already a few sets of flowers and balloons from fellow police officers. He was hooked up to a few machines, one of which beeped every few seconds.

Mason tried to keep the tears in. Brian was the brother who looked out for him when he needed it the most. He was a lost and confused eighteen-year-old when he left Yingling. Brian and Lisa took him in. He helped changed Dani's diapers.

The flash drive was like a weight in his pocket. He would trade it for Lisa's life without hesitation.

He touched Brian on the arm. His friend didn't move.

“
I'll take care of this,” he whispered. “I promise. I'm so sorry.”

His phone rang. He quickly answered it, feeling like an idiot for not putting it on vibrate.

“
Hello?”

“
I don't know what you would do without me.”

He went to the corner so he could speak quietly. “Gabriel.”

“
That's me. We've both had exciting days, haven't we?”

“
Did you kill the doctors that worked with us? Are you a murderer?”

“
Yes and yes.”

Mason took a breath. There were enemies on all sides. The only person he could trust was Kelly.