Authors: C. J. Hill
Slayers (35 page)
I
t seemed to Tori that the trip back to camp took forever. This was partially because they drove to D.C. first. Booker got out at an all-night Internet cafe. He was going to download the video and send it to as many news sources as possible, along with the address of Overdrake’s compound. Booker would also send the files to several departments in the Pentagon, and offer to give them information, as well.
t seemed to Tori that the trip back to camp took forever. This was partially because they drove to D.C. first. Booker got out at an all-night Internet cafe. He was going to download the video and send it to as many news sources as possible, along with the address of Overdrake’s compound. Booker would also send the files to several departments in the Pentagon, and offer to give them information, as well.
The trip also took longer because Dr. B drove in a roundabout way, making sure no one had followed them. Before Booker had gotten out, he and Dr. B had talked in hushed voices about whether it was even safe to go back to camp. Did the fact that Overdrake knew so much about them also mean he knew where the camp was? Could he already be planning an attack there?
A call to Shirley reassured them that nothing strange had turned up on any of the camp monitors. With the Slayers’ weapons and equipment already there, and with cameras set up to warn them of incoming danger, Dr. B and Booker finally decided camp was still one of the safest places to be.
About half an hour after they’d left D.C. Tori fell asleep sitting up. The jostling of the van made her head slide sideways onto Jesse’s shoulder. She jerked awake, said a groggy, “Sorry,” and sat back up.
He gave her a smile. “It’s okay. I don’t mind. You need some sleep.” He had taken off his jacket to use as a pillow against the window, and he leaned back into it, shutting his eyes. Her head probably didn’t bother him that much. Besides, she wasn’t the only one using a guy as a headrest. In the seat behind them, Lilly was nestled into Shang’s side. Her blonde hair cascaded down his arm as she slept.
Tori leaned against Jesse’s shoulder, relaxing into him and inhaling the smoky scent of his clothes. She enjoyed the warmth from his body underneath her cheek so much that it made her feel a little bit wicked. He had most likely only offered his shoulder to be polite, and she was memorizing the smell of his clothes like some stalker.
A moment later she opened her eyes, positive Dirk was staring at her.
He rolled his eyes at her, then turned away.
She blushed, hating how transparent the whole counterpart thing made her. Then she wondered if Jesse could sense that she liked snuggling up against him. Probably. And he probably thought she was an idiot, too, but was too nice to show it.
She didn’t think about it for long. She drifted back to sleep and the next thing she knew, the van had stopped and Jesse was shaking her awake. They were in the camp parking lot. The sun was up, infusing the world with color again, and the clock on the dashboard read 6:35.
Dr. B took the keys from the ignition and slipped them into his pocket. Dirt smudged his sleeves and face. “Leave any equipment you have in the van. You can go to your cabins and get some sleep. We’ll meet at one o’clock in the Dragon Hall for lunch.”
Tori climbed out of the van, the chain rattling with every step she
took. As she walked across the parking lot, Theo came up beside her. “I can get that collar off in my shop now.”
took. As she walked across the parking lot, Theo came up beside her. “I can get that collar off in my shop now.”
She nodded and followed him toward the main office where the carts waited. It felt odd to be walking through camp in the daylight—the group of them dressed in black and Tori dragging a huge chain connected to her waist. She wound some of the chain around one arm. It wasn’t much less conspicuous. Fortunately, it was early enough in the morning that no one would be around to see them.
Dirk walked a little ways ahead of her. When she caught sight of his back, she quickened her pace to catch up with him. The sick feeling she’d had last night had gone, like a memory that didn’t quite make sense. She assumed Dirk’s connection to the dragon had stopped bothering him, too, but when she reached him she could tell by the set of his jaw and the tenseness in his eyes that he was in a dark mood about something.
“Are you all right?” she asked.
He nodded, looking at the trees, not at her.
“I never thanked you for saving my life back on the enclosure roof.”
He momentarily glanced at her. “No problem.”
“I would say I hope to return the favor someday, but that seems like wishing something bad on you.”
He let out a grunt. “Heaven knows, I don’t need that.” His dark mood flickered and a smile lifted the corner of his lips. “I guess you’ll just have to be in my debt.”
Before she came up with an answer to that, Dr. B called out, “I need to talk to the captains.”
Dirk said, “Later,” then walked over to where Dr. B stood. Jesse was already there waiting.
Tori slowed her pace and let her gaze linger on them. Dr. B spoke in a hushed tone, his eyes on Dirk. Judging by the stern line of Dirk’s
brow, he didn’t like what Dr. B said. She was watching them so intently she didn’t notice Cole and David—the guys she’d met on her first day of camp—until she went right by them. They stood by the trail in shorts and T-shirts, warming up for a run.
brow, he didn’t like what Dr. B said. She was watching them so intently she didn’t notice Cole and David—the guys she’d met on her first day of camp—until she went right by them. They stood by the trail in shorts and T-shirts, warming up for a run.
“Hey,” Cole said, eyeing her from head to toe. “You’re up early.”
“Yeah, you are, too.” She considered trying to hide the chain, but he’d already seen it, and besides, she had nowhere to put it.
“What are you guys doing?” David asked, looking directly at the dragon collar around her waist.
“We were … um … doing some camp stuff. Metal working. Making chains. I thought this was a nice fashion statement … that doubles as a philosophical statement. Because we’re all chained to something.”
David stared at her, unconvinced. “Uh-huh.”
The Slayers had passed by and she knew she’d have to hurry to catch up. “So, uh, I’ll see you later.”
Cole raised one eyebrow. “Hey, you remember when you asked me if I thought anything weird was going on in this camp and I told you no?”
“Yeah,” she said.
“I’ve changed my mind.”
She laughed like he was joking, even though he probably wasn’t, and then hurried to catch up with Theo.
At lunchtime, Tori sat beside Bess, Rosa, and Jesse. As they ate, everyone at the table either talked about the events of last night or made guesses as to what the news had reported. Rosa was nearly beside herself with curiosity. She asserted that every news show and Internet blog must be talking about the dragon, and she wanted to know whether people were more afraid, fascinated, or—hopefully not—sad.
Wouldn’t it just be their luck if the government tried to find and prosecute them for killing a dragon.
Dirk sat on the opposite end of the table with Kody and Shang. Although Tori tried to talk to him a couple of times, he hardly looked at her. She wanted to tell him, “Hey, I figured out another counterpart ability. I can tell when you’re purposely ignoring me.” But it wasn’t the time for those sorts of observations.
While Jesse was busy talking with the others, Tori stared at him, concentrating to see what her counterpart sense could reveal about him. As it turned out, not much. Probably because she couldn’t untangle her emotions for him. All she really learned was that he could tell when she stared at him. He kept glancing at her and then she had to pretend she was actually staring at something over his shoulder. Like, hey, what a cool cinderblock wall.
Before long, Dr. B came in. His hair was a wild mess of gray and his clothes were rumpled. If he’d slept, it must not have been for long.
He set a pile of paper on the end of the table. “Let’s do a quick review of last night’s mission, and then I’ll give you the update.”
More than one impatient moan went up from the Slayers. Rosa put her chin in her hand. “Can’t you tell us about the news stories first?”
“We won’t improve,” Dr. B said, “unless we know where we need to improve.”
Grudgingly, the group talked about what they had done, hadn’t done, and should have done.
Tori felt awkward through most of the analysis since a lot of it related to her. When Overdrake captured her, she’d inadvertently put both Dirk and Jesse in jeopardy. But she had also came up with the solution to kill the dragon, a solution that hadn’t been in any of the Slayers’ drills or strategies.
She wondered how often life was like that, how often chance events decided the outcome.
The discussion changed to what Overdrake had done, hadn’t done, and where he could be getting his information from. The group threw
out the same sort of theories they’d discussed in the van last night, but nothing explained the inconsistencies. If Overdrake had an informant in camp, why hadn’t he attacked before now? And if he did have an informant, who was it? Could one of the regular campers have come down to the Slayer camp without being seen by the cameras and planted bugs in the cabins that were so sophisticated Theo’s sensors hadn’t detected them?
out the same sort of theories they’d discussed in the van last night, but nothing explained the inconsistencies. If Overdrake had an informant in camp, why hadn’t he attacked before now? And if he did have an informant, who was it? Could one of the regular campers have come down to the Slayer camp without being seen by the cameras and planted bugs in the cabins that were so sophisticated Theo’s sensors hadn’t detected them?
Tori told them everything Overdrake had said to her, including his “Know thyself” remark. She hoped somebody would shed some light on his comment, but it didn’t make sense to anyone else, either.
“It was just another one of his insults,” Bess said, fluttering her hand to erase the subject. “I mean, seriously, Overdrake wouldn’t tell you anything about his source.”
Bess was right, but Tori still knew the phrase would rattle around her brain for an annoying long time.
Know thyself
. She
did
know herself and
she
wasn’t the informant.
Know thyself
. She
did
know herself and
she
wasn’t the informant.
When they’d finished with that subject, Dr. B gave them the first piece of bad news. “Booker went back to Winchester this morning to scope out the compound. The entire thing has been abandoned. We have no idea where Overdrake is or where he took the dragon eggs and the remaining dragon.”
Kody put his sandwich down long enough to speak up. “If he had another dragon, wouldn’t he have used it last night? We never would have won against two.”
“I doubt,” Dr. B said wryly, “that Overdrake thought you had a chance against one. And he can only connect with one dragon at a time. He probably didn’t want the liability of having an uncontrolled dragon around while he’s still trying to keep their existence a secret.”
Dr. B paused as though even he wasn’t sure this explained the lack of the second dragon. “Although, quite frankly, I always assumed Overdrake had children who would help him when he attacked.” Dr. B
tapped his fingers against the table, mentally sifting through possibilities. “But Overdrake might be childless, or his children might be too young to help him, or perhaps they just didn’t inherit the right genes. Whatever the case, until we know differently, we have to assume he not only has the eggs, but another dragon, as well.”
tapped his fingers against the table, mentally sifting through possibilities. “But Overdrake might be childless, or his children might be too young to help him, or perhaps they just didn’t inherit the right genes. Whatever the case, until we know differently, we have to assume he not only has the eggs, but another dragon, as well.”
Dr. B picked up the stack of papers he’d put at the end of the table. “As far as the news stories go …” He flipped through the papers, grimacing. “The local station reported the power outages and damage to electronics in certain parts of Winchester, but the major news outlets are ignoring the dragon story. Booker didn’t even get any calls requesting more information. Not from the news, not from the government.”
“What?” Bess asked. Her mouth remained open in disbelief.
“That can’t be right,” Rosa said. “Some people must have seen the dragon. They must have called to report it, too.”
Dr. B nodded. “A few dragon sightings were reported on the radio and we uploaded our video onto YouTube. The general consensus is that it’s some sort of publicity stunt or hoax and that people who believe in dragons are …” He looked down at one of the papers and read, “either a few boxcars short of a full train, or pathetic individuals who’ll claim anything in order to have five minutes of attention.”
“Who said that?” Kody asked. “I want to show them what five minutes of my attention feels like.”
Bess crossed her arms. “And I want to show them where they can put their boxcars.”
Dr. B raised a hand to silence the group. “The tabloids, at least, realize something strange went on.” He held up printouts from websites. Two proclaimed UFOs had flown over Virginia. A third stated that a terrorist group had done a test run of an EMP weapon. He dropped those onto the table and held up the last printout. “Only one tabloid used our pictures.”
Underneath the headline “Medieval Beast Discovered!” a picture showed the dragon, head down, sprawled out on the ground. It looked
indistinct, as though the image was made out of imagination and Photoshop.
indistinct, as though the image was made out of imagination and Photoshop.
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