Unforgettable (Talented Saga #6) (39 page)

“
I understand,” Erik said
calmly, raising his voice just loud enough to ensure he was heard
over my tirade.

I rounded on Erik, yanking my hand
free of his in the process.

“
No. You don’t
‘understand’. You
can’t
‘understand’. Because that’s not what
happened.”

It was like I was invisible. Erik,
Victoria, and the rest of the council ignored me. No one even
batted an eyelash in my direction. Even Chaz and Viktor remained
still, neither guard twitching a muscle. Had I magically become
invisible? Did they press the mute button on me?

“
Agent Kelley, you will
receive a mark on your permanent record. Your privileges are hereby
suspended until further notice. You, too, will be removed from the
taskforce and reassigned. Previously, I offered you the chance to
be UNITED’s media liaison. With the upcoming Treaty vote, public
relations are more important than ever. A capable, controlled,
Created showing the public they have nothing to fear from either
the Talented or the Created is vital to our cause. There is no
longer a choice, you will be our liaison. And you will be capable,
controlled, and you will, most of all, show the world that they
have nothing to fear from us. Am I clear?”

I blinked, confused and surprised.
Erik had already agreed to be Victoria’s poster boy. Really, this
“punishment” wasn’t really a punishment at all. What game was she
playing?

“
Yes, Ma’am,” Erik replied,
giving no indication that her pronouncement was weird or that they
two of them had already had this conversation.

“
You will accompany Agent
Kraft to Oceanic immediately, so that we may begin preparing you
for your new assignment. You are dismissed,” Victoria
concluded.

“
I would like to stay, if
that’s okay. I’d like to wait for Talia,” Erik said stiffly,
adding, “Ma’am” as an afterthought.

Victoria smiled indulgently, but shook
her head.

“
The council has additional
business with Agent Lyons.” She hesitated, and a flash of something
I didn’t recognize crossed her golden gaze. “You will have an
opportunity to see Agent Lyons before you leave for Oceanic,
Erik.”

Even an ocean away, I spotted the lie.
Victoria was the consummate politician, capable of half-truths and
carefully worded promises that held no real weight. But outright
lying was unnatural for her; it went against her core beliefs.
Victoria’s tells were subtle but obvious: a quick flit of the eyes;
a tightening of the jaw; the sudden need to busy her
hands.

My heart began to pound. Nerves made
my palms grow slick with sweat. I tried to hide my reaction from
Erik. Because Victoria’s lie wasn’t for me. It was for him. The
soft, almost motherly, way she was looking at my boyfriend
suggested she was worried about his reaction to my punishment.
Suddenly, that made two of us. Judging by Erik’s earlier outbursts,
he would not sit idly by while the council announced my
fate.

Chaz and Viktor were inching closer to
the conference table. Both guards had their weapons drawn and were
prepared to take Erik by force. Which was something of a joke,
albeit quite humorless. Two agents with handguns were no match for
Erik’s talents.

“
Talia.”

With just my name, Victoria was able
to convey a much longer message.

She wanted me to intervene, to send
Erik away. Because she, like me, knew if Chaz and Viktor attacked,
Erik might very well kill them. I turned to look at my love,
drinking in the sight of his face in case it was the last sip I’d
get for a while.

“
Go, Erik,”
I sent him, careful to keep all traces of my fear
behind my mind’s own Vault.
“I’ll be fine.
Like Victoria said, you’ll see me before you leave for Oceanic.
Yours and Frederick’s punishments weren’t that bad. I’m sure mine
will be okay, too. I’ll see you soon.”

Indecision flickered in those
beautiful turquoise eyes that I loved so much. I wasn’t using much
manipulation, only just enough to sway his decision in favor of
leaving. Deep down, Erik knew it was for the best. He’d been too
preoccupied to notice Victoria’s lie, and believed he would
actually see me shortly. But Erik loved me too much to leave me to
the firing squad. He was on the verge of protesting
again.

“
Go,”
I repeated quickly.
“Please.”

Chaz and Viktor were standing directly
behind Erik’s chair. I shot harsh glares at the duo, warning them
to back off and let me handle it.

“
Okay,” Erik finally
agreed, speaking aloud. “I’ll see you in a couple
minutes.”

Though his words were about
me, he directed them at the council. Erik didn’t even bother
pretending to veil the underlying threat. His meaning was clear to
everyone: he’d better see me in a couple of minutes,
or else
.

Erik stood. Viktor and Chaz tried to
take hold of his arms to escort him towards the door. The attempt
was laughable. Ready to take out his confused feelings on the first
person to cross his path, Erik was literally charged. Both guards
were zapped the instant they made contact with him. The voltage
wasn’t too high, but Chaz was still blown back. He landed with a
thud against the wall nearest the door. Viktor stumbled but managed
to keep both feet on the ground. He didn’t try to touch Erik again,
though. Instead, Viktor simply pointed his gun towards the door and
barked, “Move.”

With slow, calculated movements, Erik
bent, kissed me on the forehead, and then sauntered from the room
without another word.

“
AGENT
LYONS,” VICTORIA
began, not wasting
a moment once Erik was gone. “It has come to our attention that you
authorized the kidnapping of a Poacher.”

Huh? Kidnapping? What was she talking
about?

“
Elizabeth Monroe was
drugged and kidnapped from Andrew’s Rock. She was just revived and
is extremely upset,” Victoria continued. “It is my understanding
that you gave the order to take her, Agent Lyons?”

Shit.
No good deed goes unpunished.

“
That’s correct,” I said,
mentally preparing myself for the barrage of questions that was
about to fly my way.

But no one spoke. So I did.

“
I didn’t kidnap her,
though. Kenly Baker made a deal with the girl’s brother. The guy
was going to help her escape the auction, if she promised to take
his sister—Libby, Elizabeth, whatever—to the islands,” I tried to
explain.

“
Why would Jaylen Monroe
want to do that?” Victoria demanded. Unlike with the earlier
interrogations, she seemed to want an active role.

“
Because he thinks the
Treaty is going to be overturned, and he is concerned about Libby’s
safety,” I replied. “He wants his sister to have a spot on the
islands before the lottery goes into effect.”

“
He told you this?”
Victoria asked, unconvinced.

“
Well, no, not exactly,” I
admitted.

I’d read the information out of
Kenly’s head. When I told the council this, judging by the
skeptical glances being traded, they did not think my mentee wasn’t
the most reliable source.

“
I see,” was all Victoria
said. She paused, her golden eyes weighing me. “Elizabeth Monroe is
the daughter of the Duke. The Duke is the head of the entire
Poacher organization.”

She continued to stare, as if this
bombshell was supposed to indeed be a bombshell.

“
Um, okay. I know that,” I
said, unclear as to the significance of Libby’s lineage.

“
The Duke will stop at
nothing to get her back, Agent Lyons. Your actions have
successfully begun a war with the Poachers,” Victoria
declared.

A war? Seriously, how many wars can
one girl start in her life?

“
While your disobedience in
the Pritcher girl matter is understandable and somewhat excusable,
this is not. UNITED is not prepared to fight so many battles at
once.” In a rare display of her humanity, Victoria threw up her
hands and demanded, “What were you thinking, Talia?”

What was I thinking? That
Kenly wanted to keep a promise she made. That she asked me to help
her. And that I wasn’t going to fail her again by refusing her plea
for help. That I
stupidly
thought I was doing the right thing. Did I tell
the council all of that? Would it matter?

Deciding I had nothing to lose, I went
for the truth—another heartfelt, emotional excuse for my
insubordination. This time, though, it wasn’t received as well.
Amberly pointed out that I should have asked for permission to take
Libby, at which point someone in UNITED would have told me why it
was a horrible idea. Victoria rambled on about how good leaders
make decisions based on fact, not emotion. Even Michael Tanaka, my
staunchest ally, thought I’d been rash.

Throughout it all, I sat perfectly
still and quiet. There was no excuse that would pacify that group,
so I made none. I was used to angry lectures and tirades about my
many mistakes, so nothing the council threw at me was new. With
Erik gone and no logical way to tie this in to either him or
Donavon, there was nothing they could say to incense me,
either.

“
We do not condone the
Poachers’ practices,” Victoria was saying, when she abruptly
clamped her lips shut. Her attention was on the display screen on
the table in front of her.

In fact, all the councilmembers were
staring at their screens. A horrible creepy-crawly sensation
skittered up my spine. After viewing the screen for a beat too
long, Victoria’s gaze slowly rose to meet mine. I should’ve taken
lessons from her on how to shoot real daggers with a
look.

Oh, shit.

“
You let her go!” Victoria
roared. She leapt to her feet, outrage and disbelief causing all
the color to drain from her face.

Yeah. Shit.

I didn’t need the councilwoman to
elaborate. I knew which “her” she was referring to.
Kenly.

Someone had realized Kenly and the
others were gone. Someone sounded an alarm.

“
Take her!” Victoria
declared, pointing at me.

“
Wait, what?” I screamed.
No one in the room moved, every eye fixed on me alone. “Take me
where? Are you containing me?”

Even though I’d knew this outcome was
possible in theory, I’d never believed the council would do
it.

“
No, Talia. We are not
containing you. You should be so lucky,” Victoria spat, every word
laced with poisonous venom.

Suddenly, Victoria nodded. At first I
thought the gesture was meant for me, but when fingers curled into
my biceps I understood she was signaling Chaz and
Viktor.

I fought against their holds, glad I
hadn’t used all my juice to manipulate Erik earlier.

“
Agent Lyons, you are
hereby found guilty of treason. You will be taken into custody and
relocated to Vault,” Victoria intoned. I had never heard her more
serious.

“
Treason! You’ve got to be
kidding—get off of me!” I cried, elbowing one of the guards in the
groin. Using telekinesis, I sent the other one sailing into the
wallscreen. The image of the council flickered. Someone yelled an
order for more guards.

“
Erik? Erik, I need
you!”
I sent frantically.

No answer.

Chaz was up on his feet again. He
reached for me, but underestimated both my speed and combat skills.
A swift kick to the back of his knee, followed by a second one to
his stomach, had the guard groaning on the ground.

“
Erik! Where are you?
I
need
you!”

Frantically, I searched the room for
Viktor. He was motionless on the conference table, sprawled out on
his back. On the screen behind him, councilmembers were winking in
and out of existence. The audio was still up and running, though,
and I heard Victoria’s voice above those of her frazzled
counterparts.

“
Agent Lyons, stop.
Immediately. Please, do not make this more difficult that it needs
to be.”