Luke frowned. "Did you knock your head when they shot you? Look around, Luce. No way are they going to lighten up. The lockdown has only gotten worse. We rebelled because they started all this, not the other way around. How many more kids do you want to see die before we do something?"
The loudspeaker buzzed to life before Lucy could respond. "ATTENTION ALL STUDENTS. THERE IS A MANDATORY ASSEMBLY IN THE HUB CENTER TO MOURN THE LOSS OF A STUDENT. PLEASE ATTEND IMMEDIATELY. NO ONE IS EXCUSED WITHOUT VALID MEDICAL REASONS AND A NOTE FROM THE DOCTOR."
The three of them headed toward the Hub.
Luke offered to carry her backpack, but she declined. "I heard they cremated Kyle and his ashes will be here today. Everyone is really shaken up."
A crowd formed around the center where a small stage had been erected. A few teachers were present, including Mr. Lancaster, who gave Lucy a meaningful look, though she didn't know what meaning it held. Mr. Black stood on the stage, next to a table holding an urn, and directed students and guards. He held his gun as if ready to fire at any moment, and Lucy worried he'd get trigger-happy.
The guards formed tight circles around groups of students, and kept them pinned to location like insects on a collector's board. When a boy fell out of line and tried to join another group, a guard pistol-whipped him and brought him back to formation.
Lucy swallowed a bit of vomit that rose in her throat.
She'd understood the Seeker's intention and ideas, but nothing had changed—and it wouldn't change unless they did something.
Her black eye still throbbed from the beating Mr. Black had given her, and her freshly shot shoulder pulsed with a painful reminder of how students were treated here.
Whatever Mr. Black and the Seeker cared about, it wasn't the students. Rent-A-Kid may have been well-intentioned at one point, but their methods got one kid killed and had seriously injured countless others. There had to be another way, a better way that didn't involve holding them prisoner and treating them like cattle.
Her brother and Gary were right. They couldn't wait for more kids to die. They had to escape now, today, and Lucy knew how.
The sphere in her backpack sent a surge of warmth into her and gave her strength. The pain in her shoulder disappeared, and she discarded her sling.
Before she could be pulled into formation, she slipped through the crowd toward Mr. Black. Once close enough, she grabbed a gun from one of the guards.
And held it to Mr. Black's head.
The entire crowd fell silent in shock.
Chapter 51 – Sam
Drake hadn't regained consciousness yet, and I couldn't stop crying. If I hadn't kicked the gun away... if we had done things his way....
But he would have shot Mary. She may not have been my favorite person in the world, but I didn't want her dead, or zombified.
The Seeker left us in the same dark room, with only the flicker of candle light to see by. One door led to a hallway, but I'd heard him lock it as he'd gone. No windows, no other way out, and no furniture save the chair and loveseat. I'd spent the first thirty minutes calling for help, but no one who cared could hear me.
My powers flitted in and out, but even when they worked I couldn't connect to anyone. The entire school thrummed with the Seeker's energy and mental signature. Power like that scared the hell out of me. The influence he had over the men he sent to capture us paled in comparison to what he controlled here.
I had no idea how we would ever escape.
Drake groaned, and I squeezed his hand. Tears choked my throat and left wet lines down my cheeks. "Are you okay? Drake, I'm so sorry. You have to believe me. I need you. Our baby needs you. Please wake up."
"Sam? Oh, my head. Feels like a Mack truck ran me over, then backed up and did it a few more times for fun."
I helped him sit up and move to the loveseat. "What did he do to you?"
"Blew up my head. At least that's what if felt like. I can't use my mind powers. Can you?"
"No. On and off, but no one around here is open. His power... Drake, it's unparalleled."
The Seeker's voice startled us both. "Why thank you. That is the highest compliment coming from one such as yourself."
I hadn't heard him come in. The man was like a phantom. Did he have powers that we didn't even know about?
"Drake, I am so glad you are awake. It is time the three of us got to know each other—a family reunion , if you will."
I clenched my teeth. "We are not a family."
The Seeker frowned and feigned injury. "Your words hurt. My dear Sam, we have more in common than you know."
He sat in his chair and adjusted his white robes. Did he wear them for dramatic flare? "I have been looking forward to this day since you each were born. Drake, you came first, obviously. I was only a young boy then, just starting kindergarten, but my powers had already manifested. Oh, the things I could already do at such a tender age. My father, he couldn't have been happier to have a son with such talents, but.... Well, let us just say there is always room for improvement. So, he began research to create Sam."