The Forbidden Trilogy(127)

Everything she tried created an error message. Sweat beaded on her hand holding the gun, but she couldn't stop to wipe it—couldn't give Mr. Black an edge.

She slammed her fist on the small desk in frustration. "How do I open the gate?"

Mr. Black shrugged. "You need a password, and I'm not giving it to you."

She waved the gun in front of his face, then aimed it at his forehead. "You do realize I still have a gun, right? I mean, I'm more deadly with this than with my para-power."

His laugh lacked any humor. "You think I care if you kill me? The only thing that matters is my daughter, and if I help you and your friends escape, she'll die. So go ahead, pull the trigger."

Without her powers, Lucy had to rely on her instincts once again. She hated this feeling of uncertainty and emptiness, but she'd seen Mr. Black with his daughter, and knew that connection was real. The daughter was the key to getting him to cooperate.

"I'm surprised at you, Mr. Black. You've obviously had some military training, been around the world a bit. I'd think you would know when you're being played. These people pride themselves on being genetically superior to everyone else. Do you really think they'd give you the cure for your daughter's illness, even if they had it?"

His lips twitched slightly.

"We—my friends and I—are this organization's idea of the perfect human specimens, and still they've lied to us, imprisoned us and impregnated many of us. You really think they're going to treat you and your daughter any better? If they were going to save your daughter, they would've done so by now."

Her words settled into him, but she could see the fight behind his eyes. "You think I'm going to listen to you, Bitch. You don't know what I can do, what they've promised me."

"You're right, I don't. But I know it's all lies. Why would they help someone they think is inferior? Have they done anything but barely keep her alive? Have they given you any reason to think you can trust them?" She stepped back from him, but kept her gun aimed as she leaned against the desk behind her. "You're an ass, but you're not stupid. Think. Whose side do you want to be on now?"

Outside, guns fired, people screamed, friends died. Lucy hovered on the brink of irrational behavior, struggling to keep herself calm while Mr. Black thought. And thought. And thought.

She shoved the gun against his head again. "My friends are dying and I'm losing patience. Decide."

Lucy could see as he reluctantly accepted the truth of her words, a truth he very much did not want to believe. Letting go of the lie meant letting go of the last hope his daughter had to live. A small twinge of empathy floated through her, but it changed nothing. Too many were already paying for his indecisiveness.

"If I let you out, are you going to shoot me?"

"No, Mr. Black. I'm not you. If you open these gates, I'll help you get your daughter out of here."

"Sure, like I would trust you. I know you want to punish me for the things you think I've done. Why would you help me?"

"First, I'm not going to let your daughter suffer alone in there. She needs you and she's a true innocent in all of this. Second, I'm not a monster."

"Fine. The password is 4321978."

Lucy raised her hand and began typing in the numbers, but something in the shift of his eyes and the shuffle of his stance stopped her. "You're lying."

His eyes widened. "You have your powers back? But how—"

"No, I don't. But as someone once told me, humans can tell right from wrong, even without powers. I assume a false code will trip some kind of security shut-down? Nice try, but you need to give me the correct code, or things are going to get ugly here. I'm not going to let all of these students die for you."

Mr. Black nodded and typed in the correct code. "I underestimated you."

Lucy laughed as the gates rolled open.





Chapter 57 – Sam



Time ticked by in my head with each heartbeat. Save myself or save Drake?

That would have been easy to answer. The real question was much harder. Save Drake or save our child?

I jumped for the door. "I can't leave him to die. We have to go find him." My mind could only hold one thought: Drake is in trouble.

I should have made room for a few more thoughts—like doorknobs hot enough to brand a human's skin.

A scream tore out of my throat, and I pulled back my blistered hand. The Seeker tsk-tsked and tore a piece of cloth from his white robe, but his hands fumbled and shook. He tried again, though the pained expression on his face showed that the effort cost him. "Here, use this as a bandage."

"How are we going to get out?" Panic gripped my heart. I reached out to find Drake, but he existed as a black hole in the universe—invisible to me and my powers. Instead, I hunted for Lucy's mental signature.