Smoke & Mirrors (29 page)

Ash didn’t ask questions or even comment. He reached into his pocket, drew out his Swiss Army knife, then held it out to Dex.

“So what do you want to do about dessert?” Dex asked as he cut through the stitches in Brave Heart’s back with exceptional care.

“There’s ice cream,” Cael said, hovering by Dex’s shoulder along with everyone else.

Gently, Dex felt through the stuffing until his finger poked against the corner of what was most likely a folded up piece of paper. With shaky hands, he gingerly pulled it out, handing his favorite childhood toy to Cael, who’d continue to take good care of it.

The paper in his hand was somewhat faded but otherwise in pristine condition. He unfolded it, his eyes widening at how long it was. Dex stared at the four columns of names written in small block letters on the front and back, and at the very top of the first row, the first name was Sloane Brodie.

Dex went to Cael’s stereo and turned it on, tuning it in to Retro Radio. Ash rolled his eyes.

“Seriously? Don’t you get tired of that shit?”

“Screw you, Simba.” Dex motioned for everyone to huddle close. He looked up at his dad, his voice quiet when he spoke. “You didn’t check Braveheart?”

“I felt around,” Tony replied. “But it didn’t feel any different from the previous times I’d held it. It didn’t occur to me to remove the stitching. Not on this one. I didn’t have the heart. The way you clung onto that toy, hugging it so tight…. It broke my heart.”

Dex nodded, and gave his dad’s shoulder a squeeze. “It’s okay, Dad.” He went back to scanning the list. “It’s longer than I expected.”

“So all these First Gens have anomalies in their blood?” Tony asked, looking the list over.

Sloane shook his head sadly. “Maybe they all did. Some of them never made it out of the research facility.”

“And some of the ones that did didn’t last that long outside of it,” Ash added.

“Some of these Therians work for the THIRDS,” Cael pointed out.

Sloane nodded. “They were recruited around the same time we were.”

“So what now?” Cael asked worriedly. “If we run these names through Themis, Sparks will know. If someone higher up the food chain is involved, they’ll definitely know. We might as well hand the list over to them.”

“I think we know someone who might be able to help with that. For now, we pretend like everything is hunky dory. I’m going to finish listening to the tapes, and Cael’s going to help me digitally back up these cassettes.” He placed his messenger bag on Cael’s old bed and pulled out his headphones. “Save me some pizza.”

THREE HOURS.

That’s how much sleep Sloane had last night, but he didn’t care. They were getting closer to seeing through the fog of whatever the hell was going on. An investigation that started over thirty-five years ago. After the hours Dex had put in listening to the tapes, it had taken more to back them up, and just as long for Sloane to get Dex to fall asleep. Sloane hadn’t been able to keep his own emotions at bay after listening to Gina Daley tell her child to find Sloane, how he needed love.

The tapes held hours of evidence spanning several years, the dates and events documented by Shultzon himself. He recorded everything from project details to conversations with his superiors, the majority of whom seemed to be Therians. Unfortunately, Shultzon never mentioned anyone by name, and the signatures he’d spoken of remained on documents long gone. What they did have were several voices, some sounded oddly familiar, especially a young military hotshot tiger Therian who Shultzon referred to as Commander Shrapnel. Shultzon seemed to bring him up a lot, and Sloane got the distinct impression the guy played an important part in all this. According to Shultzon, Commander Shrapnel had been given the nickname because he was as deadly and unforgiving as a piece of shrapnel stuck in the chest. The commander was manipulative, setting several unsanctioned projects into motion.

Sloane was ready to hit the snooze on their alarm for the second time when Dex’s phone went off. Either Sloane was really out of it, or Dex’s phone was playing “Somewhere Over the Rainbow.” That was a new one.

Dex sleepily grabbed his phone, tapped the screen, and put it to his ear. “Hello?” Seconds ticked by before Dex bolted upright and scrambled out of bed, his ear still pressed to his phone. “Yeah, shit. Okay. We’ll be out front in ten minutes.”

Sloane quickly got out of bed. He had no idea what was going on, but if Dex said they’d be outside in ten, Sloane would be there. They swiftly dressed and brushed their teeth before Sloane was following Dex downstairs.

“What’s going on?” Sloane asked.

“Sparks is sending someone to pick us up. She says Shultzon asked for me. He knows we found the file. She has no idea how that’s possible, considering the guy’s been in isolation the majority of the time. He told her he has critical information about my condition and the people responsible.”

Outside, a black car waited at the curb for them. The back doors opened, and they climbed in. Sloane and Dex were familiar with the drill by now. They sat in the backseat, and Sloane laced his fingers with Dex’s. They looked straight ahead as a black hood was placed over each of their heads, swallowing them in complete darkness.

Wherever the TIN facility was, it was located at least an hour’s drive from their home. Knowing TIN, it was likely they drove around a bit to throw Sloane off. The road changed from pavement to dirt, then back a few times. There was no telling where the hell they were going. The car was soundproof, making it impossible to hear whether the sounds outside were of the city or elsewhere. Once they reached their destination, the black hoods were removed, and the car door opened. They stepped out into what looked like an empty underground parking garage. There were no discernable marks, no numbers, windows, cars, nothing but one white door at the far end.

They followed a pair of twin cheetah Therian operatives through the white door and down a long white corridor. There was no telling if this was the same location or a different one, and if it was the same, if they were being taken to the same room they’d met Shultzon in previously. Sloane had to admit, TIN took nothing for granted. Whatever they appeared not to know was simply a tactic. TIN hoarded information, sharing only droplets here and there to keep nonoperatives like him and Dex from knowing or figuring out too much.

As they walked down the corridor, Dex gazed up at the ceiling.

“What is it?” Sloane asked so only Dex could hear. “You were doing that last time we were here.”

“I don’t know. There’s something on the ceiling every few feet. The light is different in those spots. Almost like tiny translucent squares.”

Sparks waited by the door of the room Sloane assumed Shultzon was in. She didn’t look pleased. Then again, she rarely did.

“Somehow, Shultzon has been getting information. My operatives are currently trying to identify the source. Shultzon says he knows you found the file—which we’ll be discussing later—and that there’s something important you need to know. Ready?”

Dex nodded, and Sparks opened the door for them. They were about to go in when Dex paused, murmuring to Sparks.

“There’s something funky going on with your ceiling.” With that, he headed inside.

Sparks looked at Sloane, who just shrugged. He didn’t know what Dex was talking about either.

When Sloane saw Shultzon, he knew something was wrong. The guy was thin, with sunken cheeks and dark circles under his bloodshot eyes. His skin was so pale that his veins were visible in several areas. Sloane leaned into Sparks.

“What the hell happened to him?”

“We don’t know. Our medical team is working on it, but in the last twenty-four hours, his body started deteriorating. He was perfectly healthy this morning, and now he’s dying. Whatever it is, it’s working fast.” She turned her attention to Dex. “This is your last chance to get what information you can. He won’t be here much longer.”

Dex walked over to Shultzon and took a seat in the chair across from him. “Okay, you wanted to talk to me. Here I am.”

“How are you feeling, Dex?”

Sloane took position by the wall not far from Dex, in case he needed to step in. Dex’s patience was in short supply these days where Shultzon was concerned.

“Fine.”

Shultzon smiled warmly. “I don’t have long, so we’ll get right down to it. Everything you’ve found, everything you’ve suspected, is true, and it’s leading you on the path you need to be on. You’re so close to discovering the truth. Everything you’ve done has been leading you to this moment. Those Therians on the list? Their mates? You’re their savior. Those killing them off, they’re scared of you. They have no idea what you’re capable of, but they’ll see. Soon they’ll see.”

“What are you talking about? I thought you said you had information about my condition?”

Shultzon grinned. “Tell me if you’ve heard this one. May 24, 1985, Human wife goes into a hospital after being marked by her lion Therian husband.”

“Yeah, heard that one. Didn’t like the punch line.”

“Clever boy. The wife had been marked on her back, saw to the wounds, and three weeks later, she and her husband were killed in a traffic accident.”

“Only it wasn’t an accident, was it?” Dex narrowed his eyes. “Someone’s been killing off all those couples. Humans who went in seeking treatment after being marked by their Therian significant others.”

“Exactly. The list you found on Themis corresponds to the list your mother made. Except your list has far more names. My superiors—”

“Commander Shrapnel?”

Shultzon laughed. “Yes, him. Oh, but he’s not a commander anymore.”

“Who is he?” Dex asked, leaning forward.

“We’ll get there. As I was saying, May 24, 1985, my superiors made a startling discovery. There were more Therians with anomalies in their blood. Not just the First Gen children. If these Therians with unstable versions of the Therian mutation could cause these symptoms in Humans, who knew what a First Gen Therian with these blood anomalies might be capable of? This problem had to be rectified immediately.”

“By killing these couples off and making them look like accidents or murders.”

“Yes. Except they no longer had the list. All they could do was wait until a Human who’d been marked by a Therian sought treatment at the hospital, check their records for anomalies, and the moment they showed certain symptoms, dispatch them.”

“And the First Gen children? The ones on the list?”

“There was no way to discern who had been on the list, but First Gens were far too important, and if we did have children whose names were on the list, they were under our watch.” Shultzon glanced up at Sloane. “We had big plans for these blessed souls.”

“Like turn them into mindless soldiers with your Therian control drug?”

Shultzon turned his attention back to Dex. “Yes, that was one of our many projects. Our healthiest, strongest, sharpest First Gens would be recruited for military programs.”

“And my condition?”

“It’s all connected. Do you truly believe you’re here by accident, Dex? You becoming an HPF officer, your partner shooting that boy, your testifying, getting pushed out and recruited by the THIRDS?”

“Are you saying that was all planned?” Dex arched an eyebrow at him. “For what purpose?”

“To bring you closer.” Shultzon moved his gaze to Sparks before he turned back to Dex. “You were destined for great things, Dexter, but even a savior must be shown the path. But before you can become who you are meant to be—” Shultzon leaned toward Dex, his bony hands on the table in front of him. “—you’re going to die, and when you do, it will be glorious. It’s the dawn of a new era, and it begins and ends with you.”

“You son of a bitch!”

Dex launched out of his chair, and Sloane was there in two strides, throwing his arms around Dex to lift him off his feet, his muscles straining with Dex’s weight. Why was Sloane having trouble holding him? Dex pulled at Sloane’s arms, and Sloane found himself gritting his teeth as he struggled to keep Dex restrained. Something was wrong. Dex wasn’t weak by any means, but Sloane was stronger. He should have had Dex on the floor by now. Was something messing with him? Sloane didn’t feel any different.

“Dex, stop!” Sloane didn’t know what was happening, but it was freaking him out. Was he losing his strength? Was something getting fucked up inside him?

“You murderous motherfucker!” Dex struggled against Sloane, pushing at his chest. “You had her killed, and now you want to kill me?”

“Nonsense. I don’t want to kill you, Dex. Your lover is going to kill you.”

Dex let out a fierce cry, and Sloane could feel Dex slipping from his grip.

“Sparks! I can’t hold him!”

Sparks tapped her earpiece, and the door flew open, half a dozen Therian operatives flooding in. It was rather excessive, as surely two or three could easily restrain Dex, but if it meant calming Dex down, he’d go with it. Sloane reluctantly released Dex, wincing as his partner was tackled by the six Therian operatives.

“What the hell is going on?”

Sloane frowned down at his hands when he heard Sparks gasp. His head shot up, and he couldn’t believe his eyes. Not only was Dex putting up a fight against the six operatives, but he was still on his feet. Sloane rushed in to help when he heard it.

Holy fuck, his Human partner just hissed like a Felid!

With an additional two bear Therian operatives joining the struggle, they got Dex on the floor onto his stomach, and even then Dex wouldn’t give in. Sparks hurried over to Sloane.

“What happened?”

“I don’t know. One second it was fine. Next thing I knew, it’s like his weight doubled. I couldn’t hold him. I thought it was me, that there was something wrong with me. I, um—” Sloane leaned in, his voice quiet. “—he hissed.”

“Clarify.”

“He hissed like a Felid.”

Sparks’s eyes widened, and she dropped to her knees next to Dex, who continued to struggle against the TIN operatives.

“Dex, so help me, if you bite me I will seriously hurt you.”

Sloane got closer, curious as to why the hell Sparks was trying to get Dex to open his mouth. When she did, Sloane cursed under his breath. “Are those what I think they are?”