The Decaying Empire (The Vanishing Girl Series Book 2) (34 page)

I whacked him for that. “Rude.”

He glanced down at me, a grin pulling one side of his mouth up. “Sorry, puss-puss.”

I narrowed my eyes at him. “Your ass is so getting reamed for that as soon as we’re alone.”

Caden’s eyebrows rose. “Oh goody.”

I closed my eyes, pressing my fingers into my forehead.

Adrian watched the two of us, his face strained. Throwing Caden an irritated glance, he said, “Car’s outside. Follow me.”

He’d managed to pay off someone on the airport staff to leave his car at the curb, and it waited for us right outside the sliding doors.

Gently Caden laid me down in the backseat, tossing my clothes and my bag in after me before sliding in himself.

I rapidly began redressing, ignoring the looks I kept getting as people caught glimpses of skin.

I finished dressing and leaned back against the seat as the car pulled into traffic. We were here. We’d made it.

“Adrian, thanks—for everything,” I said.

He nodded, looking through the rearview mirror. “Welcome.” He huffed out a laugh. “I can’t believe you’re really here. I keep thinking you might disappear on me.”

Caden’s hands clenched.

“You just missed the show.” As I spoke, I entwined my fingers with Caden’s, giving them a squeeze.

Thank you,
I mouthed to him.

Caden’s eyes softened, and he brought the back of my hand to his lips.

He hadn’t yet asked whether I’d killed Richards. He’d rescued me and made sure I was okay. And now he was sucking it up. For me. My eyes welled a little. There wasn’t a better guy than him, not if I searched the world over.

And he loved me. The flawed, unhinged girl that now had blood on her hands and shockingly little remorse. He loved me.

EPILOGUE

I
t took me several extra seconds to register my situation. The makeshift stage I stood on. The lace dress, the diamond choker and matching ring. The classical music and the hum of voices. The gasps, followed by the applause.

One moment I’d been falling asleep in an unfamiliar bed, and the next I was here.

I glanced up, and a roomful of people in evening gowns and suits stared at me—smiled at me.

The blood drained from my face. This had to be a dream. But—no, crap, this wasn’t.

Set up. Somehow I’d been set up.

When the applause died down, a balding man with wisps of white hair pushed through the crowd, not stopping until he’d made his way to the stage. I caught a glimpse of his face and my heart stuttered.

Impossible. I must be imagining things.

He turned his back to me and faced the audience, throwing a hand out to present me to them. “The future of bioengineering is now upon us. It gives me great pleasure to introduce Ember Pierce, one of the first humans with the ability to teleport.”

I stiffened at my name as the room broke into thunderous applause. In the crowd I caught sight of Pierre. His eyes glittered, and his lips curved into a smile as he clapped. I knew exactly what his intentions were. Others shared his look, though they were the minority. Most simply gaped at me, both delighted and frightened at the possibility of teleportation.

“Stonehawk Enterprises plans on revolutionizing the world . . .”
The man droned on, but I no longer listened.

Stonehawk. I pressed a hand to my stomach and glanced down at my dress. I raised my head and took in the room. Those mysterious missions
. . .
Adrian lied. Stonehawk was responsible for them. He was responsible for them.

Adrian
lied
. Like a fool I believed him.

The white-haired man stopped speaking, and the crowd clapped once more. He turned around and faced me. “Hello, Ember Pierce.”

I took a step back, taking in his familiar features. My eyes hadn’t played tricks on me.

“Y-your supposed to be dead.” I’d seen him in pictures before.

“So are you.”

What had I gotten us into?

“Welcome to Stonehawk Enterprises.” Fascination gleamed in his eyes as he looked me over. “If you want to survive, you’re going to have to do what you do best.”

“Does Adrian know?” I whispered, my voice hoarse.

He cupped my elbow and led me off the stage, where people had begun to gather. “I made you smarter than that.”

Yes. Adrian knew, and he hadn’t told me. I stared back at the man responsible for my existence, and my ability. The man who got me into this mess in the first place.

Dr. Brent Sumner.

Caden first noticed the press of stiff fabric against his body. He took in the fitted slacks, the finely tailored jacket, the linen tucked into the breast pocket. A bow tie constricted his neck.

What the fuck?

He reached up, adjusting the tie. He glanced at the private bathroom around him.

You have got to be shitting me.

The irony of it all. He’d left the Project to escape this. And here he was, looking like fucking James Bond, and no doubt expected to act like him too.

Slipping his hands in his pockets, he wasn’t at all surprised to find a note in there.

Introduce yourself to Dr. Brent Sumner.

He crumpled the note and threw it in the toilet. Dr. Brent Sumner was dead.

Beautiful, familiar laughter tinkled in from beyond the door, and his skin shivered at the sound. Flushing the note down, he exited the bathroom.

Marble floors, warm yellow lights, and the rich music of a string quartet. His shoes clacked as he crossed the floors. That same laughter tickled his ears again. Ember’s laughter. He seemed to be particularly attuned to it. Only he could detect the hollow note that indicated it was forced. He followed the sound to a grand room.

Again they’d managed to fall asleep within minutes of each other. Not too surprising considering how exhausted they both were.

Caden rounded the corner and there she was. Wearing a red gown that was little more than strategically placed lace flowers, laughing her ass off at something one of the suited men across from her said. She already appeared to have a fan club; men pressed in on her.

A year ago he might’ve swallowed and looked the other way as their eyes moved over her like she was nothing more than a shiny object. Now his hands fisted, and he had to focus on unclenching them and pulling himself together before he approached.

He paused midstride as he caught sight of a familiar face within Ember’s group of admirers. Brent Sumner.

No
.

The man was dead. He would know; the man had a heart attack a week before Caden had been scheduled to take him out. Medical records supported this.

Caden bit back a curse. Black-magic fuckery. That’s what this was.

He blinked a few times, taking in the room. Ember didn’t seem to just have a fan club. She held the entire room’s attention.

What the hell?

Ember took a long sip from her glass of wine, smiling seductively over the rim of it. She might’ve always struggled with the more physical aspects of being a distractor but not the psychological ones. She was in her element here. She could turn it on like flipping a switch. Only he knew that the real Ember was logical, brutal, and efficient. Not the flirty, happy-go-lucky vision in front of him.

But then he saw panic flash across her face. She too must’ve realized that she’d gotten played. They both had. Just as he’d feared.

Sensing someone staring at her, Ember’s eyes flicked to him. For the briefest moment, the facade slipped. He didn’t see fear, like he’d expected to. The look in her stormy eyes could’ve killed lesser men. It was the same expression a predator wore right before they pounced. The smile she flashed, the one meant for just him, promised future retribution. His baby had a vendetta, and he was nothing if not the supportive boyfriend.

Caden winked at her, then he too played his part. He pressed into the group, clapping a man on the shoulder, shaking hands, being the chummy fucking charmer he always was.

New enemies to add to the old? Bring ’em. They’d been trained for violence. And in this field, the prodigies had surpassed their masters.

The battle had only just begun.

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

F
irst and foremost, I want to thank Dan, my amazing husband and fellow author, for his unconditional love and support during the inception and creation of this series. I’m incredibly lucky to be married to another storyteller, as well as the most compassionate, wonderful man I could’ve asked for.

In that same breath, I’d like to thank my family and all my friends who have supported me throughout my writing career. It takes a village, and I’m so thankful you are all a part of mine.

To one of my amazing editors, Vivian Lee—can I keep you? Thank you for all your hard work and lovely e-mails! And to Miriam Juskowicz, this series is what it is because you took a chance on it. To Courtney Miller, Skyscape’s head editor, thank you for overseeing this entire process with finesse and for being an all-around awesome person. To Melody Guy and Robin Cruise, this book shines because of your invaluable input. Your feedback added those final, fantastic touches to Caden and Ember’s adventure. Andrew Gough, thank you for fielding my questions and streamlining this process for me. I can’t praise the Skyscape team enough; you all made my experience so enjoyable.

D. Nichole King, not only were you the first person to read this book, you swooped in when there were only seconds left on the clock and helped me give it a major facelift. I can’t thank you enough for going out of your way to do this when I was a stressed-out mess. You are an angel. To Sunniva, Angela, and all my other close author friends—I’ve got some of the coolest, most inappropriate partners in crime ever! Thanks for all the laughs!

Lastly, to my dad, whom this book is dedicated to, you never once scoffed at my dream to become a writer, and you enabled my book addiction. (I think it might’ve paid off.) Your support throughout my life meant and continues to mean so very much to me—much more than I let on. Even more importantly, you’ve always expected great things from me. Thank you for instilling in me that sense of self-worth. I love you.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Photo © 2013 Daniel Ricchiazzi

B
orn and raised in Fresno, California, Laura Thalassa spent her childhood reading and creating fantastic tales. She now spends her days penning everything from young adult paranormal romance to new-adult dystopian novels. Thalassa lives with her husband and partner in crime, Dan Rix, in sunny Santa Barbara, California. For more information, please visit
laurathalassa.blogspot.com
.