The Embers Of My Heart (12 page)

"And he lost."

"Brilliant deduction. He lost. He waited for years, played the part of the gracious loser, and then stole what information he could and vanished. I hunted him myself. Years of nothing. Nothing! Then he popped up and made that ridiculous statement. We still can't find him, but do we care? Probably not. Alistair won and the Resistance can't stop him. That's all there is to it."

"But they're still a thorn in your side," I said.

"Naturally. Half their training came from our books. The other half, they learn on their own. It's hard to fight someone who knows all your basics, but is still unpredictable. They all cross train. Their powers are so mismatched and patched together, you never know what to expect."

"Unlike us."

"Unlike our trainees, who specialize. Sometimes to the point of utter idiocy."

"Like me, until you got me out of that rut."

She smirked at me and flicked her hand. "You're welcome. Now, this conversation is over, it never happened, and if you breathe a word of it to anyone, especially Alistair, you'll wish Shade was your mentor again. Understand?"

I bowed my head to her. "Message received."

The telepresence link snapped. I let my power fade away and pondered my next step. I still didn't know anything about him other than his Establishment history and his relation to me. I could ask Mom, but the way Dad had acted made that a last resort. Plus, now I knew there was a significant possibility that psionic power ran in the family. That would explain a great many things in my childhood.

I grabbed my coat. One option remained, her phone number locked in my memory. I was sure that the Establishment listened in on any phone calls I made. A chill ran down my spine. If they cross checked my classes and realized I wasn't in a sociology course this trimester, there might be consequences from the call I made to my dad. If I called a Resistance agent, the consequences might be dangerous.

I walked down to the student union while considering my options and cover story. College students sat at tables, their phones sitting next to them, sometimes unattended. Borrowing someone's phone made sense. Doing it on campus didn't. Anyone here could be an Establishment agent or trainee. I obeyed my paranoia and left, walking until I was a few blocks off campus. I ducked into a coffee shop, covered my eyes and used my powers to mask my presence in the same way I did in Albany. I didn't hesitate before swiping a phone off a table.

I punched in her number from memory and let it ring. Two rings and she picked up. "Sarah here."

"Hi."

"Who? Kevin? Is that you? I can't believe it, I thought..."

"That I was never going to talk to you again?"

"Well, yeah. You were a little upset." I could hear the smile in her voice.

"I didn't think I was going to, either," I admitted. "But I've found out a few things, and I need your help."

"Found out a few things? Like how I'm so much better for you than your crazy girlfriend?" Her tone was teasing, but I could hear a bit of tension behind it. Asking her for help was a dick move. Still, she was the best option I had.

"Kevin, I never took you for the type to just use me. So cruel!"

"Well, I'll help you out if you help me out."

"Oh, really? I have a few ideas in mind. What were you thinking?"

"I'll be your loyal manservant for a month?"

She gasped and giggled. "Wow. You surprise me sometimes. It must be serious if you're willing to submit to my every depraved need for a whole month. What's on your mind?"

I sighed. "You're not going to like it."

"Tell me."

"Todd Green."

Dead silence, just as I had expected. "Who?" she finally replied.

"I've done my homework. Don't give me that."

"I cannot confirm nor deny the existence of a man by that name," she said. All the playfulness in her voice fell away. I'd never heard her be so serious.

"That just tells me you know about him. I mean, you work for him, after all."

She grunted. "Look, hot stuff, there's some stuff I can't talk to you about. For real. We're technically enemies, remember?"

"Not in bed."

"Don't go there. We're not playing right now."

"Sorry. I need to know more about him."

"Not a chance, not unless you join us. It's not a question of me trusting you, because I do trust you. It's a question of a lot of people trusting you."

"Star, he's my uncle."

Another long moment of silence. "Bullshit, Kevin."

"He was part of the Establishment. He opposed Alistair Ripley. He's my mom's older brother. He disappeared when I was around six to form-"

"Bullshit! Shut up!" I couldn't tell if she was surprised or angry. "You know way too much for me to be comfortable with. Please tell me you're not calling me from your own phone."

"I'm off campus and I borrowed some random person's phone."

"Good. At least you're doing paranoia right. How did you figure any of this out?" I told her about my PSInet research and the deductions I made. She hissed out a few choice curses. "Look. Drop it. I can't tell you anything and you're going to get yourself twisted by your own people if you keep digging. Why in the flying fuck would you think they won't find out? You have no idea what you're dealing with here."

"He's my uncle, Star. He's family. I have the right to know. He's part of this puzzle for me, there's something deeper here, and I'm on the verge of finding out about this. I need to find him."

She sighed into the phone. "I can't blame you for that. Honestly. I know you need to find out what's going on behind the scenes over there, and I'm curious too. But this is a lot to ask. You don't understand."

"Like I said, manservant for a month."

"Not just a manservant," she said. "I'm going to teach you a few things and blow your mind. Among other things."

I chuckled. "One track mind."

"You know it, sexy pants. Damn you, Kevin. I thought I'd never see or hear from you again. I was this close to getting over you. This close! Then you pull this? You're a dick. A complete asshole."

"I'm sorry."

"I still want you. I want you with me. I want you to join us."

"I'm sorry."

"Stop apologizing. Just promise me you'll listen and you'll think about it."

"I can promise that much," I said. "My uncle?"

"I cannot confirm nor deny anything," she said. "But, hypothetically speaking, if you carry through on your end, if he actually exists, I may be able to convince him to talk with you."

"That's all I can ask." My power flickered. "Good timing. I can't mask much longer."

"All right. Let me know when you're ready to meet me."

"It's too late for me to make plans for this spring break. Probably August for summer break. Sound good?"

"Perfectly lovely. Kevin?"

"Yeah?"

"I miss you." She hung up.

Chapter Eight

"I'm not sure you're authorized for that information. I'll check with President Ripley." She picked up her phone and pressed a button. "Yes. Mr. Parker is looking to visit his previous mentor in the secure infirmary. Yes. Yes. I'll let him know. Thank you."

"What's the verdict?" I asked.

She smiled as she hung up. "President Ripley approved your request. An escort will be here shortly."

I tried not to frown. I had hoped to be alone, but at least I'd get to check on the beast. "Thank you so much."

A man showed up to the office within a few minutes. I followed him to a nearby building I'd never set foot in before. The campus infirmary wasn't anywhere near here. We took an elevator down to the basement and walked down a brightly lit hallway to a secure door. My escort took a badge and held it up to a sensor to let us in.

Inside, it resembled a basic hospital wing, complete with a nurse's station up front. The primary difference was that the nurses were staring me down as I stepped through the doors. The one I took for the head nurse, an older man with a short grizzled beard, approached us with his eyes glowing a faint green. "May we help you?"

"Mr. Parker is here to visit Shade," my escort replied. "Alistair approved the visit personally."

The faint glow winked out. "Ah. Follow me."

I'd never seen Shade without his heavy coat. He lay on a bed surrounded by monitors, an oxygen line feeding his nose, and a pair of IVs embedded in his wrists. His arms were thin, noticeably thinner than when we had fought only four months ago. "He looks awful," I said.

"There's only so much we can do for someone in his condition," the head nurse said. "Alistair's authorized experimental procedures, but nothing seems to get through. It's a horrific twist. Nothing I've ever seen before. I suspect he's still conscious of his situation, though not his surroundings. If I had to compare it to anything, I'd say he's effectively trapped in sensory deprivation."

"That's horrific," my escort said. "Isn't that considered torture?"

"It could be, yes."

I shuddered, not bothering to disguise my reaction. I hadn't known the real effects of what I had done until now. "Do you think there's any chance he'll wake up?"

The nurse shrugged. "There's always a chance, but we can't even begin to guess with this twist."

I stepped closer to his bedside. His chest rose and fell. "Could I get a couple of minutes with him?"

The escort and nurse exchanged looks before turning to the door. "Take your time," the nurse said. "He probably can't hear anything you say, if you're going to say anything to him. Couldn't hurt though."

Once they were out of the room, I resisted the urge to pull the oxygen line away from his nose. "You know, Shade, maybe death would have been better than this. I have half a mind to end you right now while you can't do anything about it. You might even thank me for it." Of course, he didn't respond. None of the monitors flickered. "I've been doing my research lately. Todd Green. The split that formed the Resistance. Alistair's got plans, doesn't he? I don't know who or what to believe, but you tried to kill me rather than let me find out. I think I was right to stick you in this coma. I hope you stay there forever."

I turned away from his bedside and walked to the door. My main interest was making sure he showed no sign of coming out of the coma. If I was going to do anything with the Resistance, I didn't want him waking up while I was out of the area. When I left the room, my original escort was gone, replaced with Professor Burke. I tried to hide my surprise. "Thanks," I said. "Just wanted to see how he was doing."

"I will see Mr. Parker out," Burke said. The nurse nodded and we walked out. After we exited the building, I turned to thank him and leave for my dorm, but found his gaze resting on me. "Walk with me," he said.

"Sure." I wasn't in too much of a hurry.

We took our time crossing the campus. Burke didn't say anything at first, so when he finally spoke, it made me jump. "Shade vehemently opposed the idea of you joining the Committee. As your mentor, he had the final word. Perhaps Alistair could have overridden him. Why do you suppose he was so opposed to it?"

"He thought I was an idiot?"

"Not at all. He had a healthy respect for your ability to learn." Burke glanced over at me. "That surprises you?"

I didn't even know I had reacted. "I thought all he felt was contempt for me."

"No person, not even an enemy, is as simple as that. Although we may wish they were. It is always easier to distill a person's essence until it's pure and easy to love or hate."

"I guess that's true. But to answer your question, I don't think he wanted me to have the information I could get from the other students, from PSInet, and from you."

"Close," Burke said. "Close to my conjecture, at least, as he was never explicit in his reasoning."

"What do you think it was, then?"

"Isolation." This time, I knew I had flinched when Burke stopped and turned to me. "Don't you agree?"

I considered it for a moment. Shade had never seemed happy with Nikki and Absynthe joining our training, but I'd never seen him try to break it up. "I don't, actually. He didn't argue against my having a partner. I don't think he was deliberately trying to isolate me."

"It seemed that way to me."

"I think he was trying to control me," I said, and was rewarded by seeing Burke flinch. "He didn't want me learning things outside of his teaching, or learn information he didn't give me. If he let me join, I'd have learned a lot of things outside of his control." When we had fought, he had sworn to puppet me. His only offer to let me live was to put me firmly under his control. Burke wasn't wrong about him trying to isolate me, but that was a symptom, not the root cause.

Burke turned and started walking again, and I stepped up to catch him. "I will freely admit I wasn't aware of all of his actions and machinations. From my outside view, it seemed to be a way to keep you isolated from your peers and dependent on him."

"He tried, for sure," I said.

"You've given me things to think about."

"Me too. Sorry, Professor, but I have to get back to the dorm. I'll see you at the next meeting, after break?"

"Yes. Enjoy your time off."

I double-timed it back to the dorm to try to beat everyone else to Andreas's room. When I knocked and he let me in, I grinned when I realized I had won. "I'm surprised to be the first one here."

"I am pleased that you are the first one." Andreas gestured to the couch. "I have wanted to ask about that student council activity you mentioned. While you did not ask me to investigate it for you, I indulged my own curiosity."

"Let me guess. It doesn't exist."

"Incorrect." I frowned. "It does, in fact, exist. However, none of the students on the Student Council Subcommittee for Gifted Students exist."

"What do you mean?"

He sat on the edge of a chair. "The subcommittee exists, one page, one link to it, buried deep within the student government website. It did not show up on the internal search. I only found it when running their web structure through an analyzer. The supposed chairman of the subcommittee exists, Professor Austin Burke. Predictably, he is an enigma as well."