Chapter 35

Iused my gift to detect other people and avoid them, somehow turning myself into a human radar. I was tempted to make a beep-beep sound but figured it would defeat the purpose of hiding.

The sun had set, casting the farm in darkness and shadows, the stars just starting to become visible above.

I knew I was running out of time. My father hadn’t been to check on me yet, but that wouldn’t last. He would want to see if his punishment was working. As soon as he finds my cage empty, he’ll have this whole place searched.

In the last ten minutes, I’ve noticed everyone starting to gather in one of the large barns closest to the house. My naturally paranoid mind was worried at first that we had reached the virgin sacrifice part of the evening before logic set in and suggested it was probably dinner time. Knowing I won’t get a better chance than now to look around, I take a deep breath, head downstairs, and slip out of the house.

I keep my head down and walk like I have a purpose and not like someone walking toward their death. Steering clear of the barn where everyone’s going, I check the others first. Three of the five have been converted into sleeping quarters; row after row of basic single beds makes me think back to the shelter. These rooms are not designed for families, that much is clear. However, the thought that these rooms could be dormitories designed for children makes my stomach turn.

I hurry outside, needing fresh air more than anything else right now. Bending over, I breathe as deeply as I can before blowing it out, trying to stop the panic attack that’s threatening to consume me. Suddenly, the pieces of my father’s idea of utopia shift and take on a different picture altogether. The beds, the lack of people here, the almost blasé response to all the medical research being lost.

My father isn’t bothered about medical reports because old-fashioned impregnation works just as well. I’m a reminder to him that even pairing the best sperm and egg together can produce a dud, so why waste time and effort?

I stand up straight and try to get my heartbeat under control. I’m guessing the adults here are more persuadable than most, and none of them have aspirations of taking over. The adults, though, are not where his focus lies. It’s the children. It always was. They are the future, untainted by the government’s greedy hands, and perfect for my father to turn into gifted mini-soldiers who will follow his every command and worship him like a god.

Nausea rushes up my throat, but I swallow it back down and grip the wall to steady myself. When he mentioned me becoming a mother, he wasn’t just talking about my offspring but all the children he hopes to have born here. So why the people in the cages? Who are they, and why are they being held like cattle? Unless…

“Holy fuck, he plans to breed them.”

I think back to the hostile man and the quiet woman and the dozens of other people who sat silently in their cages, and my legs almost give out.

Was my father going to force the men on the women until they became pregnant? As my mind rebels at the idea, I know deep down it’s the truth.

Creeping away from the dormitory barn, I make it maybe four steps before I’m grabbed from behind, and my mouth is covered with a large hand.

My tender cheek protests, the pain making the edges of my vision turn black for a second. I fight it back, not willing to go out like this. I’m about to unleash my gift on the asshole holding me when a familiar voice whispers in my ear.

“We’ve really got to stop meeting like this.”

He releases me, giving me a chance to spin around and stare up at the menace who keeps trying to give me a heart attack.

“Nash.”

“What the fuck are you doing here, Lara?”

“It’s a long story. Why are you here?”

He glares at me like I’m dumb. “Don’t ask questions you already know the answer to.”

“You came to kill my father.” A statement, not a question. I can see it in his eyes.

“You’ll only be putting a bandage on a bullet hole. Eventually, someone will step in to take his place, and everything will come full circle.” It wasn’t until I realized I didn’t have it in me to kill my father in cold blood that I stopped to look at the bigger picture. My father is just one man, and right now, he might be the most powerful, but he’s still just a man. When he’s gone, there will be others who might not step into his shoes but who will follow in his footsteps.

As long as the government knows of the gifted ones’ existence, we’ll never truly be free. They will always hunt us, or at least find the opportunities to grab us and use us for the good of our country. My father is just another pawn in a game that’s bigger than he is. Maybe he saw it coming all along, and his twisted vision of utopia is the end he sees in sight.

“Maybe. But it will cause enough chaos to keep this generation of gifted safe. When they’re old enough, they can work on taking out the newest asshole.”

I can’t argue with his logic. The truth is often not as comforting as we’d like it to be. Not all stories end with happily ever afters. Sometimes we get a happy-for-now ending, and you can either dwell on the unfairness of it all or play the cards you’ve been dealt.

I think of my Lost Ones and know that, given time and training, we can make them strong. If they have to face the Division again one day, they’ll be ready.

“I understand,” I whisper, rubbing my eyes and suddenly wishing I had a pair of ruby slippers that would whisk me back home with the click of my heels.

“I need to get you somewhere safe first.”

“No.” I hold his wrist, shaking my head. “I need to see this through.”

“Lara—”

I cut him off. “He’s lost his mind, Nash, and he was never stable to begin with. He thinks he’s building a utopia. This is basically a breeding farm, only the livestock are people. And when he has the children he wants, the adults will become expendable.”

“Fuck,” he curses, running a hand through his hair. “I can’t get them all out. Your father would just use the distraction to escape.”

“I know. That’s why you’ll focus on him, and I’ll work on everyone else.”

“Lara, you can’t. Your father isn’t the only zealot here.”

“I know, but like you once said, I can be deadly when I need to be.”

“You don’t have to do this.”

“Yes, Nash, I do. For you and Hendrix, for expendable ten-year-old boys, and my Lost Ones waiting for me to come home.”

His breathing is harsh as he takes in my determined expression. “Fuck,” he curses before yanking me into his arms. He holds me tightly, and I take a second to push some calming energy into him.

“Wilder and Crew are lucky to have you in their lives.”

“It’s me who’s lucky, Nash.”

He pulls back, but not before pressing a kiss on my forehead. “That you think that just proves my point. Go before I change my mind. And for fuck’s sake, be careful.”

He moves to step past me, but I reach out and grab his hand, halting his movement. “I’m glad I met you, Nash. Please be safe. Your brothers love and miss you.”

“Lucky,” he grumbles, making me laugh as he pulls away and disappears into the shadows.

I take a second to center myself. I feel calmer knowing I’m not alone anymore. Though I barely know Nash, his presence helps me focus. With that in mind, I head back to the main house and keep my senses open to everything around me.

Creeping toward my father’s office, I don’t sense anyone inside, so I take a deep breath and let myself in. I pause in the doorway, relieved to find it empty but still wary. Knowing my father, he probably has the place booby-trapped.

Braving it anyway, I head straight for his desk and start rummaging around until I find a large, old-fashioned key ring with multiple keys on it.

“Bingo.” I close the drawer and head out the open door, only to freeze when I find David standing there watching me.

”David.” He doesn”t say anything. I”m not sure what to think, but I need to get past him.

”Umm... I never got to thank you for telling my father what happened with Bill. You didn”t have to do that. Thank you. I really appreciate it.” I give him a small smile.

He smiles back at me, but there”s something not quite right about it.

”I knew it,” he says quietly.

”Knew what?” I ask cautiously.

”That you feel it too.”

”Feel what?”

”The connection between us.”

”Say what?” Is this guy for real?

”I felt it the moment we met.”

Is it a work requirement for the Division that all employees must be batshit crazy?

”David, I don”t?—”

David lunges for me, but I don’t mess around. I don’t let guilt or remorse make me hesitate as I savage his brain.

By the time I’m finished, he’s sitting in the corner of my father’s office, sobbing as he rocks back and forth, mumbling incoherent words. I don’t have time to worry about what I’ve done. Maybe the guilt will come later, but I like to think I’ve made peace with this. If I can’t accept it’s a part of me, then neither will anyone else.

I close the office door and head down the hall to the basement door, easing it open and slipping inside. I slide my fingers along the wall until I find a light switch. I flick it on and bathe the room in an eerie glow. I swallow when I notice there are far more cages than I thought. There has to be at least twenty or thirty people down here.

I race down the steps to the cages.

“You came back,” the now familiar female voice states as everyone moves closer to the doors of their cages.

“I said I would.”

“You found the keys?” A deeper voice asks.

“Jack the dick, right?” He flushes but nods.

“I’m sorry,” he says apologetically.

“Don’t worry about it. You’re locked in a fucking cage. I figure I can cut you some slack.”

He grins, and his gaunt face looks far more youthful than before.

“Okay, I have no idea which key goes to which cage, so bear with me for a little while.”

“No worries. We have nowhere else to go,” he jokes, making a couple of his fellow captives chuckle.

“Ooh, dark humor. I like it.” I take the first key and try it on the first lock. Of course, it was never going to be that easy. I keep going, trying each cage until, ironically, Jack’s clicks open.

We both stare at each other in shock before he shoves the gate open, making me stumble back. He grips my arms to stop me from falling and plants a kiss on my lips before lifting me up and spinning me in a circle.

Once I’m back on my feet and the room has stopped moving, I look up at the visibly choked-up man and smile.

“I might have to leave the others locked up if that’s the response I’m gonna get each time,” I tease, making him chuckle.

I take the next key and start the process over again. This time, the third cage pops open, releasing a woman with pale blonde hair and almost translucent skin, making me wonder how long she’s been down here. I assumed this place was being used out of necessity after the explosion. But now, I’m starting to suspect it’s been in use for much longer.

“Is this everyone, or are there more captives being held somewhere else?” I ask as Jack helps the woman out.

She tenses and looks at me with tears in her eyes. “The ones who get pregnant end up in the bunker.”

I freeze. “What did you just say?”

“The bunker,” Jack jumps in, sensing how frail the other woman is. “It’s located near the poppy field. I only know that because I wasn’t always a prisoner. I believed in the cause once upon a time. But this,”—he nods his head at the cages—“this isn’t what I signed up for. He’s hurting the people he swore to save.” Jack’s voice cracks, making the woman beside him wrap her arms around his neck to comfort him.

“Can you two get everyone else out? I have to find the bunker.”

“It’s guarded,” Jack warns as I give him the keys to the cages.

“I’ll figure it out. I have to at least try.”

He nods before steeling his shoulders. “I’ll get everyone here out. Don’t worry about us. Thank you…”

“Lara,” I tell him with a smile as I jog up the stairs.

“Thank you, Lara. You don’t understand what it means to us that you came back.”

I pause and turn around, feeling tears spring to my eyes. “Yeah, Jack. Actually, I do.”

It took me ten minutes to find the poppy field and another ten to reach it and find the stupid entrance. I had to use my telekinesis to open the hatch, which left me bleeding once more and shaking like a leaf.

As I climb down the steps that descend into darkness, I try to brace myself for what I’m about to find.

What I don’t expect is the fist that flies toward my face. Thankfully, I manage to dodge it at the last second, so it just grazes my temple. I kick out, happy when I hear a pained groan before the lights suddenly turn on, temporarily blinding me.

Knowing that it’s been done to distract me, I reach out with my mind and make my attacker so tired they can’t stand up or keep their eyes open even a second longer. A thud has my eyes opening and dropping to the man on the ground.

Looking up, I glance around the room and spot a man, who I assume is a doctor, in a white lab coat with his hands in the air, watching me warily.

“Who are you, and what do you want?” His voice shakes as I move closer.

My eyes drift to the row of beds. There are five in total, four of them occupied by sleeping women. Heavily pregnant, sleeping women. On the opposite side of the room are five cribs, all of which are thankfully empty, not that it’s enough to wipe away the horror of what this room is.

“What’s wrong with them?”

“Nothing is wrong with them. They are perfectly healthy specimens,” the doctor spits, affronted.

“Then why are they all asleep?”

“They are in medically induced comas, so they don’t hurt themselves or their babies.”

“Why would they—” I shake my head, remembering that these women are rape victims. I turn my glare on the doctor and allow him to see the fury in my gaze. “You know what happened to them. You know they had their bodies taken by force, and yet you’re violating them all over again.”

“You don’t understand?—”

“You’re damn right, I don’t understand. But then neither do you.”

“It’s important work,” he says, affronted. In these circumstances, a few need to suffer for the greater good of many, then so be it.”

I tilt my head and swear that if Wilder were here, he’d tell me I look like some creepy doll from one of those horror movies he likes so much. I snap my gift out and wrap it around his mind, testing his emotions and molding them like clay until the good old doctor feels exactly what these women are feeling, the sense of violation, the lingering pain that echoes through their bodies, and the overwhelming amounts of shame and guilt.

The doctor steps back, the blood draining from his face as he whimpers. “No.”

“It’s for the greater good that you understand what they went through–what you put them through.”

He drops to his knees and cries, but I ignore him. If I focus on him anymore, I’ll kill him.

I move over to the women and feel tears run down my cheeks at the injustice of it all. The monitor’s beeps beside them; their heart rates strong and steady as mine rages out of control. I know they need more help than I can give them. It’s not as easy as me just waking them up. I need a professional to look after them, one who will have their best interests at heart.

I’ve never needed to speak to Salem, Astrid, and Avery more than I do right now. I bend down to pull the cell phone from my boot and stand just as I’m yanked into someone’s arms.

I freeze for a second before his familiar scent envelops me.

“Crew!” I choke out, turning in his arms to look up at him.

“In here,” he yells as something soft touches my hand.

I look down and see Rufio sitting beside me, his head bumping my fingers.

I sob and press my head against Crew’s chest as I gently pat Rufio.

“Shhh, I’ve got you,” Crew murmurs before kissing me. The taste of my tears on our lips proof of how relieved I am to see him.

A second set of arms wrap around me from behind and I don’t need to look to know who it is, but I tip my head back anyway.

Wilder’s concerned eyes stare into my watery ones before he leans down and kisses me.

I lose myself in them both for a moment. Just having them here with me makes the rest of the world disappear until a cough snaps me out of it.

I turn my head and gasp when I see Greg.

“Am I getting a hug anytime soon, or do I need to shoot these two assholes?”

I break free from Wilder and Crew and throw myself into Greg’s arms.

He grunts, reminding me that he’s still healing, but when I go to pull back he holds onto me tighter.

“Alright, old man you can let go now,” Wilder complains making me chuckle through my tears.

But Greg doesn’t let go.

“Anytime now,” Crew snaps.

Greg sighs and loosens his hold so I can look up at him with a watery smile.

“There she is,” he whispers before kissing my temple and turning me back into the waiting arms of my men.

My men. I still can’t wrap my head around the fact that I get to call them mine.

Though after how I left…

I bite my lip and look up at them.

“Oh no, you don’t. That sweet– as–shit expression will not stop me from putting you over my knee and spanking the shit out of you,” Wilder warns me.

“Your ass will be so red you won’t be able to sit down for a week,” Crew adds as Greg walks over to the silently crying doctor.

“My ears need bleaching. Can you guys wait until after Lara tells us what the fuck is going on here?”

“Dr Doom over there has them in a medically induced coma so they don’t hurt themselves.”

I look over at the doctor who Greg is staring at.

“Why would they hurt themselves?” Wilder asks.

I turn back to see him looking down at the woman beside me.

“I’m not saying they would; those were his words. Something he told me right before he confirmed that none of those babies were conceived with consent.”

“Mother fucker,” Crew hisses and Greg snarls, fists clenched at his sides.

“There are rows of cages in the basement under the main house filled with people who are forced to…be together, and from what I understand, the women who wind up pregnant end up here.”

I wrap my arms around myself, imagining the fear and hopelessness they must have all felt.

“Is he crying like a little bitch because of you?” Greg asks. I look at him and nod slowly, guessing that Wilder and Crew told everyone about my other gift. They must have gotten over it, or they wouldn’t have come for me, but that doesn’t mean Greg’s okay with it.

“I made him feel what they did,” I admit quietly.

“Good girl,” he praises before punching the doctor in the face and knocking him out.

I stare at him wide-eyed, shocked at both his easy acceptance of my gift and the punch.

“What?” he asks, and I shake my head.

“I need help. We can’t leave them here like this and there are other people who need medical attention too. This isn’t just about me or Apex anymore.”

“I’ll make some calls.” Greg pulls out his cell as I look up at the guys.

“We need to get you out of here,” Crew says softly but I shake my head.

“No. No more running, Crew. This ends tonight, one way or another.”

Before he can argue with me, I reach out and grab his hand.

“I thought I could come here, take out my dad and everything would be okay. It was stupid and reckless, and I was wrong. I knew as soon as I saw him again that I didn’t have it in me to kill anyone if it wasn’t in self-defense, and I’m okay with that. That doesn’t mean I don’t want him dead, just that I can’t be the one to do it.”

“Then let us do it. I have no fucking problem crushing his windpipe,” Wilder growls, making me winch.

“As sweet as that offer is, someone’s beaten you to it.”

He frowns before realization dawns. “Nash.”

I nod. “He’s hunting down my father right now.”

“Fuck. Alright, stay here with Greg and Rufio, and we’ll go find him.”

“No, I’m coming with you. I shouldn’t have let Nash take on my father alone. Unless he takes him by surprise, my father could easily get the upper hand. I’m the only one who can stop him.”

“Because you’re his daughter? I don’t think it means the same thing to him that it does to you,” Crew says warily.

I shake my head. “No, because I’m the only one immune to his gift.”

Wilder and Crew look at each other and have a whole silent conversation before turning to me.

“Fine, but you don’t leave our sides.” Wilder folds his arms over his chest waiting for me to argue, but I’m not an idiot.

“Deal. Let’s go.”

“Greg?” Crew calls.

“Greg looks up and waves us off. “I’ll stay with them until I can get help.”

I offer him a grateful smile before bending down and picking up Crew’s cell phone, which I must have dropped, and slip it back into my boot.

Standing, I see Crew staring at me with a bemused look on his face. “What? It’s mine now.” I shrug. And with that, I turn, and the three of us head upstairs. Wilder opens the hatch, and I crawl through, with him right behind me.

Getting to my feet, I look up and freeze, finding Bill, Phil, and a handful of other armed men in a semi-circle in front of us, all with guns pointing our way.

“Keep moving or I’ll blow her fucking head off,” Bill tells Wilder. “You too,” he calls to Crew, who has his head sticking out of the hatch.

Taking his time, Crew climbs out like he doesn’t have a care in the world and isn’t staring down the barrel of multiple guns.

“What are you doing, Bill? I thought my father made it clear how he feels about you messing with me.”

I hold back on using my gift for a moment. I’ve never used it on so many people before, and for good reason. The strain would most likely knock me out cold, and there’d be no guarantee it would even work.

“Fuck you. I don’t see Daddy around to protect you now.” He grins.

“You underestimate me, Bill. I don’t need my father’s protection,” I tell him, and he scoffs. That’s when I decide to work on the people on the outside first. I make them think they can’t move, and since everyone’s focus is on us, nobody notices when they lower their guns.

Nobody but Wilder and Crew, who must figure out what’s happening right away.

“This the pencil dick you told us about?” Crew asks. I love that he’s playing along and buying me time, even though I’ve never said a damn word about Bill to him.

Bill’s gun points at Crew while I work on the next two people.

“A pencil’s probably too long,” I quip.

The gun swings back to me as Phil eyes us all warily.

“No wonder you come so hard for Crew and me if this is the best your father has to offer,” Wilder teases me, and Bill swings his gun to him, his emotions outweighing any common sense as per usual.

“You really don’t know when to be quiet, do you?” Phil sighs. “Look, we don’t want to have to hurt anyone, but we really only need you, Lara. Don’t make me shoot your boyfriends.”

“Oh, really Phil? And you’d just let them walk away I suppose?” The two men on either side of Bill and Phil lower their guns, too, but I have nothing else left for Bill and Phil.

“Wait, their names are Bill and Phil?” Crew snorts as I hear a faint tapping sound coming from behind me.

Tap tap taptaptap

“Now! Wilder roars, and Crew tackles me to the ground.

The sound of gunshots firing has him covering my head.

When the shooting stops, and it’s quiet, Crew lifts his head and looks around. Once he decides it’s safe, he helps me to my feet.

I look up, and the first thing I see is Greg, his head poking out of the hatch with his gun in his hand. He looks at me and winks.

“Morse code for the win.”

“Wait, that’s what the tapping was?” I look at Wilder, but he’s staring over my shoulder.

I turn and see my father’s men all on the ground, blood pooling on the gravel where they lay.

“When Crew tackled you, their compulsions wore off.” Wilder explains.

“Thank you for keeping me safe, all of you.”

I hear Rufio bark and look at Greg. “Keep him with you. I don’t want him rolling around in all this blood.”

“You got it.” He drops back down out of sight, closing the hatch behind him.

As I move to step closer to the downed men, a commotion to my left has my eyes darting over to see Jack and his band of captives tackling someone to the ground. They might look weak, but rage can give even the most broken of people strength.

Crews pulls his gun and has it pointing at them while Wilder still covers the fallen men.

“It’s okay, Crew. These guys are the prisoners. I freed a couple, and they’ve been freeing the others.”

He lowers the gun but remains tense as I step over to the bodies.

Most of them are dead or unconscious and injured––– except for Bill, because, like the cockroach he is, he can apparently survive anything.

I stand over him as he glares up at me, blood trickling from his nose and mouth.

“And now it’s you laying on the ground at my feet. My, my, my, how the tables have turned.”

I grin as he spits blood at me but misses by a mile.

I pause when I feel the phone in my boot vibrate.

“Where’s my father?”

He grins at me, blood coating his teeth.

The phone keeps vibrating, but I ignore it as Bill starts to laugh.

“I don’t know what he sees in you, but he wants you home.”

I assume he’s talking about my father, as he coughs and chokes a little.

“But you already have a home, don’t you?” He grins again, my blood turning to ice as Wilder’s phone starts ringing.

“Didn’t you wonder why it was so quiet? You didn’t question where everyone went?”

I look at Wilder, who has his phone to his ear, his face going unnaturally pale.

“Astrid had a vision.”

I swallow hard at his words. Astrid isn’t a precog like Bella. She’s a harbinger.

“What did she see?” Crew asks moving close, wrapping his arm around my shoulders.

“Darkness and death.”

The phone at my ankle vibrates again as I whirl back to Bill and press my foot against his chest.

“He’s heading to Apex. To get the children?”

“Oh no, it’s way past that. He’s punishing you. He’s gonna take away your home and your reason for living then you’ll never feel the need to run again.” He laughs again, this time at the horror on my face as the phone continues to vibrate.

“I hope you said your goodbyes.”

I yank the phone from my shoe as Crew fires a bullet into Bill’s head, making a few in the crowd scream.

“We need to go. We have the chopper; we’ll beat him there.” Wilder orders as I nod answer the call, holding the phone to my ear.

“Lara?” A familiar voice sobs down the phone, and my heart clenches.

“Delaney?” I reach out blindly and grip Crew’s arm, understanding sinking in. She’s a sensor. She can tell when people are nearby.

“We’re coming. Hold on for me, okay. We have the helicopter; we’ll get there first.” I reassure her, but when she whispers next, I almost drop the phone so I can scream at the sky.

“They’re already here.”