He whimpered. "No. No, it can't be. Not my father. No, No!"
We stared at each other, and I knew he remembered. His father had killed Myra, not some secret organization that hated paranormals. His father had manipulated him and wiped his memory of the knowledge, so that he would work for the good of the cause.
I reached out to touch his hand. "I'm sorry. I'm so sorry."
He wiped the tears on my cheek that I didn't know were there. "How could I forget? How could I let him do that to my mind?"
I opened my mouth to answer. "It's not—"
A fire alarm rang in the distance. Tendrils of smoke crawled in under the door of the library.
The Seeker's eye grew wide. "The building is burning down. We have to leave, now."
My mind tumbled with thoughts of my safety and care for my child, then landed on the most burning fear of all.
Drake.
"He's locked in a room" I said, "and won't be able to get out. He's still hurt from what happened to him."
"There's no time. For the sake of your child, you have to leave."
I had to choose? My life for Drake's?
I couldn't live with either outcome.
Chapter 56 – Lucy
Lucy shoved Mr. Black into the guard shack that connected to the main gate, and forced him to sit down. She explored the small cubicle-like area. It had been designed for two men on duty, with two chairs, a computer console, the gate keypad, a speaker, and a garbage can with empty cans of soda and trash from vending machine junk. She used one hand to hack into the system while she kept the gun pointed at Mr. Black.
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."