“Fire can zip through a tunnel pretty fast,” Aaron says, lowering his voice a bit now that there are others around. “But from what I was picking up outside the facility, it was torched on purpose. To cover their exit, I guess, and maybe get rid of evidence. Pretty sure they were planning to get rid of some people, too. Even leaving my hunch out of it, I don’t think the appearance of a transport helicopter was just a coincidence.”
“So . . . does a military copter mean the military is giving Cregg support?” That idea sends a shiver through me. It’s bad enough to think that his father might know what’s going on. A conspiracy that includes the military however, goes a lot deeper.
“Not necessarily. If it was an older model, they could have purchased the chopper at auction. But . . . I’m not sure we can rule it out.”
He grabs three sandwiches, a few bags of chips, and some pastries, then tells me to get whatever I think Deo and Kelsey will want. I’m filling a coffee for Kelsey when Aaron lifts my hair back from my face.
“Ouch. When did that happen? I didn’t notice it before.”
“Didn’t have it before. Another one of Jaden’s visions hit me when we stopped to clean up on our way here. It’s a little more . . . disruptive . . . than having extra people in your head. I must have banged into the sink—”
“Okay, that’s . . . scary. You don’t get any warning with these visions?”
“Nope. And don’t worry. I won’t be driving anymore until . . .”
“Until? They’ll go away, won’t they? When he leaves?”
“Maybe.” I shrug. “No way to tell. None of my previous boarders have had dubious superpowers.”
Once we pay the bill, Aaron pulls me toward one of the tables.
“Do you mind eating here? I’ve been sitting in the waiting room for the better part of an hour. I need a change of scenery.”
“Works for me. This looks less like a hospital. I really, really hate hospitals.”
“I don’t think they’re anyone’s favorite place.”
For a second, I’m reminded of Bruno, happy to have a warm bed, the tin of cookies from Kelsey, and a TV remote all to himself. But I simply nod.
“I kind of need a break,” he says. “I don’t want to be rough on Sam right now. We’ve got enough to worry about with Daniel. But he’s not just my granddad, he’s my partner, and now I find out that he’s been working with Mom and Daniel, hiding things from me—”
“Okay, I’m not exactly following that part.”
He tears open a sugar packet with a little more force than necessary. About half of it ends up on the table rather than in his cup, and he has to try again. Once he’s finished, he takes a sip, then says, “You know how Mom’s been on this business trip to Europe?”
“Yeah . . . I think someone said it was a buying trip, although I don’t know exactly what that means.”
“She’s an interior designer. Junior partner in a firm in DC. It’s not the first time she’s had to travel, so I didn’t think much of it. But . . . this wasn’t a work trip like she said. Daniel set it up. She was in London to meet with Magda Bell.”
“Magda . . .” I shake my head. “It rings a bell, but—”
Aaron laughs and I face-palm.
“Sorry. Bad pun. I need sleep.”
“You and me both. Magda is Erik Bell’s wife. Remember how I mentioned that I tried to follow up with her after I read the Guardian article? I thought she never got back to me, but it seems Mom took the call and didn’t bother relaying the message. She didn’t want me drawing attention to myself by digging into the case, and I guess that’s partly my fault because I told her I wouldn’t, but . . . The Bells have two daughters—twins—and . . .” He gives me a you-fill-in-the-blank look and takes a bite of his sandwich.
“They’re gifted.”
“Intensely. To the point they can barely function. Anyway, they’ve been corresponding for the past two years—mostly Magda and Daniel.”
“So, if they’ve been in touch for a couple of years, why did your mom travel over there now?”
“Daniel was supposed to go, then he got the undercover position at Delphi. So Mom took his place. Sam says Bell wants to bankroll a search for other gifteds, or adepts, as they’re calling them. She wants to find them before Cregg does.”
“Cregg used that word,” I tell him. “He said something about a lot of second-generation adepts having high caloric burn rates or something. Which made me think of Taylor and the pizzas.”
An uncomfortable expression crosses Aaron’s face. “That’s the other thing that I was a little ticked at Sam about. You and Deo were actually there, in danger, and I’m—”
He stops and reaches across the table to take my hand. “Okay, I’ll just admit I was going crazy, Anna. From the moment you jumped out of the car until I saw you on the other side of that fence, I was worried out of my freakin’ mind. I know why you did it, but you scared the holy hell out of me.”