Collide (Entangled Teen) (The Taking Book 3) (11 page)

I take a step back after we’ve healed the last person, body and mind exhausted, but at the same time I’m excited. I’m hopeful. I think back to the cafeteria in the underground, how the Ancients and humans were separated, the fight over the stolen apple. And then to now, where we stand, turning human after human into half-breeds. The change is almost miraculous. But then, war can change one’s outlook; fear can force one to do something he never thought he would do.

Like becoming an Ancient—becoming the enemy in order to fight the enemy. It’s been a long time since I felt so proud to be human.

“Why don’t you grab some water? You look tired,” Naomi says from beside me. “I can take you.”

I eye her. Ever since Lydian betrayed me back on Loge and then Law shot me, I’ve been hesitant to trust anyone. Even Myers walks the line, drifting into traitor territory as often as I view him an ally. I wonder if I’ll ever fully trust anyone again, besides my parents and Jackson. Even Gretchen gives me pause after what happened with Law. How can I know she isn’t on his side?

“I wanted to talk to you privately,” Naomi says.

I turn to her, my eyebrows raised. “Okay. I’m listening.”

“We were told not to train them, Ari.”

“Wait,
we
?”

“There used to be a full crew of Ops here. The rest were sent away weeks ago. Now it’s only me.”

I have too many questions, each more urgent than the last. “Why were they sent away?”

Naomi shakes her head. “I don’t know. Kelvin said they were needed elsewhere.”

“Kelvin?”

“He’s run things for a long time now, even before President Cartier’s stroke, and her stroke, Ari”—Naomi glances around nervously and lowers her voice—“there are rumors that Kelvin caused it.”

I suck in a breath. “What—wait—caused it? How is that possible?”

“I don’t know. All I know is that he created the neurotoxin. And he created the poison that was intended to kill at the execution chambers. He excels at creating chemicals that cause death. What would keep him from giving President Cartier something that would impact her brain? He’s wicked, Ari. You can’t trust him.”

I already knew Kelvin was bad, but this runs deeper than I could have imagined. “Why were you told not to train them, Naomi? I thought Kelvin wanted as many soldiers as possible.”

“No,” she says, shaking her head again. “That might be what he’s telling the general populace during his televised addresses, but Kelvin explicitly instructed us that the factory workers were not to know how to use the weapons.”

“But if the Ancients attacked here, they wouldn’t be able to defend themselves.”

“Exactly.” Naomi’s expression turns cold. “I don’t think he ever intended for these people to survive.”

Everything I know about Kelvin and all my doubts spiral through my mind, trying to make sense of what Naomi’s telling me, yet I can’t make it fit. I don’t trust Kelvin, but this? None of it makes sense. “Why would Kelvin want these people to die?”

Naomi shrugs. “Your guess is as good as mine, but we don’t have long before Kelvin discovers what you’re doing. Be careful at the northeast base. The Lead Op there is very loyal to him. I wouldn’t be surprised if he reports you as soon as he sees that Myers and your father are now half-breeds.”

My mind works like a clock, going through all the possible reasons for Kelvin doing what Naomi said. Money? Power? World domination? Maybe he has an alliance with one of the other Trinities…. But why would any of the world leaders want to hurt humans?

But one thing’s for sure, we need to seek out our alliances at the northeast base before arriving.

“Do you have any friends there? Anyone you trust? Maybe someone in your training class?”

Naomi licks her lip, and I realize that’s her tic, the way cracking my knuckles is mine. It helps her think. “I have a few. But I don’t know if it’s safe to send a message. What if it’s intercepted? You could be walking into an attack.”

“What choice do we have?”

Chapter Eighteen

Naomi disappears to send messages to her two friends at the northeast base, while the rest of us instruct the workers on each of the weapons. Once we get through the first few, Jackson and I have to watch Myers and Dad explain the basics so we can help with training. There are bazooka-like weapons. Small things that shoot nukes as far as you can see.

“They’re for Ancient aircrafts,” Myers explains, noticing my puzzled expression.

“But don’t we have an airstrike planned?”

“Of course, but what if their flyers knock all ours out with a few blasts? We must have another means of taking them down, otherwise all of Earth could be destroyed before we’ve even started the ground fight.”

“Good point,” I say. “But let’s not practice using these. I’d hate for one of them to accidentally blow up the base.”

Myers grins. “Touché.”

Naomi appears at my side shortly after, her expression wary. “We’re all set.”

“Okay, then,” I say. “Let’s train, then we’ll head east first thing in the morning.”

Naomi leads us out back, and we separate the factory workers into groups, each of us handling five to ten, and suddenly I realize it’s a larger group than I’d thought. A large enough group to help in the war. I temper this thought for now, not wanting to scare them by pushing them to join the war efforts, and instead focus on teaching them how to work each gun.

The sky is gray now, the sun hidden behind clouds, and I shiver in the cold. If it was twenty degrees when we arrived, it’d have to be closer to ten now, the wind making it seem even colder.

I shake out my arms and reach for a gun from my pile. It’s a laser gun, the simplest of weapons to explain but also one of the deadliest if misused.

I hold out the silver weapon, making sure everyone in my group can see. There are six of them, four men, two women. Already the xylem in them works, improving their sight and reflexes. Their thoughts cloud my own, and while a few seem unsure, most are excited to test their new abilities.

“The laser gun has three safety points. You must hit all three in order to shoot. This may sound tedious, but safety is always the most important thing when handling any weapon.” I lift the gun again and motion to the grip, then the tiny button that has to be pushed in on the base, then the trigger. “You have to push the safety here first,” I say, referencing the button. “Then grip and pull the trigger.” We run through them again, and then a buzzing sound fills the air as I shoot into the open, showing the bright red stream of the laser. All attention falls on me.

“I didn’t think we would actually shoot them, Ari,” Naomi says.

“How are you going to train someone to shoot a gun without letting them pull the trigger? They need to shoot.”

Dad nods. “Agreed. They need to practice firing.”

With that, we select random targets around the base—tree stumps, banks, anything we see that will help them grow more comfortable with the guns. The sky continues to darken above as minutes turn into hours, and I peer up, curious if we should expect rain, when I hear a whisper from my right.

My gaze snaps over, searching for the sound, but there’s nothing. Only the wind and air and sounds of weapons firing. I help the next person in my group with her aim, then I hear it again.

“Ari…”

My back tightens, an eerie feeling moving over me. I take a step toward the sound, and I notice the back door to the factory is standing open. I know we closed it before. My eyes drift over to the other groups, but they’re all focused on their tasks. It was probably my imagination. The whispering and the door. But I can’t shake the feeling that something is wrong.

“I’ll be right back,” I say to my group, and then I start for the door, prepared to close it and return to the next weapon, when I see someone down the hall.

“Hello, Ari.”

And then he’s slipping through a doorway, his long white hair flowing behind him. Without thinking, I race inside, barreling down the hallway, all attention on the white hair—on the voice I’d recognize anywhere. But how did he find us? And why isn’t he attacking?

I raise my gun and edge through the next doorway to find an abandoned room, nothing inside but old desk furniture and broken equipment. The air feels colder here, the room too quiet. I ease in, eyeing the only other door in the room. It’s cracked open, no light on inside, so I take my time, step, step, step, waiting, listening. My hand reaches out before I’ve prepared myself for what’s to come, and then someone rushes me from behind, and I whip around, gun poised to shoot, the sight pointed straight at Jackson’s head.

“Oh!” I scream, nearly dropping the gun.

“Ari, what happened? Why did you rush in here?”

It takes me a moment to settle my thoughts enough to speak. My entire body is shaking. “I saw someone go through the door to outside. I thought…” I don’t want to admit that I thought it was Zeus. I don’t want to see the hesitation on his face as he wonders if I’m losing it.

I draw a breath, then two, trying to get my hands to stop trembling. But it’s no use. I’m scared. No, I am out of my mind, on the verge of tears, petrified. I want to curl into a ball and beg Jackson to hold me forever, or at least until I feel safe again. Will I ever feel safe again?

Jackson pushes open the door I was prepared to go through and glances down a long hallway. It’s impossible to know if anyone else is there, but he stands still, listening, trying to sense another living body. Then he pulls back and looks at me. “I think it’s empty. Maybe it was the wind.”

My eyes burn at the words, because maybe he’s right. Maybe it was the wind. But somehow that scares me more.

…

That night, Naomi leads our Sydia group plus Myers to a few extra rooms within the base, away from the factory workers. She motions to two doors after Myers has disappeared into his quarters. “I didn’t know if you wanted one or two, so I set up both.” She looks away uncomfortably. “See you in the morning.”

Once she’s out of sight, Jackson pulls me into one of the rooms and wraps his arms around me. “You were great back there.”

Immediately I think back to my rushing into the building, searching for a ghost, but I don’t want to bring it up. We had returned to the group shortly after, and by the end of another hour, we had everyone shooting semi-straight, and they assured us they would continue to practice. We did well, despite the nagging in my head that something isn’t right. “Me? You were the great one,” I say. “You’ve trained armies, and it shows. They were hanging on your every word. It’s amazing, really. How natural you are as a leader. You would have made a great Ancient leader.”

Jackson nuzzles his face into my neck, breathing me in, helping me relax. “I don’t think I ever wanted that role. Certainly not now.”

“What do you think Zeus has planned?”

“Everything. Everything we could imagine. From all directions. There’s no preparing.”

I nod against his shoulder, feeling emotions rising to the surface that I don’t want to feel right now. Fear. Sadness. Uncertainty. I want to push it all away and enjoy this moment, but I can’t help but ask, “Do you think we’ll win? Do you think we can beat Zeus?”

I sense Jackson’s emotions before he can hide them from me. He’s as uncertain as I am. “Honestly, I don’t know. But we have to try.” He pulls away to look at me and then gently presses his lips to mine. I sink into him, glad for the warmth of his body against mine. He walks us back against the bed in the corner and lays me down on the ivory sheets. His eyes rake over my face and then slowly down my body, and I feel heat rise on my cheeks, swirling through my chest and down lower and lower.

The sudden need to feel him all around me is overwhelming. I reach out my hands to him. “Lie with me,” I say, my eyes never leaving his. And then he’s over me, his lips once again on mine, his strong arms cradling me on both sides. Our wants become too much to stand any longer, and we’re undressing quickly. I become desperate to feel every inch of his flesh, to feel the rhythm of his heart.

Our bodies join and Jackson stares into my eyes as we move, barely blinking, as though afraid he’ll lose me if he looks away. We fall asleep wrapped in each other’s arms, thoughtless to worry about clothes, or the others at the base, or war. For that moment, we are alone, together. And I know that if I could see myself in a reflection, I would see happiness.

Chapter Nineteen

The air in the hovercraft is quiet the next morning, thoughtful. Dad flies the plane with his eyes rarely deviating from straight ahead. Gretchen and Vill take turns pointing out things below as we pass, making a game of it, though their words are low whispers, as though we’re all trying to be respectful, but I have no idea of what or why.

I turn to Myers, unable to handle the quiet another second. “Do you have friends at the northeast base, like Naomi? I didn’t think to ask you.”

Myers’s expression changes. “Coleson and I used to be tight, but that was before he became Kelvin’s boy. Now he’s…” He shakes his head. “He’s no one’s friend.”

“Who’s Coleson?” I ask, but it’s Dad who answers me.

“Coleson is the Lead Op over the northeast base. He’s tough. I should know, I trained him myself.”

“So, would he listen to you?”

“If he would listen to anyone,” Myers says, “it’s your father. We all listen to him.” Then he focuses on Dad. “To us, you’re still commander.”

I feel warmth bubble in my chest at Myers’s words, but Dad seems unaffected, as always. “Well, Kelvin doesn’t seem to have a use for a commander, which makes me think we should handle him as we are handling Zeus.”

My back tightens as I peer around. “Dad,” I whisper, pointing at the ceiling and then my ear. The craft would have to be implanted with some sort of mic. There’s no way Kelvin would let us leave without it.

“I changed the wiring when we arrived at the West Coast base. I can turn it off and on now as needed. It’s off. You can talk freely.”

“Okay, then. Are you saying you think we should kill Kelvin Lancaster?”

Dad’s gaze shifts to me for the first time. “That’s exactly what I’m saying, and I’m prepared to be the one to do it.”

The hush grows heavy as everyone tries to process what Dad’s just said. Kill Kelvin. Why didn’t I think of that before?

“Right, then, can you talk to Coleson when we arrive to see if we can sway him to our side?”

“I’ll take care of Coleson. You handle the rest.”

We arrive at the base and descend into an environment even colder than the last. The air smells like pine and winter. Again I’m surprised to see yet another setup. I would have expected Parliament to standardize these things, but no, this one is a scattering of small buildings no larger than a room or two, each one raised off the ground with detached steps that allow you to walk into them.

The tarmac where we land holds four other hovercrafts, though there’s no one tending to them, and I wonder when they were last used. We walk down the autowalk from the tarmac to find the main path sections into three. Myers, Naomi, and Dad take the lead, directing us to the right-hand path. Naomi, like Myers, insisted on coming once she knew our mission, and my untrusting heart aside, I’m glad they’re with us. On our side.

I glance around for Jackson and feel his hand slip into mine before releasing. He knows that any hint of affection between us will make others more cautious to trust us. I’m amazed, not for the first time, by how aware he is of others’ worst thoughts, how he can evaluate a situation even before seeing it. He’s such a skilled fighter. So much more skilled than I am.

“You’re wrong,” he whispers, and I peer over.

“I’m disciplined in combat, but you’re more thoughtful. Maybe not once, but now, you’re sharp in a way I will never be.”

“We’re a team,” I say, smiling.

“Always.”

I squeeze his hand and then let go as we reach the end of the autowalk.

There are only a few pine trees here, and beyond that only a barren land that looks as though it’s bracing itself for snow, readying for the harsh elements that will wreck it for months. I wish, again, that I’d worn something warmer, but I have little time to worry over whether I’ll freeze.

Naomi ascends the steps to the first small structure and the door immediately swings open. A tall man stares at us from the open doorway, his height and girth so grand they take up almost all the space.

His eyes rest on Naomi for a moment, and then skirt over to Myers, and then Dad. Instantly, his back straightens at the sight of them—their eyes are all the telltale blue-green of an Ancient.

“Well, this is unexpected. Come in. I’ll put on some tea, and you can explain what you’ve done.”

We all step into the small building, and I scan around, processing this new place. Several T-screens occupy one wall, shelves with drawers another. I expect Naomi to introduce the man as Coleson, but instead she says, “Ari, Jackson, Vill, Gretchen, this is Mitch. He’s in charge of technology for the base.”

“What about Coleson?” I ask.

Mitch laughs. “Oh, he’ll be here any minute. Coleson likes his nose in everything here. He would have seen you land. Kelvin knows you’re here, though?”

“He knows we’re traveling to the bases,” Dad answers. “But he doesn’t know our new agenda, nor should he.”

“All right then.” Mitch walks over to one of the T-screens and flicks a few controls before zooming in on a screen that shows several blinking dots with names beside them. The screen shows every person on the base and their locations. Beside Mitch, there are seven dots with question marks beside them. He points to a dot not far from us. “Expect Coleson in less than a minute.” He spins around. “So what is this, Commander?” he asks Dad. “Hurry, we don’t have long.”

Dad lifts his chin a bit higher, as though embracing the title that has been his all my life. “The war is closing in, and we need to position ourselves with as many advantages as possible. Xylem allows us those advantages. We are stronger and faster and more capable in every way now. It’s a strategy that I feel sure Zeus will not expect.”

“You realize Kelvin would have you assassinated?”

Dad’s eyes narrow. “How is that different from leading us into a war we’re ill equipped to fight?”

Mitch cocks his head as though considering what Dad has said, just as the door swings open and a man walks in, reminding me a lot of the European president. His eyes and skin and lips are all the same dark shade, almost black. His face shows barely contained rage, and then his gaze lands on Dad, and his expression changes from authority to respect before my eyes.

Dad walks over and holds out his hand. “It’s nice to see you again, Coleson.”

Naomi grabs Gretchen and Vill, and they go off with Mitch, her shooting me a look that says she’s going to rally the others while we distract Coleson. If that’s even possible. Coleson has an air about him that suggests he’s always a step ahead.

Dad, Jackson, and I follow Coleson back out onto the autowalk and deep into the base, to a slightly larger building in the center. I take note of my surroundings as we walk, how there are ten buildings in total, but no people outside. Either there are very few Ops here or Coleson keeps them busy at all times. Somehow I suspect the latter.

The base feels military in every way. Engineer trucks are parked beside several of the buildings, ready to be put into use at a moment’s notice. There are very few sounds outside, which makes me wonder how far we are from any hint of civilization. Or even if there is one.

Coleson doesn’t stand back for us to enter, going in first instead.

He turns to my dad once we’re all inside. “Commander Alexander, it’s been too long.”

Dad nods. “Indeed. How is your father?”

“He’s here, actually, though I’m not sure for how much longer. Your wife’s healing pills have been very effective in slowing his death.”

Hmm. I’d forgotten about Mom’s healing pill. I wonder if they would be useful during the fight, or if we would even need them with xylem. I make a note to ask her once back in Sydia.

Dad and Coleson continue their small talk for another minute, when Coleson stands tall and faces Dad, his expression guarded. “Commander, I’m hoping you’ll explain yourself without my having to ask.”

Dad stops to look at him. “I have no need to explain myself to anyone, but I will allow my daughter, Ari, to explain to you what we have planned, and I ask, out of respect for me, that you listen with open ears and an open mind.”

Coleson’s gaze snaps to me, and he crosses his arms, waiting.

“Lead Op Coleson, some time ago I was healed by an Ancient and then sent to Loge after the neurotoxin released here on Earth. Once there, I learned a great deal about Zeus Castello, but above all else, I learned that he is relentless. He will plan and execute his attack faster than we can develop a solid defense. But also while on Loge, I learned that xylem allows the body and mind to work in ways we never could imagine as human beings. I still consider myself very much human, Mr. Coleson, but I am better now in every way. My sight, hearing, and reflexes are all much more defined. And this sharpening of senses is why we feel…” I pause and peer over at Dad, still unsure of Coleson. What if he reports us to Kelvin? What if another neurotoxin is released because of what I’ve done? Dad nods encouragingly, so I continue, trusting his judgment. “We think the best strategy against the Ancients is to
become
Ancient. Or more accurately, half-breeds.”

Coleson takes a step back, the first hint of unease that I’ve seen in him. “So you are all…?”

“I’d like to show you if you would allow me to.”

He studies me, his eyes cautious, but when he doesn’t say anything I move on. I focus all my energy on Coleson, on the beating of his heart, on the pulse of the blood in his veins, on the thoughts he refuses to speak aloud. And then I take my attention to his muscles, gradually moving them until he backs up, one step, then another, his body under the control of my thoughts.

“What the—” His hands spin out to catch himself from falling, and the vein in his head pops out from his effort to stop what I’m doing, to control his own limbs again, but I refuse to let up. I push and push, never moving, never releasing my hold, until he’s against the wall across from us, his arm and legs flat against as though he’s been nailed up like a wall hanging.

His jaw sets as he looks at me. “Point taken.”

“I hope so,” I say. “This what they can do to us when we have no xylem.”

“So if we have xylem, they can’t?”

“Not exactly,” Jackson answers. “But our reflexes are so sharp that it’s hard to pinpoint an Ancient like that. Only a few would be able to, and I’m not sure Zeus has any of those at his mercy. We have three.”

“Three?”

“Ari, Vill, who is with us, but whom you have not met, and Emmy, his grandmother, who is back in Sydia.”

“You expect me to rest my fate on two teenagers and a grandmother?”

Dad steps up in front of Coleson. “We expect you to rest your fate on the certainty of what they offer. You are two or three times Ari’s size, yet she incapacitated you without moving an inch. As a fighter, that should say something to you.”

Suddenly a siren rings out through the base, and I release my hold on Coleson, all of us at attention.

“What’s that?” Dad barks out at Coleson.

“An intruder.”

We race out of the building and into a frenzy of Ops running toward the back of the base, guns poised, ready to fire. Dad motions for us to stop, to wait, but curiosity has me sprinting along with the others, desperate to see if Zeus has begun his attack.

Dad relents and follows me, and we creep around the last building to see a fence running perimeter along the base, caging it in. I glance through the fence to see nothing but barren trees, and then I spy movement within them. My heart picks up speed, and I expect to see Ancients crawling out from within them. I try to steady my shaking hands for what I’m sure is an attack, when a man and a woman emerge, their hands raised. “We were only searching for food. Please spare our lives,” they plead.

“Aim,” Coleson yells out, and I hear a series of
clicks
, safeties released. “Fire!”

And then in two shots, the man and woman lie lifeless on the ground.
No!
I rush forward just as Jackson wraps his arms around me, stilling me. “Shh, we can’t here, Ari. They’ll shoot you, too.”

“Not before I kill the Op that shot them.”

“You can’t afford to be that reckless anymore. Can’t you see that? These people are rallying for you. For what you’ve shown them. I can’t convince them to join forces with us. Your dad can’t. Nor Myers or Naomi. You’re the only one who has been on both sides—an Operative and an RES, a human and an Ancient. This is all on you. You are their hope. You have to be more careful now.”

I go slack in his arms, and I turn to him, my chest still heaving from the effort to not scream. “I don’t want to join forces with anyone that would shoot innocent people like that.”

“They aren’t innocent,” a voice says from over my shoulder, and I turn back to see Coleson in front of me, his arms crossed. It takes everything in me not to kick him in the face, show him what it’s like to feel as helpless as those poor people.

“We have rules around this base, a ten-yard no-trespassing zone, clearly marked from the outside. We have to be strict to maintain order.”

“Order from what? We are already going into a war, Mr. Coleson. What exactly are you trying to prevent? An uprising? Most of those people won’t be alive in a few weeks. Is it so much to ask that you give them food so they die a little more in peace?”

His gaze holds on me, and I see a brief flicker of his thoughts—his disgust. We are lesser to him,
other
. He never intended to join us. We need to get out of here. Fast. “I live my life by rules, and do not tolerate those that break them.” He turns his head, focusing on someone to our right, gives a single nod, and then I feel it—an intensity rises through the crowd, their heartbeats all increasing, their minds narrowing as they prepare for a fight.

In a flash, Jackson has my hand, sensing it, too, and we’re running, zooming past Op after Op, dodging shots. I call out for Dad and see that he’s already in the craft with the others. My reckless need to learn what the siren was about has cost Jackson and me time—maybe our lives. Somehow, I suspect Coleson knew I’d follow.

I feel a bullet graze my arm, slicing the flesh, and I almost tumble to the ground before Jackson scoops me back up, and we’re running. We’re so close. So close. So—