Whisper of Memory (Whispering Woods Book 2) (14 page)

“I didn’t say to follow me,” I whispered in a strained voice.

“Yeah? Well, we didn’t tell you to run for the building like an idiot.” Tiny was out of breath and looked like he wanted to strangle me. He was wearing only a faded concert T-shirt and jeans.

I edged to the shadowed side of the building. “Where’s your jacket? It’s thirty degrees out here.”

“Somewhere in the back seat,” Tiny hissed.

“Oh, and I’m the idiot,” I said. I peered around the corner.

The parking lot was dead silent and still. Then I noticed something silver lying on the asphalt about twenty yards away.

Em mumbled something that I couldn’t quite hear.

“What?”

“It’s my shoe. I dropped my shoe.”

Looking down at her bare feet, I gasped. “For crying out loud. What is your shoe doing out there?”

“I carried them so I wouldn’t make noise.” She shifted uncomfortably. She still clutched the other shoe.

“Everyone should stay very still.” The voice boomed out of nowhere. I’d know the voice anywhere. It belonged to my former science project mentor, a man I’d trusted at one time. The man who had talked me into letting him go before I knew he was a murderer. Eli Bleeker.

Bleeker came toward us, handgun pointed. “My lovely Mia Taylor. I’ve been looking forward to seeing you again.” He grabbed Em’s arm. She whimpered a little, and I thought Tiny was about to come unglued. I shook my head at him.

Bleeker shoved the gun into Em’s back. She gave us a reassuring smile. Just like Em to try and make us feel better.

“Let’s all walk inside, kiddos. It’s so cold out here.” He shivered theatrically. “Walk to the entrance, and Miss Prom Queen and I will follow behind.”

“Sure,” I said. We obediently walked to the door. “We go in?”

“Yes, dear. Make yourself at home.”

We entered single file. The bright lights were blinding, and I wanted to shade my eyes.

I tried to stay calm. I needed a plan, but I didn’t know if they already had Regulus or not.

Bleeker kept Em in front of him, his human shield. He looked from Tiny to Em to me and then Austin.

“No shoes, no coat, no service…” he said with a serious face, and then started chuckling.

“I think that’s no shirt.” I stared at him.

He raised an eyebrow. “Maybe that should be no brain, no service. Did you really think you wouldn’t get caught breaking and entering? You set off our security alarms. You’re not very good at this.”

I forced myself not to look at anyone. If Bleeker thought we’d tried to break in, then he must not know Regulus was inside. Now that my eyes had adjusted to the bright lighting, I could see that we stood in an antiseptic, bare lobby. An intercom on the wall next to a door, presumably leading inside to the guts of the facility, told me that security was paramount. A glass window beside the door allowed someone from the interior to see who stood in the waiting area.

“Is this where we ask to see the wizard?” I smirked. “To get a brain and all?” I was nervous that he still hadn’t let go of Em.

“Mia, you’re actually funny,” Bleeker said. He wasn’t smiling or laughing. “Do you want to fix this situation? You can, you know. You are actually the one who can make all this go away.”

“Come again?” I asked.

“You could be very useful to me. Especially since Nancy is not very helpful to me these days. It’s a hit-or-miss situation with her talent. On the other hand, you’ve made a huge mess by bringing your friends here.” He tapped his forehead like he was thinking.

He suddenly jumped. Em squealed and the rest of us gasped.

Bleeker’s excited face glowed. “Wait. I have a terrific idea.”

We waited in silence. I could hear movement somewhere else in the building. Had Nancy Taylor found Regulus yet?

“Here’s the new plan,” Bleeker said. “I won’t kill your friends in exchange for your services.”

“What do I need to do?” I asked.

“You will lead me to the portal. Of course, your friends will have to go through.”

“I don’t understand. Why do they have to go into a portal?”

His mouth made a thin line. Em whimpered again, and I guessed he’d jabbed the barrel of the gun into her back.

“I am not stupid,” he said, punctuating every word slowly. “They know too much and can’t stay here. I would think living somewhere else is preferable to death.”

“Oh, sure,” I said, nodding. “That makes sense.” I wanted him to calm down. The mossy green haze of colors emanating from his body told me that he was getting pissed and crazy.

“In here. I have them in the lobby,” Bleeker yelled.

More noises sounded down the hallway. The interior door swung open. Nancy Taylor stood framed in the doorway wearing a black fitted turtleneck and black pants. She held a small gun and looked like she had walked out of one of my videogames. Two armed guard types were with her, but I only had eyes for her.

I couldn’t stop myself glaring at her with hate pouring out of every cell in my body. When my gaze met hers, I could tell that the loathing was mutual.

She limped when she came toward us, and I smiled.

“Hello, Nancy,” I said calmly. “How’s the leg treating you these days?” I pointedly studied the area where I’d stabbed her a couple of months ago with a letter opener.

Her expression told me she’d like to kill me right there. Her gun hand moved slightly, and her free hand tightened into a fist.

“Now, here, here. Let’s play nice,” Bleeker said to Nancy. Maybe he knew how close she was to blowing. I must have pushed the right buttons. I smiled wider.

Nancy took Em’s arm and held the gun on her, freeing Bleeker. The two guards, also dressed in black turtlenecks like we were in a James Bond movie, flanked Tiny and Austin, presumably to escort them at gunpoint.

Bleeker came to my side and set a heavy hand in the small of my back. He smiled sweetly at me. Someone stupid might mistake us for great friends. “Come. I’m anxious to test your skills.”

I nodded. Nervously glancing over my shoulder as we followed the others to the front door, I glimpsed movement on the other side of the glass window.

Regulus watched us from the shadows.

T
he Hummer couldn’t seat
all of us, so Bleeker split us up, packing us into separate vehicles. I rode with Bleeker, who drove the Hummer. I sat shotgun; Tiny and the two guards were in the backseat. Although Tiny had failed to say even one word the entire time, his massive size must have pegged him as dangerous. And he had a murderous look on his face while he watched Em like a hawk.

I worried about Em and Austin with the crazy, gun-wielding woman in the Jeep following us.

“Mia. Where to?” Bleeker smiled pleasantly.

“Huh?”

“Portal. Concentrate.” He adjusted the heat and turned around to address our passengers. “Everybody comfortable? Temp OK?”

Silence.

“Wonderful.” Bleeker looked at me again. “What can we do to help? Music? Or does it need to be quiet?”

“It doesn’t work like that. I don’t feel anything right now.”

“And why is that? I’m very sure that you can locate it.”

“It’s like…I need to be closer. I can’t hear my television at my house here either, you know.” I waited for him to get it. “It’s just too far for me to sense anything.”

“Hmm. We’ll drive around then until we are close enough.”

“Wait,” I said. I didn’t think I could stand a road trip of the sights in Goliath. “I know it was near the railroad tracks at one point.”

“Right, you found it during the weekend you were snooping around with the ghost hunters.” He shifted into reverse. “Then off to the tracks we go.”

He switched on the radio, and classical music wafted throughout the inside of the Hummer. I turned around to make sure the Jeep was following us. I couldn’t see anyone inside, and I prayed that Austin and Em wouldn’t do anything stupid. My mind raced with scenarios… How could I get everyone out of this mess? Maybe I should have let Bleeker drive us around for a few hours to buy some time.

“Pit stop.” I adjusted a torn strip of my sparkly dress.

Bleeker turned down the music’s volume. “Pit stop?” He frowned.

“I have to go.” I waited for the light bulb to blink on in his eyes. “To the bathroom.”

“Mia.” He shook his head. “For heaven’s sake. We’ve been getting along so well, but—”

“I can’t help it. I haven’t gone in hours. I’ve had a large soda. I can’t concentrate on portal finding if I have to pee—”

He held up his hand to stop me. “Bathroom break. We’ll stop.” He pulled over and stopped. “Here?”

“You’re kidding, right?” I didn’t have to fake horrified. I couldn’t step out into the ditch and pee.

“Then we’ll have to go back to the lab. Nothing will be open for your emergency stop.” He shifted back into drive and made a wide U-turn in the middle of the highway.

I hoped that Regulus was gone. Actually needing to go to the bathroom as well wanting to stall for time, I hadn’t thought we’d turn around and go back to the building we’d left.

As we approached the building I now knew was a lab, I smelled something foreign in the night air. A fiery light glowed in back of the lab, and smoke billowed, shadowing the stream of light cast by the streetlamp.

My mouth dropped open. Bleeker stopped the vehicle on the side of the road before we reached the parking lot. I heard sirens coming in our direction.

“What did you do?” Bleeker growled at me through gritted teeth.

Confused, I turned to look at him, and he slapped me on my right jaw. My head snapped back and bobbled for a minute. The stinging blow burned into my face, and I sat slack-jawed. I was speechless. Slapping seemed so much more personal than being threatened with a gun or knife.

“Oh man, you don’t hit her.” Tiny’s deep voice boomed from the back.

Out of the corner of my eye, I could see Tiny in the backseat being physically restrained with a gun pointed at him. Red-faced, he looked ready to explode.

“I’m OK,” I managed to say to Tiny. “I didn’t do anything. The fire…” It dawned on me that Regulus had done this. “Something must have happened in your lab after we left. We were with you the entire time.”

Dr. Bleeker was staring at the building as the fire burned brighter. A loud pop sounded from somewhere inside, and the flames reached higher. Bleeker’s nostrils flared, and his normally pleasant face twisted into a grimace.

I heard a buzz, and Bleeker took a cell phone from his jacket pocket.

“Yes. I know.” Pause. “Maybe not.” Another pause. “Leave it. The fire department won’t find anything… As soon as I send these kids through.” Bleeker snapped his phone shut.

My head started to pound, and I rubbed my temples and forehead. I could feel the hot skin swelling on my cheek where Bleeker had hit me. I saw him watching me, and I put my hands in my lap.

“I apologize. I shouldn’t have let my emotions get the best of me. Stress. You know how it is.” His voice was honey-coated.

I nodded like I understood. The ringing in my ears hadn’t subsided yet.

“Calm down, big man,” Bleeker said to Tiny.

A police car screeched to a halt, blocking off the highway in front of us. I could see a fire truck already in the parking lot ahead. I jumped as another loud explosion ricocheted metal into the air. Some fell in front of the Hummer. Debris flew, and firemen rushed out with hoses to spray the flaming mass nearest our vehicle.

I twisted my head to make sure Austin’s Jeep was still behind us. A fireman came to the window and motioned for Bleeker to roll it down. He obeyed, and smoke began to roll inside. My eyes burned.

“Holy smokes,” Bleeker said to the person in his window. “We’re passing through. Can we go by?”

“There is an officer ahead who is blocking traffic into the area near the fire. He’ll stop you,” the voice said. Then the man bent and put his head in the window, forcing Bleeker to roll it down all the way.

Cade from our disastrous trip to Goliath stared at me. He grinned.

I avoided looking at him. When I glanced over, his brows had knitted together in a confused upside-down V. He was looking from Bleeker to me, then to Tiny and the two guards in the backseat.

“My family and I are driving through looking for a gas station.” Bleeker pressed the button to open the window fully. “My daughter, Cindy, needs to find a restroom. I hope this doesn’t take long.”

“Wait right here.” Cade strode to the police car.

Bleeker cursed under his breath. I shrank back against the seat, hoping he wouldn’t slap me again. I’d be ready this time to dodge a blow.

The Hummer lurched from a standstill to flying in seconds. I grabbed the console as Bleeker drove into the ditch and past Cade, the police car, the fire, and town. I turned to see Tiny looking as white as a sheet, and the Jeep headlights following on our tail.

“You’re going to get us killed,” I screamed.

“Sit back!” He flung out his arm to pin me against the seat. “And think portal thoughts.”

Blue lights flashed in the rearview mirror. The sound of the officer’s siren filled me with relief and dread. It was good to know that I might have some help in getting us out of this. It was bad because I didn’t know how I would explain this one to my father.

Bumping and jerking, we’d completely left the road. I peered around to see that a grinning Tiny had knocked out one of the guards and had the other in a headlock. I tried to see where the weapons were in the backseat.

We were driving off-road through a field of rice when Bleeker hit the brakes. My hands slammed into the front windshield. Pain stabbed through my wrists.

He pulled a gun from his jacket and pointed it at Tiny. “Change of plan,” Bleeker said. “My lab is destroyed. My presence here is known. This portal will be of no use to me. I need another.”

“I’ll find another one. Let Tiny and my friends go,” I said. “You only need me.”

“OK, out!” he barked at Tiny, pointing at the door.

I looked around the rice field. The sun was beginning to rise, and the Hummer was alone in the field.

“You’re not going to shoot him when he gets out, are you?” I said.

Bleeker’s mouth twitched at one corner. “That would be silly, Mia. We’re friends, you and I. You have to trust me if we are going to work together in the future. Now, get out. Mia stays and everyone else gets out.”

Tiny looked as confused as I felt. He loosened his headlock on the guard who was still conscious. The other one had slumped to the door like he was taking a nap.

“They are useless if they can’t be counted on to stop an unarmed boy like you.” Tiny’s eyebrows shot up.

“Go, Tiny. Before he changes his mind. I’ll be fine,” I said calmly.

Tiny grimaced and nodded. He really didn’t have much choice with a gun pointed at him anyway. He opened the door and dragged the guy pinned under his arm out of the Hummer. Then he punched him. Hard. The guard’s knees buckled, and he was out.

“The other one too,” Bleeker said as he motioned with the gun toward the far door.

Tiny walked around the Hummer to open the door and let the man fall the ground. Tiny had no sooner closed the Hummer door when Bleeker accelerated again, driving toward the end of the field.

The bright, beautiful sun rose, slowly filling the vehicle with light. I leaned my head back against the seat and closed my eyes. My life was over. Bleeker was kidnapping me, and I’d be lucky to stay alive long enough to find the next portal for him. I was glad that Tiny had escaped. Fighting back tears, I thought of Em, Austin, and Regulus. I didn’t know where they were, but I hoped they’d make it.

I opened my eyes to see that we had left the field. The Hummer easily crawled up a ditch to enter a road. It was early morning and deserted.

The snarl of an engine caught my attention, and I glanced back to see a motorcycle behind us. I straightened up and looked in the passenger-side rearview mirror, then at the speedometer. We were doing about fifty-five in the Hummer.

The motorcycle weaved out as if to pass us, and I recognized both bike and driver. Regulus had on a helmet, dark sunglasses, and those familiar black cargo pants he loved because of all the pockets. My stomach dropped before a thrill of excitement, relief, and fear raced through my body.

Bleeker looked in the rearview mirror. “Shit.” He pointed at me. “You are causing me heartburn. This can be easy or it can be hard. Call the motorcycle boyfriend off.” He held up the gun. “Before I put a bullet in his head.”

How had he known about Regulus? Did everyone have a big spy camera pointed at me? “He’s not my boyfriend,” I said without thinking. “Not anymore. You know you people…all of you…think you can pull me this way and that to make me do things you want me to do without asking my opinion—”

“Shut the hell up,” he bellowed. “You’re distracting me.” He slammed his foot onto the accelerator. The Hummer sped and swerved from one side of the road to the other, as though he was flooring it.

“The road!” I screamed and looked ahead while grabbing onto the dash with one hand and my door handle with the other. The Hummer hugged the curve, and I took a deep shuddering breath. One minute we were on the road, the next we were bouncing across an uneven field.

My tongue was bleeding from having bitten it at some point. I was tossed around so hard I couldn’t turn to see if Regulus was still behind us. The sunlight filtered through the windshield brightly, and I couldn’t see.

Bleeker reached down, away from the steering wheel.

“What are you doing?” I asked, blurting each word out like a single sentence as my head bounced up and down.

Then I saw the gun in the floor.

Bleeker had dropped his gun.

I unbuckled my seatbelt, ducked, and lunged for it, desperate to get it first. It was lodged at the edge of the floorboard near Bleeker’s seat. He used one hand to feel for the gun and the other to grab my head, trying to stop me.

That meant that he wasn’t steering the speeding Hummer.

I felt along the floorboard. It was sliding around, and I had only luck and a few moments to find it.

My head slammed into plastic and body. Everything tilted.

The Hummer had collided with something.

And then my world went black.

“
Y
ou coming with her
?” A deep voice yelled over the whirring noise of the wind.

“Yes,” a familiar male voice answered.

“Jump in. We’ll take care of the motorcycle.”

“She is going to live?”

“We’ll keep her going until we can get her to the hospital. The ’copter’s fast. We’ll be there in no time.”

“I need to make sure she does not die.”

“No problem. We patch ’em up worse than this.”

I reached out a hand. “Regulus?” I was chilled, my teeth clicking together rapidly.

“Yes?”

“You missed the dance,” I whispered. “You missed it all.”

A warm hand closed around mine. I let out a deep sigh of relief.

“Yes. I…I think I’ve missed something.”

I smiled even though it hurt. Then I drifted to the sounds of wind pulsing around my head.