Authority, page 13
part #2 of The Tracker Sequence Series
The hair on my arms rose. My insides squirmed as I realized I had no idea what S.I.R.E. was capable of when exploiting the loophole. Were they at the limit of what Harlow was able to do, or could they exceed his human abilities and leverage his untapped brain filled with endless possibilities? The thought sent a chill through me. But no matter what Harlow did, I couldn’t hurt him. Focus on the box. Break it and this is all over.
I repeated the plan in my head. In the back of my mind, I wondered if it was true or if it was just a futile attempt to delay the inevitable.
“You told me not to let my friends interfere. You never said I couldn’t.” Though my words sounded confident, my insides were anything but. The threat came out shaky.
“Nice try, but this will all be over soon,” Harlow’s robotic voice said.
I tried to tell myself it wasn’t him, but all I saw was the pain in his eyes. I wondered what was going through mind as he watched this unfold, unable to act. Was he rebelling against every evil thing forced upon him? Or had he given in to the pain and let whoever this was take over?
I had to believe Harlow had some fight left in him, but the image of Harlow bent over his bleeding hands in his parents’ closet flashed through my mind. That wasn’t the Harlow I knew. I’d give everything to have the old version of him back.
I closed my eyes and focused on the determined and cocky soccer player, the one that didn’t take defeat lying down. The person who mocked a challenge and took it to the next level. That guy was still in there. I was sure of it.
“Harlow.” I swallowed as the right words spun through my mind, hopefully weaving into a master plan. “I know you can hear me. Listen to my voice. You have to fight.”
“Your petty pleading won’t stop this. Nothing can.” Harlow’s mouth moved, but the voice coming through it sounded less and less like his.
I hoped I wasn’t making it worse for him.
“Harlow, focus on my voice. I know you’re hurting. I can’t imagine the amount of pain you’ve been through. But you’re strong. Stronger than any person I know. And the most stubborn person I’ve ever met. So stubborn, I know you’d never let some random asshole get the better of you. You always fight your way to the top, no matter the consequences. Remember that night in the woods. You won. Win again. I know you can.”
I studied him, hoping the words would sink in, but he was still frozen. When I was about to give up, Harlow’s biceps twitched. It could have been an involuntary reflex, but deep down, something told me he’d heard my words. What I’d said had sparked something inside him. He was signaling in the only way he knew how, the only way he could.
“Yes, that’s it. You fight. Don’t let them win.”
Harlow stared blankly ahead. I scanned over his unmoving form, looking for another signal, but there was none. I opened my mouth to try again but closed it as he set the box down. I stepped toward the box, but before I could take another step, Harlow charged and closed the distance between us. I didn’t have time to pivot and run. Harlow’s hand closed around my neck and lifted me up.
I gasped for air, clawing at his hand around my neck. Despite feeling the pain of my nails digging into his skin, he was powerless to release me. I choked and tried to speak, but barely any air came out. My heart raced as my feet kicked Harlow without any reaction.
As my vision blurred, two shadows darted behind the servers in the next row over. Two more to my left. I squeezed my eyes shut as I gagged, trying to find the air that wasn’t there. I opened my eyes again, wheezing, but everything around me was dimming. Narrowing to pinpricks.
CRACK.
I crumpled to the floor as air rushed into my lungs. I gasped over and over again. My chest heaved as my vision slowly unblurred. I pushed up to my knees. Harlow lay inches from me in a heap.
“WHA—” I sucked in a few more gulps of air. “What did you do?” I gasped again. “I was getting through to him.”
“I didn’t hit him that hard,” Bailen said as he lifted the satellite server from the ground and tucked it underneath his arm as if he was protecting it from me. His expression was slightly smug, like he’d given Harlow what he deserved. The sadness inside me morphed to anger.
“He’s unconscious!” I’d never been so unhappy to see Bailen. Near death or not, he’d ruined my one shot to get Harlow to fight, and now S.I.R.E. was going to retaliate. I didn’t know who was next, but my gut twisted. This was far from over.
“He was going to kill you. I had to do something,” Bailen spat back in a way that said he expected me to thank him for saving my life.
“You have no idea what you’ve done!” The words flew out of my mouth in a rage. Deep down, I knew my anger was misplaced. Yet it boiled inside me. Protecting one person close to me would certainly lead to pain for someone else. I was spiraling, unable to stop the chain of events about to unfold.
“What I’ve done? You made sure we’ll never find out who is behind the loophole. What were you thinking, Kaya?” Bailen’s chest heaved like yelling at me had taken more energy than he expected.
I opened my mouth to scream at him again, but Lydia emerged from the row of servers. “Oh no, you don’t.” She threw her arms around me in a huge hug. I squirmed beneath her, but the more I squirmed, the tighter she squeezed. I tried to shove her off, but she kept squeezing, making it impossible to maneuver. The pressure slowed my breathing and my racing heart. When I finally stopped fighting, she loosened her arms slightly. I let her hold me in a secure place as my mind cleared.
When I was finally calmer, I let my gaze meet Bailen’s and found hurt in his eyes. I’d betrayed him. It was written all over his face. But worse, what I saw in the pain was sadness that someone else was comforting me instead of him. Even if it was Lydia, he looked at me as though some piece inside him was missing.
Peyton emerged with Ava on her heels and wrapped Bailen in a hug. He stared at me over her shoulder but didn’t hug her back. The pain in his eyes said it all. The divide between us had continued to grow. I wondered if it was beyond repair.
“What did you tell them?” I whispered into Lydia’s ear.
“Only that you’d come here to stop whoever was controlling Harlow.” She released me from her hug and stepped back. “The rest they need to hear from you.”
I nodded. I didn’t want to tell them. I didn’t want to put them in more danger. But at this point, if S.I.R.E. was going to make good on their threat, then it no longer mattered if I kept their secrets or not.
Jeremy, Dad, and Mr. Overland emerged from another row. Dad’s gaze instantly fell to Harlow, who was still collapsed on the floor. He grabbed a small tablet from his back pocket and scanned through some files.
“Still breathing, vitals look good. Just unconscious.” Dad said as if he was a doctor reading medical reports on some random patient.
My heart ached at the thought of them treating Harlow like a pawn, but there was something more pressing I had to address.
“I need to tell you all something,” I blurted before I lost my nerve. “Harlow isn’t the only one having tracker issues.”
Dad pocketed the tablet and, with a few long strides, closed the space between us. He grabbed my arms and turned me to face him. His gaze locked on mine, but it quickly became uncomfortable, and my gaze fell to the floor. “I made sure your chip didn’t have a loophole switch. How is that possible?”
I shook my head and backed away from Dad’s grasp so I could address everyone at once. If I didn’t have a loophole switch, then whoever was doing this couldn’t mind-control me, but they could monitor my tracker and where I was going. It seemed less likely they could hear the things I said. But it wouldn’t matter if they could hear me, because what would get me in trouble with S.I.R.E. was how everyone would react.
“It’s not the loophole. Someone is watching me. Reaching out to me anonymously on my tracker. Threatening me.”
I looked at each of my friends in turn, searching for signs that I’d betrayed them. Looking for expressions similar to the one I’d seen on Bailen’s face moments earlier. Surprisingly, I didn’t find anger, only concern. Even Bailen had a sad expression that said he might forgive me because he ached for the pain I’d been potentially been through.
“You came here to stop whoever was watching you?” Bailen asked with a glimmer of hope that I hadn’t tried to thwart his plan.
“Not exactly.” I stuffed my hands in my pockets, hoping to find something to squeeze but only found a small piece of fuzz.
Bailen’s face hardened as though I’d betrayed him all over again.
“Then what?”
“Let me explain.” I could tell everyone was losing patience quickly. “Whoever this person is threatened to make one of you next their next loophole experiment if any of you interfered. So I tried to stop them myself. Because I couldn’t let you use Harlow as a pawn, put his life at risk.”
“How could you have been so stupid? After everything?” Bailen balled his fists and paced. “You should know by now, not to do any of this alone!” he yelled, but it seemed more out of sadness and frustration than anger.
Dad grabbed my shoulder, but I shrugged it off. “You know we’re here for you. You don’t have to do this alone.”
I stood silent because I couldn’t find an answer. I didn’t know who had my back anymore. They all cared, but they also wanted to do things their way. But the cost of doing that would be too high. I wasn’t going to apologize for what I’d done, even if I was being equally stubborn. They were wrong to use Harlow as bait. Tracking down this person was important, but not as important as keeping everyone I cared about safe. I didn’t know how to put all that into words, so I stared at Harlow’s crumpled figure on the floor.
Right then, I swore to myself that whoever came after those I cared about would pay for what they’d done, even if it was someone I’d previously thought was family.
“Let’s go back to the Hive and get you hooked up to the computers. Maybe we can track down whoever is sending those messages. Chances are high it’s the same person behind Harlow’s loophole hack.” Jeremy leaned against an empty rack nearby. It was the first reasonable thought I’d heard in days.
“I have some thoughts on how to identify this person,” Mr. Overland added.
I nodded but kept quiet. I no longer had any energy to fight this—I needed answers.
“Let’s collect any remaining computers. I suspect the authorities took anything of value, but we might find something they didn’t know to look for,” Dad said as he opened the nearest server column and started searching.
“You won’t find anything there.” I stepped further down the aisle, and then I saw what I was looking for. Something I’d wanted to search but also never wanted to see again. The terminal where I’d seen Jake’s face with a number underneath it.
I bolted down the aisle and touched the screen, hoping it would illuminate. But after quickly tapping it, I discovered it was dead. I kicked it in frustration.
“Easy on the goods.” Peyton called down the aisle.
“It’s just a server terminal, nothing important on there,” Ava said. “It’s why it’s still here. It wouldn’t have any kind of evidence on it.”
I wanted to ask her more questions about her previous job, but instead I pressed forward. “This is what we want. Trust me.” I couldn’t let them walk out of here without the list on that terminal. Without the answers it held.
Dad stood behind me with a questioning expression. I crossed my arms and stared at him.
“If you say it’s important, I believe you.” He bent down to inspect the connections. “There’s definitely something here that doesn’t belong.” He repositioned himself so he could stretch further. “Someone put an external drive on this terminal to use it as more than a monitoring station.” He held up a small USB and righted himself.
“What’s that noise?” I asked as a distinct clicking emanated from the terminal.
Bailen’s eyes widened in terror. “BOMB!”
Fifteen
Everything slowed to a crawl. Everyone fanned out from the terminal. I hit the floor and felt the pressure of someone else on top of me. The force triggered a flash of memories. Memories I’d buried so deep. Memories I hoped to never see again. I was back in the storeroom during the supply run. The one that was supposed to be routine.
Bailen and Jake were on top of me.
My ears were ringing.
Destruction around me.
Gavin blown to bits.
Bailen’s bloodied arm. Peyton ripping shrapnel from it.
Jake heaving. JAKE.
My mind cried out as I coughed and struggled to breathe. “Get off me!” I screamed. I didn’t know who had dove over my back to protect me. If they didn’t move now, I was going to lose it.
My body wracked with sobs. My head throbbed. My muscles twitched.
I pushed up from the ground, shoved whoever to the side, and crawled on my hands and knees. Dust clogged my throat and I heaved. I didn’t make it far before the vomit burned up my throat and landed in a puddle right in front of my path.
I collapsed to my side and wailed, letting the tears stream down my face. Strong arms wrapped around me. I tried to fight them off. They squeezed tighter and tighter as more images flashed through my head.
Jake grabbing his stomach.
The grunt.
Him coughing up blood.
Jake collapsing in my arms.
His mouth moved, but I couldn’t hear the words. It didn’t matter. I remembered them like it was happening in real time.
The tears streamed down my face as I wailed and grabbed my head.
“Shhh,” Bailen whispered over and over again in my ear, his breath hot against my neck.
I squirmed and fought. I didn’t want to be comforted—I wanted this to end. I didn’t want to have to shrug off any more collateral damage. No amount of comfort would talk me out of it. Too many people I cared about were gone or hurting. And it was all my fault.
When would it end? My body quivered. I heaved again, but there was nothing left in my stomach.
My mind swirled as voices around me called out, checking in on everyone. The sounds were muffled in my still ringing ears. I couldn’t look up from the vomit on the floor. The stench made me sick again. The burn in my throat made it hard to swallow.
I screamed and coughed and cried. Bailen’s hold tightened around me as he rocked in an attempt to calm me, as if that would fix everything that had happened. As if it would remove the memories and the fear of what was happening again.
But nothing could replace the pain that laid dormant inside me.
I don’t know how much time passed. At some point, Bailen lifted me from the ground and passed me off. Dad carried me out of the building. I couldn’t look to see who was with us and who wasn’t. I locked myself in the terrifying memories of the past. My body shook. My eyelids drooped.
I sucked in a deep breath and then gave in to the pain. The darkness fell over me.
I awoke in a bed, the concrete walls vaguely familiar. I rolled over toward the mural on the other side of the room. The drawing of all the people I thought I’d lost staring at me through the eyes of the one person I’d never see again. It was like losing Jake all over. A fresh wound had been ripped open, bringing all the pain that came with it.
And then, for the first time, I saw her. Sitting in the chair. Ripped jeans, black tank top, long brown hair drooped around her face. The last person I expected to be there.
Peyton.
She had her head between her knees and looked about as bad as I felt. I sat up quietly, watching her. She hadn’t noticed me yet. I couldn’t imagine her trauma from this either. Similar in so many ways, but different in the kind of love we had for the same person. Could we finally be there for each other and relate on common ground, or should I roll over and try to sleep it all off?
I positioned my legs to roll over again when Peyton sniffed. It was so quiet I almost missed it, but she was crying. I watched as her hunched back shook ever so slightly. It was a far cry from the girl who took down multiple unicopters to get me here in one piece all those months ago. If she was in that much pain, why was she sitting here? Why not let Ava comfort her, or Bailen? I’d shoved him away enough. While part of me regretted it, it meant he should have plenty of time for his twin without me around.
But I knew the answer. I couldn’t explain why, but it felt right to have her in the room, like the world had stopped crumbling for a brief moment. Like I didn’t have to navigate this alone. She didn’t need to speak or make a noise for her presence to be felt—for Jake’s presence to be felt through us both. That was why she was here. She was going through the exact same thing I was. The kind of love we had for my brother didn’t matter, just that we had both loved him in our own ways.
“I saw him.” I swallowed and tried again. “Flashes from when…” As the words hung in the air, tears welled in my eyes. One squeezed out and ran down the side of my cheek, leaving a warm streak ending in a salty tang on my lips.
She nodded but said nothing. I patted the bed. Her head slowly turned and lifted enough that I could see her red eyes and puffy cheeks. She slid the few steps from the chair toward the bed, then collapsed next to me. We both shook to the sound of our sniffles as the tears streamed down our faces.
Time had no meaning anymore. It was impossible to know the hour. But I could tell neither of us was sleeping—merely trying to make it from one moment to the next.
“I miss him,” she whispered. It was so quiet I almost didn’t hear it.
“Me too,” I said softly. “All of this is bringing up so many memories. Making me rethink everything I did and everything I know.”
She nodded. It was more than just an affirmation, it was a shared experience, shared pain. I watched her chest rise and fall, rise and fall. The rhythmic breathing soothed me while her occasional ragged breaths reminded me that this was all still real. It gave me something to focus on that wasn’t the pain exhausting my entire body. Something to help me move forward as the seconds ticked on.
