CHAPTER TWENTY-SIX #3
‘It was a risky strategy, though.’ I recognized the icy frost in Jacinta’s voice immediately. ‘And it almost didn’t work. What if there hadn’t been a match?’
I furrowed my brow.
‘But we found one. I was more worried about the timing of it all. When the helical disease didn’t activate with the first injection, I wasn’t sure the second would even take.
He only gets those B12x shots every couple of months.
And we really needed all this to happen before the election.
It was the perfect PR run – the Foxes controlling the narrative by showing one of us could fall victim to helical disease and still thrive. ’
I couldn’t have heard that right. They’d activated the dormant helical disease inside of me on purpose.
Heat crawled up my face. I wanted to throw up, to scream, to hurt something – someone. I clenched my fists, my jaw. It took so much self-control not to punch through a wall just to feel something else. My ribs hurt from my heart slamming into them.
I’d almost crashed off a cliff on the RRH during my first hellflare.
I still remembered the panic, the hopelessness.
That flash of blue at my knuckles as I gripped the steering wheel.
I bit my fist to muffle the sob scratching its way out of my throat.
I wished I’d heard them wrong. A family who loved me wouldn’t have risked my life like that.
And I’d almost drowned. What if I’d gone surfing alone, and Pua and Jaiden hadn’t been there to pull me out?
They knew the risks. That was why Grandfather had taken me to the southside of Alta Bay to see the opioid treatment center he founded. He knew it was dangerous. They could’ve killed me.
All of this for a fucking PR stunt. That’s what I was to my own blood – the perfect headline for the evening news.
Jacinta spoke again. ‘I know you said you would’ve before, but would you have really cured him? If a match hadn’t come through? He carried the disease for so long.’
Silence followed her question. It felt like ages until Grandfather finally spoke.
‘Do you think Castor would’ve let us cure him and not everyone else? I considered letting him walk around with a fake chip in his wrist.’ He sighed. ‘I’m still not sure if he’s ready to join us. Maybe we should let him surf. You know how hard I worked for us to have this power.’
‘But at the sacrifice of my son, your blood,’ Jacinta rasped. I could hear the tears in her voice. ‘I can’t do something like this again. It’s too much. You’ve already roped Gemma in, and she doesn’t even fully understand what she’s doing.’
A chair shifted. I dropped the receiver and it clunked against my desk before landing in the soft pile of the rug. I didn’t move, waiting for a sign that someone had heard it.
But their conversation continued.
‘If you’d rather not be part of the legacy I’ve built, the door is open, but it only goes in one direction.
You aren’t innocent in this, Jacinta. Your daughter’s been at my side, taking meetings with the most powerful people and activating their dormant helical strains with our manufactured formula, whether she knows what those homeopathic shots really do or not.
In the end, it’s all so they can travel to Alta Bay for her precious Pain Giver Comfort program.
Numbers were down – the disease was dying out on its own.
You both helped me revive it. Your daughter stands to profit from it and launch herself into the influencer sphere. ’
I backed away from the receiver, my spine hitting the wall.
Gemma. Grandfather was using her – her naivety, and her love and trust for him.
I couldn’t breathe. I turned off the receiver and threw on some clothes.
I had to get out of the house. I had to leave.
I grabbed a duffle, packed it for the night, and ran out into the hall.
‘Castor?’
I stopped, fighting the shudder that rippled through me at the sound of his voice.
‘Going out to celebrate?’ His grin faltered as I turned to face him. ‘Are you all right?’
‘I got some shampoo in my eyes just now. Stung worse than saltwater.’ I forced a laugh. I could barely look at him. I was nothing to him. Neither was my mom – not according to that conversation. He didn’t care about her children. His legacy was his only child.
‘Uh, yeah, I’m headed out to meet up with some friends. That reminds me –’ I’d almost forgotten the first step in our plan – escaping this house. ‘The solar flare anniversary celebrations start at midnight. Fireworks downtown.’
‘And you want to take your friends up to the rooftop of Dominion HQ.’
‘You know me well,’ I choked out.
‘Who’s at the front desk tonight? You know Margo won’t allow that. Health and safety.’
‘Luckily, it’s Jerry.’
‘Ah, good old Jerry.’ Grandfather smiled lightly. ‘Have fun tonight.’
‘Thanks, Grandfather.’ I turned as quickly as I could, ready to bolt down the hall.
‘Oh, and Castor? I’m proud of you, grandson.’
I kept walking as though I hadn’t heard. He didn’t want to know what I had to say.
Castor
I need you
Hot-Pink Seven-Speed
I’m here