Chapter Twenty-three #2
“Nothing permanent. Yet.” She dabbed her lips with her napkin. “They’re simply resting. Though I must say, Mr. Cole has been quite helpful when he’s awake. Haven’t you, Andrew?”
Andrew’s eyes fluttered open at his name, but they were empty, unfocused. He turned his head toward us mechanically, like a puppet on her invisible strings.
“What did you do to him?” Nick fought against his restraints.
I caught Rash shifting uncomfortably by the monitors. His fingers twitched over the controls, and for a moment, I thought I saw something flicker in the dampening lights above us.
“I enhanced his natural compliance.” Park smiled.
“Ironic, really, as he seems to be the strongest. But looks can be deceiving. Those weaklings over there have been surprisingly . . . resistant to our methods.” She spun her head sharply back at us.
“But don’t worry. We’ll get there. We always do.
And it won’t be nearly as painful for your son. Jack, is it?”
“You won’t get away with this,” Nick said between his teeth. His voice went so menacingly low that I flinched. I knew him, and that tone meant danger. If he had his way, Park would pay in blood long before she ever saw the inside of a courtroom.
“Get away with what?” Park set down her fork. “Creating order? Ensuring peace? You’ve seen what I’ve accomplished. The world is better under my guidance.”
“You mean your control,” Kevin said.
“Control, guidance . . . semantics, really.” She stood, walking over to the unconscious forms of our friends. “The question is, will you join them in peaceful service, or . . .” She trailed her fingers along Beth’s arm. “Will you need more convincing?”
The dampening lights pulsed again, stronger this time. I caught Rash glancing at them as his fingers twitched slightly before he returned to the control panel. Was he increasing the power, or . . .?
For a second, I stopped listening to Park and followed his every move. I caught his eye again, and this time, I was sure he gave me the smallest wink.
“. . . It’s all in your best interest. So”—Park turned back to us—“shall we discuss terms of surrender?”
The lights flickered once, almost imperceptibly. And in that moment, I felt something I hadn’t felt since I’d been here: alive. He’d lowered the dampeners so much that I could feel the faintest spark of power rumbling deep in my core. Son of a gun. He really was on our side!
My body had stopped crumbling from within, and I had to keep my face hidden. The lines were fading from my skin. I was sure of it.
“Where’s Jack?” Annie asked. “Tell us that, and we can discuss what you want from us.”
“Oh, your son is quite safe.” Park’s smile turned predatory.
“And he’ll remain that way as long as you all cooperate.
Children are so precious, aren’t they? So full of potential.
” She walked back to her table, taking another bite.
“Imagine the next generation of Luminaries, raised properly from the start.”
Annie lunged forward. “If you hurt him—”
“Ma’am,” Rash interrupted.
“I did not tell you, you could speak.”
“I’m sorry.” He fixed his glasses. “But there’s something you need to see.”
He raised his hand, and I could only stare as his eyes blazed with rings of fiery orange. The large screens behind Park came to life, showing live feeds from outside the building. And other places? One of the screens showed feeds of several different buildings. People were fighting back.
The main screen showed our location, and I was happy to see that the crowd from earlier had grown massively.
Hundreds, maybe thousands of people had shown up.
And among them, I could see flashes of power.
Hidden Luminaries, coming out of the shadows.
Ordinary civilians standing with them, forming a human barrier between the Org’s forces and those displaying their abilities.
“What is this?” Park asked, standing so quickly her chair fell backward.
“They’re responding to the live streams,” Rash said. “We’re seeing similar gatherings in other cities.”
“Why did you allow this?”
He gulped. “We were caught off guard.”
She snapped her head at him. “I will deal with you later.”
While Park was focused on the screens, Rash turned slightly toward us.
His fist clenched and twisted, like he was crushing an invisible sphere.
A jolt of full-on energy hit me. It was raw and powerful, flooding into me from every direction.
From the dampening lights, from the restraints, from the very floor itself.
My body hummed with more power than I’d felt since the time jump.
But I wasn’t the one absorbing it . . . it was too overwhelming.
Damn. Rash wasn’t just stopping the dampeners—he was sending all the surrounding energy into me.
Purple light coursed through my veins, and I quickly focused inward, containing it, hiding it.
Just in time, as Park turned back to face us.
“Deal with them.” She snapped her fingers at the guards. “Whatever it takes. I want those crowds dispersed.”
“Yes, ma’am,” they said in unison, hurrying out.
I kept my head down, pretending to be weakened by the restraints, but inside I was almost vibrating with contained energy. I caught Kevin’s eye and saw him suppress a smile. He’d noticed the change in me. In fact, I was sure he could also feel his powers.
“This changes nothing,” Park said. “You’re still trapped, and I still have everything I need to ensure your cooperation.”
“Right. About that,” Rash said loudly, gesturing to the mirrored window at the back. “The child is secure in the observation room. I personally enhanced the dampening field around it.”
“Very well. You might not be a waste after all.”
The slightest smirk played across his face as Park turned to look at the window. He mouthed now, and that was all we needed.
I released the built-up energy in a controlled burst, feeling it course through me in flashes of purple light. Annie’s kinetic energy merged with my power, creating a surge that overloaded the chains and went straight into each member of our group. They were now ready. Amplified and boosted, baby!
“Now!” Annie yanked the chains off the ceiling like they were nothing, then broke the handcuffs off Nick and Jay.
Kevin disappeared in a flash, reappearing next to me and Gabby, touching our handcuffs and teleporting them off. All chains clattered to the ground as chaos erupted.
Guards poured in from every entrance, but Annie was already moving. She grabbed the metal table Park had been eating at and swung it like a baseball bat, sending three guards flying across the room. “Nick, GO! Get Jack,” she shouted.
Fireballs flared in Nick’s hands as he ran to the observation room. More guards rushed in, weapons raised, but I had so much energy built up inside me, I hardly put any effort into creating a shockwave of purple light that sent them crashing into each other.
“Protect Ms. Park!” someone shouted. A wall of bodies formed around her as she backed toward the door. “You cannot go out that way, ma’am.”
I saw Park grab something from her pocket. A key. But Jay materialized behind her in a flash, snatching it away. “Looking for this?” he asked, crushing it between his fingers. Show-off. Clearly holding on to both Kevin’s and Annie’s powers. Mimicking was so cool.
Annie took slow, deliberate steps toward Park. “What’s the matter, Park? You scared?” Her head tilted as sky-blue lightning danced around her body. The floor cracked with each step she took. Park’s eyes went wide as she realized just how strong Annie really was.
“Get her!” she said, pointing at Annie. But each guard went flying as Annie casually tossed them aside, keeping her deadly focus on Park.
“You threatened my child. You took him,” she said, her voice carrying a terrifying, singsong calm. “Tsk, tsk. He wasn’t yours to take, Ava.” She sighed. “Oh, Ava. Ava.”
I had been transfixed by Annie as I made my way to Rash.
He’d pulled up feeds from everywhere on the monitors.
The fights happening simultaneously weren’t just in Org buildings here, but globally.
And it included feed from the facilities where Luminaries were locked away.
I watched as Rash pulled up each one, snapping his fingers for all gates and doors to open.
Then I felt a blow to my legs, and I fell.
I rolled with the impact, channeling the momentum into my shoulders. In one fluid motion, I kicked my legs up, snapped my hips, and launched myself back to my feet. The guard who’d swept my legs came at me fast. This is what I get for not paying attention to my own surroundings.
He threw a right hook that whistled past my ear as I jumped left.
I countered with a quick jab to his ribs, but his body armor absorbed most of the impact.
He sure knew what he was doing. Professional training was obvious in his stance, unlike the other two Jay was flicking away like they were nothing.
When this guy came forward with an onslaught of strikes, I had to dance backward, deflecting rather than blocking his heavily muscled arms.
“Ry, you need help? Or you gonna show him what you got?” Kevin yelled.
The guard and I turned to look at Kevin. He’d been busy creating a barrier of electricity, protecting our sedated friends from the fight.
“Looks like your boyfriend’s got his hands full,” he said, and launched at me.
His boot whipped toward my head in a brutal arc.
I barely slipped it before his fist came at my jaw.
Each strike flowed into the next. Kick, punch, kick, punch.
I stopped it and shoved him backward. Being sick for so long had kept me from training, but enough was enough.