Stone went very still. “What did you just say?”
“You’re aliar,” said Reece. “What are you planning to do to Jamey?”
“You heard me lie.” Stone straightened up. “Well. Now, that is interesting.”
Reece looked across the roof, at the just-landed helicopter. Most of the goons on the roof were rushing toward it. Stone held up a hand, and they stopped just shy of the helicopter. Then Stone beckoned to Passenger and Driver, who forced Reece closer to Stone.
“You can hear lies.” Stone was studying Reece’s face, his eyes, intently. “But I don’t think you’re fully corrupted, because a corrupted empath wouldn’t reveal himself out of fear for someone else. Could it have resulted in partial corruption, then? Fascinating. I didn’t know that was possible.”
“What are you talking about?” Reece demanded.
“The dying man in your yard,” said Stone, like it was obvious. “We thought you hadn’t been turned at all, and we chalked that up to the two of you being strangers. Added a nice little data point to our research. But we were wrong, because you’re a liar too, Mr. Davies. A corrupted empath walking around my city as if you’re not a danger to everyone in it.”
Reece stared at Stone. “How do you know what happened in March?”
“Not much point in hiding if you can hear my lies, is there?” Stone said, in his horrible mockery of pleasantry. “Jason and I set it up.”
“What?”
“That’s right,” Stone said, without remorse. “Waited until you would be alone, found a junkie, offered him some very potent drugs, and stuck him in the yard where you’d hear him and come running. Empaths are so tiresomely predictable, but it does come in useful.”
“He was in agony,” Reece said hoarsely.
“He had to be, didn’t he?” Stone said, without remorse. “We had to see what would happen toyou.”
Reece was going to be sick.
“Of course, we weren’t expecting your sister to arrive, or to see her kick down a ten-foot fence like it was made of toothpicks. That’s also how we learned you had changed your sister, same as Evan was changed. And good thing we discovered that too—we knew to use the stronger chains today.”
Chains. All of Reece’s questions caught in his throat.
Stone bent to put his eyes level with Reece’s again. “If you’re already at least partially corrupted, however, that does save me some steps, because you should already have strong enough empathy to figure this out. So tell me—if you were a director of Research and Development at an anti-empathy facility, and you were fleeing an empath who was undoubtedly going to kill you, what would you do with your phone?”
“What?” Reece said, nonplussed.
“Do I need to use smaller words? Write it in crayon?” Stone said. “What did Dr. Jason Owens do with his cell phone?”
“I don’t know what you’re talking about,” Reece snapped.
“Very well. We’ll do this the hard way.”
Stone nodded at the helicopter and a moment later, the doors opened.
“No.”
Four guards were yanking Jamey out. She was wrapped in chains and her face was streaked with blood beneath her eyes and nose. But her eyes were open and clear, and when her gaze lit on Reece, she began to fight.
“I wouldn’t bother, Ms. St. James,” Stone said, as they brought Jamey closer. “Those aren’t run-of-the-mill chains any more than you were a run-of-the-mill detective. They were designed to hold Evan, should it become necessary.” He spread his hands. “You see?” he said to Reece. “A good offense comes in handy.”
The guards shoved her to her knees, and Reece flinched as bone cracked against the concrete. “Jamey—”
“I’m okay.” Reece flinched again at her lie. She wiped her bloody face on her shoulder. “Speaking of Grayson, where is he?”
Reece glared at Stone. “Hurt.”
“There was an altercation at the dry dock. Evan chose not to get himself to safety, but to leap into the path of Agent Nolan’s gun to knock your brother out,” said Stone. “A pointless sacrifice, like so much of what he does, and he paid the price.”
“It was brave,” Reece said, voice shaking only a little. “Braver than anything you’ve done in your life, I bet.”
