Alex surveyed the ten newly corrupted empaths sprawled throughout Stone Solutions’ luxury suite with an almost parental pride.
Stone Solutions should have known better than to develop that sick little spreadsheet with its twisted plans for these empaths’ most treasured people. And tonight had confirmed that Reece wasn’t a fluke, providing a nice little data point thatStone Solutions’ sick scientists would never, ever get their hands on: that even the gentlest of empaths could find their dark side when they were motivated by protecting their loved ones.
Sweet, sappy Dawson had even made Charles Stone’s lackey, Lennox, his first thrall.
Alex stepped up to the glass, watching the crowd gather in the stadium stands below. “All right,” he said, rubbing his hands together. “Door is unlocked now, and the crowd is trickling in. We should be able to lose ourselves in them pretty quick and find the best exit—”
“Why would we want to do that?”
Alex turned at the sound of Mireya Gomez’s voice. She was watching him, her head tilted, and her eyes had a dark gleam that hadn’t been there a few hours ago.
“We don’t want to stay in a stadium of people—” Cora started.
“Except we do,” said one of the empaths. “We want to stay. And we want to see this place burn.”
The other empaths cheered.
Oh. Shit. “Wait,” Alex said, holding up a hand. “We’re way outnumbered. If we storm this stadium, we’re going to get caught.”
“We’re dealing with Charles Stone,” Cora said. “He’s going to have a plan—”
“Ihave a plan,” Dawson said. “We fuck this place up.”
“Yes!” That shout came from Dawson’s new thrall, Lennox, as he grabbed the Stone Solutions sign off the wall and swung it into the glass bar. A few thousand dollars’ worth of high-end liquor shattered on impact, filling the kitchen with broken glass. “Fuck it up!”
“Oh no,” Alex said.“Wait—”
But the empaths were already pouring out the suite door.
Chapter Thirty-One
On the next episode ofLove Versus Logic, an empath and an undercover operative must choose between their destinies and their passionate romance. Can they find a way to be together? Or will they have to leave each other behind yet again?
—Advertisement for a long-running soap opera
For most of his life, Reece had been drawn to the bustle of the city, the buzz of emotions from the countless people surrounding him. But he’d spent plenty of time in Washington’s parks tagging along with nature-adoring Jamey, because her happiness when hiking or camping had more than made up for the sweat and mosquitoes.
With his dead phone charging, he drew on those memories and the truck’s navigation pane to find his way east through the mountains, away from the hidden laboratory until he picked up narrow, snow-buried roads meant for trailheads and campgrounds. Eventually he connected with a bigger road that led to 101 and from there wound his way over to Bremerton.
Grayson furrowed his brow as they passed through the city center. “Are we heading to a ferry terminal?”
“I want nothing to do with I-5 after snow.” Reece brought the truck around the curve of the road and headed for the water. “This will take us straight downtown.”
“But—”
“And there’s food on the ferry. And coffee.”
“Oh.” Grayson settled against the seat. “Next time, lead with that.”
Despite the weather, the terminal was bustling with a good crowd of morning commuters on their way to Seattle, and Reece had to pull the truck into a short line to buy tickets.
“And now I get to have a crisis of manners,” Grayson muttered as Reece finally rolled up to the ticketing booth. “I oughta pay for the ticket and buy you breakfast, but you stole this truck from me, and I don’t have a wallet.”
“The mighty empath hunter, forced to rely on an empath.” Reece held up a credit card. “Oh, how the tables have turned.”
He lowered the truck window, then had to lean way out the window to reach the woman in the booth. She took the card and promptly shut her own booth window.
Grayson raised an eyebrow. “I know that card’s not yours, sugar.”
