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She hangs her head. “I don’t think anyone can stop him, Graveyard. The best I could do was hide as many kids as possible. But that’s over now, I guess. I failed.”
“Don’t say that. This isn’t over. What is it about this guy that makes you so sure you can’t beat him?”
“He’s a cop. He’s close friends with the chief and he keeps moving up through the ranks. I told you, he’s manipulative and he knows dangerous people.”
Her words shock me. I should have guessed it would be something like this. I’ve listened to Pocus’s diatribe against cops enough times.
“He’s not untouchable.”
“But he will be. Have you even been listening? There are hundreds of gifted kids in this city and I’ve only saved forty-three. Well, forty-two now,” she amends, sadly. “What do you think he’s been doing with those other kids, Graveyard? He’s using them to build an army.”
My blood runs cold. The room spins faster. I look around me and realize no one else is here. No other visitors, no other prisoners, and not a single guard. I’ve been so lost in our conversation, I hadn’t noticed, but now I’m on high alert. Well, as high alert as I can be with the blood draining from my body.
“Meredith,” I whisper. “I need you to act normal right now. Hang up the phone and walk back to your cell.”
She looks at me suspiciously. Then her face changes to a look of horror. I feel someone behind me. I don’t have the chance to look. A split second later, the world goes black. All I hear is the sound of Meredith’s screams.
CHAPTERTWENTY-SIX
Iarrive at the abandoned house to find Pocus and Seer waiting for me. I’m tense, ready for anything. When I see the small, broken-down shack, my stomach turns. I can’t bear the thought of Charlie being kept in this godforsaken place. Not for one second. Besides that, the front of the house is destroyed with bullet holes.
“No wonder Graveyard told you not to come,” Seer murmurs to Pocus as we carefully pick our way through the yard, stepping on dozens of shell casings as we walk.
“Then why the fuck are we here?” I grumble, looking at Pocus suspiciously.
“Because she was here.” Pocus steps onto the porch and pushes the broken front door in. “I feel her fear radiating off of this place.”
Seer and I exchange a look, neither of us aware that was something Pocus could do. He’s always been tight-lipped about his abilities. At a moment like this, it’s annoying that he won’t share more.
We enter the shack, which is little more than a single room with a sink and a fireplace. In the middle of the room is a single, dirty mattress. My stomach sinks further. I take in big gulps of air and try to calm the way my body shakes from rage. I can picture Charlie’s sweet face in my mind. She doesn’t deserve this. We have to find her.
Pocus and Seer join me, more composed than I am. I can tell that Seer is as shaken as I am, and Pocus may be too, but he’s maintaining his steely composure. He won’t break, not in front of us.
“Graveyard said it was a trap.” He scans the yard for something. “He said there was a machine gun, but there’s no gun here.”
“And Charlie was here at some point,” Seer chimes in.
“So, either they were here when Graveyard came, or the gunman came back to get his weapon. Either way, he’s been here in the last half hour.”
“Tire tracks.” I point at the ground.
The lines are faint but visible. Whoever this guy is, he didn’t do a great job in covering his tracks.
“They’re heading west,” Pocus says, following the tracks out the road.
“What are you thinking, boss?” Seer asks. We both look at him in surprise. It’s been a long time since Seer yielded his authority.
“I’m thinking we need backup.” Then he looks me in the eye. “And I think you need to go home, Hex. You’re too emotional.”
“Fuck, no,” I say, my voice firm. “Graveyard made me leave him and he got shot. I’m not going back to the house to sit on my ass while you guys walk into another trap.”
“It’s not up for negotiation. You’re worried about Charlie, you’re angry at the person who did it. Those feelings are pouring out of you like a tidal wave. I can’t be distracted.”
“Then you go home,” I yell, my anger getting the best of me. “Isn’t this the entire reason you stepped down as Prez? You’re always blazing into dangerous situations with no regard for your own safety. I don’t have to listen to you!”
“Hex.” Seer is calm but resolved. “Pocus is right. And as the current Prez, I’m taking his side. Go home. We’ll call you if we need you.”
I’m beaten, outranked. The sting of rejection courses through me. I glare at both of them before getting on my bike and driving away. Before I pull out, I hear Pocus calling Bones to bring Gator and meet him at the shack. This is complete bullshit. They’ve never met Charlie. Why do they get to save her?
