Courage (Mark of Nexus) (23 page)

Five hours and three cups of coffee later, a familiar voice stirred me from my musings. “Sorry to keep you two waiting.”

I looked up as Uncle Henry hobbled through the doorway and dismissed the guard with a wave of his hand, his anxiety buzzing off the charts.

Rena and I both jumped to our feet.

“Tell me, is it typical for exes to travel together these days?” he asked, situating himself between us to put his arms around our shoulders.

“How'd you know we were here?” I cast him a sideways glance.

He squeezed my shoulder and glanced up at what I could only assume to be a hidden camera. “We have our ways.”

“Ah.”

“And I felt certain you’d show up, anyway,” he added in a quiet voice, guiding us toward the hall. “Let me assure you, Aiden is doing remarkably well—all things considered.”

Rena shrugged him off and lurched back against the doorframe. “What’s that supposed to mean?”

“Taking his procedures into account.” Henry looked up and down the hallway, and then shot her a look that said to act cool. He was nervous—too nervous to be telling the truth. “They weren’t exactly outpatient, you know.”

“Where is he?” Her eyes flashed, and from the shift in her stance, I had a sneaking suspicion she wasn't opposed to punching an old man. “I want to talk to him.”

“He needs time to recover, Rena.” Henry's tone was firm now, clinical. “You know what's going on here, so how can you possibly expect him to jump up and follow you home? The kid had brain surgery this morning, for crying out loud.”

“Brain surgery?” I heard myself mutter. “I…I thought…”

Henry looked around again before resuming his stroll, and we had no choice but to follow. “Why do you think she asked me here, of all people? It wasn't just about the Nexus, and it wasn't just about Dad. ERA had difficulties with the first sixteen SAGE experiments, so they opted for a hybrid approach—gene enhancement alongside lobe manipulations.”

My heart raced Rena's through the bond, and I knew neither one of us could hold our composure much longer. “But why you? Why not one of their scientist flunkies?”

“Do you know how busy the labs have been these past few months? A virus for the catalyst project, another for the SAGE vector—impossible tasks cut down to impossible deadlines. Honestly, with all of Faye's demands, we're lucky to have made as much progress as we have.”

He said 'we' again…

“Wait a second.” I put my hand up, blocking the flow of information. “The catalyst project is what you're using to find a larger testing pool, right? A virus to weed out the weak, so the unaffected will flock to the clinic for screening.”

“Right.”

“Then what's the SAGE vector?”

“It's a different kind of virus—a way to get genetic material inside an individual.”

We both stared at him, waiting for an explanation, and he wiped his forehead. “Think of it as an enemy vehicle we've commandeered. It’s equipped to face the battlefield, but any number of things could go wrong.”

“So, the vector carries experimental genes,” Rena said. “That's what they've been having trouble stabilizing, and that's what's killing everyone.”

Henry raised his eyebrows. “Dare I ask how you're so informed?”

“No.” A second ticked by before she lifted her chin. “Dare I ask what you did to my friend's brain?”

His pace slowed as we neared the now-familiar doors where Rena was tested. “I'm a neurologist, Rena. Not a neurosurgeon. I did scrub in to observe, though, and Dr. Saito was able to tweak quite a few things. Like I said, Aiden did remarkably well.”

“Define 'tweak a few things.'“ She forced herself in front of the scanner that would grant his access and crossed her arms. “In layman's terms, please.”

Henry sent out waves of panic like a distress signal, but he didn't let it show on his face. “We modified an approach that uses an endoscope and other instruments to access the brain through the nose. No incisions, no scars. Just a reduced risk of damage and a quicker recovery time.”

“And?”

He eyed the path around her, growing defensive. “And I thought my being there would come as a relief to you, but perhaps I overstepped my boundaries. You seem to regard me as a traitor now, after all. Not someone you should owe gratitude.”

Rena gritted her teeth. “Oh, by all means, Henry, take your bow. Your being there probably saved Aiden's life. I'm just wondering why this much effort couldn’t have been applied to better causes.”

“Such as?”

Her gaze darted in my direction, a live wire charged with purpose. “I don't know. Chronic cluster headaches?”

I blinked. The thought hadn't even crossed my mind. Was that what had set her off?

Henry shrank under her gaze and backed away from me. “That's an easy idea to toss around, but we don't know enough about clusters yet. There hasn't been enough funding for research. Right now, we can only offer methods of treatme—”

“Fine.” Rena put her hands up and stepped aside, tears glossing her eyes. “You're right. It's better to mess around with perfectly healthy humans. Tweak them until they're able to dominate the rest of the population. That's a far worthier pursuit, Henry. Forget your nephew. He can just suffer, right? He's a strong guy. It doesn't ma—”

“Rena…”

“No, screw you!” she spat, clenching both fists. “You're making a choice, and it's the wrong one. That's all there is to it.”

Two steps closed the distance between us, and I pulled her into my arms—a little rougher than I'd intended. The stress had been eating at her, torturing her conscience. She thought Aiden being here was her fault, and now she knew everything he'd faced. To worry about me on top of everything else…

“Shh, baby.” I buried my face in her hair and used my body to shield her from our surroundings. We were in this together, and I wasn't going to let her forget that. Not this time.

She clenched a fistful of my shirt. “It's not fair, Wallace.”

Footsteps echoed in the background.

“I know, but we have to focus on one thing at a time. Baby steps, remember? We need to get in there and—”

Henry cleared his throat. “Someone's coming.”

Rena struggled against my chest, and I immediately dropped my arms. She scrubbed a quick wrist over her eyes and turned to face Henry. “Sorry. I'm just…frustrated.”

“Don't apologize. It's not as if I haven't entertained similar thoughts.” Henry sighed and gestured at the door. “Shall we proceed?”

The footsteps grew louder as a group of science-types rounded the corner and brushed past us, probably on their way to some other department.

I nodded, and we stepped aside to let him work the biometric panel. A few seconds later, the doors hissed apart, and we faced an eerily familiar reception area.

Henry led the way, less spring in his step than before. “You're right, you know. If my sister truly desires equality among mankind, she'll have no choice but to use her money and resources to heal some of them—to make them whole. But until that day…”

“We understand,” I mumbled.

The girl at the reception desk looked up, but dismissed us when she noticed Henry.

He swung a right, moving in the opposite direction of where Rena's appointment had taken place. After a few minutes, we came upon a series of windows—each one portraying a darkened operating room worthy of a horror film. “We're just sightseeing, okay? You can't go in.”

I nodded, sparing a glance back at Rena. She looked like she could get sick at any moment, but I couldn't comfort her. Not out in the open.

We slowed near the end of the hall, and Henry pointed to the last window. I swallowed the lump in my throat and strode ahead, trying to make the whole thing seem less serious than it really was. Maybe if I acted—

I stiffened.

Aiden lay perfectly still in his bed, machines crowding the darkness around him. His glasses were missing, and his skin was paler than I'd ever seen it. He looked like a corpse.

Rena pressed her hands against the glass and made little gasping noises, fogging the barrier between them.

I hated how helpless I felt, watching her. I mean, yeah, I might've been able to force my way in and grab him, but like Henry said, you can't just release someone after surgery. Taking Aiden with us would cause even more damage, and I'd never forgive myself if I hurt him. Regardless of how he felt about me, I actually liked the guy.

He'd been Rena's rock when I wasn't around, and that indebted me to him. Sure, he'd made a dumbass move running off to ERA, thinking they'd solve all of his problems, but that was our fault. We should've been more aware of our surroundings when we’d discussed the experiments. We shouldn't have tried to see each other at all.

I blew out a sigh and ran my hand over the window frame. No use thinking that way now. Uncle Henry, despite his flawed judgment, was actually a brilliant doctor. Faye hadn't had him around for the previous experiments, so maybe this time would work. Maybe we wouldn't have to worry about Aiden.

Maybe.

“I trust you've seen enough now?” a rough voice asked behind us, and I flinched.
So much for getting out of here.
 

I didn't have to turn around to know Faye stood behind us, some smug expression playing at her lips. So we'd been caught. Who cared at this point? My best friend was trying to recover from whatever ungodly things they'd done to him, connected to tubes and wires, and for what? Because he’d wanted to upgrade himself? It was all so stupid.

“Faye,” Wallace acknowledged in a low tone. “We were just admiring your handiwork.”

“Don't make any hasty judgments.” She came up beside me and peered through the window. “Wait a few days and bear true witness to his ability.”

I bit my tongue.

“Rena came for her appointment,” Henry explained, fidgeting somewhere in my peripheral vision. “Isn't that good?”

“It is.” She pulled away from the glass to regard me. “I'm a little surprised to see you with Wallace, though. Corynn mentioned you two had parted ways.”

“We have.” I crossed my arms and shot Wallace the vicious look I intended for her. “But he insisted on accompanying me. You know how he is with that code of honor shit he learned from your sister. I couldn't get rid of him.”

She raised her brow. “Don't hold back.”

“Did you expect me to be in a good mood today?” I gestured toward Aiden through the glass. “I mean, really?”

“He begged me, Rena. It was sad.”

“And you complied, knowing your approach wasn’t ready—knowing I'd be upset. I thought you wanted me on your side here.” Go figure. The hard-ass act was turning out to be not so much of an act.

She patted my shoulder. “I do, but he was adamant about taking part. Can you blame him? This is the chance of a lifetime. Now he'll be privy to your world, your secrets, and you can work side by side. Won't that be better in the long run?”

“Like you said,” I grumbled. “Let's wait and see him in a few days.”

“Of course.”

“So, is this appointment going to happen or not?” Wallace asked and glanced at his watch. “I need to buy a tie sometime today.”

“Aww,” I mocked, taking the bait. “You're not going to have your girlfriend pick it out for you?”

“Leave Corynn out of this.”

Faye leaned in. “They're together?”

“Practically.” I rolled my eyes. “She's been so far up his ass lately, it's not even funny.”

“That's what happens when you break up with someone,” Wallace shot back. “They date other people.”

“And I'm delighted for you.” I crossed my arms and huffed, turning the other way. This was good. Like, believable good. We might pull this off, after all. “Go. Have fun at the dance. My date will be recovering from freakin' brain surgery.”

“Aiden should be fine,” Henry interjected. “I mean, he'll probably have to be mindful of the nasal packs, but that's no big deal.”

No big deal? They expected Aiden to be okay by Friday? My knees nearly went out. “W-Well, good.”

Faye looked like Christmas morning had arrived, her one-sided gaze darting from person to person. “Well, then. Now that we have that little matter settled, why don't we go ahead with your appointment? Elise will be happy to work you in.”

Shit.
I hadn't expected her to really make time for me. I spent the night in Wallace's truck. My hair wasn’t clean, I was wearing day-old clothes, and…

Oh, screw it. Who cared what ERA thought anyway?

Stick, scan, measure, read. Same song and dance as before. It was embarrassing, but at least the rest of the visit was uneventful. Wallace stayed in the waiting room, and the whole break-up story finally cemented with everyone.

We bickered the whole way out. Honestly, I deserved some kind of Oscar for that performance. It wasn't until we were on the highway, headed south, that either of us dared to breathe—and even then, it wasn’t easy.

Aiden had to stay under Henry's care for a couple of days, and we were headed back empty-handed. A failed, half-baked mission.

When we got back to my dorm room, Gabby was curled up on her bed. Her eyes were bloodshot, and her hair was messed up. It didn't take an empath to guess she was upset, and who could blame her? One of our best friends was missing, and she hadn't heard from us in a couple of hours. The poor girl was probably beside herself.

I dropped my bag and hurried over as she stood. We decided on the ride here that we'd tell everyone Aiden had gotten sick. He’d driven himself to the local hospital, but they’d taken him up to Cleveland for some tests. We'd probably get to see him on Sund—

Gabby's hand lashed out, lightning fast, and slapped me hard across the face.

My head jerked to the side from the force of the blow, but I was in too much shock to recover. “…the hell?”

“All this time,” she muttered, eyes wide and livid. “All this time, and you didn't tell me.”

I held my face and stared at her. “What are you talking about? Tell you what?”

“This!” She jabbed a finger over my shoulder, and I followed her gaze to Wallace. He'd come up behind me, jaw tense and arms tight, but he hadn't said a word. Probably didn't trust himself not to intervene.

“What?” I asked, not in the mood for guessing games. “You saw us together before we left. It's not like we hid it from you.”

“Not that.”

“Then what?”

“You
know
what.”

“Apparently, I don't.” Was she screwing with me today of all days? Why didn't she want to hear about Aiden?

She gritted her teeth and leaned in. “Wallace isn't human, and you…you're just a lying bitch.”

The posters behind her tilted in a colorful blur, and I felt a hand on the small of my back. “What?”

My brain could barely process her words. I'd had this nightmare before, repeatedly, but it never went down like this. How did she find out?

“Don't play dumb with me,” she growled. “Maverick told me everything. He saw Aiden go into the clinic place and decided I deserved to be clued in on what was really happening there. I’m glad
someone
did.”

Maverick?
I didn't know why, but I gripped my side. Her words slid between my ribs like a cold blade, and I couldn't breathe around it. How could I even begin to explain something like this on the spot? I wasn't ready.

“It wasn't that she didn't want to tell you,” Wallace cut in, clearing his throat. “It was just that we didn't want to put you in danger. We've made some enemies these past few months, and—”

“Oh, please. You think I don't know that now? You two are pathetic, trying to guard me with ignorance. What if these people did something to me to get to you? Oh, wait.” Her lips trembled, though they were pursed, and she took another step forward. “That was Mavey's job, wasn't it?”

My heart rampaged. Normally, I was quick with the comebacks, but she’d freakin' rattled me. It was as if my vocal chords had frozen.

A second ticked by, and she narrowed her eyes. “Got any more lies for me, Ree, or are you ready to tell the truth? I'm already involved now, so you can't back out.”

Oh God. It was the same argument I'd used against Wallace.

“W-We never meant to hurt anyone,” I stammered. “We just thought—”

“No, you didn't think.” She jabbed a finger in my face, back on the offensive. “Aiden had his brain tampered with—his
brain
, Rena—all because you had to keep your damn secrets. Was it worth it?”

“I…I didn't…”

“Tell me!”

The next thing I knew, her hands were on my shoulders, and I was reeling backwards. My back slammed against Wallace’s chest, and he caught me by the elbows. “Hey…”

“Careful,” she mocked. “I heard the guy leaves bruises.”

“Maybe
you
should be careful,” I snapped, shrugging him off. It was one thing to take this out on me. I deserved it. But to take a cheap shot at Wallace? He was
barely
in this.

Tears glistened in her eyes, turning them to dark, polished marbles. “Or what? You gonna hit a pregnant woman?”

My heart stopped. “A…what?”

“That’s what I wanted to tell you,” she whispered. “I took a test last night.”

“Are you serious?” I tangled my fingers in my hair and struggled to absorb everything I’d just heard.
A baby? Gabby’s going to be a mother?
“Then, the sickness was…”

“Yeah.”

My ears wouldn’t stop ringing. “But who’s the—”

“Oh, no. You don’t trust me with your secrets?” She jerked her chin toward the door, her voice shaking. “I don’t trust you with mine.”

“What?”

“I’m saying I don’t want you here,” she yelled, tears slipping past her eyeliner. “Not while I’m trying to deal with this.”

“You can’t figure this out alone.”

“Well, it looks like I’m gonna have to.”

“Gabby…”

“Just go!”

With a flinch, I swallowed what was left of my pride. “Fine.”

I hurried around the room, throwing random stuff into my backpack.
Toothbrush, phone charger, hairbrush, laptop…
The situation had grown so complicated I couldn't see straight. “Come on, Wallace.”

When the door clicked behind us, I didn't look back. I huffed my way down the hall and jammed the elevator button so hard I almost broke my finger. Over and over again.
She knows…she’s mad… she’s having a baby…

“Do you want to talk about it?” Wallace's footsteps echoed behind me.

“No.”

A pause. “So, are you staying with me tonight or…?”

I blew hair out of my face and whirled around to face him. “What? Is that not okay, either?”

“Okay?” He offered me a small smile, crossing his arms. “You'll be lucky if I let you leave.”

His worry wrapped around me like a thick quilt, warming me with concern. It felt wrong to smile, but I did. For him. His support was the only thing keeping me upright.

A minute later, I found myself staring at Aiden's door. He wasn't behind it tonight. He wouldn't be for a couple of days. And now I couldn't talk to Gabby, either. What had I done to my friends?

“I washed it.” Wallace unlocked his door and bumped it open for me. “So, it's ready for you.”

“What is?” I asked, snapping out of my stupor.

“The hoodie I always throw at your face when you start whimpering about the cold.”

“I don't whimper.”

He shut the door, rubbed his arms, and made little puppy noises at the thermostat. “Brr,” he began, using a squeaky voice that sounded nothing like me. “It’s sooo cold in here.”

“Shut up.”

“I don't know how you stand it,” he went on, mocking me in an obvious attempt at distraction. With two quick strides, he grabbed the old, gray hoodie off the top of his dresser and brought it over.

“I don't talk like that, either.”

The corner of his mouth lifted, and he crammed the sweatshirt over my head. “Sure you don't.”

I dropped the bag and fought my way through the cotton until his stupid, gorgeous face came back into view. His smile had gotten gentler over the past few months. Just the sight of it was enough to make me nervous.

He picked up my bag and set it on his chair, before pulling me toward the bed. “So, what do you want to do?”

“Go to sleep and forget today happened.”

“Hmm…” He sank down and took me with him. The mattress shifted, and he brushed a strand of hair away from my face, pinning me with a blue-eyed gaze. “How about we start with the forgetting thing?”

I nodded, and he eased me back onto the pillow. Warm kisses trailed my neck before his mouth found mine, and I fought to embrace the distraction—his weight bearing down on me, the heat building between us. But my mind couldn’t rest.

Our relationship was just starting to recover from a wound I'd inflicted weeks ago, and now my friendships were unraveling. Before I knew it, tears had formed beneath my lashes. Everything I'd held onto so tightly for the past twenty-four hours streamed down my face like liquid shame. I wrapped my arms around his neck and took a deep, shuddered breath against him.

Wallace didn't say anything, expressing comfort in the only form of affection he could offer without hurting me. Pulling his powers with the Nexus was nice, but I knew he didn't want to make it a habit. The whole thing drained me, and God only knew what it was doing to my body. So, we stuck to our boundaries—expanded, though they may be. His hands clenched the comforter on either side of my head and pulled it taut behind me.

I gave myself permission to be weak in that moment. Covered by him. Safe. There were so many things we'd have to face soon, but I needed a reprieve.

Minutes blurred into an hour that we used to get to know each other all over again. Slowly. I felt the man soul-deep and thanked God for the millionth time that He'd brought him into my life. He knew exactly how to—

Click, click, click, click, click!

“Shit.” I knew that noise.

Wallace froze. “What is that?”

“Your idiot br—”

The knob turned, and Cole barged in, hugging a brown paper bag. “Yo.”