New Sight (9 page)

Chapter 11

Before Lys
could ask Inez any questions, Inez moved through the broken windows and out onto the street.

Kamau glanced at Lys. “I suppose we should follow her.”

Lys didn’t answer. Kamau’s brown eyes were now silver and white, like clouds in the sky. The Need twitched again.

“Come with us,” Peter said, leading a shaky Brady by the wrist. “We’ll take care of you.”

Kamau turned away to follow. Lys shook her head, not so certain that Inez would help. Inez didn’t seem to want to have anything to do with them. She would probably ditch them the second she got the chance.

“Don’t worry about her,” Peter said, waving his free hand. “She’s a softie.”

Lys highly doubted that, but she followed anyway. Glass crunched beneath her slippered feet as she moved through the empty window panes and onto a small street. Low warehouses surrounded them, and the night sky blazed with light. Lys wondered where they could be. She wondered about a lot of things.

These kids seemed to know more than she did. Peter recognized Brady’s eyes and hadn’t freaked out. Did that mean Brady would be okay? Mark seemed a little concerned, but nothing like Lys would be if her eyes suddenly turned oily black. Inez and Peter knew something, and since Lys knew nothing, it seemed prudent to follow them.

Mark’s head lolled back and forth, and he muttered something.

“What?” Lys asked as they made their way across the street and darted down the alley way between buildings.

“Where are we going?” he said, this time more clearly and right at Inez.

“Away,” Inez said, looking over her shoulder. “We should put some distance between them and us. There are plenty more guys where those came from.”

Inez led them across the street and between the two nearest buildings. Broken crates, rampant clutter, and garbage bins provided obstacles for them to dodge. Lys made them out easily, but everyone else seemed to be having difficulty. Kamau almost ran straight into a pile of broken boards.

“Watch out!” Lys said, pulling Mark back so Kamau would stop.

“What?” he asked, turning his still-silver eyes toward Lys.

The Need shook its head like a groggy dog. This was not good. Lys quickly looked back at the ground.

“There are some boards there,” she said, turning them so they would go around.

Kamau reset his path and they set off again.

Inez, it seemed, may not leave them behind. Lys saw her exit the alley, but a moment later she returned and whispered something to Peter.

“Okay,” he said, nodding. “You stay with Inez,” he told Brady. “I’ll be right back.”

Brady nodded. The smile on his lips faded, and the color drained from his face. He lowered his head, shoulders slumping.

“Hey,” Inez said, smacking him hard on the shoulder.

Brady slowly lifted his head. He never quite got it all the way up.

“Stay with us here,” she ordered. “Do not shut down.”

Odd words, but Lys didn’t have time to ponder them because she and Kamau got to the end of the alley, and Mark collapsed between them.

He’d been able to get his feet under him for a while, but the way he slumped to the ground made Lys wonder if he could get up again.

“What did they do to him?” Inez asked, squatting down as Kamau pulled Mark into a sitting position, shoving him against a nearby wall.

Lys took a moment to study their new ally. Tall and slender, Inez had just the right proportions and the long, glossy hair to match. If they went to the same school, Lys knew she and her friends would lament about how much they hated Inez for looking so perfect. Torn jeans and a baby doll t-shirt, which should look casual, only added to her appeal. However, the crease between her eyebrows deepened as she looked at Mark.
She must make that face a lot,
Lys thought,
because the scowl lines never went away.

“I do not know,” Kamau said.

“He’s got bruises everywhere,” Lys said, remembering what she’d seen before.

“Yeah, they do that,” Inez said, her face showing a look of pity for a moment.

“Do what?” Lys asked.

Inez shook her head. “Nothing good.”

Why would no one answer her questions? Inez went to get up, and Lys reached out to touch her arm. Just before she got there, Inez’s hand grabbed her wrist, twisting it sharply.

Lys gasped, but managed not to cry out. Pain shot up her arm, and she moved to keep the pressure from breaking her wrist.

“Don’t touch me,” Inez said in a hard voice, her face a mask of disdain.

Lys returned the glare. For once the Need did her a favor; it gave her the guts to not back down. “Who are these guys?” she asked. “They kidnapped us; I want to know who they are.”

Inez continued to stare for a moment before tossing Lys’s wrist away like a used paper towel. “I don’t have time right now to explain it.” She cast a quick glance at Mark, who was watching them. “He probably knows more than I do anyway.”

Mark shrugged, his pale face making him look like a ghost. “Can’t explain now,” he muttered. “Do you have a healer?” he asked Inez.

She frowned. “A what?”

“A healer,” Mark said again, his voice cracking as he coughed. “I know you know what I’m talking about.”

Inez shook her head. Peter ran back around the corner.

“Where are they?” she asked.

He pointed. “Most of them went the other way, but there are five headed right toward us.”

“We have to move,” Inez said, glancing down at Mark.

“I can lead them away from here,” Kamau said.

“What?” Lys said.

“How?” Inez asked.

“He’s in a tribe, he can probably see in the dark,” Brady said with a tired grin.

Well, Lys mused, if he could see in the dark, why did he almost crash into a pile of boards?

“I have some skill as a tracker,” Kamau said. “And I have a few extra surprises up my sleeve.”

“Can you follow us once we’re gone?” Inez asked.

“Yes.”

The two of them locked gazes, and Lys caught Kamau’s silver eyes out of her peripheral vision.

“Do it,” Inez said.

“Wait!” Lys said, turning to Kamau. “Don’t go off by yourself! Those guys might catch you.”

“Do not worry, I am an excellent tracker. I will find you.”

“Come on,” Inez said. She stepped over to Mark and pulled him to his feet with surprising strength. However, Mark stumbled, and even when Lys went to assist her, he almost fell back to the ground.

“I can get him,” Brady said in an empty voice. He moved forward with purpose, gently pushing Lys aside and taking Mark under the arm. Lys stepped away, and Brady took all of Mark’s weight. He grinned as Inez gave him a reluctant shrug of thanks.

“Where to?” he asked, a little of his bravado returning.

“Follow Peter.”

Lys turned to look at Kamau and found only empty air.

“Where did he go?”

Inez shook her head. “He’s good.”

Lys continued to glance around, trying to figure out where Kamau could have disappeared to so quickly.

“Come on, princess,” Inez said. “We can’t stay here.”

Lys could see the outlines of three figures coming at them from across the street. She followed Inez out of the alley and around the corner.

The sky to her left still pulsed with light. Not fire—she’d be able to smell it—so it must be a city. But which one?

As they ran across another street, heading for a wall of concrete, Lys realized that they could be anywhere in the country. Maybe even the world, although this place didn’t smell foreign. She’d been to Mexico and England with her parents, and it was an entirely different experience. Everything looked, smelled, and tasted different. Even the air. They passed a street sign and Lys saw that she could read the words. Well, at least they were in the United States. Probably.

Everyone else kept their eyes forward, but she couldn’t help herself; she kept looking over her shoulder for either Kamau or the guys in black.

“Don’t worry, princess,” Inez said in a mocking tone after she’d caught Lys looking back. “Your boyfriend will be fine.”

Lys turned her eyes forward. “He’s not my boyfriend,” she muttered, not even wanting to go there right now.

Inez laughed.

“And don’t call me princess,” Lys said.

A huge mound loomed in front of them. Lys recognized it as the freeway. It must be the middle of the night because hardly any vehicles drove on the road above them.

Brady stopped. He tilted his head to the side. “They’re coming.”

Lys glanced around. It took her a moment, but then she saw them. Two figures headed their way.“There,” she whispered, pointing.

“Peter,” Inez said, “you said you could find it.”

“I can!” he said, turning a slow circle. “Just give me a minute.”

“We don’t have a minute.”

“They’re still coming,” Lys said. “Can we at least get out of the open?”

Inez looked around. “Into the ditch,” she said, pointing at the sandy area at the bottom of the freeway. They didn’t have a lot of options; Lys followed the others, dropping to her knees, hiding behind the edge of the ditch.

“Not that it will help,” Inez said. “They can see in the dark in those helmets.”

“Do you have a flashlight?” Lys asked. She’d seen someone in a movie blind a guy who wore night vision goggles with a road flare. Then again, maybe the flashlight wouldn’t be enough.

Inez didn’t bother to answer. Maybe she’d come to the same conclusion.

“I can get rid of them,” Brady said. He’d set Mark on the ground and crawled over to Lys and Inez.

“Not a good idea,” Inez said.

The two figures got closer, coming down the road, moving their heads back and forth, searching.

Lys’s breathing became ragged. Her hands began to shake—the world started to go gray.

Her vision fuzzed out for a moment, just like in the basement of the hospital.

Blinking, she shook her head. After a second the gray haze melted away, and her vision returned. Only what she saw didn’t match what she knew she should be looking at.

Instead of seeing the two men coming down the road from the front, now she had a prime view of their backs. The perspective made Lys wonder if she was dreaming again—flying. The two men walked below her, not at eye level. The view swiveled from the backs of the men to the road beyond. Lys recognized the hill behind her, and when she noticed a shadow within a shadow she almost cried out. She could see herself crouched down in the ditch by the side of the road.

Closing her eye, she wondered if this would ever stop.

After a few seconds she opened her eye and found Inez watching her intently.

“What?” Lys asked, trying to sound nonchalant. Inside she breathed a sigh of relief.

“Oh, I don’t know. Just wondering if you’re going to join us.”

Lys glanced back at the two figures. They were gone.

“Where did they go?”

“Away.” Inez jerked her head. “Peter found us our way under.”

Lys followed Inez’s gaze and saw Peter crouched on the ground, looking at something.

“Come on!” Peter waved them over.

Inez stayed bent over as she ran the fifteen-or-so feet to where the others waited. Lys followed, trying to spot either the men or Kamau, but couldn’t see anyone.

“Are you sure this is it?” Inez asked.

“I’m sure.” Peter folded his arms across his chest and looked at Lys. “I hope you guys don’t mind the smell.”

Chapter 12

Lys stopped
and stepped back. “The sewer?”

“Storm drain.” Peter corrected her. “It’s different.”

“I highly doubt that,” Lys said, eying the grate. The two foot square lattice of metal lay nestled in the ground, the rusted bars held down with an old padlock. Up here Lys could see pretty well, but beyond the grate she only saw darkness. The kind of dark that liked to swallow people whole and never let them leave—like her dreams. She shivered.

“You’re not afraid of the dark, are you?” Peter asked with concern in his voice.

“Uh, no,” Lys said quickly. “Not really.” She hated the dark.

“Well it’s either the dark,” Inez said, pointing down the drain. “Or those guys.” She pointed back in the direction they had come.

“Where will we go?” Lys asked. She refused to crawl down there if this didn’t lead to something helpful. Or at the very least, safe.

“Our place,” Peter said before Inez could answer. He looked at Brady, who sat on the grass beside Mark and pulled on the grate. “Can you get it off?” “Sure.” Brady rose slowly to his feet, almost stumbling before he got up. Again it looked like he carried a heavy burden.

Brady came forward and pulled the old padlock apart with his thumb and forefinger. The u-shaped loop slipped out of the body with nothing more than a flick of his wrist.

“Wow,” Peter said, eyes wide.

Inez grabbed the grate and pulled it up. “Come on, everyone in.”

“But what about Kamau?” Lys asked. She would not leave him behind.

“He said he was a tracker, he’ll find us,” Inez said.

“I’m not leaving without him.”

Inez raised her eyebrows. “You can do whatever you want, princess, but we’re leaving.
He
can probably follow us. Can you?”
Lys hesitated. Could she? Duh, no. There was no way she could track them or follow them. What was it like down there? Dark? A maze? Creepy—yes. Terrifying—absolutely. She could imagine the thick water, the dripping walls, the corroded ceilings, and the rats. There were always rats in the sewers. Storm drains. Whatever. It didn’t matter. Nothing could stop the pang of fear that twisted her stomach up in a knot. She did not like the dark.

“He’ll catch up,” Brady said, rallying himself for a moment. “He’s in a tribe.”

Lys didn’t like her options. She could stay and risk ending up alone, or she could go after Kamau herself, or she could go with them now, in the dark, and hope he found his way.

Inez didn’t wait for Lys’s answer. She jumped down, landing with a small splash.

“Peter,” she said, her voice closer than Lys had imagined it would be, “you’re next. Then lower that guy down and we’ll catch him.”

Peter looked at Lys. “Come with us.” It was a plea, but he didn’t wait for an answer either. He jumped down after Inez.

Brady pulled Mark over to the hole. He blinked a few times before he spoke. “Kamau can find us again. Go with them now.”

“But . . .”

“Just trust me.”

Trust him? Lys didn’t think she wanted to hear that again. Ever. The dark hole gaped before her, ready to welcome her to her doom. She took a breath, hoping it might help. It didn’t. The warm, stale air caught in her throat and she had to stifle a coughing fit.

Brady helped Mark to the hole. She forced herself to walk over and grab one of Mark’s arms. They lowered Mark down until Inez said to let him go.

“You next,” Lys said, waving a hand at the hole.

“You are coming, right?” Brady asked.

“I don’t trust them to catch me,” she said.

Brady smiled. “Right.” He stepped into the hole, also landing with a splash.

“Come on down,” he said.

Lys steeled herself. Every instinct she had screamed at her to run the other way. Dark hole, enclosed space, and getting lost—she did
not
want to go down. Her shaking hands could attest to that. However, the image of the men in the black body armor came to her mind and Lys knew that she didn’t want to stay either. So she sat on the dry grass and dangled her legs into the opening. A splash of light fell through the hole, and she could see the faint outlines of the people below.

“Just jump,” Brady said. “I’ll make sure you don’t fall.”

One deep breath didn’t steady her shaking hands, so she took another with the same result. She could do this. Nothing bad lived in the dark. Really. Hopefully.

The soft footfall sounded on the grass nearby. Lys’s eye, which she’d closed at some point, shot open.

“Come on!” Brady whispered.

She scrambled to her feet. Maybe she could stall them while the others got away. A shadowy figure stood about ten feet away.

“Who are you?” she asked, hoping to distract them.

“Lys?” Kamau’s voice asked. “Is that you?”

The tension in her clenched hands bled free, and she almost giggled. Almost, but she managed to hold it in.

“Yes,” she said, able to see him clearly now that his silvery eyes were toward her.

“What are you doing?” he asked in a whisper.

“We’re, uh, escaping.” Lys stepped back, and pointed at the ground.

Peter’s head popped up out of the grate. “What’s going—” He stopped when he spotted Kamau. “Oh, hey. Come on down.”

Kamau looked at Lys. Lys shrugged. “Brady and Mark are already down there. They say this is the way to their place.”

“It’s one way to our place,” Peter said.

“They will circle back to this area in just a few minutes,” Kamau said. “Let’s go.” He held out his hands. Lys took them as he lowered her into the hole.

“Let go, I’ve got her,” Brady said.

It took every ounce of Lys’s courage to release her vise grip. She fell for a split second, then hands grabbed her around the waist and gently lowered her to the ground.

Not ground. Water covered, mossy, slippery concrete. What she wouldn’t give for her hiking shoes about now.

Brady pushed her over to where Mark was sitting on a ledge. He seemed more alert.

“Are you alright?” he asked.

“
You’re
asking me if
I’m
okay?” Lys laughed. This time the shrill giggle did come out, but she bit it off before hysteria could kick in. To distract herself, she looked around and found that she could see more than she had anticipated. This was both good and bad. The square-ish tunnel they stood in had stone ledges on each side. A rusted ladder hung down from the grate, and looked as if one step on it might break it in half. Ankle-deep water ran down the middle of the channel. Cool air brushed her face, a relief from the parching breeze above. Lys didn’t see any lurking rats. However, spiders were in rich supply.

If she could see the spiders, then it wasn’t too dark, right? She returned her attention back to Mark as Kamau lowered himself down the hole.

“What’s happening?” Lys asked. “What’s up with Brady? And those guys? And Kamau’s eyes?”

Mark shook his head. “It’s a really long story.”

“No time for stories,” Inez said, passing them. “We have to get moving.”

Brady came to get Mark. Peter followed them.

Lys really wanted some answers, but it didn’t seem like anyone else was interested in a Q & A session.

“Come on,” Kamau said, moving up behind her. He placed a hand on her back and gently pushed her forward.

“Sure,” Lys muttered. Why not follow these people down into the sewers so they could get away from the other people who were chasing them? Great idea. Wonderful day. What’s for dessert?

Kamau looked like he wanted to talk, but Lys didn’t feel like voicing any of her thoughts. So she turned and followed Peter’s retreating form.

The dim light faded the farther they got from the grate. Lys felt her anxiety level rising, but she could still see. The others held their hands out in front of them, like mummies, groping in the dark.

“Peter,” Inez whispered. “Get up here and lead us.”

Lys watched as Peter walked forward, straight toward a random pipe that hung from the ceiling. Everyone else had passed on the right side of the channel. Peter was on the left.

“Whoa,” she said, surging forward and snatching his collar. “You’re going to run right into that.”

“Right into what?” Peter asked, still searching with his arms.

“That,” Lys said, taking his hand and resting it on the pipe.

“How did you know that was there?”

“I can see it.”

Brady laughed. “You can see down here?”

“Yeah, it’s not that dark,” Lys said.

“It’s pitch black!” Brady said, holding his hand in front of his face. “I can’t even see my fingers.”

Inez tilted her head. “You can see down here?”

“Yes.” Hadn’t she just said that?

“Get in front. Bring Peter, he can tell you which way to go if you tell him what you see.”

“Uh, sure.” She hoped her wavering voice didn’t give her fear away. Why could she see when no one else could? She just hoped she wasn’t hallucinating. This trip could get very interesting if she was seeing things that weren’t there. Or not seeing things that were.

Lys grabbed Peter’s hand as she went by and tugged him forward. They passed everyone else. “There’s a tunnel that goes off to the left up ahead.”

“Take us to it. I can tell you if it’s the right way to go.”

Lys led them slowly down the tunnel, warning everyone about stray pipes, cracks in the floor, or anything in their way. They made good progress and got to the tunnel quickly.

“Here it is,” Lys said.

Peter stopped, turned toward the opening and took a deep breath. He exhaled, and then took another lungful of air. Then he snorted.

“Nope. Keep going.”

So they did. The cool air helped clear Lys’s head. A thousand smells surrounded them, none as bad as she had imagined. Lys’s feet were soggy, the slippers she’d woken up in just wet rags clinging to her toes and ankles. They finally found the rats. She stifled a shriek when the first one scuttled along the ledge and into a hole half its size.

“What is it?” Inez demanded.

Lys put her free hand on her chest, willing her pounding heart to slow. Fight or flight had kicked in. Maybe it had never left. “Sorry, just a rat.”

“Afraid of the dark
and
rats?” Inez asked.

Lys muttered, “Who’s up here leading?”

“I think she likes you,” Peter whispered.

“Yeah, right.” Lys didn’t much care if the other girl liked her. Not right now in this dark tunnel, being chased by some crazy guys in black body armor and trying not to think about her shattered life. Or what could be lurking around the next corner.

“We’re almost to the strip,” Peter said, taking another deep breath.

“The what?” Lys asked.

“You’ll see.”

She led them on. After what felt like thirty minutes, she began to see lights ahead.

“There’s another tunnel leading off to the right,” she reported.

“I bet that’s ours. I can almost see it,” Peter said.

Lys could see everything getting brighter. They came around a bend, and found light shining down into the tunnel from a grate above, creating a crisscross pattern. A soggy slide of pamphlets cascaded down along the wall and filled the channel in front of them with what looked like a mound of old newspapers. “Where are we?” she asked.

“Vegas,” Peter said, grinning and putting his hands above his head.

Lys looked at a flier that had managed to make it away from the others. Sure enough, an ad for a fun-filled night with the lady of your choice. This was Las Vegas alright. Her mother had tried so hard not to let her see the pamphlets the last time they had come.

Thinking about her mother caused an ache in her chest, and Lys pushed her thoughts back into the present.

“We’re in Las Vegas?” Brady asked. The excitement in his voice was almost back to its usual level. “Can we go up and see?”

“No,” Inez said.

“Please,” Brady begged.

“No.”

“You’re so mean.”

“She is,” Peter agreed. “Don’t worry; I’ll take you around later.”

That’s when it hit Lys. Peter’s plan not only included taking them to his (or their) home, but he had it in his mind that Kamau, Brady, Mark, and she would stay with them. Who took in perfect strangers? Especially the kind who exhibited signs of either genetic tampering or super powers? Lys wanted to look for the cameras. When was the show host going to jump out and say, “Gotcha!”

“Is this our tunnel?” Inez asked, squinting past the light.

“Should be, I’ll see,” Peter said, letting go of Lys’s hand. He bounded over the pile of pamphlets with a watery squelch.

“That’s pretty sick,” Brady said, moving to the nearest grate and looking up. Lys wasn’t sure which form of “sick” he was referring to. “You guys have a secret lair under Las Vegas?”

Inez shook her head.

Mark spoke, his voice weak again. “Where are you taking us?” His eyes met Inez’s, and she actually answered him.

“To where we live. We’ll be able to get that stuff off your hands.”

“Who do you—” he hesitated. “Work for?”

Inez snorted and shook her head. “No one. We don’t work for anyone.”

Peter interrupted. “This is the right way. Come on. We’ll be there in just a few minutes.”

Lys waded toward the pile of pamphlets and started over. With her feet already being encased in soggy slippers, Lys wasn’t surprised when her foot slipped, but she hadn’t planned to go flying backward. Her balance failed, her arms pin wheeled around, and her whole body started to fall. Lys braced for impact, but a pair of strong hands caught her by the waist and lowered her back to the bottom of the tunnel.

“Be careful,” Kamau said, keeping his hands around her until Lys’s feet stopped slipping.

“Thanks,” she said, trying to smile and avoid his eyes at the same time. The Need tossed off another blanket, and Lys suddenly missed the dark where no one could tell where her eye was pointed.

“Here,” Brady said from the other side, thrusting out a hand.

Kamau took one hand, and they helped her over the slippery pile. Much to her annoyance, Kamau came over after her without a single problem. He kept a hold of her hand after that. If the Need would stay down, Lys might have spent a moment thinking about that.