Talented (29 page)

Once I was satisfied that the apartment was safe, I stashed my backpack within arms-reach of the bed, undressed and climbed in between the scratchy sheets.

Unlike our safe houses the apartment didn’t have surveillance cameras or a command center; the only electronics that I’d have access to were the ones I’d brought with me.  The apartment served one purpose – a place for me to sleep.  Many of my devices uploaded images directly back to the Crypto team at headquarters, and that made me feel a little less lonely. Still, the only way that I could directly contact anybody within the Agency would be by activating the subdermal tracking chip that they’d implanted in my hip.

The chip was only to be activated in the event of a “true emergency”
, the medic who’d embedded it had reiterated this no less than ten times.  Any non-emergency messages were to be relayed through Toxic contacts that were scattered around the city.  In return, I had assured him – no less than ten times – that it would take a “true emergency” for me to slice through the layers of skin, muscle, and tendon IN MY OWN HIP to remove the chip.  If I somehow garnered the courage to cut myself, I would still need to keep my lunch down long enough to dig the transponder out of my flesh.  Needless to say, it was completely unnecessary for him to worry that I might activate the chip for fun.

Waking up only a couple of hours of sleep, I went directly to the kitchen and rummaged through the cupboards.  I stared contemplatively at the contents.  On the one hand, there was food.  On the other hand, the “food” was dehydrated fruits and meats.  Hunger won out, and I grabbed several bags at random.  I munched on dehydrated hen strips and sugary apricot along with banana pieces as I explored the space that I now called home.

I hadn’t taken stock of the small closet in the main room, the night before, so that next.  Inside, I discovered a handful of plain cotton dresses, fashioned in the nondescript style that was common in Las Vegas since the Coalition’s takeover.  The floor of the closet held three pairs of identical leather sandals, very similar to the ones that I wore around Headquarters.  Unlike Penny, clothes held very little interest to me.  The dresses were much like my own everyday wardrobe – boring.

I hadn’t been truly on my own since . . . well, ever.  Loneliness and longing for Headquarters engulfed me.  The sight of the familiar leather sandals comforted me slightly.  Running my fingers across the stiff material, I reminded myself that the sooner I completed this Mission, the sooner I could go home.   Hopefully I’d find Crane in the process.

After I had my fill of dried foods, I made my way to the shower.  It was still pretty early, and I hadn’t gotten much sleep, but I really wanted to get started right away.

After my shower I selected a sleeveless navy dress from the closet, paired with a thin, brown leather belt and brown leather sandals.  I piled my curls on top of my head in a loose bun, and popped in the facial-recognition eyeball lenses.  I stared at myself in the small mirror over the sink in the bathroom.  The lenses masked the purple of my eyes, making them appear to be murky-brown.

I laughed at my reflection.  I couldn’t count the number of times that I’d wished I didn’t bear such an obvious Talent mark, but now as I saw myself, looking “normal,” I realized that my purple eyes were just as much a part of my identity as my Mental Manipulation.  Even though I still looked like myself for the most part, I felt completely different.

I packed a small bag with the necessary imagers and communication devices, and set off towards the Strip.  There were several nearby bars that Ian Crane’s men frequented, but it was too early for
that.  I decided that I would wander around the city, to familiarize myself with my new surroundings.

Leisurely, I
strolled the streets.  Uniformed Coalition men littered every corner.  I had expected as much, but now that I was actually here, witnessing it firsthand, I realized that I’d vastly underestimated the danger I was facing.  My arrogance from the day before vanished.  With my facial recognition lenses, I scanned every man bearing the Coalition insignia that I passed, hoping to get a hit.

Around dinnertime I made my way to a pub on the first level of the Bally’s complex; the
intel listed the bar as a known hangout for Crane’s men.  I hesitated outside the doors, my pulse quickening.  Crane might be inside.  I’d played this scene in my head countless times over the past seven years, but now that I might really come face-to-face with my parents’ murderer . . . I was scared.  I was still the little girl in the closet, just a child.  The speech that I’d revised in my head numerous times that I had for Crane before I killed him, suddenly seemed inadequate.  Maybe Henri had been right; maybe this Hunt was too much for me.

No, no
, I chastised myself.  I was strong.  I was brave.  I could do this.  My combat skills might not be as developed as Erik’s, and my analytical abilities might not be as strong as Henri’s, but my Talents, my mental abilities, were second to none. I’d learned early-on to control my powers; Mac had worked tirelessly to harness my raw power, and convert it to controlled energy.   I had been chosen for this Hunt not because it coincided with my graduation from school, but because I was the only Toxic member with a chance of success.

With my inner strength reinstated, I entered the pub, my head high as the glass doors slid apart.  The interior was dark, and smelled of beer and stale cigarette smoke.  Quickly I shut down my sense of smell, before disgust could show on my face.  I forced myself to walk
slowly and confidently up to the low bar.  I pulled out a wooden stool and carefully perched on the edge.  I crossed one leg over the other, allowing my dress to ride up my leg far enough to attract attention, but not far enough to give away the muscles resulting from my daily physical training.  I spent so much time trying to blend in, that it felt odd to purposely draw attention to myself.

I caught the eye of a young guy sitting at the other end of the bar.  He wasn’t overly unfortunate looking, so I gave him the most dazzling smile I could muster.  Either he rarely saw girls, or Penny’s flirting lessons were paying off, because he returned my smile with one of his own.

My left eye lens scrolled quickly through Toxic’s facial database.  My right lens displayed the man’s bio in barely-distinguishable print.  I focused on the feel of the lens in my eye, until it right brought the words into sharper focus.  I found what I was looking for.  He was definitely one of Crane’s men.

Buy me a drink
, I ordered, not breaking eye contact.  He signaled for the bartender without taking his eyes off me, and ordered a fruity alcohol drink that I wasn’t familiar with.  The bartender wasted no time filling the man’s order.

Bring it to me yourself,
I mentally barked, when the bartender set the drink in front of him.  Nerves made my commands stronger than I intended, but that probably wasn’t a bad thing.  The man slid off the edge of his stool with his drink in one hand and mine in the other, making his way over to me.  I kept my smile firmly in place as anxiety twisted my insides.

“You look thirsty,” he quipped, handing me the fruity drink.

“Parched,” I replied, reaching for the glass.

“Kyle,” he introduced himself.  Up close, I noticed how young he was; Kyle couldn’t have been more than a couple years older than I was.  His blonde hair was in need of a good shampooing and his clothes were slightly rumpled, but his amber eyes were friendly and inviting.

“Anna,” I offered my free hand and he took it delicately in his.  I swallowed the urge to flinch and withdraw from his touch.  Instead, I plastered a smile on my face.

“Mind if I sit with you?” he asked shyly.

“Be my guest,” I squeaked, all traces of my earlier composure gone.  Sure, I was still confident in my ability to control him.  Now I just wasn’t sure that I wanted to.

Kyle climbed onto the stool next to me.  I pulled my dress down, covering the leg that I’d exposed in hopes of attracting attention.  I wasn’t sure that I could mentally handle more than one of Crane’s men.

Kyle and I chatted easily over dinner and several more drinks.  I used my Talents to convince him that he needed to frequent the restroom, giving me opportunities to pour my drinks out on the grimy floor.   I tried my best to act drunk, but I wasn’t really sure that it mattered, since Kyle was actually drunk.  He didn’t even need any encouragement from me.

Several of Kyle associates – also Crane’s men – stopped by to introduce themselves to me.  I did my best, appearing to be a young, drunk girl new that was to the city.  I chanced peeking in to several of their minds to confirm they were buying my act; none were overly suspicious.

Offer to walk me home
, I demanded, as the night wound down.

“Can I walk you home?” Kyle slurred.

“Thanks, I’d like that,” I trilled, in my best drunk girl voice.  Kyle shot me a genuine smile, and I almost felt guilty.  He paid our bill and stumbled off of his stool, offering me his arm.  I grit my teeth and looped my arm underneath his.  Flirting with him was bad enough; touching him wasn’t really something that I wanted to do.  We walked towards the exit to the pub, in a cacophony of catcalls from his cohorts.  I resisted the urge to turn around and attack.

My apartment was several blocks away.  Kyle rambled drunkenly the entire walk.

Ask to see me tomorrow,
I ordered when we reached the street-level door to my apartment.  I doubted that any of Crane’s men were watching, but I didn’t want to make any mistakes.

“Anna, I would love to see you tomorrow,” Kyle stated.

“I’d like that too,” I smiled back at him.  He leaned in as if to kiss me, and I recoiled, waves of disgust washing over me.  He drew back, shocked at my refusal.  Crap.

Realizing my mistake, I went with the first thought that popped into my head.  I envisioned kissing Erik.  I summoned the feelings that his lips on mine evoked, and then projected those feelings towards Kyle.

The sides of his mouth curled in to a dopey grin, and his amber eyes had a faraway look.  His body gave a silent shudder, as a small moan escaped his lips.  I really hoped that I didn’t actually look like that when Erik kissed me.

“That was awesome,” he muttered, brushing his fingertips across his bottom lip.

“I thought so too,” I replied quietly.

“I’ll see you tomorrow?  Seven at the pub?” he asked, without prompting.

“Sure,” I whispered.

“’Night.”
  He stood there a moment longer.  I wanted to leave.  I needed him to leave.  I’d been biting back tears since I’d conjured the mental image of kissing Erik, and the associated feelings.

“
Leave,”
I finally ordered, when it became obvious that he wasn’t going to on his own.

With that, he stumbled down the street without looking back.  I hurried up the stairs to my apartment, mentally pushing open the door to my unit and rushing through.  I ran straight for the bedroom, slamming the front door behind me as I went.

Collapsing on the bed, I hugged my knees to my chest and rocked back and forth.  Tears leaked around the eye lenses, pooling in the corners of my eyes before falling in tiny streams down my cheeks.  Physically and mentally, I could do this.  All night I’d easily controlled Kyle, bending and twisting his will like a pretzel.  I’d also established tenuous connections with several of Crane’s other men – just enough of a link for a quick swipe of their thoughts.  I barely even felt tired from my efforts.

Emotionally?
  I couldn’t have been further away.  I wasn’t sure how I had managed to get through the last several hours.  I hated the way that I was acting, hated what I was doing.  I reminded myself that it was all just a means to an end, and the end was very important.

I sat, curled in a ball on the bed, until the lenses began to burn in my eyes reminding me they needed to come out.  Unfolding my legs, I fished out my bag of gadgets from under the bed.  I popped each lens out and placed them in their designated compartment in my communicator.  I turned the communicator on and searched for an Agency frequency to transmit the facial information I’d collected.  In seconds, I was connected.  I uploaded the images and reached to disconnect the devices.  My index finger hovered over the terminate button for a moment longer than it should have.

“
I know you won’t be able to hear or see me, but I’ll be on the other end of every communication,”
Penny had said to me.  I hoped that was true.

I pulled my dress
off, disgusted by the beer and grease stains from where Kyle had touched me.  I threw it in a crumpled heap in the corner of the tiny bedroom.  The apartment was so hot, that I decided against wearing anything to bed.  Instead, I stretched out on the mattress and tried to clear my mind so I could fall asleep.  When that didn’t work, I reached in my bag and pulled out Erik’s note.

I ran my fingers over the tightly folded white square, tracing the letters of my name with the ragged nail of my right index finger.  I chewed nervously on the corner of my bottom lip.

“For when you’re ready to hear it,” I whispered, reading Erik’s words out loud.

I had no idea what to expect when I finally found the courage to unfold the paper.  How would I know when I was ready?  What about Erik’s childhood was so bad that I had to ready myself to hear it?  My parents were murdered in front of me, how much worse could it get?