Chapter Nineteen
When I first started making nova’s, I had ended up gassing my entire out building. It made me thankful that I had the underground passageway because if I had not had it I would not have been able to see to get out. I had used a special formula for the gas. It has the distinct smell. That’s how I knew it was my nova they used.
I stumbled over to the door of my apartment. I could see Braydon making his way toward Zavier and Braxton. Once Zavier handed Braxton over to Braydon, he came back for me.
“We need to get my nova’s. They’re using them against us,” I croaked out.
Zavier nodded his head and put his arm around me to help keep me stable. He opened the door, checked up and down the hallway before leaving me there and went in to check things out. I kept as close eye on him as I could, when they weren’t watering from the gas, and watched as he grabbed the box and came back to me.
I ran back with him, staggering the entire way, to Dean’s office. When I got there I could see Kyle working on Braxton. I stumbled but landed beside him and apologized profusely about being stupid enough to leave them in there for someone to get. He shook his head and tried to remove the oxygen mask but I wouldn’t let him.
After a few minutes he got aggravated with me, grabbed my wrist to stop me and shoved the mask in my face to give me oxygen. I took a couple breaths, coughed a few times and made him put it back on.
I sat back holding Braxton’s hand while I watched Dean take charge of everything. Shay and Lorik were still working on finding the hijacker while Gabe helped Kyle. When he turned around and noticed me, he went into a fit. He grabbed the other oxygen tank, picked me up with one arm, shoved me in a chair and put the mask on my face. I knew it was childish but I rolled my eyes and stuck out my tongue.
Zavier walked over picked me up as I looked at him confused and sat me down in his lap. He took a wipe and cleaned off my face and neck. It wasn’t past my notice that he had started staying closer to me. It also wasn’t past my notice that he started kissing on my neck more and more. I was beginning to think maybe I had chosen the wrong guy.
Braydon seemed oblivious to everything Zavier done. It didn’t make him jealous. He never said anything about it. Not even to Zavier. He would just look at me and smile. If it hadn’t been for the fact I had to clear my head to check out the building I would have turned around and put a lip lock on Zavier to see if Braydon reacted in any way.
I had to get that thought far from my head. It wasn’t me to try to make someone jealous, nor was it me to use people I cared about. I needed to focus. But it was me to lean into Zavier the next time he kissed my neck causing him to smile into my neck. Gah what was wrong with me?
I turned slightly, took the mask off, kissed Zavier under his ear and got up. I grabbed the box he had brought in and opened it. It had only one nova missing. These guys were stupid. Or maybe blowing up the academy wasn’t their intention. Maybe getting me into that room was what he had planned all along.
I took out two novas and listened to the click as the very bottom opened up. I began taking out nine millimeter glocks. I checked the clips of each, slammed them back in place and racked each of the guns before handing them off to each of the boys.
“Shay, Lorik, here. Fix it so it can run on its own, we need to get the building secure then we can figure everything else out,” I told them as I handed Lorik a gun.
The gun I handed to Shay was different and he noticed. When I told him it was Dad’s and I wanted him to have it, he nodded and turned away but I still caught his eyes tearing up. I began barking out assigned sections. I gave Gabe and Zavier the middle floor. It was selfish of me but I knew there were fewer guys on it and I didn’t want either of them near any of the gunfire.
It wasn’t that I thought they couldn’t handle themselves; it was that Gabe was my doctor in a sense and Zavier, well I was still trying to figure out what he was but I loved him. I always had.
I tried not to look at Zavier after giving them that order, I knew without a doubt he would be upset. I assigned Sage, Lorik, and Shayden the top floor. There were more rooms up there and the three together could take down anyone in their path. That left Braydon and me to check the bottom floor.
I watched as each left the room. I made sure Dean and Archer were armed and followed Braydon out to what was supposed to be locked middle doors. They weren’t. The only way that was possible was if someone was either good at picking locks or had a key. That last thought bothered me.
We went quickly but quietly down the steps. I ducked under the railing of the steps on the way down to make sure there wasn’t anyone underneath the stairs. We stood back and listened. From the left I could hear someone going through something but they seemed to be three rooms down.
We started with the right. We wanted to clear out every room on our way and make sure we wouldn’t get surprised when we went after the other guy. We took turns checking the rooms. There were only three rooms to the right and four to our left. It worked out that I would be the one checking the morgue.
My skin was crawling by the time we got down there. I knew I had done it on purpose but it didn’t make me feel any better. I went around the room, checking cabinets, closets, and then the body storage units last.
I tried to be quiet about it. I knew the noise we heard was coming from the room next door. So I would have to open each unit slowly and close it the same way so it didn’t bang.
When I opened the very last one, my blood froze in my veins. I stood there staring at the only body that had a sheet on it. Meaning it was my father. The others were ones I had killed.
I gulped and tried to take slow even breaths as I pulled out the metal table. Braydon must have heard me because he grabbed my hand as I tried to pull the cloth off. He shook his head and at first gave me a sorrowful look. I motioned for him to keep an eye on the door and his look change to fury.
I wasn’t going to let him stop me. I needed to see my father. I needed to know what they done to him. Did they honestly think Dad wouldn’t be down here if it was me? No had that been me lying on that cold metal bed he would have beat anyone that stopped him.
When Braydon had had enough, he jerked my hand away causing me to pull the sheet off with it. I watched as it began to slide off and fall onto the floor. I looked back at Braydon and turned my eyes towards Dad. I had to close them.
His poor body was bruised from his head to his chest except for two spots. My eyes flew opened as I realized what I had seen. Two spots. There was no bruising at those two spots. Then I noticed a wrinkle in his eye. I leaned in and touched his eye only to have a film move. I pinched the film and pulled away a blue contact lens.
I was pissed. I looked at Braydon, mouthed for him to watch the hallway even though I would still hear the guy rummaging around next door, and found the chemicals needed. I knew before I even wiped the makeup off those areas what I would find.
This wasn’t my dad.
I took a picture of everything I was seeing, kissed his cheek, and put the sheet back on him. I slid him back into his frozen tomb and nodded to Braydon.
We made our way next door. By now I was so pissed I didn’t even try to sneak in the room. I grabbed the handle and threw open the door with my gun in my other hand. The man was shocked. He dropped his weapon, held up his hands and began begging me not to kill him.
I stayed back watching the hallway as Braydon went to check him. He was patting him down when I heard the noise. I turned just in time to see the man slowly pulling his other gun across the desk he stood beside. As he moved to aim it at Braydon, I pulled the trigger.
“Idiot shouldn’t have done that,” I said as the man fell to the floor.
Braydon stood up looking a little shaken but otherwise okay. I let him know I wasn’t referring to him when I said that. He nodded and held up something small. It was several something’s. I narrowed my eyes as I realized that joker had stolen several of my pictures. He had been in my room.
We cleared the last room and took off up the stairs. When we got back I could see that everyone had returned except Shay, Lorik, and Sage. I didn’t even have time to tell Dean what I had found when the monitor flickered over showing Lorik and Sage outside a room, leaning in to listen.
“Shay.” It had only come out as a whisper but was enough for everyone to turn around and see what I had seen.
I didn’t bother waiting on anyone. I took the steps two at a time and was running as fast as I could by the time I reached the room where they were at. Lorik put his finger to his mouth and I kicked off the wall not bothering to listen.
I shot through the tile, hit my back on the beam but continued to crawl forward. I turned the contacts on and checked body heat. At that moment I had wished I had invented something that could be placed under the skin that would allow knowing which guy was mine.
I stopped just long enough to hear the voices. Shay was cornered. I slid the tile over and peeked. I was hovering right over the bad guy.
“Oh I know that as long as I have you, she will come to me. When she does, I have the beauty of putting a bullet in both of your skulls.”
His voice was deep. I had never heard it before. It also had a certain accent to it. This was one of those guys Dean was telling me about.
“Yeah, yeah, yeah, blah, blah, blah,” I said as I watched him swing around, aim his gun, and fire. I ducked out of the way, fell through the tile when I hit my hand on the beam, and landed right on top of the guys legs.
When I looked up his face was slack and blood was starting to spread around the back of his head. Shayden had killed him.
Shayden ran over to me as we heard the guys outside screaming for us. He helped me up and we both raced to the door.
“I have something to tell you,” I said after making sure every room had been cleared. We all ran back to Dean’s office.
Dean was standing there waiting for us. I doubled over putting my hands on my knees to catch my breath.
“That’s not my Dad in the morgue, that’s David, Dad’s brother.”