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Chapter Two

Jolie

The girls all take tests and— surprise —they are all positive. Once Laughn forced Betty to take a test, I asked him to take her to the conference room. She needs to be kept away from everyone at the moment, and that room has a lock we can engage from the outside. We have Marlow and his super genius computer skills to thank for that.

“You can’t go in alone,” Creed argues. “Tenshi, it’s too dangerous. We don’t know what her plans are.”

“She isn’t going to kill me. But regardless, I need to talk to her alone. Has anyone stopped to think that maybe she’s a victim in all of this, just like we are? When did Mr Z ever give any of you a choice? If he wanted something, he got it. Chances are he manipulated her too. I’m just as pissed as all of you, but we need answers, and she knows how or where we can get them. I’m going in alone. End of discussion.”

“I will rip off her body parts and feed them to her family if she so much as hurts one hair on your head,” Chester seethes.

“Awe, that’s the kind of love I want,” Blayne gushes. “Sinclair, do you want to go on a killing spree for me?”

Sinclair’s face drops at the thought. She isn’t a killer, not like almost everyone else currently in the house. Blayne laughs. “Oh bae, I was joking. Well, about you doing the killing... I would send you limbs as presents if that turned you on.”

“Flowers and chocolates work fine for me.” Sinclair blushes and laughs. “And ‘bae’? I think not.”

I leave them all to talk amongst themselves, Laughn following me out of the room.

“Are you sure you want to do this alone?”

“Yes. She won’t risk hurting me, and we need to talk woman-to-woman.”

“Okay, I’ll wait outside. But if I hear anything, I will come in and won’t hesitate to do what it takes to keep you safe.”

“Okay, Killer, calm down. And they say girls are hormonal and unstable. I beg to differ.”

Laughn laughs as we veer off to the hallway that leads to the conference room. Once the door unlocks, Laughn checks the room and then kisses me on the forehead. He pauses, sweeps the room again with his eyes, then closes the door behind me.

Betty is seated at the end of the table, disdain apparent as she watches me move through the room. Closing the gap, I sit midway down, not wanting to be too close to her in case she decides to try something.

“I knew you would come eventually,” she says with a smug look. Betty is like a caged animal with her back against the wall; she wants a fight, but I won’t give her one. She needs to believe I’m on her side.

“What choice do I have? We need to know what’s going on.”

She takes this as her cue to slide her pregnancy test across the table; I don’t need to pick it up to see the two dark lines.

“Why Jimmie?” I wonder aloud. “I know he’s still a virgin.”

“Why do you care? Don’t you have enough men of your own? Just leave mine be.”

“If you are pregnant with Jimmie’s baby, I will not let them kill you. Ever. Besides, I’m not an idiot—I know how Mr Z works. What choice would he have given you?”

“None,” she says with tears in her eyes.

“What did he have over you?”

She fiddles with her fingers. “He was going to remove Jimmie from my team. I love him.”

“You know, you really have a funny way of showing it.”

“I don’t have to show anything to you,” she snaps, tears now gone.

I watch her mannerisms as she talks, looking for any indication of a lie she could be spouting to me. I know this room has cameras, and I can guarantee Davis will watch this back, checking for the same thing as me.

“So, how did you get pregnant with Jimmie’s baby?” I ask “Because not only is my pregnancy a miracle, but it turns out so are yours and Blayne’s. Sinclair and Summer—it’s possible they had an accident, but something tells me it’s not.”

She sighs. “Do you promise that if I talk, they won’t kill me?”

Honestly, I expected a harder fight; she is either stupid or also playing the game.

“I promise.”

Holding my hands under the desk, I cross my fingers. It might be childish, but Chester and Laughn are unpredictable when it comes to me. So I will do everything in my power to protect her—for now.

“Fine, Mr Z called me into his office one day and gave all these threats. But in the end, he asked if I wanted to join a project he was currently working on. It’s called Project Athena—I will have all the files sent over to Chester. The idea was to create two siblings more powerful than Team Hades and Team Zeus combined.”

“How is that even possible?”

“By combining all your DNA. He told me he has combined yours with each team to create super babies. Whatever that means. I really don’t know much about the technical aspect of it all, but I have everything you need.”

“How did he get everyone pregnant at the same time?”

“I asked the same question. He told me that with the advancements at Olympia, it was as simple as an injection twenty-four hours before embryo transfer. This was in the works since you first arrived back. Summer, Blayne, and Sinclair would each have had a doctor visit. He had it all planned. It’s not unusual for us to go into Olympia and walk out with partial memory loss. It was all part of his control.”

“And the guys’ sperm?”

“They all willingly give up samples—they have for years. Mr Z always bragged about his super teams. Everyone would have killed to be part of that. I was even willing to give up my morals to have a child be a part of a super team like yours.”

“So, are your babies all super babies?”

She is shaking her head no before I even finish asking my question.

“He wanted to create a new style of team. It was becoming too hard for him to manage so many handlers at once. So, he wanted to create a new dynamic. His super siblings—more powerful than anyone else in Olympia. Then the rest of their team would be just like your teams are now.”

“This is a lot,” I say, leaning my head in my hands.

“I know who the fathers of their babies are. He made me choose.”

I look up at her in partial shock and partial disbelief. “Why?”

She shrugs. “Why did he do anything?”

“Well, then you should tell them. Let’s go.”

“Is it safe for me?” she whispers, and I nod.

“I gave you my word. Don’t try to stall any more than you have already. Let’s go.”

When I open the door, Laughn is standing there waiting for me. He raises a brow in a silent question as Betty walks out behind me. “Don’t start with me, Laughn Taylor. Just be our shield until I gather everyone.”

He nods, and we head back to the main part of the house.

Everyone has congregated outside and is talking in groups. I notice Summer and Blayne’s teams are now here. As I walk outside and onto the patio, everyone goes silent.

“We all need to talk. But listen very carefully to what I have to say. No one, and I mean no one , is to lay a finger on Betty. She was following orders.”

“Are you fucking kidding me?” Khale shouts. Well, I guess Summer filled her team in about what is going on.

“Everyone has fucked up by following orders. Summer and Colt—you played a part in the test zone that was supposed to kill Team Hades. Not doing as you’re ordered has consequences, and everyone knows that. I’m in charge now, and unless I say so, no one touches her.”

I hate having to pull rank before I have even officially stepped foot in the role, but right now, we need her. We have to make sure she isn’t hiding anything else, and one thing I have learnt over time is to keep your friends close and your enemies closer.

I give Betty a nod to explain what she just told me. Everyone’s gaze moves to her, and they listen with rapt attention as she repeats the details that she told me in the conference room.

“So, if you want to know who the father of your baby is, I can tell you. He made me choose. If you don’t want to know, I will respect that and not tell anyone else,” Betty finishes.

“I want to know,” Sinclair pipes up before anyone gets a chance to say anything.

“Sinclair, I picked Colt.”

“And what about me?” Blayne blurts.

“Van,” Betty says.

We all look at Summer, and she looks at her guys.

“It’s up to you. We will support whatever decision you make,” I say gently.

“I want to know,” Summer says in barely a whisper.

“It’s Khale.”

“Why the fuck would you pick him?” Leland yells.

I look between him and Khale, but Khale just shrugs, like Leland’s comment is valid.

“Because I had to create a fucking team. He gave me an hour or Jimmie died! Think about it, you have a female and male with super abilities, but our sons’ jobs will be to love her and protect her. Jimmie is sweet and caring, Colt is funny and loyal, Van is dark and broody, and Khale is vicious and protective. I created a team that has everything a girl will need. So, while you all hate me, and rightfully so, I did my best with the options I was given. I could have told someone, but what guarantee was there that Jimmie would be safe? I had to put my team first, and if none of you can understand that, then that’s your problem.”

I try to step up and disperse the chaos and tension. “This has been a hectic few days. I think everyone needs to go home and rest. Once we have more information, I promise you I will be in contact. I need time to figure out what staff we have left and who we need to replace. If you need anything, just call me.”

People leave and the house slowly empties. Laughn takes Betty down to the rest of her team while we decide what to do with her.

Walking inside the house, I find Jimmie seated at the table. “Are you okay?” I ask, placing my hand on his shoulder. He lets out a sigh of defeat and shakes his head.

“I can’t be a dad. Jolie, I’m still a virgin and I don’t even know if I like women. I have been in love with Khoda for years, but he hates my existence. The others always take his side. Now a baby will be involved—this is a mess.”

“I know, and I’m sorry you have been dragged into this.”

“Don’t be. If I had to have a child, I’m honoured he will be part of your daughter’s team. What do I know about having a baby?”

“About as much as I do,” Betty says.

Both Jimmie and I turn to see Betty standing in the entrance. “I asked Laughn to let me talk to Jimmie.”

I nod. “You can go to the spare room and talk, but the rest of your team stays locked up. They won’t go unpunished for what they did to Jimmie.”

“I never wanted that to happen. I feel terrible,” she says, sounding genuine.

“So you should,” I say before opening the door that leads up to my room.

I need sleep, having hit mental exhaustion from all the information I have found out. On top of all the other shit, we still have finals to think about.