Page 11

Chapter eleven

Raegan

The room they’re keeping Harvey in looks like an unused office with the desk and chair shoved in a corner and metal bars running from floor to ceiling a few steps in.

There’s a space wide enough at the bottom for a tray of food to fit, as evidenced by the one on his side of the bars with a partially eaten sandwich and a bottle of water.

The five of us enter the room one at a time, and with Cibrina already standing as far to the right as she can against the desk, we fill whatever space remains.

Dane presses something smooth into my hand.

“Here,” he murmurs, turning his head to not draw attention to us.

“Since my homemade pasta will have to wait, you at least need to eat something.”

Nodding, I smile, bending my neck to see what treat he brought for me.

A protein bar.

It’s probably the best option he could have grabbed on short notice, especially if we need to prepare for an attack.

The last thing I want is to pass out from lack of food or energy.

I tear it open as quietly as I can, but all of them eye me regardless.

Then Dane opens one for himself with a smirk, and I realize he’d let me go first on purpose.

“Asshole,” I mouth to him with a smirk and bite through the thick bar.

“Harvey,” Aiden begins when the blond-haired, blue-eyed Guild member stares intently at his sandwich, refusing to acknowledge us.

“Tell me about the attack. How much time do we have, and where will it happen? Here, at the Tower?”

The corner of Harvey’s lips twitch, and then he gradually disappears, like an invisible shroud unfurling over him from his head to his toes.

“Being invisible doesn’t help you escape,” Kellan growls, his hand wrapping around one of the bars.

The sandwich lifts before it, too, vanishes.

Aiden’s brows are pinched as he concentrates on the now empty space of his makeshift cell.

“Was everything a lie, then? You pretended to have trouble hiding yourself completely to, what? To trick me into underestimating you?”

I remember when I’d first met him, how Aiden had caught him “stealing” his phone.

From the way Aiden’s scanning the rest of the room, I can tell he has no idea where he is now.

“What are you going to do with me?” Harvey’s voice sounds from the far right, near Cibrina.

“That depends on your willingness to cooperate,” Aiden answers, his voice a soothing croon.

“And if I don’t? ”

Jackson twirls a knife.

The motion on its own is benign, but knowing him and what he’s capable of, it’s a clear threat.

I’m so focused on him, expecting him to act first, that I startle when Kellan’s fist slams into the metal bar.

“Damn you!” he snarls viciously.

“You killed Claudia. I could rip your spine from your body for that alone!”

The air in the back corner shudders.

Harvey’s voice drops low, his tone grave.

“I didn’t kill her.”

“Maybe you didn’t hold the knife to her throat, but she died because of your betrayal,” Kell rumbles.

“Her blood is on your hands.”

Harvey chuckles softly, and I stiffen at the callous response.

The mood in the room immediately shifts, the taste of violence flavoring the air.

He reappears in the center of his cage, his head thrown back and tears streaming down his face.

“My betrayal, huh?” His voice is soft, if a little choked.

“I wonder if it can be called that…if I came from the other side to begin with. If my talking to you isn’t the betrayal that’ll cost me more.”

Aiden steps up to the bars.

“Tell us everything, Harvey. I can’t promise you what retribution the Guild will seek yet, but we will protect you from GE at the very least.”

He laughs again, this one strangled, before he lowers his face and meets Aiden’s gaze.

“You can’t protect me from him any more than you can protect the Guild. Or him.” He points to Dane.

“Or…” His crystal blue eyes find mine.

“…her.” He adds, “The one that got away.”

I hold his stare.

Something about it, about him, is tugging at my gut .

His blue eyes.

Not everyone with blue eyes is related to that man, but…

what if…

“Are you his son?”

Harvey smirks, though it doesn’t reach the sadness still clouding his gaze.

He bows mockingly. “That’s correct. I knew you were the smart one. But then, maybe we both get it from our father.”

Dane curses.

“I’m going to have a serious issue meeting anyone with blue eyes from now on.”

“Well, there are many of us, so no one should fault you for it.” Harvey bends to retrieve the bottled water.

The cap snaps when it opens, and he takes several swallows.

His expression evens out as if he’s swallowing the turbulent emotions with every gulp.

He clicks his tongue when he finishes, screwing the cap back on and tossing the empty bottle to the floor.

“Screw it. I hate that bastard. I’ll tell you everything on one condition.”

“What is it?” Aiden asks.

“You have to save my siblings.”

“Didn’t you just say there were a lot of you?” Dane demands.

Harvey shrugs. “Not all my half-siblings. I don’t even know how many of them there are. I’m only asking for my full-blooded siblings.”

Dane scoffs.

“Well, it sounds like you know about Raegan.” He pauses.

“Wait. Did you and Reid know about each other this whole fucking time?!”

“Who? Oh, the teleporting guy? He’s another one?”

“Alright, you’ve gotta be fucking lying now,” Dane growls.

“You can’t tell me you’ve been the Guild spy reporting to Daddy, and you didn’t know about his other son he was so familiar with.”

Harvey laughs softly and rubs the back of his neck.

“Oh, that’s exactly what I’m saying. Alright, story time.” He sits cross-legged on the floor and stretches his hands over his head.

“Ahhh, that’s better. Please, sit. Sit.” He waves at us to sit and join him, but none of us move.

He shrugs. “Guess it’s your choice to be uncomfortable.”

“Harvey,” Aiden warns.

“Get on with it.”

“Fine, fine.” He shifts one last time and clears his throat.

“A long time ago, a beautiful young girl—”

“—skip the details for now,” Aiden cuts in, and Harvey frowns.

“But those tragic details are what you need to really feel for me and what I’m going through.”

“I can listen to them later, Harvey,” Cibrina offers reassuringly.

“Just the cliff notes version for now.”

He nods, accepting it and hopefully keeping his story short this time.

“Mother was one of the first kids kidnapped and brainwashed by Dad back when he first started the company. Time jump until she’s older, and he takes a liking to her gift of turning objects invisible. So, what does the pervert do? He buys an island just for her, filled with everything she could ever ask for and servants to attend to her, and he convinces her to have his kids. And not just a couple. But as many as she could.”

My gut clenches, my stomach churning uneasily.

Was this what he tried with my mom?

No, she was still training to fight with GE.

“Anyway, about eight kids later, I was born. We were all raised on that island and isolated from the rest of the company. All fourteen of us were gifted, but only twelve had the ability to turn ourselves invisible. We were trained from childhood to become his personal spies. When not on that island, we were to be invisible unless specifically told not to be for an assignment.”

“What sort of assignments were you given?” Aiden questions.

Harvey chuckles. “Mostly, spying on his allies.” He rests an elbow on one knee and leans into his fist. “We would be assigned to monitor his Board. Or Board-elect members. Make sure there were no…ideas…floating about that he wouldn’t approve of.” He sighs.

“Anyway, back to keeping this short. Somehow, he heard about the Guild when Thorne first created it. He sent me to infiltrate it and report back to him on it—more of a wait-and-see assignment. Thorne almost found me out near the end, but you guys actually saved me on that when you killed him. Something else must have happened around that time with Gifted Enterprise because Dad stopped contacting me after that.”

He continues, “I didn’t know what to do when he stopped reaching out, but I was too scared to remind him I was here. And, surprise, surprise, I actually liked what you did with the Guild. I think he forgot all about it for a couple years. That is until you messed it up by getting involved with the Board-elect Congressman.”

“Joe?” I confirm, disgust coating my tone.

Harvey nods. “That’s the one. Whatever interaction you had with him, I can guarantee one of my siblings was there. And that’s how he found out about who you were and where to find you. Which brought him, and therefore my Dad, back to looking at the Guild.”

Fuck.

So, the night he’d been feeling me up and then Kellan and Aiden showed up, someone else had been there?

“He reached out to me again, but we’d moved to the bunker, and I tried to play it off that service was bad, and we were being kept down there. I accidentally mentioned you were looking for him. That was when he came up with his great plan of luring you to an island full of agents in disguise so he could come to see it for himself. I just had to slip in the tip of where to find him.”

“Why couldn’t he teleport here if you told him where it was?” Dane asks.

“He can’t teleport somewhere he hasn’t been before, or he can’t see from where he’s standing. That’s why I had to open the doors for them to get out to the rest of the bunker. But I swear…that’s all I did.”

“Tell that to the six kidnapped Guild members and Claudia,” Kellan growls.

I rub my hand over my face.

This is just…so much information to take in.

“Why did you call me ‘the one that got away’?”

Harvey smiles.

“Because, dear sister. Of all my half-siblings, you’re the only one I know about. Why? Because you got away from him. Somehow, your mother escaped with you, and after that, you were gone. Poof! And he was furious . I think he’d planned to try again with your mom, but then she…you know.”

I nod, not needing him to say it.

“I was amazed to hear that one of his kids actually escaped him. And not once, but twice. I think it burned his pride a bit, but you were a hero to the rest of us.”

“So then…all those times you offered to help me disappear…? ”

His smile falls.

“I meant it. Dad had his eye on the Guild again, so I knew you wouldn’t be safe here.”

Silence stretches through the room as I let that sink in.

Dane shoves his fingers through his hair, rubbing his hand back and forth.

“So, you need us to save thirteen people?”

“Ten,” Harvey corrects.

“Dad killed Erik and Desmond for failure and Wyra because he suspected she was going to betray him.”

Psycho bastard deserves the worst of deaths.

“And they’re most likely spying on Board members?” Aiden confirms slowly.

Harvey nods and adds, “Or electees.”

Aiden sighs, then looks to Cibrina, who’s already documenting everything with her gift.

“I’ll stay with him to get as many details on each of them and the Board members as possible,” she says.

“Good. We’ll meet in a few days to discuss it and start working on a plan.” Aiden swivels back to Harvey.

“Now, what attack were you referring to when you let it slip to Cibrina?”

“Oh, right. Dad made a comment about the Pits when I saw him. Must’ve learned about it from someone, so I thought you should know. Since a lot of them are outsiders and might not know about GE, they’re prime picks for him.”

Shit.

That’s the underground fighting ring Kellan took me to where people like us tested their gifts against others.

“Probably from Thorne by Royce,” Jackson comments.

Kellan swears. “Tonight’s a fight night. The fights will be starting soon, and it’ll be crowded. ”

Jackson cocks his head.

“If they’re going to attack, they’ll do it when they can grab the most people.”

“We’ll leave now, then. Invite them to join the Guild. We could use the fighters anyway,” Aiden reasons.

Kellan pushes off the bar he’d been gripping.

“Not everyone’s going to want to pack up and move to the Tower.”

“Either they move, or they stick around to possibly get kidnapped. They can make that choice after we warn them.” Aiden turns to the rest of us.

“We’ll all go for this one. Hopefully, we can convince them to leave before the attack, but we’ll be prepared for a fight if they do show up.”

“If they haven’t already,” Dane murmurs, and I hope that’s not the case.

The Pits beneath the Cactus Jacks bar is eight minutes away by car, but only two minutes as the bird flies.

Or, in this case, Jackson.

While the others head for the underground garage to drive, Jackson and I take the elevator to the top of the Tower and then the stairs to reach the roof.

The wind is strong tonight, or maybe just up here, because it pushes and pulls at me like it wants to send me over the edge.

I stand at the center of the roof, fighting to keep my balance as the breeze whips across it.

Jackson crouches with his back to me.

“Climb on. ”

Grabbing his shoulders, I hop on.

His arms wrap around my legs, cradling the backs of my knees before he stands.

As we near the edge, I press more closely against him and grip the front of his hoodie tightly.

We’re on one of the tallest buildings in the city.

While I can see a few other buildings at or around this height, most are many stories below us.

Jackson takes a step onto the small wall that perimeters the roof, and my stomach somersaults and spins at the height.

I bury my face into his hood, breathing in the comforting scent of dead leaves and wondering why I didn’t go for the car ride.

It fits four. I just didn’t want Jack to have to travel alone.

“Don’t be afraid,” Jackson says, his voice calm and cool.

“I would never let you fall.”

He’s right.

I have nothing to fear when he’s holding me, especially not from the wind.

I know it. But knowing that truth doesn’t stop the fear completely.

Lessens it, maybe, but it’s still there, crawling beneath my skin.

I force myself to look over his shoulder anyway.

“Let’s fly, little one.” He jumps off, and my heart catapults to my throat, lodging there as we fall.

Because that’s exactly what this is.

Falling.

The wind that tried to send me over the edge is now what slows our descent and carries us over buildings.

The sun, which was already hidden from the street, is still sinking below the horizon from up here, its reddish-orange fingers never losing their brilliance even while the blanket of darkness encroaches.

City lights begin to glow and shine as the day gives way to night, and it’s like seeing the stars in reverse, below me rather than overhead.

The view takes my breath away.

Buildings rise on either side of us as we fall faster, descending rapidly without warning.

I tighten my grip on his hoodie, but I don’t look away.

We land in a closed-off alley.

There’s a single light above the door to the only building that barely illuminates the area, doing more to feed the shadows than anything.

A man with long and shaggy black hair stands at the door, arms crossed.

As soon as we land, he has a walkie talkie to his mouth and he mutters something into it.

“Evening, Gregor,” Jackson greets, and the man shivers.

I slide from his back.

I’ve barely stepped up next to Jack before he tucks me into his side, his fingerless-gloved hand holding my opposite hip.

The man—Gregor—looks at me, and Jack’s arm around me tightens.

He flips a blade out, toying with it in one hand and then pointing it at him.

“Careful,” he warns huskily.

His voice is dark and threatening this time, and Gregor visibly swallows.

He eyes the knife, then Jackson, purposefully keeping his gaze from mine now.

What the hell?

“I let York know you’re here.”

Jackson nods, then guides us to the door without another word.

I wait until we’re inside before whispering to him, “Do you not like that guy?” I’m used to Jack keeping back and quiet when we’re around others, not actively threatening them.

At least, not people who are potential allies.

He smirks, and it’s a cold twist of his lips that I see only because he’s angled his face my way.

“I don’t like anyone when it comes to you. Aside from the others,” he adds about Aiden and the rest. “If you don’t want me to murder everyone in the room, stay by my side. No more disappearing.”

I frown.

“If it comes to a fight, I’m not hiding behind you like some damsel on your arm. I thought you understood that.”

“Fight whoever you want, little one. Just don’t go far, or else I’ll kill anyone standing between me and you. GE or not.”

Oh.

Well then.

We arrive at another guarded door, but this time, the guy there opens it for us without a word, his eyes staring holes into the floor.

I don’t comment on this one, just letting Jackson guide us down the stairs to the Pits.

A fight is already in progress in the large cage, with people cheering on their side from the standing tables covered in drinks and cash.

It’s not nearly as crowded as when Kellan had taken me here, but it’s still early.

Do we wait until the peak of the night to tell everyone?

Jackson brings us to one of the tables in the back, grabbing a stool from the nearby wall and setting it next to me.

I gratefully take the seat, then scan the crowd for familiar faces.

The kid I’d fought some months ago—Knight—is here.

York is standing to the side of the cage where he usually is, collecting bets and emceeing the gifted melee.

Jack nudges me, and I follow his gaze to the other three of our group walking down the stairs.

“Kell!” I shout, waving my hand in the air and standing on the bar toward the base of the stool for added height .

He’s already taller than most of the crowd and spots me easily, grinning and striding to our table with the others following behind.

“Any sign of GE?” Aiden asks, and Jack shakes his head.

“Good. Kell, let’s go chat with York to make our announcement.” He casts a look at Jackson, who nods, then shares another look with me and Dane.

“Stay here.”

Fuck’s sake.

Dane scoffs, rolling his eyes and folding his arms on the table.

Sighing, I lean on my hand and watch them leave.

As annoyed as I want to be with them for their overprotectiveness, I recall what Jackson said to me.

It’s not about whether they think we can fight or not, which is how I originally took it.

They’re still not over how fast Dane and I vanished on them.

I’m not even sure how I made it in time to grab Dane, and I’m so fucking grateful my reaction time was quick enough.

What might have happened if it had been only him?

Now you’re thinking like them.

The worst part was not having a healer immediately available for our injuries.

Cassandra’s injury is a stark reminder that we can’t rely on her for everything.

We need another healer.

Or a gifted person who’s also some sort of medic or doctor, at least.

“Aaaand Crusher takes the win!” York booms in the speakers.

“Everyone sit tight for a second. A good friend of mine has an announcement to make.”

He passes the mic to Aiden, who surveys the room while it takes a minute for everyone to quiet.

“I’ll make this short and to the point...You’re all in danger. ”

Murmurs spread through the crowd, raising in volume, while a few shout at him for interrupting their fun.

Dane turns on them, looking like he’s ready to say something, and I put my hand over his fist on the table.

“Let Aiden finish. If they don’t want to come, then it’s not on us to convince them.”

He frowns but doesn’t argue, flipping his hand around to capture mine and then nodding.

“You’re right.”

“A group called Gifted Enterprise is searching for individuals with special abilities, like all of us, to kidnap and brainwash to follow their orders. It has come to my attention that they’ve discovered this location, and it’s only a matter of time before they arrive. If you want to put your fighting skills to good use, then join us at the Guild. There will be a place to stay and onsite training. If you wish to hide or walk away from this place, then you’re welcome to that as well. But you can’t stay here.”

A voice rises from the room.

“And who says we can trust you?”

“Me.” Kellan steps forward from the shadows of the stage.

He widens his stance, crossing his arms and frowning at the crowd.

“I’ll be training anyone who joins us, but don’t expect anything easy. You’re going to fight to take down a group that’s been hurting people like us for a long time. It’s a fight worth having if you’ll join us.”

Seeing Kellan changes the mood of the room, and I can see more people nodding or with open expressions than those still disbelieving what’s being said.

York accepts the microphone back from Aiden.

“Unfortunately, folks, that means we’re done for the night and all nights until further notice. I’ll send a message out to anyone who’s not here. If you’re joining the fight, come to the stage for directions. Otherwise, have a good night and be safe!”

The room splits; those interested in fighting surging toward the stage while the rest linger behind at the tables.

“Hype is in danger, too,” I say in a hushed tone to Jack and Dane.

“GE may not know it’s a hot-spot for gifted, but it’s only a matter of time. We should at least warn them.”

Jackson hums softly, so I know he’s heard me, but he seems distracted by something.

Before I can ask him about it, shouts echo through the room.