The Cure (34 page)

“Laurence told me before he died. Why didn’t you tell me?”

He remained quiet for several more violent lurches of the Pinz, which seemed to last forever. Finally, the words came. “I didn’t want to come between you and your father.”

Anger flared in my chest—not a reaction I expected. “What about you? What about when I was growing up? You missed out on everything. Was it just a duty? Building one more Unbounded for the Renegades?”

He shook his head, his free hand going to my knee. “Oh, Erin, it’s not like that.”

“No? You’ve lived so long and had so many children. I guess one more really doesn’t make a difference.” It was still hard for me to understand. I hadn’t missed him growing up. The man I’d believed to be my father had always been there, but it hurt now that Dimitri hadn’t
wanted
to be at my milestones.

Dimitri drew his hand away from Cort. There wasn’t room for him on the bench next to me because of Mari’s feet, but he turned fully toward me, squatting on the floor, his back forming a barrier between us and the rest of the group, though none of them could possibly hear us over the engine, not even Mari.

“Of course I wanted to be a part of your life, but I knew it would only confuse you. Who would I have been? The odd man next door? A male teacher with a questionable attachment to a female student? Your parents didn’t know me, and I couldn’t be there in any real way for you. Your parents deserved to have you to themselves the way they planned without an uninvited sperm donor appearing on their doorstep. Remember, they still believe the clinic used your father’s sperm, though he would never have been able to father another child. He was lucky to get Chris.”

“So if I hadn’t Changed, I would never have known the truth?”

“You would have been better off.” He took my hand in his. “Still, I kept track of you, as did Ava. Of course I hoped that we’d have . . . more. Look, I may have been absent in your youth, but think of it this way. I’m the one who gets to spend my remaining thousand years at your side. I’m the one who will be here to put your pieces back together when you need me, and together we’re going to make the world safer for mortals and Unbounded. Your mortal father won’t have that chance. He’ll never know the depths of the relationship we’ll have. He’ll never understand your true abilities. It was only fair to give him the first part of your life. Can you understand that?”

Strangely enough I could. Once again I felt slapped with the notion of our near immortality. Like Ritter had said, I was still thinking like a mortal. “I don’t know if I could do it. Give up a child even if it was for their own good.”

He nodded, his expression grave. “I was raised in an era where people took care of their children. They were faithful to their spouses and families. They believed in God and consequences. I’ve lived long enough to know that children who have two parents who live together and love each other are very lucky. I would never have taken that away from you, regardless of the cost to myself.”

There was a slight hollowness in his voice that I hadn’t noticed before. Tentatively, I reached out and felt for his emotions, surprised that he’d also dropped his barriers enough to reveal his surface emotions. I felt love, friendship, eagerness, and yes, duty, all rolled into one. But clearest of all was hope for a close relationship in the future.

Moments passed, while neither of us spoke or moved.

The Pinz rolled to a stop, and Ritter edged toward us through the piles of supplies, carrying one of the remaining containers of gasoline. If he thought it odd to see Dimitri crouching near me, he didn’t mention it. He stepped around Dimitri, reaching for the rocket launcher.

Mari stretched on the bench. “I’m three minutes late.”

“He’ll wait,” I said. “But you need to come right back. Tom’s looking for you. He won’t be above shooting and drugging you. He’s good with drugs.” The words came without bitterness, which surprised me. I felt sorry for Tom.

“See if Keene can follow Tom, or knows where he is,” Ritter added. “If we can get to Justine before she finishes the drug, it will simplify things.”

Mari nodded. “Okay. I’ll shift from outside. I want to make sure I get my bearings, so I can get back.”

“Wait.” Ritter held up a hand. “Erin, is anyone nearby?”

“No.” I jumped out to the ground, wincing at the jolt. Ritter swung himself down next to me, followed by Dimitri who reached up to help Mari from the Pinz.

Mari looked around. “It’s so peaceful here.” Jace had found a wider road—or at least a path with less vegetation than the trail we’d been using before—and Mari was right. The area did feel peaceful, and not as if the jungle would take it back at any second.

The next second I felt that brief suction and she was gone. She didn’t fade away or open any door. One moment she was there, and the next she wasn’t. The memory of her exultant smile stayed with me, though.

“How are your ribs?” Ritter asked. “Do you need Dimitri to look at you?”

“I’m okay.”

He nodded. “I’m going to put in the last two cans of gas. We’ll have to find more soon.”

Jace walked toward us, lifting and stretching first one leg and then the other. “How long do we give her?”

“Until she comes back.” Ritter said.

Jace nodded and didn’t ask what we’d do if she didn’t return. He retraced his steps to the front of the Pinz, exuding disappointment and frustration. I hurried after him. “What’s wrong?”

He turned to me, the emotions abruptly vanishing. “Maybe we should have fought them. I
hate
letting them go. We could have taken them.” His hands clenched at his sides. “I don’t know why Ritter wouldn’t let us. Look what they did to you and Cort.”

“Maybe we could have beaten them, but this isn’t about revenge right now. And it’s definitely not a game. There are more important things at stake. We need to think of those children. Living to fight another day is the Renegade motto.”

“Well, maybe I’m sick of that motto!”

I laughed. “That’s your genes talking. Your genes urge you to fight as though you really are immortal, but they don’t know anything about the Emporium and their methods. You have to control your lust for revenge. ”

“Oh, like Ritter does that? We all know he’s a bloodthirsty bastard.”

“Yeah, but he didn’t risk the mission going after them, did he?”

Jace sighed. “I know it was the right thing to do. But it just . . . bites.”

“Maybe. But you’ve battled enough already to know that it’s not all glory. Remember the Hunters in the trailer? Don’t think I didn’t notice your reaction. Murder like that is common with the Emporium, and you’ll have to get used to it or you might find throwing up gives someone the opportunity to cut you in three.”

“That’s different.” His face paled. “Those men were unconscious, and they were killed in cold blood. It’s not the same as fighting a man who’s trying to kill you.”

“All dead men look the same once they stop moving. Just don’t be so anxious to fight, okay?”

“I can’t. Like you said, it’s in my genes. I
need
to fight and protect. And you have to stop looking at me like your kid brother. You have to trust my ability.” His eyes challenged mine, and I knew he was right. I had to stop treating him like a boy who couldn’t handle himself.

I nodded. “You’re right.”

Even as his expression relaxed, a shout called our attention. “She’s back!”

We hurried over to where Mari stood in the same place she’d left. “That was fast,” I said.

“He was waiting for me.” Her bright tone was a little forced. “Look, he found out something. It’s not just the senator who’s going to be at that celebration this afternoon. Remember the senator’s sister, the bigwig at the FDA? Well, she just arrived at the hotel. Apparently, she donated some money to a charity and won a trip to Cancun so she was close anyway, and since she was also involved in raising money for the school—and immunizations and medicines for the children—they’re going to honor her, too.”

“No,” I groaned.

“It’s a set up,” Ritter said.

Dimitri nodded. “It’s no coincidence, that’s for sure. Looks like the Emporium has been planning this a long time.”

“Hey, where do I sign up?” Jace snarled. “Donate money and get a trip? Wasn’t she suspicious?”

“Happens all the time,” Dimitri said. “A perk to encourage donations from the wealthy.”

I put a hand on my brother’s arm. His emotions were pinging around again, threatening to overwhelm me with eagerness and anger. An odd combination but understandable given the context. “Regardless of whether or not Justine finishes that drug, they won’t be able to pass up a chance to take out both a problematic senator and a deputy commissioner at the FDA. As I understand it from Keene, she’s one of the few at the FDA who are interested in approving real cures. With her dead, the Emporium won’t have to worry about her lowering their drug profits.”

“No doubt they have their own operative ready to step in and fill her shoes,” Mari said. “Well, at least that’s what Keene says. Anyway, he wants us to meet him at a hotel near the ruins. I have the name on this paper.” She waved it with a grin. “This is positively the most thrilling thing that has happened to me in my entire life. Is it always like this?”

I thought of the months I’d spent going to Mari’s work, keeping an eye on her, when only our daily workouts and reading kept me sane. Had I ever been so eager and naive? “Sure,” I said. “But you get used to it.” Dimitri laughed and even Ritter cracked a smile.

“Let’s get going.” Ritter motioned toward the Pinz.

“Wait a minute,” Mari said. “Where’s Benito? I thought he was in the front with Jace.”

Everyone looked away, leaving me to answer. “They still have him.” At her dismayed response, I added, “It gets worse. Justine said something about him being the star of her show. I believe she means to use him as the shooter.”

Mari sucked in a breath. “But that means . . .”

I nodded. “We may have to kill him.”

W
E WERE ALL SILENT AS
Jace drove on, finally discovering a paved road lined not by jungle foliage but by fields. How could I live with myself if we had to kill Benito? He was my responsibility, and I’d failed him.

Stupid man should have escaped into the jungle when I gave him the chance.
The thought only made me feel worse. I wondered about his mother in Dallas and if she had any other children.

I wasn’t the only one agitated. Ritter kept pacing from one end of the Pinz to the other, searching for any sign of danger. It almost made me crazy, but I knew for him it was a necessary release. No wonder he took off between operations. No wonder that when he
was
around, he trained everyone until they hoped he’d leave.

Except for me. I’d never wanted him to leave.

On the bench, Cort gave a sudden gasp as he started breathing again. Dimitri checked his pulse. “Looks like he’s back. Should be regaining consciousness soon.”

As if on cue, Cort moaned. “Feels like those vampire hunters all over again.”

Ritter laughed. “Welcome back, buddy.”

We arrived near the hotel rendezvous in slightly over an hour, leaving the Pinz hidden in some trees half a mile away. Cort insisted on walking, though it was clear he labored with every step. No one mentioned his struggle, though Dimitri put an arm around him to lend support. Given the pain etched on Cort’s face, Dimitri’s healing touch was the only thing allowing him to continue.

The hotel was small and clean, and no one looked at us oddly when we entered. With the duffels of supplies we carried, maybe we looked just like tourists, despite our layer of grime. Keene met us inside the lobby and ushered us to a small room where Jace began pacing, as Keene, Ritter, Dimitri, and Mari crowded around the table to plan. I joined them after making Cort lie down on one of the queen beds.

“I’ve been searching all day, but I haven’t found any sign of Justine or her crew,” Keene said. “I had track of Tom for a while, but lost him in the excitement when the senator’s sister arrived. I’ve been to most of the nearby hotels and bribed every employee I could find, but not one of them has contacted me. Bottom line is that we’re running out of time. We have less than an hour and a half before the celebration.”

“Justine used a hut at some village to mix the drug,” Jace stopped pacing long enough to say. “Maybe she’s got another place like that lined up. It’d have to be closer, though.”

Ritter scowled. “There are hundreds of small villages, and even if we narrowed it down to the closest ones, we won’t be able to find her in time. And she’ll need to be in place early anyway.”

“So maybe we need to focus on mitigating damages.” No one wanted to say it, so I did. “But if she uses Benito like I think she’s planning, I’m hoping we can secure him without killing him . . . it’s not his fault.”

Ritter’s touch on my waist was gentle. “That’s probably not going to be possible. I’m sorry.”

The others nodded, while Mari whispered, “That poor man.”

They were right, but it didn’t make it easier. “Just remember he’s one of the innocent victims we’re trying to save today.” They already knew, and I didn’t feel any better saying it.