The Anomaly Project

CHAPTER THIRTY-FOUR

AUTUMN

Forrester cracks his knuckles and stares down at me, a malicious grin spreading across his face. "You made a wise decision," he says. "It's quite—"

"How about we skip ahead to the part where you give me back my powers?" I suggest, speaking over him. "I mean, that is why you wanted me to work for you, right?"

He tilts his head to the side, surveying me. "You didn't think you'd be receiving your powers immediately? No, my dear, I'm sure you are aware that that would be idiotic on my part. You will receive your abilities when I have use for them." He nods the guard behind me – Mark Wade, aka Big Nose. "Take her."

"Take me?" I repeat. "Take me where?"

Predictably, I don't get an answer. Wade starts to drag me away, but I shout, "Wait!", and he pauses. I fix my eyes on Forrester. "I agreed to work for you. So you have to keep your word, or I won't cooperate. Is Todd safe?"

"Todd Anders is no longer your concern," Forrester replies with a dismissive wave of his hand. "He has been released, and beyond that, I have no further interest in him."

I hesitate, unsure whether or not to believe him. "How do I know you're telling the truth?"

Forrester smirks. "Oh, my dear," he says with a sardonic, twisting grin. "That's the beauty of it. You don't."

With that, Wade starts to pull me off down the hall. Forrester turns his back and enters another room, disappearing from view.

"So are you cramming me into a cage with some others, like before?" I ask. "Or am I so special that I get a cell all to myself this time?"

Wade's grip tightens. "Shut up and walk."

I ignore him. "What kind of stuff are you guys going to want me to do for you, now that I'm working here? I'm probably going to be fighting some battles, right? We all know how good I am at fighting."

His face twists in anger at the reminder of how Noah and I both completely wrecked him when we were here the first time. Satisfaction washes over me at his reaction, and I can't resist another jab. "Why don't we go again? Just you and me."

Wade remains silent. I keep pushing, determined to get a rise out of him. "Come on, I don't even have my powers right now. I'm almost down to your fighting level. There's like, a 0.001 percent chance that you can beat me now. You—"

Wade's fist smashes into my cheek, stopping my words. He grabs my collar and shoves his face into mine. "Say another word," he snarls, "and I'll kill you right here. I swear I will."

I laugh in his face. "I would love to see you try."

He punches me again, this time square in the nose. It jolts me back to how he punched Todd when he was in that chair, the way he tortured him...

I push away the image. The memory hurts more than his fist.

Wade clenches a hand around my throat. "You little—"

"Are you sure you want to finish that sentence?" My voice is low and threatening. His grip intensifies, cutting off my air supply, choking me. I stare hard at him, almost wishing he would just do it.

A guard bursts into the hall, wielding a gun. "Release her, Wade!" he shouts. "The Director wants her to live."

Wade doesn't move. He doesn't take his eyes from mine. His are dark brown, narrowed in rage.

The guard cocks his gun. "Wade," he says in a warning tone. "Release her."

His eyes harden, and for a second I think he's actually going to kill me. I'm making this disgustingly pathetic choking noise in the back of my throat, and my fists are clenched. Even when I accept death, my body still fights back against it.