Heightened: The Federation Series (23 page)

“I have to go,” I say. “I can’t see him.”

“He’s locked up,” Max says.

“What?” I say.

“He knows this guy,” Max says. “He had himself reset. He erased you completely from his memory.”

“I see,” I lean against the wall, my mind in twisting in a million directions. “He thinks I’m hiding something from him.”

“You are,” he says.

“Why would he do that?” I say.

“It was too much for him,” Max says. “He couldn’t stop thinking about you. You don’t belong to him; you never did.”

“I don’t know if that’s true,” I say. “Some of the things I remember, that I dream…I think there’s more to us.”

“Well it’s over for him,” Max says. “Let him move on.”

“I love him,” I say. “I don’t know why but I do. I’ve only known him for a short time, but there’s something about him.”

“You have to forget,” Max says, “for him.”

“I don’t want to, please don’t ask me to,” I say. “I have nothing, but I will promise to leave him alone. I won’t try and be a part of his life. After the way he acted today; I don’t think that will be a problem. He hates me.”

“He’s just trying to do his job,” Max says.

“Adam can’t find out about this,” I say. “He may not love me but, he will protect his name and if that means hurting Quinn…he won’t think twice about it.”

“I’ll take care of it,” Max says.

“I need to know he’ll be okay,” I say. “Please promise me.”

“I will keep an eye on him,” Max says. “Go home and rest.”

I leave the station and head back to my apartment. I take off my coat and head into the kitchen. I open the fridge and stop dead. There is a picture of Mandy in the park. It must have been taken right before they killed her.

I close the fridge, grab my bag and go to leave. I know exactly where I’m going, but I have no idea what I’m going to do once I get there.

I open my door, and Adam is standing in the hall. He doesn’t look happy. He pushes me back into the apartment. I slam into the hall table, knocking over a glass vase. I hear it shatter as it hits the floor.

He grabs me by my hair and drags me into the living room. I push against his hands, but he is too strong. He releases me.

“I told you to stay away from him,” the first blow hits me right across my left cheek. I fall onto the couch. He grabs my shirt and whips me around.

I kick at him with my good foot. He knocks me over, and I land hard on the floor. I can feel my face swell.

“Why did you talk to him,” he is shouting at me. “I trusted you.”

“I didn’t…” he grabs my face.

“Liar!”

I reach up and scratch his face. He lets me go, and I scramble on my hands and knees, for the door. I make it into the hallway. I forgot about the glass; I slip in the spilled water and slice my hand on a shard.

He grabs me and drags me back into the living room. He knocks the table over, and my paperwork spreads across the floor. He kicks me in the side.

I can’t breathe. I try, but my lungs struggle. I gasp and choke on my tears. I can taste the salt and the blood.

He’s quiet. I don’t open my eyes to look. I just hope that he leaves. Then I can feel him. He’s next to me. His hand wipes my face. My entire body is trembling.

I can feel his lips on mine. He cradles my face in his hands. I can’t stop sobbing.

“I’m sorry,” he says. “Stop crying.”

I can’t. All I can think about is my orchard. I want to go home. I know that I will never see my trees again. I will never dream of Quinn again. I am lost. I just want to go home.

“Stop crying,” his hand covers my mouth.

I open my eyes. I wish I hadn’t. He is looking at me. His eyes are wild, and I don’t recognize him.

“I said stop crying!”

I hold my breath. I wipe my eyes with my hands. I see the blood, the cut. I focus on my breathing; in, out, in, out.

He kisses me again. “I love you.”

I don’t say anything.

“If you see him again, if you talk to him, if you mention his name or even think about him,” he snarls. “I will kill him.”

He stands up and walks out of the apartment. He doesn’t even close the door. I wait. I’m afraid to move.

I know what I have to do. I leave.

              It’s raining again. I look up at the sky. I wish I could see the stars. I let the rain wash my wounds.

I take the shuttle to the part of the city that we traveled to the other night. The night Quinn killed Marcus. I exit the shuttle and head into the bar. I walk to the back. No one stops me. I take the elevator to the bottom and step out into the hall.

It’s early, and the club is not filled. I walk to the bar and ask to see Marcus. I know he’s dead, but I figured it would be the best way to get someone’s attention. The bartender looks at me, blankly. He walks out back and returns with a familiar face; the man from the bench at the Galleria.

“What do you want?” he looks at me, “What the Hell happened to you?”

“I want to talk to your boss,” I say. “I have an offer for him.”

He laughs. “You got guts.”

He leads me into the back of the bar to an elevator. It goes down. I’m silent. I make careful note of each turn and doorway I go through. I want to be able to make it out of here on my own if needed. My eye is throbbing; I can hardly see out of it. I gently touch my face. I can feel dried blood on my cheek.

I stand in a room, alone. The man went into the next room. I wait. He returns with a concerned look on his face.

“He said, he’d see you,” I follow him into the room.

A man sits behind a desk. He is a handsome man; tall with dark skin and dark hair. His face looks gentle and kind, which I find amusing.

“You’re smiling?” he says. “What’s so amusing?”

“You are not what I expected,” I say.

He smiles, “I take it, you like what you see?”

“Surprised,” I say.

“Well, let me assure you,” he says, “looks can be deceiving.”

“I hope so,” I say, “because I’m looking for a killer, not a teddy bear.”

He raises his eyebrow, and he smiles, “What can I do for you?”

“I owe you a debt,” I say. “I want to repay it.”

“I’m not interested in sex,” he says.

“Neither am I,” I say. “My fiancé is having an affair. She loves him, I can tell. If it’s information about him and his father that you are looking for, she is the one to ask. She will do anything to protect him, and she has all the codes to the house.”

“Really?” his face turns serious. “Why should I believe you?”

“Because I’m leaving,” I say. “I don’t plan on returning, and I want to square up all my debts and because I have a favor to ask you.”

“And what would that be?” he asks.

“I want you to kill him,” I say.

“Murder, has a high price tag,” he says. “What can you give me?”

“I don’t have anything,” I say, “just her name.”

“Ah, but that is where you are wrong,” he says.

“You are worth more than you think,” he smiles.

“I don’t understand,” I say.

“Okay, I’ll play your game,” he says. “But I don’t think you’ll be leaving anytime soon.”

I look at him. He’s smiling, and I know exactly what he’s thinking.

“I’m willing to bet Benson will pay a hefty ransom to retrieve you from my clutches.”

“I don’t want to go back to him,” I say. “I’d rather be banished.”

He laughs, “I love that you think you can negotiate with me.”

“I’m not negotiating,” I say.

“What causes a beautiful, well to do lady to turn to a life of crime?” he asks. “Who beat you up, Benson?”

“Yes,” I say.

“I’ll tell you what,” he says, “I’ll let you kill him, and then I will let you leave. But I want the codes, the money, and you are going to stay here with me until I get them.”

“I’m broken,” I say; my voice is quiet. “It won’t be too much longer before they find out about me and then I’m done.”

“So what are you suggesting?” he asks, “you want to join forces with me?”

“No, I just want the last few people that I care about to be safe,” I say, “and if that means I work for you, then so be it.”

“I killed your friend,” he says. “I will kill the rest of them if need be.”

“Then you’ll never get what you want,” I say. “Why do you want the codes?”

“It’s none of your business,” He gets up and walks over to me.

He’s standing right in front of me. I can feel his heat. He is even more handsome up close. His hand slips across my lower back, and he draws me to him. He looks at my eye.

“You won’t want to leave,” he says. He brushes my hair away from my face. “Why would anyone want to harm you?”

I look at the monitor. Max went home hours ago, and I decided to check out the footage to the room the girl was in. I find the footage of when she was alone with Max.

I lean back and just stare. Her words keep replaying over and over again in my mind: she loves me. Who is she? Why would I have chosen to forget her? Max said I couldn’t stop thinking about her, that it was too painful?

I almost killed her, this woman that loves me. I look at the footage again. I can see the fear in her eyes, but there is something else too. Sorrow, forgiveness; I’m not sure, but it chills me to the core. I decide to go to her apartment. I need to talk to her.

It is 2 o’clock in the morning, and the halls are dark. I stand at her door. I think about knocking, but I know she won’t let me in. I lean my ear to the door and listen. It moves. The door is not latched. Why would she leave her door opened? I pull my gun and slowly push it open.

I step in, and the whole place is dark. I creep through the hall. I stop; something crunches under my feet. I walk into the living area and look around. I head to the bedroom. The bed is made. I go back and check the bathroom and the kitchen. She’s not here. I turn on the kitchen light.

The fridge door is ajar. I walk over and look inside. I see a picture of Mandy and below it is written: Grace, Pam, and Quinn.

I close the door and walk back into the living room. I turn on the light. The room is a mess. The couch is pushed sideways; the table is knocked over, and there are papers everywhere. I look in the hall. There is a glass, water, and blood. My heart sinks.

“What the Hell happened?”

“Emma!” I hear myself speak, but I don’t recognize my voice; it is shaky and full of fear.

I look all over for any clue to where she could be, or what happened to her. I see a notepad on the desk. There is a pen on top of it. I pick it up and look. I can see the imprints of words. I can’t make out all of them, but I can read Dear Quinn.

Then I remember seeing something poking out from under the pillow on the bed, I run in and grab it. I read it, and it explains; about the man, Mandy, how Adam is having an affair, how he hurts her and her plan to fix it. But it is the last part that shatters me; it’s written to me. She tells me that she is sorry, that she loves me, and that she can’t live knowing she is putting me in danger.

I drop the letter.

I can’t think. My mind is infused with pain, fear, and regret. For a moment I don’t know what to do; I can’t move. My heartbeat and breaths are all I can hear, echoing against my skull, in a thundering, explosion of panic.

I call Max. I can’t talk at first. I need to focus. I need to think.

“Quinn?” his voice sounds muffled, under my breathing. “Are you there…Quinn?”

“Something’s happened,” I mutter.

“Where are you?” I can sense fear in his voice.

“Emma.”

“What did you do?” he says. “Where are you?”

“Here…it’s a mess,” I say, “blood. Her place; I’m at her place.”

“Is she okay?” panic replaces the fear in his voice. “I’m on my way.”

“I know I promised to leave her alone,” I say, “but I had to find out.”

“What did you do?” He says. “Is she alive?”

“I don’t know,” I hang up the phone and leave everything for him to find.

My only clue is that she recognized the man at the Galleria from the other night. I head to the club. I have no idea what I will find, but I have to try and stop her.

I slip right in, unnoticed. It’s busy, and they aren’t expecting anyone to try and break in. I head to the lower levels. I don’t know where to look, but I follow a few men to an office area. I’m watching. And then I see her.

She’s with a man. I recognize him immediately; he’s Anthony Benson, and he’s been missing for two years. I graduated with him. Rumors are that his system failed, and he was deprogrammed and sent out into the wastelands.

It all makes sense. She was always the target. She was his way to hurt the family that turned their backs on him. I wait until they turn the corner and then I set off after them. I peer around and am met with the butt end of a rifle. I hit the floor hard, and everything goes black.