they’re safe.”
I had the sinking feeling they weren’t.
We all looked up as Stella Davis, our technopath, came into the room, her neural headset blinking, indicating that she was linked to the computer network. Her flowered dress fluttered behind her, accentuating her curves. She was half Irish and half Japanese, with the Japanese side taking precedence in her long, dark hair and mysterious brown eyes. Her Unbounded confidence was enhanced by nanites that made slight changes in her face and body, resulting in a combination that made most men stare.
“What is it?” Ava asked, taking the words from my lips because Stella’s worry dripped from her surface emotions. “You locate the families?”
Stella came to a stop on the other side of Ava. I could barely detect the small mound of the baby boy growing inside her. He still had another five months before he was due to meet the world, but his life force was strong, and his thoughts radiated contentment.
“There’s still no sign of any of them,” Stella said with a frown. “The two families staying in DC have neighbors who say they were told the families were going back to their main residences, but they never arrived home. We’re tracing down rumors of vacations for the other two families, supposedly to Idaho and Kansas. So far I’ve come up with nothing—no credit card receipts, no phone transactions, no bank transfers. I’ll keep looking, but by the time I find them, it may be too late.”
Ava nodded. “What about our new Emporium captives?”
“I questioned them about Senator Ropte,” Stella said, “but every time I brought up Ropte, they froze.”
“They wouldn’t give you the information?” Ava’s eyes narrowed.
“Not that, exactly.” Stella blew out a breath of frustration. “They just seemed not to know anything. Except their reaction was odd, and I don’t know what to make of it.”
“Maybe they can’t tell us,” Ritter said.
I stood, grateful for anything that would take my mind off the slaughter Ava had shown us. “I didn’t see any blocks in their thoughts back in Texas, but let’s go find out.”
Ava rose to follow me, pausing in the doorway to speak to Stella. “Start delving further into Senator Ropte, and see if there’s a connection with the four families. Trace even the smallest lead. You should also monitor our progress with our prisoners. You might catch something we miss.”
Stella had already pulled up a dozen holograms that flickered like twelve separate computer screens suspended in midair. She likely had another twenty connections open that we couldn’t see. “I’ll contact Patrick Mann as well. He’s been hobnobbing with the rich and famous long enough to have heard something on Ropte. I could use his help tracing the information.”
“If you need me, I’ll help after I finish with the questioning,” I told her. I couldn’t approach Stella or Patrick’s agility with computers, even when I channeled Stella’s ability, but every second counted.
OUTSIDE THE INFIRMARY, TWO OF our mortal security guards, Marco and George, stood at the open door with weapons ready. I nodded at them as we passed, glad to see them instead of Oliver, who was one of the few Unbounded I’d ever met that was inept at fighting. Of course, he thought he was great, which only made him more a liability.
Dimitri sat at a table inside a glass-walled isolation area in the left corner of the infirmary. Eden and Fenton sat with him, and Bedřich lay on the only hospital bed. He was awake now, so Dimitri had been at work on him, but the Czech’s hands and feet were secured to the bed—a wise precaution. Shadrach was nowhere to be seen, and I hoped someone was keeping an eye on him. I believed he was sincere about helping us, but he’d acted on his own agenda before.
Feeling the need to check, I opened my mind, releasing the normal shields I kept in place to allow my colleagues privacy. I found Chris and my niece and nephew in
I had the sinking feeling they weren’t.
We all looked up as Stella Davis, our technopath, came into the room, her neural headset blinking, indicating that she was linked to the computer network. Her flowered dress fluttered behind her, accentuating her curves. She was half Irish and half Japanese, with the Japanese side taking precedence in her long, dark hair and mysterious brown eyes. Her Unbounded confidence was enhanced by nanites that made slight changes in her face and body, resulting in a combination that made most men stare.
“What is it?” Ava asked, taking the words from my lips because Stella’s worry dripped from her surface emotions. “You locate the families?”
Stella came to a stop on the other side of Ava. I could barely detect the small mound of the baby boy growing inside her. He still had another five months before he was due to meet the world, but his life force was strong, and his thoughts radiated contentment.
“There’s still no sign of any of them,” Stella said with a frown. “The two families staying in DC have neighbors who say they were told the families were going back to their main residences, but they never arrived home. We’re tracing down rumors of vacations for the other two families, supposedly to Idaho and Kansas. So far I’ve come up with nothing—no credit card receipts, no phone transactions, no bank transfers. I’ll keep looking, but by the time I find them, it may be too late.”
Ava nodded. “What about our new Emporium captives?”
“I questioned them about Senator Ropte,” Stella said, “but every time I brought up Ropte, they froze.”
“They wouldn’t give you the information?” Ava’s eyes narrowed.
“Not that, exactly.” Stella blew out a breath of frustration. “They just seemed not to know anything. Except their reaction was odd, and I don’t know what to make of it.”
“Maybe they can’t tell us,” Ritter said.
I stood, grateful for anything that would take my mind off the slaughter Ava had shown us. “I didn’t see any blocks in their thoughts back in Texas, but let’s go find out.”
Ava rose to follow me, pausing in the doorway to speak to Stella. “Start delving further into Senator Ropte, and see if there’s a connection with the four families. Trace even the smallest lead. You should also monitor our progress with our prisoners. You might catch something we miss.”
Stella had already pulled up a dozen holograms that flickered like twelve separate computer screens suspended in midair. She likely had another twenty connections open that we couldn’t see. “I’ll contact Patrick Mann as well. He’s been hobnobbing with the rich and famous long enough to have heard something on Ropte. I could use his help tracing the information.”
“If you need me, I’ll help after I finish with the questioning,” I told her. I couldn’t approach Stella or Patrick’s agility with computers, even when I channeled Stella’s ability, but every second counted.
OUTSIDE THE INFIRMARY, TWO OF our mortal security guards, Marco and George, stood at the open door with weapons ready. I nodded at them as we passed, glad to see them instead of Oliver, who was one of the few Unbounded I’d ever met that was inept at fighting. Of course, he thought he was great, which only made him more a liability.
Dimitri sat at a table inside a glass-walled isolation area in the left corner of the infirmary. Eden and Fenton sat with him, and Bedřich lay on the only hospital bed. He was awake now, so Dimitri had been at work on him, but the Czech’s hands and feet were secured to the bed—a wise precaution. Shadrach was nowhere to be seen, and I hoped someone was keeping an eye on him. I believed he was sincere about helping us, but he’d acted on his own agenda before.
Feeling the need to check, I opened my mind, releasing the normal shields I kept in place to allow my colleagues privacy. I found Chris and my niece and nephew in
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