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  "Now that that's taken care of," Phoenix said. She stood in front of us and dusted off her hands. She was the girl with the blonde hair and brown eyes. Pretty, almost fragile-looking--a startling contrast to the aura of death that blanketed her expression. "Let's get these two to A.I.R. lockup. I've got questions. They've got answers."

  7

  Erik and I were shoved into separate cars. At that point, everything became surreal to me. One minute I'd been at a club with my best friend, scoping out my crush, the next I'm injured and the prisoner of a group of people who'd so far proven themselves to be ruthless.

  What could I do? I'd mentioned the napkin, I'd tried to explain what had happened, but so far no one had cared to listen to me. Not even when I'd held that gun.

  I was beginning to suspect, deep in my bones, that they might never believe me, no matter what I said. In their minds, I was guilty and that's all there was to it.

  Trying not to panic, I slumped in my seat. No one had bothered to shut the passenger door, so I heard the girls as they laughed proudly about their capture and taunted Erik.

  "Thought you'd escape us, did you?" one of them said.

  "You should have known we'd catch up to you sooner or later," another proclaimed. "We always do."

  "You never were very bright," still another chortled.

  He didn't respond, but even from this distance I could see the hurt in his dark eyes--eyes that had once been green, apparently. I tried to picture him with green eyes but couldn't. How could they be so cruel to him?

  Our doors were shut, blocking him out completely. Each of the girls claimed a car. A blonde I didn't recognize turned out to be my driver, and Cara settled in beside her.

  She didn't speak to me, but cast me narrowed glances every few minutes. A glass partition separated us, so I couldn't talk to her. That was okay. At the moment, I despised her. And, I hated to admit, I was scared of her. She'd lied, she'd attacked. She'd won.

  Worse, Erik's ex-girlfriend might very well hold my future in her hands.

  *

  Thirty minutes and a bumpy ride later, we were parked in an underground garage that led to a stone-and-glass fortress. Towering, oppressive, eerie, the building practically screamed "keep out or die." People strolled in and out, and all of them wore black syn-leather and had pyre-guns strapped to their waists.

  I didn't see Erik as the blonde jerked me from the car. She flanked one side, Cara flanked the other, and they escorted me inside. I tried not to cringe at the pain in my arm. I tried not to cry.

  What were they going to do to me?

  "This is all a big misunderstanding," I tried explaining yet again.

  "Yeah. I believe you," Cara said dryly. "'Cause I'm an idiot."

  "If you'd just listen--"

  She pressed my shoulder, hard, and I gasped. Then she pressed harder and my knees gave out. Neither girl did anything to stop my ensuing fall. I yelped, hitting the ground face-first. Air shot from my lungs in one mighty heave.

  I lay there for a moment, stunned. They won't hurt me, I'd told Erik more times than I could recall. How foolish I'd been. I uttered a humorless laugh as I tried to tamp down another surge of fear. "It's illegal to treat me this way. I haven't been found guilty of a crime."

  "We don't need to find you guilty," Cara said. "We just need to suspect."

  "Call my father," I found myself saying. He would protect me. Yes, he'd find out everything I'd done, how I'd lied, but I no longer cared. I suddenly wanted away from these girls, no matter what.

  "We'll call him. Later."

  "I know my rights." My dad had made sure of it. "I'm a minor. You have to call him if I request it."

  "If we were dealing with a human crime, sure. With Onadyn, all bets are off. Besides that, you are so not a minor. You're eighteen. Legally an adult."

  "He's my attorney." I tried to push myself up, but Cara jammed her foot on my back, slamming me back down. I winced.

  "No getting up yet," she said. "I like you where you are."

  "This is harassment. This is assault," I huffed, anger pushing past my fear. "Let. Me. Up."

  "Think you're tough enough to make me?" Cara chuckled and there was a menacing edge to the sound. "If so, you'll soon learn better. I'll make sure of it."

  She removed her foot and the blonde jerked me to a standing position. At the wide double doors, she secured me against a wall so that I couldn't run as she and Cara endured a palm and retinal scan. The entrance opened and I was tugged inside.

  People--agents, I'm sure--were everywhere. Behind desks, walking the plain, silver hallways. Few spared me a glance. There were holoscreens, computers, and other equipment I didn't recognize.

  "This isn't--" I pressed my lips together. Whatever you say can be used against you in a court of law. I felt the heat drain from my skin as my dad's voice echoed in my mind.

  "Say hello to your new home," Cara told me. "Your weight, height, and body heat have already been logged into the system. You step foot in this lobby or any of the surrounding rooms without permission and you'll be dead."

  A tremor worked through me.

  After several twists and turns, we finally reached a steel door. We lost the blonde somewhere along the way. Cara had to pause for another scan, this one a full body. Red lights pulsed over her seconds before the door opened.

  This new hallway boasted several other doors that led straight into prison cells. The knowledge nearly undid me. I was shoved inside the last room on the right. The air inside was sterile-smelling. There was a chair in the center, but that was it.

  Another tremor catapulted the length of my spine. My new home, she'd said. For how long?

  "Put your face against the wall," Cara commanded me.

  For a split second, I thought about disobeying. In the end, I didn't. Coward.

  The moment my cheeks pressed against the cool metal, she was behind me, removing my laserbands. I felt a tug on my wrists and then, finally, the heat of the bands was gone.

  "What's your full name?" she asked, her voice cold, emotionless.

  "Camille Diane Robins."

  "How old are you, Camille Diane Robins?"

  They'll ask you easy questions at first, Erik had warned me. Then they'll get harder. I had trouble catching my breath, but managed to gasp out, "Eighteen. You already know that."

  She stared over at me for a long while, studying me, and it looked like a war raged in her mind. Finally she nodded, as if she'd made a decision. "I'll be back for you in a little bit. For now, you can sit here and think about all the ways I'm going to hurt you if you lie to me."

  Oh, I'd imagine, all right. Needles shoved under my nail-beds. Hammers pounded into my knees. All of my hair shaved off. But I couldn't let that affect me. Today I'd endured the sting of a Lancer. I'd lived through a car chase and a gunfight. I hadn't cracked to a million pieces when this girl pushed me down. Time to stop being a coward.

  "Where's Erik?" I asked, turning to face her eye-to-eye. A brave move, one I wouldn't have attempted any other day. But I wanted to talk to him. He'd told me what to expect. Now I wanted him to tell me what to do, and how to get out of here. How is that any better?

  She raised one brown brow. "What do you care? What's he to you?"

  "A hero, I guess. He fought to protect me while you were shooting at me."

  Anger washed over her lovely face, vibrating palpably. "You think that makes you special? Well, it doesn't. He once saved my life, too."

  I blinked at her in surprise. "How can you treat him this way then?"

  She didn't answer. In fact, she spun on her heel and strode out of the room, leaving me alone. Alone to wonder.

  Where had they taken Erik? What were they doing to him?

  Had my parents been notified as I'd requested?

  Tears suddenly burned my eyes and I slumped against the wall. If I survived this, I should become a lawyer like my dad and fight stupid laws that gave stupid A.I.R. agents the right to apprehend innocent people.


  Never had I felt more violated. More helpless. At least you acted brave, there at the end, I told myself. Small comfort now.

  What would happen to me next? I wondered. Just how far were these A.I.R. agents willing to go?

  With a trembling sigh, I closed my eyes. That proved to be a mistake. My eyelids were heavy, like thousand-pound rocks held them down and there was no opening them once they were closed. The muscles in my shoulders sagged and gradually my chin fell forward. Black spots sparkled through my mind like dark glitter.

  How much time passed, I didn't know. I only knew that I drifted in and out of turbulent dreams and hazy wakefulness--and after a while, it was hard to distinguish which was which. I saw flashes of gunfire. Hard, smiling faces that didn't care whether I lived or died. Buildings towering around me, clouds holding me, padded walls.

  "She was certainly a surprise," a hard female voice said, pushing into my consciousness.

  Still dreaming?

  "I know. Came out of nowhere." Phoenix. Like I'd ever forget her commanding timbre.

  "How'd she get the wound?" Stranger.

  "We're not sure. Somewhere inside the club, though." Phoenix.

  "I guess it doesn't matter." Stranger.

  You're awake. Have to be. Otherwise you could burst both of those women into flames with a single thought. I kept my eyes closed, my breathing even. Tried not to move even an inch--if I could have, that is. I still felt like lead.

  "We had no idea she was working with Erik." Cara. And she sounded bitter.

  So. There were at least three people in the room with me. Great.

  Cool breath fanned my cheek as one of the girls knelt in front of me. "She's not his usual type." This pronouncement came from the stranger.

  Don't frown, don't frown, don't frown.

  "And what type is that?" Cara demanded.

  "You," the woman replied.

  Which was? Pretty? Smart? Both? Everything I supposedly wasn't.

  "Well," Cara said, clearly mollified. "That's true."

  My teeth ground together.

  A pause. Then a tortured "Mia," from Cara. "Do you really think--"

  Mia said, "Don't go there. Just shut it, Cara. You dumped him. He's working against us. Don't fall for him again. Look where it got you last time."

  Heavy tension filled the room.

  Phoenix cleared her throat. "I, uh, pulled up Camille's history. Model student, never in trouble, no hint of being an addict. Parents aren't rich, but they make enough to support her in style. So why would she dabble in Onadyn?"

  "Thrills?" Mia said. I heard the rustle of clothing, as if she shrugged. "Love?"

  I haven't dabbled in Onadyn, you idiots!

  "Not love. Not on Erik's side, at least. For the most part, he ignored her at the Ship," Cara pointed out. "Maybe they aren't working together. Maybe she's a sick little puppy and was stalking him."

  "You and I both know that isn't true," Phoenix said. "He knew the minute she stepped onto the fourth floor. You saw his reaction to her. His eyes heated; his body language changed, leaning toward her. He was aware of her every move and trying his best not to show it."

  What? My heart fluttered.

  "But in the end, he did show it." Mia sighed. "You said he gave her something. What?"

  "After we cornered them, she told us it was a napkin." Phoenix.

  "I searched her and did find a napkin, but it was blank." Cara.

  "A decoy, probably." Mia.

  There was a second pause, this one so sharp and tight it would have cut me to pieces if I'd moved. Erik had noticed me? His eyes heated when he saw me? Despite the danger, the thought was intoxicating.

  "And let's not forget the way he protected her when each of our guns were aimed at her."

  "I get it, Phoenix," Cara said hotly. "Point made. You can shut up now."

  Strong fingers wrapped around my sore arm. I had to fight back a wince. Cool scissors cut at the bandage and I wobbled in my seat, surprised that I hadn't toppled over yet.

  Wait! I was in a seat? Last thing I remembered, I'd been crumpled on the floor.

  I took stock: legs under me, butt planted firmly on a flat piece of metal, arms bound behind my back. They'd moved me to the chair and bound me. Dread slithered through me. I was trapped. Totally and completely.

  Oh, that sucked. They could do anything they wanted with me and I wouldn't be able to stop them. I wouldn't be able to fight them or shield myself.

  Another set of hands settled atop my shoulders, holding me in place.

  "What part does she play in this, do you think?" Mia asked. Fingertips probed at my wound.

  Relax. Stay relaxed.

  "Dumb girlfriend, most likely." Cara. "And it really burns me that he was able to keep her a secret for so long."

  "Yeah, but does she sell?" Phoenix clicked her tongue. "What does she know?"

  "Well?" Mia said.

  Neither of the girls responded.

  "Are you just a dumb girlfriend or do you have a solid role in this?" she added.

  My dread and fear tripled. She knew I was awake. A part of me expected to be slapped as my eyelids fluttered open. I wasn't. All three women remained in place, staring at me. Frowning.

  I gasped when the mysterious Mia came into view. Nothing would be as expected, I guess. Someone with such a commanding voice should have been tall and stocky, even mannish. Not this woman. She was beautiful. One of the most beautiful women I'd ever seen.

  She had black hair and swirling blue eyes framed by long black lashes. A small, delicate body. A sweet, angelic face. And yet even bent over me, studying my wound, she looked completely untouchable, removed by emotion and everyone around her.

  "Well?" she prompted.

  "Not girlfriend," I rasped. "Not seller. Not maker. Not dumb," I added tightly.

  "That leaves, what?" Mia pierced me with a fierce stare.

  "Innocent."

  Cara snorted.

  Mia shrugged, as if my answer hadn't mattered. "Someone wanted you dead, little girl. Lancers are used for rendering death, not warnings. An innocent would not have been shot like this. You were doing something you weren't supposed to, weren't you?"

  Rather than answer, I said. "I watch the news. Innocents are sometimes shot."

  The left side of her mouth twitched. Into a smile? A scowl? "So who shot you?"

  "The tooth fairy," I replied, not sure where I got my bravado this time.

  Mia ran her tongue over her teeth, and I was no longer left in doubt as to whether she smiled or scowled. She scowled at me with potent fury.

  Cara stepped toward me, raising her arm with every intention of slapping me as I'd feared. Phoenix held her back.

  "I'll tell you what you want to know when my father gets here."

  "He's a lawyer," Mia said, a statement not a question.

  "Yes."

  "He will not be allowed near you until you've told me what I want to know. How's that?"

  My hands squeezed into fists. "You can't keep him from me."

  "I can do anything I want."

  "Where's Erik?" I asked, trying a different tactic. Don't cry. Stay strong. You're brave, remember? "I want to see him."

  "Maybe the tooth fairy will escort you to his cell," Mia replied. She remained where she was, crouched at my side. "Unless, of course, you want to rephrase your answer to my question."

  Okay, stay strong but don't talk back anymore. "Let me see him. Please." If they were this forceful with me, what were they doing to him?

  Phoenix released Cara and both girls flanked Mia's sides, crossing their arms over their chests and surrounding me with a wall of feminine ferocity. A tremor swept though me. One at a time, they were scary. Altogether, they were hell on earth.

  Mia's head tilted to the side as she regarded me intently. "You claim you're not his girlfriend, but you're sure acting like it. Should I believe your words or your actions, hmmm?"

  "Words." But she was right. Actions were more convincing and all of
mine had been damning. "Tonight really was the first time I'd spoken to him."

  "Oh, really." Reaching out, Mia tightened her hand around my arm, causing the torn flesh to slowly pull apart. I winced in pain. "I don't want to hurt you, Camille, but I will if I have to. I'll hurt you slowly and often. Got me?"

  Suddenly unable to speak, I nodded. The tears that had only burned my eyes a moment ago now spilled over.

  "Good. Now." Her grip eased and I was able to breathe once again. "Erik has been transporting Onadyn from the Ship to the public. I want to know how he's doing it without getting caught and I think you can tell me."

  "But I can't." With my gaze, I pleaded with her to believe me. "I don't know anything. I swear."

  "Are you afraid he'll hurt you if you tell us?"

  "Erik would never hurt a girl," Cara said, belligerent.

  "Cara," Mia snapped without looking away from me. "Leave."

  "What?" The girl's mouth fell open.

  "Don't make me repeat myself."

  A second passed as shock washed over Cara's face. Then her eyes narrowed on me with absolute hatred, as if it were my fault she'd gotten in trouble. I admit, I did feel a small amount of satisfaction.

  I must not have done a good job of hiding it. Hate morphed into rage, tightening her features. She would have attacked me if Mia hadn't stepped in front of me. I jerked back, the corner of my eye catching on the silver tip of a blade. A blade Cara now held. She'd meant to cut me, I realized with shock.

  What a violent place this was.

  "Cara!" Mia growled. "Last chance."

  She flounced from the room, dark hair blowing behind her.

  When the door closed, Mia said, "Now then. Camille. You were about to tell me something."

  I exhaled a long, trembling sigh. "I can't tell you anything because I don't know anything. I went to the club to see and talk to Erik, maybe dance with him. I didn't know about the drugs until--" Horrified, I pursed my lips together. Damn it! I should not have admitted that. Now they'd grill me for details I didn't have.

  "Until," Phoenix prompted, stepping closer.

  I looked down at my feet. My boots had been removed, I noticed. So had my socks. My feet were bare. The blue-painted toenails winked in the light. "Until I sneaked past that guarded door," I admitted. "A group of Ell Rollises attacked me. Erik saved me from them."