Out for Blood
Page 58
“Really?” She sounded startled and then pleased. I might have felt guilty if my jaw wasn’t still bruised from her sloppy punch. “I’m at the gym. I’ll be right down.”
“Meet you there. Side door.” I clicked off and cut across the lawn to the entrance tucked behind a wall and a copse of birch trees. It was dark and deserted enough that we might not get caught. She must have run down the stairs. She was still in her shorts and T-shirt, her hair in a ponytail. Her face was damp with sweat. She pushed the door open and looked at me warily.
“So?” she asked. “Does she want me to join the guild or what?” Kieran edged the van around the corner, blocking us from any passersby. She frowned. “What’s going on?”
“I’m not sure yet,” I admitted. “But Kieran has big news. He wants us to go with him.”
“Where? And why me—” She cut herself off with a huff of impatience. “Is this about the vitamins? God, Hunter, you’re, like, totally obsessed.”
“Just get in,” Kieran muttered, leaning out slightly. “We don’t have all night.”
“I’m not going anywhere with you psychos,” she said, sneering.
I glanced at Kieran. “How serious is this?”
“Very serious,” he assured me, hitting the button so the van door slid open. “ ‘Spider-Man’ serious.” “Spider-Man” had been our code word since we were eight, used only in times of great danger. Chloe was turning away, disgusted. I didn’t have a lot of options. I did the only thing I could think of. I grabbed her shoulder and swung her back around toward us.
And then I punched her.
She staggered back, screeching. Not exactly covert ops. “Shit,” she clutched her face. “Shit, are you nuts?”
I hadn’t punched her hard enough to actually knock her out. She did look a little dazed though, so I took advantage of her momentary disorientation and shoved her into the van. She cursed as I slammed the door shut and Kieran locked it. I ran around the other side and got into the passenger side.
“I hope to hell you know what you’re doing,” I told him darkly, rubbing my sore knuckles.
“Oh, I’m sorry,” Chloe snapped from the backseat. “Did I hurt your knuckles with my face?”
“No more than I hurt yours with mine,” I shot back.
“Is that what this is? Revenge?”
“Chloe, don’t be stupid,” I said as Kieran shot the van into drive. We rumbled down the lane and out onto the road.
“Let me out!” Chloe was yanking at the handle and screaming at the top of her lungs. If she got any louder my ears would bleed. She kept yelling, a wordless high-pitched sound meant to make our eyeballs explode.
When we were far enough away from the school, Kieran slammed on the brakes. Chloe hurtled forward, nearly breaking her nose on the back of his seat. She swallowed another shriek.
“Put your seatbelt on,” he demanded sharply, using the tone of an agent used to being obeyed. It was actually something he’d learned from his father. It wasn’t common knowledge, but Kieran was only a graduate and not actually a full-fledged agent. He needed to do two years at the college for that, but he’d decided to take the year off to find his father’s murderer. The profs had thought he was wasting his talents, that grief was warping him. But he’d been right. His father had been murdered—and by one of our own, no less. Hope was out of the picture now, but the damage was done. Still, Kieran had grown up a lot in the last few months. He wasn’t the same guy who’d poured corn syrup dyed with red food coloring all over the cafeteria floor to freak the new students out. People still talked about that prank. Especially since a notorious bully fainted at the sight of it.
Chloe snapped her seatbelt into place, sulking. “Where are we going?”
“To the Drakes’.”
We both stared at him, then at each other.
“Are you serious?” I asked. “We’re going to Quinn’s?”
“I get to see the famous Drake compound?” Chloe looked impressed despite herself. “I think you’re both messed up, but it’s totally worth it if I get to see that house.” She kicked the back of his seat. Hard. “But I’m still telling Bellwood.”
“Fine,” he replied, unconcerned. “But first you’ll shut up and listen to what we have to say to you.”
I half turned in my seat to face him. “What do we have to say to her?” I still didn’t know why exactly we’d just kidnapped Chloe.
“Marcus analyzed the vitamin you gave Quinn,” he shot me a dry glance. “The vitamin you should have given me, I might add.”
“He was right there, it was easier.”
“Yeah, about that.”
Chloe leaned forward. “Hello? Kidnap victim here. Focus.” She scowled at me. “And you totally stole from me.”
“Yup.” I wasn’t the least bit sorry about it anymore either.
“It’s not a vitamin, Chloe,” Kieran told her seriously.
She rolled her eyes. “Whatever. My mom gave them to me, Einstein. I think she’d know.”
“Chloe, your mom’s a biochemist,” I said quietly.
“And a doctor, so shut up.”
“She helped create Hypnos.”
“So?”
“So,” Kieran interjected, “it’s not a vitamin, not completely. It’s an anabolic steroid.”
“Meet you there. Side door.” I clicked off and cut across the lawn to the entrance tucked behind a wall and a copse of birch trees. It was dark and deserted enough that we might not get caught. She must have run down the stairs. She was still in her shorts and T-shirt, her hair in a ponytail. Her face was damp with sweat. She pushed the door open and looked at me warily.
“So?” she asked. “Does she want me to join the guild or what?” Kieran edged the van around the corner, blocking us from any passersby. She frowned. “What’s going on?”
“I’m not sure yet,” I admitted. “But Kieran has big news. He wants us to go with him.”
“Where? And why me—” She cut herself off with a huff of impatience. “Is this about the vitamins? God, Hunter, you’re, like, totally obsessed.”
“Just get in,” Kieran muttered, leaning out slightly. “We don’t have all night.”
“I’m not going anywhere with you psychos,” she said, sneering.
I glanced at Kieran. “How serious is this?”
“Very serious,” he assured me, hitting the button so the van door slid open. “ ‘Spider-Man’ serious.” “Spider-Man” had been our code word since we were eight, used only in times of great danger. Chloe was turning away, disgusted. I didn’t have a lot of options. I did the only thing I could think of. I grabbed her shoulder and swung her back around toward us.
And then I punched her.
She staggered back, screeching. Not exactly covert ops. “Shit,” she clutched her face. “Shit, are you nuts?”
I hadn’t punched her hard enough to actually knock her out. She did look a little dazed though, so I took advantage of her momentary disorientation and shoved her into the van. She cursed as I slammed the door shut and Kieran locked it. I ran around the other side and got into the passenger side.
“I hope to hell you know what you’re doing,” I told him darkly, rubbing my sore knuckles.
“Oh, I’m sorry,” Chloe snapped from the backseat. “Did I hurt your knuckles with my face?”
“No more than I hurt yours with mine,” I shot back.
“Is that what this is? Revenge?”
“Chloe, don’t be stupid,” I said as Kieran shot the van into drive. We rumbled down the lane and out onto the road.
“Let me out!” Chloe was yanking at the handle and screaming at the top of her lungs. If she got any louder my ears would bleed. She kept yelling, a wordless high-pitched sound meant to make our eyeballs explode.
When we were far enough away from the school, Kieran slammed on the brakes. Chloe hurtled forward, nearly breaking her nose on the back of his seat. She swallowed another shriek.
“Put your seatbelt on,” he demanded sharply, using the tone of an agent used to being obeyed. It was actually something he’d learned from his father. It wasn’t common knowledge, but Kieran was only a graduate and not actually a full-fledged agent. He needed to do two years at the college for that, but he’d decided to take the year off to find his father’s murderer. The profs had thought he was wasting his talents, that grief was warping him. But he’d been right. His father had been murdered—and by one of our own, no less. Hope was out of the picture now, but the damage was done. Still, Kieran had grown up a lot in the last few months. He wasn’t the same guy who’d poured corn syrup dyed with red food coloring all over the cafeteria floor to freak the new students out. People still talked about that prank. Especially since a notorious bully fainted at the sight of it.
Chloe snapped her seatbelt into place, sulking. “Where are we going?”
“To the Drakes’.”
We both stared at him, then at each other.
“Are you serious?” I asked. “We’re going to Quinn’s?”
“I get to see the famous Drake compound?” Chloe looked impressed despite herself. “I think you’re both messed up, but it’s totally worth it if I get to see that house.” She kicked the back of his seat. Hard. “But I’m still telling Bellwood.”
“Fine,” he replied, unconcerned. “But first you’ll shut up and listen to what we have to say to you.”
I half turned in my seat to face him. “What do we have to say to her?” I still didn’t know why exactly we’d just kidnapped Chloe.
“Marcus analyzed the vitamin you gave Quinn,” he shot me a dry glance. “The vitamin you should have given me, I might add.”
“He was right there, it was easier.”
“Yeah, about that.”
Chloe leaned forward. “Hello? Kidnap victim here. Focus.” She scowled at me. “And you totally stole from me.”
“Yup.” I wasn’t the least bit sorry about it anymore either.
“It’s not a vitamin, Chloe,” Kieran told her seriously.
She rolled her eyes. “Whatever. My mom gave them to me, Einstein. I think she’d know.”
“Chloe, your mom’s a biochemist,” I said quietly.
“And a doctor, so shut up.”
“She helped create Hypnos.”
“So?”
“So,” Kieran interjected, “it’s not a vitamin, not completely. It’s an anabolic steroid.”
