The Brightest Night (Origin 3)

“If I could forget one-tenth of what I’ve done, I’d gladly give it up. Why would you want to know?”

“I’m not you.”

“No, I guess not.” His chin rose a notch. “Yes. You killed others like you. You killed others not like you.”

Shock splashed through me. “Others not like me?”

“Luxen. Hybrid. An Origin or two,” he said, and the bile was in my throat. “Humans—”

“Okay,” Luc cut in. “They made sure she could use her abilities to fight and to kill. Got it.”

I pressed my hand to my stomach.

“I saw you afterward once. You were with him. You didn’t look proud of yourself. Not like the others when they pleased their maker.”

That was a relief. I guessed.

“You were with Dasher a lot,” Blake said. “He treated you differently from the others. Brought you food in from the outside. Let you watch television. Had you sit with him while he worked.”

That reminded me of Luc’s relationship with Nancy. I think Luc was thinking the same, because his jaw was so hard it was no small wonder that he hadn’t broken a molar.

“I’d seen them do that with hybrids or Origins throughout my time with them. Used to piss the others off.” Blake lifted his brows. “Didn’t seem to even faze the Trojans, though. Like jealousy was completely programmed out of them, which is strange as hell since they were competitive.”

“Did you and I talk?” I asked, and when he nodded, I wanted to know what I would’ve said, how I would’ve acted.

“It was brief. Dasher was talking to my new handler, and he had you in his office. They weren’t really paying attention to us. You looked at me and told me that you remembered me.”

“And what did you say?” Luc asked.

“I asked about you.” Blake looked at him. “I couldn’t figure out how they got her. I didn’t know she’d been sick. I heard that through the grapevine later. I knew they didn’t have you. None of them would’ve been talking about anything else for days if that were the case.”

Some of the old Luc snuck through then, because he smirked, and God, I had never been so relieved to see that.

“You told me that Luc was free,” Blake said, and a fine shudder rolled through Luc. “And then you told me…” A grin cracked his lips, and he laughed lightly. “That I was on your list.”

“My list?”

“Of people you planned to kill.”

Luc chuckled, but all I could do was stare. “And how did you respond to that?”

The small smile faded. “I think I said you’d have to get in line.”

“It is a pretty long line,” I muttered, and I thought I felt a wave of amusement shimmer through my thoughts. “Did Dasher know I was different?”

“I don’t see how he couldn’t have. It was obvious to me.”

“And that didn’t upset him?”

“Didn’t seem like it did.” Blake rose slowly. “I kept thinking, even after you seemed to have disappeared from the fort, why in the hell did they have you? Why would they save you and then train you? It had to have something to do with you.” He focused on Luc. “But that didn’t make sense, either. You may have been big shit to them, but man, if you’ve seen the Trojans in action—and I mean in real action—you’d know they’d have no need for you. So why?”

“They just can’t quit me,” Luc replied, sounding bored.

Another faint smile appeared on Blake’s face, but it was brittle, as if he hadn’t smiled a lot.

“That’s a good question,” I said. “And I’m guessing you don’t know.”

He stopped in front of the bars. “All I know is that it can’t be something good.” His eyes met mine. “And that they have to have some sort of plan that involves both of you.”

Eaton had suggested as much, but it still opened up a festering wound of unease.

“Do you know if Dasher was mutated?” asked Luc.

The question seemed to surprise Blake. “No. Why?”

“Sylvia shot him in the chest. Saw it with my own eyes. She would’ve had to heal him,” Luc answered.

“I don’t think he was. At least not in a way I could tell,” he answered.

“Sylvia? Did you ever see her? See her with me?”

“A few times. When you were with Dasher in his office. She would come down.”

I folded my arms under my chest, fighting not to feel anything in regard to that. “When was the last time you saw me?”

“I don’t know exactly when, but I never saw you again after we spoke,” he said. “I’d only learned bits and pieces about the Poseidon Project, but I figured you’d become whatever they wanted you to be. I guess that turned out to be Jason Dasher’s daughter. They didn’t tell me anything about you. They never asked if I knew who you were, and even after you left, I knew better than to ask questions.”