The Vindico Read online

  The shadows thickened as he ran deeper into the woods, and soon it became dark under the overlapping canopy. Spotting a shaft of light, he stumbled into a clearing, bordered on all sides by the watchful forest. There was an opening between two trees on the far side, and Hayden started for it.

  With an earsplitting crack, both trees snapped in half and fell toward each other. They stopped a few feet from the ground and then hovered there, barring his way. Hayden stepped back. What is this? he thought fearfully. A magic forest? They could have mentioned that in our orientation!

  He spun around, ready to flee in the other direction, but froze.

  The branches on the far side of the clearing bent aside, and Leni walked out of the shadows.

  “Going somewhere?” he asked coldly.

  “Uh, I got lost. Took a wrong turn on the way back to the common room. It’s very confusing with—”

  “The Baron and I both warned you not to attempt escape,” Leni cut in. “It seems you have a problem listening.”

  Hayden heard rustling and glanced back to see the two fallen trees floating toward him, their leaves brushing against the grass. They were spinning in midair, exposing the shards of wood at the bottom where they’d been snapped off.

  He turned back to Leni. “I’ll listen! No more escaping! From here on, I’m good.”

  Leni narrowed his eyes. “Is that so?”

  Hayden felt an invisible force grip him, and his arms were squeezed against his sides. Then his entire body floated off the ground.

  “Just give me another chance,” Hayden pleaded.

  Leni smiled. “I’m not going to kill you…for now. But we can’t allow this to go unpunished. Perhaps this will be useful. You can serve as a lesson to the others.”

  “A lesson?” Hayden asked nervously.

  “Indeed.” Leni lifted a hand. “A lesson—and a warning.”

  Hayden felt the pressure on his body increase, as if he was stuck in a vise. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw the trees rotate again, pointing the jagged edges away from him. They hovered there for a moment, and Hayden realized what was coming.

  This is going to hurt, he thought.

  Then the trees flew toward him.

  13

  “I JUST WANT TO KNOW WHY THEY CHOSE US,” LANA SAID, twisting a strand of blond hair between her fingers. She was sitting with James and Sam in the common area, where they’d been since Leni’s disturbing group session. Emily was taking a nap in her room.

  “At least your mentors actually talked to you guys,” Lana continued sourly, glancing at the mirror. “Mine still hasn’t said a word to me since I’ve been here. But as soon as she does, I’m going to thank her and then tell her to pick someone else. I’m going home.”

  “Thank her?” James asked. He propped himself up on his elbow. “What for?”

  Lana hesitated. “She saved me from something. I don’t really want to talk about it,” she said before James could ask. “Sorry.”

  She looked away, and there was a moment of awkward silence.

  “I wonder what Hayden’s doing,” Sam said, quickly changing the subject. “He’s been gone for a while now, and Leni didn’t sound happy when we left.”

  James rolled onto his back and stared at the crimson ceiling. Six round light fixtures cast an orange glow over the common area, and there was a large vent above each wall. “You have to admit,” he said, “Leni made some good points.”

  “You’re going to believe that maniac?” Lana asked.

  James held his hands up. “I’m just saying some parts made sense. Don’t get me wrong, I’m a huge fan of the League. But every day, I thought for sure I was going to wake up with powers. Every day. I know it’s possible to get them until seventeen, but for some reason, I was sure I was going to get them when I turned twelve, just like Thunderbolt did. And when I woke up that morning without them, it was like I realized I was never going to be a League member. I was miserable. And now I find out that you can actually get superpowers without developing them naturally? Why shouldn’t we be able to have powers too? Why should the League get to decide?”

  Lana rolled her eyes. “Yeah, ’cause look how good these guys turned out. The people telling you this are evil, James; that’s the point. Can you blame the League for not wanting everyone to have powers?”

  “Well, we’re not going to be evil,” James pointed out.

  “What do you think they’re trying to do?” Lana asked, raising her voice. “You’re just so excited to get powers you’re not listening to the other part.”

  “Listen,” James said, “if they think they’re going to turn us into villains by giving us speeches in a dark classroom, they’ve got something else coming. They’re going to have to do a lot better than that. I mean, just because he says—”

  The mirror door swung open, cutting him off. They turned toward it, but for a moment, nothing happened.

  Then a silhouette became visible in the darkness. Hayden floated limply into the room, as if he was strung up on invisible lines. His face was mottled with black and purple bruises, and a huge, stitched-up cut ran through one of his eyebrows and down his cheek. His white T-shirt was stained with blood.

  James slowly stood up. “What the…” he whispered.

  Without warning, the door slammed shut again, and Hayden dropped to the ground. The three of them stared at his crumpled form, too stunned to react.

  “Ow,” Hayden muttered.

  “Are you all right?” James asked, snapping out of it. He hurried to Hayden’s side.

  “I’ve been better,” Hayden replied weakly.

  James knelt down and grabbed one of Hayden’s arms, trying to lift him. He glanced back at Lana and Sam, who were still sitting on the couch, staring. “Help me!”

  Lana scrambled over and took Hayden’s other arm. Together, they managed to lift him back onto his feet, and he leaned heavily on James’s shoulder.

  They half-dragged him to one of the couches and gingerly laid him down.

  He smiled. “Much better.”

  “What happened?” Lana asked, her hand over her mouth.

  Sam still hadn’t moved. He looked like he was going to cry.

  “Leni doesn’t like when you try to escape,” Hayden said.

  “You tried to escape?” James asked in disbelief.

  “Yeah. I wouldn’t recommend it.”

  Lana tentatively lifted the bottom of Hayden’s T-shirt. His entire midsection was wrapped with thick white bandages. “What is this?” she breathed.

  “I think she mentioned broken ribs,” Hayden replied faintly. “Like, all of them. A nice old lady patched me up. She gave me some meds, so I feel nice.” He smiled again. “She said I would be screaming otherwise.”

  “These people are terrible.” Lana shook her head. “They could have killed you.”

  “How far did you get?” James asked. He glanced up at the mirror, wondering if anyone was behind the glass. It might have been his imagination, but he could almost feel them watching.

  “The woods. Then the trees beat me up,” Hayden said.

  “They must have really drugged him,” James whispered to Lana.

  “Attention.” They all flinched as the Torturer’s booming voice sounded over the speakers. “Emily and Lana are to come to the door for their sessions. I also have an announcement regarding James.”

  “Oh, great,” James said.

  Hayden turned to Lana, looking deeply saddened. “What they said to you was mean. They never should have hurt your feelings.”

  James frowned; that was the most sincere thing he’d heard Hayden say since they’d gotten here. The drugs must really be affecting him, he thought.

  “Uh…thanks,” Lana replied, flushing.

  Emily walked into the common room but stopped short when she saw Hayden. Her eyes widened. “What happened?”

  “He got caught by—” James started to explain, but he was cut off by his mentor’s voice.

  “We picked James u
p a few days after he found his girlfriend of two years, Sara, cheating on him with his former best friend, at his own party.”

  “That’s why you were so sad,” Hayden said sympathetically.

  “It may sound bad,” the Torturer continued, “but it’s even worse than he thinks. Let me tell you a love story.”

  James sat down on the edge of the couch, feeling miserable.

  “James has been in love with Sara since he was ten years old, but it wasn’t until he was twelve that he got the confidence to approach her. One day, James gave her a note asking her out.”

  “How does he know that?” James muttered.

  “She said yes. After years of waiting, Sara was finally his girlfriend. They spent two happy years together before this latest development. But unfortunately, there’s more to this story than James is aware of.”

  What is he talking about? James thought warily.

  “It turns out Sara had already been cheating on James for months before he caught her. With Mark several times, as well as Nicholas, Johnny, and Pat. Worse still, everyone in the school knew, including his best friend, Dennis. Everyone but James. Right now, the rumor going around is that James is just too embarrassed to come to school. Even the teachers believe it. And Mark? Well, he’s dating Sara now, and they’re very happy together. That is all. Emily, Lana, come to the door.”

  “Wow,” Hayden mumbled. “Sara is a jerk.”

  James felt tears forming in the corner of his eyes. He blinked, trying to fight them back. He was already embarrassed enough.

  “It might not be true,” Lana said.

  “Oh, I believe it,” James whispered.

  She squeezed his shoulder and then followed Emily through the mirror door.

  14

  “CAN I HANG OUT HERE MORE?” EMILY ASKED RONO, BARELY containing her excitement as she wandered around his computer lab. Her eyes scanned the sophisticated equipment. Fifteen different computer screens portrayed riots of code, surveillance videos, and sensor readings.

  “Of course,” Rono replied. He was standing by the doorway, wearing the same brown trench coat and silver visor he’d had on the night of Emily’s abduction. He seemed pleased with her reaction. “We will do most of your training here.”

  “It’s the best setup I’ve ever seen,” Emily commented, running her fingers along a massive screen. “You could hack anything from here and do it undetected, I bet.”

  He smiled. “Yes, as you will see.”

  Emily continued to inspect the lab for a few more minutes, scrutinizing every button and blinking light. There was a large rifle lying on the end of the table, and her eyes lingered on it for a moment. She heard Rono shifting uncomfortably behind her. He must have forgotten to put the rifle away. Emily let him sweat it out for a few more seconds and then turned to face him.

  Rono quickly gestured to a seat. “Sit, please. We have a few things to discuss.”

  She sat down and felt the leather chair automatically adjust itself to match her posture. Very impressive, she thought, already feeling right at home.

  Rono rolled his chair slightly to the left, putting himself between Emily and the rifle, and then sat as well. He’d removed the trench coat, and she noticed a metal apparatus that ran over his shoulder and across the upper left side of his chest.

  “Now,” he said slowly, as if carefully choosing his words, “to begin with, I chose you for a few reasons.”

  Emily leaned forward and brushed a loose bang out of her eyes. She had been waiting to hear this.

  “First, and most importantly, your inherent aptitude for technology. I was very impressed by your coding and hacking abilities. I tracked you down through your online persona; the Black Arrow is infamous for her ability to break into anything.”

  “Including the League network,” Emily boasted. She glanced at his computer equipment again. From here, she could probably crack the network in a couple of hours.

  “Yes,” Rono agreed, following her gaze. “I monitor their network for information, and I detected your early attempts to break in. From there I found out all I could about you: your age, where you lived and went to school, and everything that was on your computer.”

  Her eyes widened. “You are good.”

  “That is what initially led me to you, but it was your personality that settled my decision. You are strangely detached and observant, perhaps even calculating. In that way, you are like me. But you also can have a fiery temper, and you are very forward. Those might be welcome additions to my own traits.” He met her eyes. “However, there are some aspects of your character I am still uncertain of.”

  “Like what?”

  Rono hesitated. “I’m not sure of your mental stability…in that, I do not fully understand the way your mind works.”

  “How so?” Emily asked.

  She wasn’t insulted; just about every teacher she’d ever had mentioned something of the sort. They usually pre-ceded the talk by telling Emily that she was categorically brilliant, after which they would question her home life. Her parents had never been to a parent-teacher conference, even when she was in kindergarten, so it was up to Emily to explain her relationship with them. At those times, she just used the word normal. It was never a lie since the definition of normal depends on the person using it.

  Rono scratched his forehead, frowning. “What I mean is that you are detached, but possibly a little too tenuously. If I train you and give you the technology to accomplish our goals, I am unsure of whether you would use it in the correct way.”

  “What is the correct way?” she asked suspiciously.

  “In whatever way we decide is best.”

  Emily leaned back, the chair’s motor whirring as it readjusted to the new position. “So you wonder if I will follow orders?”

  “Essentially, yes.”

  “Hmm…I see your problem. For one, I already attacked you. I showed no fear of you and haven’t since. So you think that if I have no fear now, why should I when I am more powerful? Such is the age-old quandary confronting the master-apprentice relationship. If the master makes the apprentice too strong, then they have no need for the master, specifically in the evil realm, where they cannot be expected to uphold morals, when morals are what they are being taught to ignore. Yes, I see your problem.”

  Rono stared at her, and then sighed. “Well, I’ve chosen you now, so we might as well try. I intend to make you strong indeed, but I warn you, if you decide to rebel, the Vindico will swiftly cut you down. You are smart, though, very smart, and you know that. We will proceed as planned.”

  “Can I send a message to my grandpa now?” she asked.

  “Not yet,” he replied. “Don’t worry; in a few days, I’ll send him an anonymous message. We need to keep things secret for as long as we can. The League knows of your disappearances. The entire country is in a panic: parents are keeping their children home from school; no one is venturing outside after dark; the sales of alarm systems have skyrocketed. The League is completely overwhelmed with thousands of panicked sightings and the swarming reporters that follow them. We need to let the fear fester for a bit longer. Anything else?”

  “When can we start?” Emily asked eagerly.

  Rono smiled and gestured to a keyboard. “Now.”

  “Sit,” Avaria ordered Lana, pointing to a small wooden bench.

  They were in a large, gray-tiled room illuminated by phosphorous lights. Punching bags were hung throughout the space, as well as several human-shaped dummies and a substantial weapons rack. Lana stared apprehensively at the gleaming swords and rifles.

  Avaria paced back and forth like a cat stalking its prey.

  “I will tell you now, I was not impressed by your wake-up,” she said, and Lana instinctively looked down at her feet. “Look at me,” Avaria snapped.

  Lana met Avaria’s eyes and felt a stirring of injured pride. Who is this woman to judge me? she thought. She held her mentor’s cold gaze, and Avaria finally nodded.

  “Better
. You recovered somewhat, enough to grow angry about your imprisonment. Then you received news of your father, at which point you broke down again.”

  “Was that true?” Lana asked quickly. “Is he really cheating on my mom?”

  “Yes. I had audio and camera feeds in your house. I saw him and the other woman in the recordings and then figured out the details from there. If you don’t believe me, I still have the tapes.”

  How could he? Lana thought numbly. How could he have done that to us? Her parents fought sometimes, but Lana had always assumed it was normal. He doesn’t even love her, Lana realized, thinking of her mother, crying at home. If he doesn’t love her, maybe he doesn’t love me. She suddenly felt more bitter than sad, and it must have shown on her face.

  “You should be angry,” Avaria said, coming to a stop. “That was the correct reaction in the first place. Doesn’t it feel better than moping about? Tears solve nothing.”

  Lana glared at her. “My dad is cheating, and you expect me not to cry?”

  “Yes. I expect you to feel rage, righteous anger. It will cleanse your weakness. Your father is ruining your family. What are you going to do about it?”

  Lana hesitated, then shook her head. “I don’t know.”

  “You don’t know?” Avaria asked mockingly. “Do you want to know what I would do?”

  In a single, incredibly smooth motion, Avaria did a one-handed back handspring and roundhouse kicked one of the punching bags right where a human face would be. The noise was like a thunderclap, and the reinforced bag skidded ten feet backward.

  She turned to Lana. “Lesson learned.”

  “So, kill my dad?” Lana asked sarcastically. “That’s your answer?”

  “Justice. That is my answer.”

  Lana shook her head again, not wanting to be baited. “I’ll tell my mom so she can move on with her life. That’s justice enough.”

  “That’s justice? He doesn’t love her. He obviously doesn’t love any of you if he would tear apart your family on a whim. So your answer is to give him an easy out?”