{Book Two} 84 | Trust

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The Tethered Ones

Chapter 14

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Amir

The constant stream of voices and car doors slamming was heard from outside. Amir ambled quietly out of his room, trying desperately not to disturb his wife as she slept. He knew the group was back from wherever they had traveled to, and he was about to have to face them.

He sighed, not giving a damn to leave her alone, not for a second.

But if he doesn't go to the main house soon, then they'd fetch someone to come to him instead. That was all Dr. Kim instructed since he opened his eyes and had quickly adjusted himself to their current reality.

In the last seventy-two hours, literally hundreds of scientists had come and gone from the house, and they had treated it like it was one big hive. Each of them was well connected and worked together like little worker bees for their queen, but instead, it was their king.

Which had the doctor's ego sitting on a high pedestal.

The man loved barking orders, and Amir was disgusted at his attitude. His instructions were almost overwhelming at times, his needs and desires for new formulas to be developed at specific time frames. It was at the forefront of every employee's mind. Annotate. Decode. Formulate. Analyze. Identify. He deciphered what they were thinking before he understood his abilities. The only time there was even a measure of relief was when he was with Luna. Being around her was much better than watching the others insert dreadful serums into a patient's IV.

Watching their breath rise and fall, slowly dozing off had him uncomfortable and worried they weren't going to wake up. He didn't trust whatever was given to them because the body can only take so much stress before it declined. How the doctor was constructing human trials was corrupted and heinous. He couldn't stand it any longer and was ready to take action.

He was coming up with ways to switch out the formulas for something less harmful, but he was also fearful about getting caught. He didn't want to risk their chance at freedom because of what he wanted to do for the sick patients.

The staff members were the coldest scumbags he'd ever seen.

Striding across the polished wood floors of the living room that could accommodate a militia and still have room for more people, he went straight into the kitchen and began brewing a cup of coffee.

Stepping toward the back door, he inched away the white curtain and peered out into the window, observing the staff unload three transport vehicles. He stood there pondering what the group's next move was. He didn't feel good around the doctor or some guy named Chase.

In the back of his mind, he could sense there was bad blood between them, but he couldn't figure it out. All he knew was that Chase was a nutcase and was warranted the same treatment everybody else will get for hurting Tethered Souls.

No one deserved to be put through so much pain for research.

Glancing at the top of the stairs, he thought of Luna. He wandered if things went a little fast for them, or at least, for himself. Mentally, he barely knew her, but emotionally, it felt like they knew one another their whole lives. Pieces of her childhood floated inside his mind, which caused him to feel like he launched ten feet into the air and had never come down. Small things about her past had crossed his mind, things he'd once seen before felt foreign, but also familiar.

He'd seen the moment she gave birth to Sarah. There was something about her birth father that puzzled him. Had they crossed paths before?

He couldn't make sense of how he and Sam knew one another, but he established that they were acquainted at one point. He was committed to unraveling the mystery behind Luna's late boyfriend and what their connection meant.

Facing the doorway, Amir gasped as he saw Faisal.

His cousin looked as antsy as he felt standing still, not moving. Amir was surprised to see him, especially since there was a plantation full of people walking around. Anyone could peek into the guest house and see Faisal if they were tethered.

"Amir . . ." he breathed, taking a step forward and wrapping his arm around his shoulders. "It's so good to see you."

Nodding, Amir returned the hug and felt a tear flowing down his eyelid. "Hey."

"Hey?" Faisal retorted as he shook his head. "That's all you're going to say to me?"

"Sorry. I just-I'm shocked to see you," Amir replied, clearing his throat. "How . . . how are you?"

"Horrible," Faisal admitted, then chuckled. "Sorry, man. That was a joke. You're worse than I am. You and Luna."

Leaning against the counter, Amir replied, "You didn't destroy the world. It's a mess and these people are the cause of it."

"So, you remember everything? You remember what went down on the highway?" he asked, his voice soft as he glanced around the spacious living room.

"No, I don't." Amir took a sip of coffee and cracked his neck, watching the front like a hawk. He didn't want anyone to come through that door, even the owner of the house, so his guard was up.

"Oh . . ." Faisal trailed off, following Amir's gaze. "What do you remember?"

"I remember bits and pieces of what happened in the last year. The last thing I can recall is finding out I'm a Tethered Soul after my birthday."

"That's something, bro," Faisal said, grinning slightly. "Is Luna with you?"

Amir nodded. "She is upstairs. We've made progress in our relationship."

"Dude, you have an amazing wife." Faisal thrust a hand through his hair, grimacing. "She's strong and has endured a lot."

"Yeah, we've discussed a few things." Amir shifted his weight. "But I have a question for you, and I want to know the answer. Okay?"

Faisal nodded. "Sure. Ask."

"Do you know anything about our family? What about Adnan and my parents?"

He gulped, his Adam's Apple dropping.

"All they have told me here is that my parents were spotted in a refugee community in Karachi. I don't trust anyone besides Luna, and it seems strange that I can't get into contact with them." Amir thought about those cluttered areas he'd seen on TV of people trying to get to safety, and he hoped his family was among them. "It would put my mind at ease to hear it from you."

Faisal squeezed his eyes shut and blew out a breath. "I'm sorry, but everyone in our family has disappeared. No one has heard from them in six days."

Six days? Amir thought as he stalked toward the couch and smashed his fist through a fluffy white pillow, causing the feathers to fall out. There was definitely a mess he was going to have to clean later.

"I know that isn't what you want to hear, but . . ."

But what? Was Faisal going to lie to make him feel better? That wasn't the reason he asked him in the first place. He was already lied to and he couldn't wait for him and Luna to make a run for it. He needed to find his family.

He needed to make sure they were okay.

Before talking to her in the main house, he'd been focused on sticking around to find out if there was someone leading this organization. He wanted to find out their strategy and what they have to gain. From what he had witnessed, he believed Dr. Kim has been answering to a leader. And Amir was frightened the others would pick up on what he was doing, so he had to act like a brute around Luna. He hated doing that to the woman he married, but he had no other choice. He didn't remember their life together, and they knew it.

Screw these people.

Screw whatever the hell they wanted.

He wanted Luna out. Every cell in his being demanded him to smuggle her away from there, even though he could see that she was capable of holding her own. But he still wanted her out. Heck, he even thought of wrapping her in the countless packages of Bubble Wrap they stocked up on and place her tiny body into a box, then act like he was going to take out the trash down the road. But that would raise too many suspicions, not to mention he had a terrible habit of popping those bubbles until not a single one was left.

Getting both of them away from there and uncovering where his family was is what he wanted, but he couldn't do anything. How could they run without leaving a trail? He needed to think logically and strategize a better plan than what he'd originally come up with. He didn't care about the complications that would arise. All he cared about was freedom for her.

"Amir?"

After hearing Faisal's soft tone, he turned around and faced him. "Yeah?"

Pushing off the wall, Faisal stepped forward and clamped a hand on his shoulder, giving it a tight squeeze. Their eyes locked, and pressure circled like vice grips inside his chest. Amir was certain it wasn't the first time things had gotten so bad that he was nearly losing it. They both had relatives missing, people they loved.

"We'll . . ." he shuddered, gripping harder. "We'll find out where they're at, Amir. The person I'm staying with has contacts all over the planet."

"Are you certain you can trust them?"

Faisal pressed his lips into a thin line, then nodded. "With my life," was all he replied.

Real pain sizzled through Amir's chest at the thought of their family in the hands of this organization doing God knows what to them. But he couldn't allow his mind to go there. If they lay one finger on his mother's hair . . .

"Hey," Faisal said, interrupting Amir's thoughts. "Let's pray they're safe and weren't spotted. Okay?"

Amir choked on a laugh. "Is there anywhere on this planet safe enough?"

Faisal shrugged. "Probably not, but we have to have faith. Faith in our family."

"You're right. You always seem to help me understand things, even when I'm being difficult."

Faisal grinned. "Of course, brother. I've got your back."

They laughed and then the sound of a young girl was heard somewhere in the distance.

Amir smiled, closing his eyes.

Sarah, he murmured internally, hearing her euphoric voice.

He opened his eyes and looked around the small room his cousin stood in. "Where is she?"

Faisal pushed a brown drape over to the side of the window and nodded toward a large set of trees in the backyard. "Sarah is playing hide-and-seek with Liberty and Vikram."

The morning sunlight came like a wave of woven strands, united and tied, making the world of their nightly dreams celestial. Each tree stood like a masterpiece, as each patch of grass was something mystical. It was like they were in heaven and there wasn't anything else going on around them. The three of them were in their own little world, playing a game to pass time.

Amir watched as Sarah darted, barely dodging a pair of thin arms from catching her. Liberty. "That's . . ." His voice came out rough. "She's my daughter."

"I guess you never thought you'd be able to see her, huh?" Faisal asked, glancing at him.

Amir shook his head. "Just yesterday, Luna and I tested our abilities."

"What did you do?"

"That doesn't matter. Things are slowly making sense around here." Amir met his stare. "We're in trouble. Deep trouble, Faisal."

"I know. We're set to leave the day after tomorrow to get you guys out of there."

Amir released a sigh. "No, Faisal. I mean . . ." He paused, trying to figure out the right words to say. Upon glancing over Dr. Kim's notes, he discovered something and he needed to inform someone he trusted in case things went disastrously.

"What is it, Amir?" his cousin asked, barely choking out the words.

Inhaling a breath, he replied, "I haven't told Luna because I didn't want her to worry."

"It must be bad."

Amir nodded. "She and I are part of a trial called, 'Project Alpha, and Project Omega.' We were each given a serum that can accelerate our abilities."

Faisal's eyebrows furrowed. "What do you mean?"

Amir responded, "The project was named after Revelation 22:13. 'I am the Alpha and the Omega, the Beginning and the End, the First and the Last.'"

He took a deep breath and then continued.

"I was given the Alpha serum, and it works as a healer. I can heal Tethered Souls."

"Then you're a Tethered Healer," Faisal said. "Like Sid and Mila."

Amir shook his head. "Yeah. I'm able to heal others physically."

"Oh, wow."

He nodded, a knot forming in his stomach. "From the notes I've studied, they want to test it out and have me heal people. Patients who are sick."

"But you can't do it. You could give them superhuman powers."

A strong gust of wind forced a tree branch to hit the window next to them, causing the guys to look at the sky.

Amir brought his gaze back to Faisal. "If I don't heal for them, they'll use one of their lethal chemicals on Luna."

"Oh, crap. What does the other serum do?"

Closing his eyes, not saying anything for a few moments, Amir opened them, wiping a tear off his cheek. "Omega is the opposite of Alpha. While I can heal, Luna can kill. Her serum was laced with mind-control substances."

Faisal's jaw dropped. "What the hell?"

Inhaling, Amir nodded and finished, "They have a plan to bring destruction down on every Tethered Soul, regardless if their abilities have awakened. And they're going to use Luna to do it. They'll demand her to kill for them."

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