Tremble (Denazen #3)(30)
“Me? I swear I’ve never been—”
Bending me back against the rickety wooden railing, he pinned me tight with his body, face hovering inches above mine. More cracking. I didn’t know how much more this bridge could take before we both plunged into the river. “That drug gave you an ability they don’t know about—didn’t it? You did something when you kissed me last night. Confused me!”
“No,” I promised, unable to hold it together any longer. The tears fell and for the first time since we’d met, I was truly afraid of him. Aubrey was right. There were parts Kale kept on a short leash in order to conquer the darkest parts of himself. All the anger over his past and the dark emotions that went with it. Denazen shook it all loose. “Please, Kale. Stop and listen—”
“Stop!” he screamed. “Stop talking. Stop trying to confuse me.” His weight pressed harder, and I was sure we’d both end up going over the edge. The old railing whined in protest, and it moved behind me. Flexing and ready to give.
“Calm down,” I said. “I have an idea. A way to fix the mess in your head.”
He eased off a little and the creaking stopped, allowing my heartbeat to return to some small level of normalcy. “I’m listening.”
“One of the Supremacy kids. Ben Simmons. I think he can help you.”
He pushed back again, eyes darkening. “You’re lying. There is no Ben Simmons on the list.”
I pushed against him, trying with no luck to slide out from under his weight. “Yes, there is—but it’s not surprising that you don’t know about him.”
“What do you mean?”
“I’m willing to bet all my fingers and toes that Dad isn’t planning to let you within a million miles of the guy. His ability has something to do with messing with memories.”
“So now you’re telling me it was a Supremacy subject that did”—he tapped the side of his head—“this to me?”
“No, but it was definitely another Six—a Denazen Six—with the ability to mess around up there.”
“And you want me to believe there are two Sixes out there who can do the same thing—a thing that conveniently suits my situation?”
“I’ve learned that when it comes to Sixes, there are a lotta different shades of the same color out there. The Six who did this to you has a similar ability to Ben Simmons, but not the exact same, I’d guess. I’m betting having been given the Supremacy drug makes Ben Simmons way more powerful—at least until he dies.”
“You’re lying,” he repeated, but with slightly less conviction. “There’s no Simmons.”
“But what if I’m not?” I could see the crack in his armor. It was small, but if I could slip in a sheet of doubt, I might have a chance. He wanted so badly to make me pay for what they’d told him I did, but more than that, he wanted his life back. If I could keep him away from them a little longer, I might be able to give it to him. “If he can mess with the inside of a person’s head, with the help of the Supremacy drug, maybe he can fix what someone else messed up.”
Kale didn’t answer.
“You said you wanted your life back, right?” The desire for truth reflected so plainly in his eyes. This could work. I could find Ben Simmons before Denazen, and at the same time, keep Kale away from the Resident sludging things up inside his head. If that didn’t work, maybe Simmons really could use his ability to help things along. “Well, I’m offering you a way to get it. Ben Simmons is on the list of Supremacy subjects—and that means your boss and his daughter have been keeping things from you. You may not remember much about your life before this all happened, but you must know that secrets never end in happy.”
He backed away another step but still didn’t look convinced.
That’s when I remembered the picture I’d taken of the sheet with Ben Simmons’s name and picture. I’d e-mailed it to myself! “I can prove it!”
“Fine. Prove it.”
I held out my hand. “I’ll need my phone.”
He hesitated, then pulled it from his jacket pocket. I reached for it, but when my fingers closed around it, his didn’t let go. Eyes on mine, he said, “Don’t try anything.”
“Wouldn’t dream of it.” I forced a smile and unlocked the cell. Thankfully, even though we seemed to be in the middle of nowhere, I had enough of a signal to pull up Gmail. “Here. See this? I took a picture of this yesterday. Ben Simmons’s file.”
He squinted, holding the cell close, then turned it sideways in examination. “This could be fake.”
“It could,” I agreed. “But it isn’t.”
Kale stared at the screen, and when he handed the cell back to me, I was sure he didn’t buy it. But instead of coming at me again, he said, “Where is he?”
I breathed an internal sigh of relief. “Connecticut. It’s not too far from here.” When Kale didn’t say anything, I got nervous and pushed it. “What’s the worst that could happen? I’m lying—which I’m not—and you can exact your devious revenge later, rather than now. You’ve got nothing to lose. Not like I can take you or anything.”
He snorted, lips curling into a familiar smile. “Of course you can’t.”