Mindsiege (Mindspeak #2)(20)

Lin moved frantically about the room, opening drawers and cabinets in storage counters along the edges. He was much more panicked than I’d ever seen Jack. Finally, he seemed to find what he was looking for. Pulling out two gas masks, he handed one to me, and shoved the other one at Ty. “Get her out of here. We have to trust that it can only mean good things if we get this information outside of this facility. Maybe Dia’s right. If she’s like us, maybe she can help.”

Ty put the mask over his face and gestured for me to do the same.

“But I don’t know what I can do,” I said. “I don’t even understand what this place is.”

“Put that mask on before you pass out and are stuck here.” Ty’s voice was muffled through the mask. I did as I was told.

At the door, I turned back. Lin and Dia slid down a wall to the floor. Lin placed an arm around Dia, letting her lean into him, and they drifted to sleep. Jealousy erupted in my heart as I imagined those two as Jack and Briana. But I shook the image away and followed Ty.

He and I ran in the direction we had come from. I heard voices and footsteps in the not-very-far-away distance. When we turned a corner, we faced a mob of dark suits. “Stop!” one of them said.

The agents were not wearing gas masks.

“This way.” Ty pulled me in a different direction.

After a couple more turns, I finally saw an exit sign, glowing red in this fog that was making some people sleep but not others.

Out of breath, I grabbed onto Ty’s arm. “What did Dia mean when she said she thought I could help all of you?” My voice sounded distant and echoed through the mask.

“Dia thinks she wants out of here. She doesn’t know what she’s talking about.” He leaned closer. “There is no escape from this life. Only different levels of acceptance.”

We neared the exit door. The fog grew thicker, consuming us. Another figure appeared through the mist. When his face came into focus, I practically launched myself at the person standing there. “Jonas.”





Chapter Nine


Jonas held Ty against the wall by his throat. The two of them were identical, with one exception—a tattoo ran down Jonas’s arm, but not Ty’s.

Ty struggled against Jonas’s grip, gasping for air behind his gas mask. “Hi, Jonas,” he half-choked, half-laughed. “So nice of you to show your face.”

They knew each other?

“Did you bring the tracker?” Jonas growled.

Ty couldn’t answer. His air had been cut off. I shook all over with the fear of being caught and trapped in the secure facility. At the same time, my knees locked, and my feet were superglued to the floor.

The exit was only inches away. Could I just push through it?

“No, Lexi, you can’t just push through it.” I jerked my head, stared hard at Jonas. He had read my mind. I searched my head. Nothing. I couldn’t find his presence. “Where is it?” he asked Ty.

“In my pocket,” he coughed.

“Get it.”

Ty reached into his pocket and pulled out a small device. Jonas took it, closing it in his palm. Then he released Ty. “Now, go.” Ty stumbled twice before he disappeared into the fog.

Jonas turned to me, his look severe at first, but then a knowing grin appeared on his lips. “Did you like what you found here?”

I stared at him in stunned silence. I opened my mouth to speak, but no words came.

I asked you a question, Lexi. He moved closer. Instinctively, I backed up against the wall, and he caged me in, with his hands on either side.

My pulse raced like a horse in the home stretch of the Kentucky Derby. I turned my head and eyed his left hand, fisted beside me and still holding the small device he’d taken from Ty. “What’s in your hand?” My voice was hoarse and muffled through the gas mask.

With his other hand, he took off my mask. My eyes widened in fear as I held my breath. You don’t need this. You were never in danger of being affected by the gas. He brushed a loose strand of hair away from my eyes. A chill spread down my arms. Now, answer my question. What did you think? Pretty scary stuff going on here, huh? He smiled.

Sucking in a large breath, I finally asked, “What is this place?”

“This is the International Intelligence Agency’s Facility for Human Cloning. We’ve nicknamed it The Farm.”

“You knew what I would find here,” I whispered.

I did. Jonas’s smile faded. They’re coming. We have to go. He snaked his hand to the small of my back and urged me to the door, where we faced a different type of security panel from the retinal scan. The sounds of footsteps echoed down the corridor. Jonas lifted his hand and pressed his thumb onto the small box-like structure.

A small click sounded. Jonas flinched. He pulled his thumb back and sucked on it before pushing the door open, keeping one hand on my back the entire time.

A finger prick for security? I wondered if my blood type matched Sandra’s. My DNA wouldn’t match, since it had been altered from the original, but it was close.

On the other side of the door, we climbed a set of stairs. At the top, I looked around. “This isn’t the same building I entered through.” How big was this underground facility?

“No, it’s not.”

To my right was all glass. Night had fallen. On the other side of the windows, the University’s library and dorm towers were lit up in the distance.