Remember Jamie Baker (Jamie Baker #3)(11)
“We’re the good guys, Angel,” Tyson—I refused to call him Invisidude—said.
I looked around the room at all the soldiers who still had their weapons trained on me, and then glared at the leader. “All I see is a group of guys pointing guns at me.”
After a moment of tense silence, Ryan sighed and looked at his boss. “She has a point, sir.”
The leader considered Ryan’s words, and then nodded. “Everyone stand down.”
All of the soldiers in the room lowered their guns. It was a start, but it wasn’t good enough. “Drop them,” I ordered.
The man in charge held his ground. “That’s not safe, Angel. There are more supersoldiers where your attackers came from, and they’re probably not that far away. We need to leave, and we’d like you to come with us, at least for now. Just to talk.”
Trusting is definitely not a word you’ll find written in my personality notebook either, but he made a convincing argument about the supersoldiers as he’d called them, and the kid, at least, was like me. Still, I needed a little more info before I went anywhere with them. “Who are you?”
“Major Kenneth Wilks.” He puffed up his chest. “U.S. Northern Command, ACE division.”
“ACE division?” I didn’t bother to hide my skepticism. “Most of my knowledge about the inner workings of the U.S. government might come from the Jason Bourne movies, but still, that acronym sounds as legit as S.H.I.E.L.D.”
The soldiers in the room snickered, and Ryan winked, grinning at me as though he thought I was the sun, the moon, and the stars. The major’s lips quirked. “ACE. Augmented Capability Enforcement. We handle all cases dealing with individuals who have enhanced physical, mental, or supernatural capabilities, like yourself.”
Well, that was highly disturbing, and strangely exciting at the same time. “There are enough of us out there that we require our own branch of the military?”
The major shook his head. “We’re a very small organization, Angel, and completely top secret, of course. But we’re well funded and powerful. PACs—or persons of augmented capabilities—such as yourself, are truly rare.”
My eyes flashed to Tyson, and he gave me a wicked grin.
“The ACEs’ primary interest is in finding PACs and recruiting them to help us fight crime and protect the country,” Major Wilks continued. “But we’re also the nation’s defense against them whenever it’s necessary—like with your superpowered friends here.” He gestured to the unconscious men I’d fought.
The ACE division sounded awesome—if they really did what Major Wilks claimed they did. I’d always wanted to be able to use my powers—seriously, what good is having a whole bunch of awesome gifts if I can’t ever put them to use?—but Tony was so anal about staying hidden.
One time after Tony showed me The Avengers, I suggested we make up our own secret identities and give the whole superhero thing a try. He completely freaked. He wouldn’t even pretend to consider it. I asked him if paranoia was one of his superpowers, and he got all pissy. That was the first time I broke up with him. I wonder what he’d think of the ACEs.
If Major Wilks could earn my trust, he’d have himself a new recruit, but I tried not to look as eager as I felt. “And what do you want from me? How did you find me?”
“We’ve been looking for you for a long time, Angel. You and I have a common enemy, and I could really use your help.”
My body stiffened as I realized exactly what he was saying. “You’re looking for Visticorp.”
Major Wilks’s face hardened into something frightening. “Visticorp is gone. You destroyed it. But we believe James Donovan escaped and is working with a new partner, trying to create an army of superpowered thugs. He’s stealing innocent soldiers to use as his guinea pigs, and they don’t all survive.”
That horrifying thought made me shudder, but I brought my face into a scowl that matched his fierce expression. I knew, without a shred of doubt, that if this man was going after the people who stole my memories, then I was going to do everything in my power to help him. Major Wilks saw the bloodlust in my eyes for what it was and curved his lips up into a smile.
“Fine,” I said. “I will leave with you right now and listen to what you have to say, but if you or any of your men try anything funny, I will do whatever is necessary to get myself to safety. Believe me when I say you don’t want that fight.”
I was surprised to see the man smile, even after my obvious threat. “No, Angel, I don’t want that fight. I hope to be allies.”
Giving me another smile, he looked around the motel and barked, “Get this mess cleaned up, and get those PACs in the trucks. ACES, MOVE!” He pointed a finger at Ryan and said, “You take care of her.”
“With pleasure, sir.” The grin Ryan gave his superior caused a bundle of nerves to explode in my stomach. Then he turned that devastating smile on me, and my mouth went dry. “Time to go.” He scooted closer very slowly and said, “I’m going to help you up now. Please don’t zap me.”
I let him help me to my feet. When I immediately started to swoon, he scooped me into his arms. Definitely not a bad place to be. Maybe it was the superconcussion talking, but as he carried me out of the motel, I couldn’t resist teasing him. “My hero.”