The Pyramid Chronicles: Tyche Point (#1)

Chapter Forty-Four: One Shot

Six guns pointed their way. And there were only five of them. Sam's eyes darted between the weapons, his mind completely blank, nothing in his body but sheer panic.

"Sam," Veronica muttered. "Can you—?"

"I—" Sam tried to take hold of one of the guns. Pain shot through his skull. He gasped in pain and let go. "I can't," he told her. "I need a minute. My head—"

If he could just catch his breath and clear his mind, maybe he could disarm one of the soldiers. But if he didn't disarm all six at once, the others would undoubtedly fire.

And to make matters worse, his exhaustion had worn down his control over his powers. His control over the connections he'd awoken the past couple of weeks. He wasn't reading anyone else's thoughts, but their emotions were spilling into his mind, overwhelming him even further.

While Veronica, Summer, and Eric were primarily concerned with not getting shot, Adam had decided to try reasoning with Willow.

"How could you do this?" Adam demanded.

Willow's gaze was fixed on the tablet in her hands. "Adam, you haven't seen what Scorpion is doing. What they're building."

Adam's stunned expression only grew. "I don't have to see it to know they're not going to use it for good!"

"You don't know what their end goal is."

"Do you?"

Willow didn't respond. She tapped something on your screen.

"At least admit you're doing this for selfish reasons," Adam said. "Just like you wouldn't let your club take the sponsorship money."

Willow froze. A wave of anger washed over Sam, deeper than any he could ever recall feeling himself. He grimaced. Whatever this was, it was deeply personal. He tried to force his mental barriers back up. The throbbing in his skull worsened, but the overwhelming emotion began to recede.

Adam shook his head. "You knew we wouldn't be able to get the fragment all along. You knew about the energy field. Were you ever planning on telling us?

Willow slowly lifted her eyes to meet Adam's, keeping her face emotionless. "Knowing wouldn't have changed anything that's about to happen."

"What's that supposed to mean?"

The Director waved Willow over to where he stood. "Come look at these readings."

While Willow and the Director were distracted, Eric whispered to the others. "Once they get the fragment down, we just need to steal it from them and get out."

"Yeah. Easy peasy," Summer muttered.

"I'm burned out," Sam told them. "I think I can get one soldier, but if we don't get them all at once—"

"Yeah, I'm really not in the mood to get shot." Veronica stared straight ahead at the soldier aiming at her.

"We just need to each take a different soldier and hit them all at once," Summer said. "I think I have enough strength left to take down two."

Veronica's eyes widened. "You think?"

Eric glanced at Adam, who was watching Willow and the Director. "Adam, you with us?"

"I—uh—" Adam turned his attention to the rest of the group. "Yeah. What are we—?"

The chamber door opened, a sound Sam was really tired of hearing at this point. To his relief, it wasn't a member of Scorpion or SCI, but Raveena.

The relief was short-lived.

"We can't let them take the fragment!" Terror shone in Raveena's wide eyes. She gestured with a shaking hand.