Nightmare - Secret Identities Book 1

Chapter 23

Roman's POV

I punched the wall, leaving a sizable dent.  "It's been two days!" I yelled.  "The police have nothing; we have nothing!"

"What is punching a wall going to do?" Logan asked.

"It makes me feel better!"  I sighed and rubbed my eyes.  I pressed my back against the damaged surface, sliding down to the floor.  "What're we gonna do?"

"We keep looking," Patton said.  "Logan's the smartest person I know. He has to be able to find something."

Virgil's POV

I'd had nine—maybe ten—injections so far, meaning it'd been over two days.  I'd been offered food but denied it for fear of poisoning.

A young woman opened and closed the door.  Her voice was sweet as she greeted me.  "Hello, Virgil.  Isaac sent me to come persuade you."  She didn't look threatening—she wasn't nearly as muscular as his other minions—but I knew looks could be deceiving.  She walked over to me carefully, wringing her hands.  "Isaac c-couldn't be here, but he-he wanted you to know that you're being recorded.  He'll watch it back before you see him again."

Even without my powers, I read her pretty well.  "You don't want to do this, do you?" I asked, cocking my head to the side in order to look as innocent as possible.

"It...  It doesn't matter what I want.  Isaac has a vision for-for the future, and you and the other Paragons are gonna help.  You just... need a little push."  She put her hand on my side.

Electricity coursed through my body, painful and powerful.  My muscles tensed and I let out a strained scream.

She pulled her hand away, lightning dancing between her fingers before quickly fading.  "You can make this easy on yourself.  Your powers, they can help people."

My breathing ragged, I rasped, "I don't have any fucking powers."

She sighed, and I could see the disappointment in her expression.  "I was told to do this until Isaac got here or you confessed."  Her hands sparked again.

Logan's POV

I put my head in my hand, my elbow resting on the desk.  Virgil had come up with a lot of information, but most of it was theoretical.

"Still nothing?" Roman asked.  He'd tried his best to calm down in the last day, but even I could tell he was worried.

"Virgil had the idea that a sedative would need to be used.  However, the strongest sedatives can take up to 24 hours to wear off, meaning he could be pretty much anywhere in the country, or even have been shipping internationally."  I turned to look at Roman.  "In other words, I have nothing."

"What could they have wanted with him?" he asked.  "He has no powers, few friends, and..."  He suddenly said, "Janus is missing."

"I know."  If they weren't after Virgil because he's Nightmare, he was likely kidnapped because of his ties to Deceit.

"He told you?"

"In the video he made for me, yes."  The computer made a sound and a new window opened on the screen, drawing my attention.  "Holy shi-" I covered my mouth.

TRACKER ACTIVATED.

"What's going on?"  Roman leaned over my shoulder.  "What does it mean 'tracker?'"

I opened the location, immediately writing down the address it provided.

"Logan!"

The image disappeared, replaced by the words 'TRACKER DEACTIVATED.'

Better explain quickly.  "N implanted a tracker in Virgil a few years ago to keep him safe.  The problem was the thing stopped working—something about insufficient power.  Then the incident happened and he told me not to worry about fixing it."

"So... that's where he is?"

I nodded.

Roman tore the Sticky Note from its pad, moving for the door.

"Wait, that's over four hours away!"

"I'll get there in less than three."  He threw open the door and walked out.

I grabbed my phone, dialing Patton.

"Hi, sweetheart.  Did you find something?" my husband asked.

"Yeah, if by something you mean Virgil."

"Really?  That's wonderful!  I'll be right over."

"You should know that Roman already went to get him... in his suit."

"Oh..."  Patt sighed.  "That's not gonna go over well."