CHAPTER THIRTY-ONE
HARRY HAD PLANNED TO leave immediately after he saw the small group safely inside the gate. He hadn't planned to watch the camp the rest of the day, throughout the night, and early the next morning. He hadn't planned to be as worried as he is. He hadn't planned to miss any of them as much as he does.
He tries to tell himself that he stuck around to make sure there was no trouble. Trouble as in Evelyn causing it or the camp refusing them. There hadn't been the slightest disturbance. Now the next day under the beaming sun, he almost wishes there was one. So he doesn't have to turn his back and walk away. He knows he made the right decision, but the right one isn't always the preferable one, is it?
He grits his teeth, then spins abruptly and rustles the shrubbery around him as he hurries away so he can't change his mind.
A sound other than the skittering leaves makes him pause not too long after he starts. Eyes narrowing, he concentrates, zeroing his ears in on the tiniest noise. A bee flying by. Two animals that sound similar to racoons fighting over territory. The wind swaying the trees.
Maybe it had been a trick of his mind; him wanting to hear something.
He glances back at the camp. The guards have not faltered during their patrol, the gate has not opened, and the building beyond stands tall and still and quiet. He forces his gaze back in front of him, picks up his pace once more.
His heels dig into the dirt.
No, he had heard something.
Whispering.
His senses tell him it's two experiments, though, they're quite a bit away. Not professional followers, and they've obviously never encountered Harry before, or they would've known to keep a further distance and their mouths closed. He figures playing the clueless card with work, so he keeps walking with a neutral expression. All he has to do is be quicker and stealthier.
It's not hard.
He makes a giant circle around them, looping around the same trees in different directions to throw them off balance. When he finally pinpoints their location, he uses his altered speed to pop behind them. They don't notice his presence until he grips one by the back of his shirt collar, tossing him up against a measly pine tree. Harry is fast to adjust, pressing his forearm against the experiment's throat while the other begins shouting at him.
"Don't hurt him! I swear, we mean no harm. Please let him go."
Harry ignores him, glaring into the terrified boy's eyes. He's from the freshest batch of experiments, the stench of his youth causing Harry's nose to naturally crinkle. "Micah already had me tagged, why send more?"
The boy's eyes widen. "We're not with Micah, I-I swear to you! We were just... we were..."
As the boy struggles for a lie, Harry pushes him harder into the tree, the wood creaking as little pieces break off. "Lies are pointless unless you want to be digging splinters out of your insides for the rest of your life."
The boy's eyes practically pop out. "N-no, please! Y-yes, Micah sent us but h-he didn't give us any details."
"We were told to mark your whereabouts and report back to him," the other boy pleas, though doesn't dare a step closer. "Please don't hurt us. We're just following orders. He threatened to have us all killed."
"All?" Harry inquires, raising an eyebrow as he continues to look at the boy in front of him, only releasing him enough to breathe.
He frantically nods. "There's about twenty of us. We're the most useless out of everyone else. We have a tendency to screw up and Micah tries to keep us out of the way, but he needs his men for something. He didn't tell us why, I swear. He only said to talk to Shade or Buffy and get your location so we can continue to trace you."
The other boy cuts in. "They led us astray at first," he says. "But then Micah came in and Shade tried to lie but Micah saw through it, and he finally said the last place you were. We picked up your trail, but even that took ages. We're not the smart ones. We don't have some extravagant master plan to kill you."
Harry doesn't need to be told things that are plain as day. These two probably couldn't even muster enough courage to speak too loudly nonetheless do any actual harm. Harry sighs and lets the boy go, the pine tree looking ready to give with the next strong breeze. He hadn't realized he'd pushed the boy so hard. A twinge of remorse knots his stomach.
"You have options now," Harry tells them, eyes darting between the two who appear to be twins. "You can go back to Micah without information, or you can save yourself and run for it."
The talkative boy blinks. "You're not going to kill us?"
Harry visibly cringes, shaking his head. "But I'm not going to let you follow me either. Micah should learn to mind his own business."
The boy he had against the tree rubs his throat. "We can't go back there. We don't have anywhere to go."
Harry almost smashes his head against the tree. He's always picking up strays he takes pity on, isn't he? Some may call it heroic, but it's more exhausting than ever now. Being alone isn't ideal but neither is being a leader.
He scratches the back of his neck. "I'm sorry I can't help you."
The two exchange gloomy glances, then hang their heads. "We understand," one whispers while the other says, "Thanks anyways."
Now Harry really wants to bash his head in. They may not intentionally be giving him a guilt trip, but regardless of intentions it's working.
He groans, closing his eyes tightly for a few seconds before facing them again. "Do you intend to leave the other twenty to Micah's mercy?"
One looks embarrassed. "We were going to, um, break them out... somehow."
"We didn't work out all the details."
"But we're still going to try."
"We're treated horribly there."
Harry presses his lips together. He can still feel Evelyn's. "There's no room for a rescue mission in my schedule, I'm sorry."
The one who seemed embarrassed straightens and clasps a fist against his chest, the other boy quickly following suit, rendering Harry speechless and confused. Simultaneously, they say, "We pledge our loyalty to you."
It's Harry's turn to blink at them in shock. "What?"
One steps forward. "Micah made all of us take an oath to swear our loyalty to him for when he's in power. He promised us a good life, but we're part of the rejects. Nobody wants malfunctioned experiments. So if you'll let us, we'll stand by your side instead."
When Micah is in power?
Just how far up in the world does he think he's going to get?
Harry remembers a mission in the middle east where Micah had been fascinated by the monarch system. He had followed the emperor for days, insisting it was for the sake of capturing him more skillfully, but Harry knew better then and he knows better now. He's not quite sure Micah understands just how to go about getting his way, but he also realizes that there's no one around to stop him.
"I don't understand," Harry says quietly, shaking his head.
The other boy, still holding his throat, nods firmly. "Micah declared you his biggest threat. He says it'll be a battle between the two of you. We want to be on your side."
"There are no sides," Harry says, scrambling for his thoughts. "I have no intentions of partaking in his games."
"That's not what he's telling everyone."
"He says you want to steal his power."
"Everyone remembers you."
"He's turning them against you."
Harry stares at the twins who speak so fluently, so in time with each other it's scary. Harry doesn't understand why Micah would even bother bringing him up, unless he has some other secret plan stashed away. Harry knows Micah wants him gone--he's always wanted that--but why bring the others into it? Harry has made no move on Micah whatsoever, so it seems like an unnecessary tactic.
"What are your names?" he asks, then frowns. "And how can I tell you apart?"
"I'm Aces."
"I'm Spades."
"To tell us apart, I'm 5784."
"And I'm 5785."
Both turn around to reveal their tattooed numbers on the back of their necks. Harry knows that doesn't help at all with their dark hair lying over it, and they probably know that too, but he supposes there's no need to differentiate between the two. Not when they speak as if they were one person with two voices.
"Will you accept us?" Aces, or he supposes it's Aces at random, asks with big wide, hopeful eyes.
"It would be an honor," Spades, again a guess at random, adds.
This is too much for Harry to fathom, but he's so intent on getting to the lab that he agrees simply to get moving. He wants to be there by nightfall. It's midday now, so with his speed he should be there in no time. However, the two newbies may not be accustomed or even aware of their advantage and they may slow him down.
They tell him they can use their speed, just not well. They stumble and trip and run into trees before they can stop themselves. Nonetheless, though, the three make much needed progress. Harry would already be there if he were by himself, but of course solitude is a rarity for him. It seems he always has company whether he wants it or not.
He keeps his mind off of Evelyn and the rest.
No need to worry about the things he can't control. What happens from now will happen, and he will take each event as it is. No more trying to change what the universe has in store. No more wallowing over what has already been done.
He needs to be focused.
He's still wary of Aces and Spades. Their whole background could be a sob-story conjured up by Micah himself simply to get Harry under his thumb. Harry's compassion is his downfall, but he can't do anything about it. If this is a trap of Micah's, he'll be going in expectantly which is the opposite of what Micah will want.
Hopefully, though, there is no trap.
With that bad feeling still lingering in the pit of his stomach, he wouldn't be surprised. He's starting to feel better about his decision to leave Evelyn behind in a safer place. There's no telling what he's about to walk into.