Chapter 15

Chapter 15

Nick opened his eyes and he was back in Blackwell’s office.

He frowned and sighed. “Can’t you leave me alone for just a few hours and let me get some sleep?”

Blackwell, who was standing in front of him, opened his eyes. “I’m sorry, but it was imperative I spoke with you as soon as possible.”

Nick scoffed. “Don’t play the good guy Blackwell.”

Blackwell frowned. “I am sorry for what happened at the warehouse Bennet, truly I am. It was never part of the plan to put you in harm’s way. Trust me, the perpetrator is being dealt with most severely.”

Nick didn’t speak. It struck him that Blackwell never said he killed him. It seemed he was unaware Nick had been watching. Now that he thought about it, the Blackwell he saw before him looked completely different than the one he saw kill Rookwood. This Blackwell had a grin on his face and appeared content, much like the expression he had seen on him in the old photo. It was very much different than the Blackwell he had seen kill Rookwood, who had looked cruel and dark, almost like he was dead inside. 

“So now what?” Nick shot at him, his anger growing. “I tried to stop your men. I assume you want me dead now, right?”

Blackwell laughed. “Why would I possibly want you dead? Men as powerful as us are a rare breed Bennet. I still want you on my side.”

This time, Nick was genuinely shocked. “You still want me?”

“Of course,” Blackwell said with a smile. “After all, if I saw a man trying to kill… my friends…I would attack him too.”

Nick noticed he paused as he said my friends, but he catalogued the information away for later.

“So,” Blackwell continued. “Have you made a decision yet?”

Nick spoke in what was close to a growl. “It’s kind of hard to sell your soul to the devil when he isn’t being honest with you.”

“The devil?!” Blackwell said, placing his hand over his heart. “You wound me Bennet. You really think I’m the villain here?”

“Let’s see,” Nick said, holding up his hand. He held up one finger. “Incredibly dangerous henchmen? Check.” He held up a second finger. “Master plan that he keeps hidden from all others? Check.” He held up a third. “Incredibly powerful? Check. Should I continue?”

“You don’t see the full picture,” Blackwell said, frowning. “I’m not out to destroy the world. I’m out to save it!” Blackwell stood up from his desk and began to pace the floor, his voice gradually growing louder. “The CIA and their government is okay with the status quo, but what is the status quo to humanity? War. Racism. Death.”

Blackwell was now growing frantic, a mad look in his eyes as he spoke. “The status quo is the enemy. I wish to crush it and create a new world. A world free of the things governments have told us cannot go away.”

“And your plan to do this is…” Nick said, seeing an opening. Nick was growing more uneasy by the minute, but his sly persona hadn’t vanished. He knew an opening when he saw one.

Blackwell looked like he was about to answer, but instead, a smile spread across his face. “Clever Bennet, very clever. You almost had me spilling my entire plan to you.” He seemed to have calmed down now and sat back down in his seat. “I guess that’s another thing I have in common with a villain” He held up four fingers. “Monologue the plan? Check.”

Nick continued to glare at Blackwell, whose smile vanished and a weary look replaced it.

“I’m generous Bennet,” he sighed. “I will not ask for an answer today, but before you leave, let me show you who you are siding with if you deny my offer.”

Blackwell closed his eyes and the room dissolved.

 

Suddenly, Nick was no longer standing in Blackwell’s office, but in a dark corridor. He heard footsteps running towards him and he turned to see Blackwell rushing down the hall.

Nick instantly knew something was off. Blackwell looked better than before, with his hair cut short and his face cleanly shaved. He had a deep frown on his face, but that wasn’t what struck Nick so hard. Blackwell was wearing a dark black suit identical to the one the rest of the team wore on missions.

Nick, even though he was obviously not there, stepped out of the way as Blackwell hurried by. Nick picked up his pace to follow, and soon realized he was in the Enhanced Division’s headquarters. Blackwell stopped in front of the control room door and stepped inside.

A man was standing at a desk in the front of the room. The man turned as Blackwell entered the room and Nick recognized him instantly. It was a younger version of James Minus.

“Nick!” Minus said, crossing the room to meet Blackwell. “How did the mission go?”

“Stop James,” Blackwell said in a cold voice, holding up his hand. “You have some explaining to do.”

Minus’ smile wavered. “Explaining?” he stammered.

“What is this?” Blackwell said, shoving a folded up sheet of paper into Minus’ hands. He unfolded it and all the color drained from his face.

“Well James?” Blackwell said in a voice just above a whisper. “Care to explain?”

Minus’ smile was gone. He folded the paper back up tenderly and put it in his pocket. “Where did you find this?” he asked quietly.

“Funny what you can find out when you can read minds,” Blackwell said with a scowl. “Now it’s time for you to explain.”

Minus paused. “You were never meant to see this Nick…”

“Why?!” Blackwell cried, finally losing his composure. “Because you knew how I would feel about it if I did?! This is a crime against humanity and you know it! You cannot force every Enhanced to submit to GPS tracking!”

“Why not?!” Minus said, yelling back. “Just look at what you can do. Imagine if there is at least one other Enhanced out there with your kind of power that chooses not to play nice. It could destroy our way of life!”

“The purpose of the Enhanced Division was to monitor Enhanced activity and use our gifts to stop world catastrophes! It wasn’t so we could all get branded like cattle!”

“Gifts,” Minus said in a mockingly cruel voice. “What you can do isn’t a gift. It’s a threat. A threat to every American when they go to bed at night. This is one step towards ensuring we are safe from your kind. The question is, are you with us or not?”

Blackwell looked at Minus with loathing. If he wasn’t surrounded by armed men and women, Nick wouldn’t have been surprised if Blackwell killed Minus on the spot.

“I trusted you James,” Blackwell said in a cold voice. “This isn’t what we talked about when we started the Division. This is not what I signed up for.”

“Then leave!” Minus spat at Blackwell. “We don’t need people here who don’t share a vision for the big picture!”

Blackwell shot one more scathing look at Minus then turned around and stormed towards the door, with Nick following close behind. Blackwell didn’t touch the door to open, but flicked his hand at it lazily, causing it to rip from its hinges and crash into the hallway. He stormed out, leaving the room behind him in shock.

Nick followed close behind, but he had to break into a run eventually to keep up. Blackwell was storming through the hallways with incredible speed. Suddenly, he stopped in front of a door Nick recognized as the team’s own living room. Blackwell walked inside.

“Hey Nick!” a man said smiling, running up to clasp a friendly hand on Blackwell’s shoulder. Nick couldn’t believe it when he looked into the man’s face to see it was Tom. He had begun to doubt Tom ever smiled. “You up for a movie night?”

“No,” Blackwell said flatly. He turned to a girl sitting down on one of the couches. “Erica, can I talk with you?”

Nick was almost equally surprised by Erica as he was by Tom. The Erica he knew was stoic, cold, and not the most approachable. The Erica he saw before him was the exact opposite. She looked happy; a broad smile plastered to her face as she looked up at Blackwell.

Nick couldn’t help feeling a little annoyed by this. “Was Blackwell such a great guy that everyone was happier when he was around?!”

“Sure Nicky,” Erica said with a smile and stood up. The pair walked back out the doors into the hallway. Tom looked slightly annoyed for being denied his movie night so quickly, but quickly got over it and another smile appeared on his face. “Lovebirds,” he said quietly so only he could hear.

Nick followed the pair into the hall. They stopped just outside and stood in silence for a few awkward moments, neither speaking. Finally, Erica broke the silence.

“So, Nicky,” she said moving closer to him, smiling. “You wanted to tell me something?”

Blackwell rubbed the back of his neck, a clear gesture he was feeling uneasy. “Erica, this isn’t easy for me to say.”

Her smile vanished, replaced by a look of concern. Those were never words you wanted to hear from your significant other. “What is it?”

“I have to leave,” Blackwell said at last. “And I want you to come with me.”

Erica blinked, at a loss for words. “What?” she finally stammered.

“James has pushed me for the last time,” he said in a more forceful voice than before. “I can no longer work with him. I have to leave, and I want you to come with me.”

Erica stayed silent for another moment before speaking. “Nicky, you can’t leave. You started the Enhanced Division with Minus. You can’t just abandon it.”

“Yes, I can,” Blackwell replied bluntly. “But that doesn’t mean it has to be over for us.” Blackwell leaned in close to Erica, putting his hand on her cheek. “I love you Erica.”

“Why? Why do you have to leave?” Erica said, a tear coming to her eye.

Blackwell’s face grew cold. “He doesn’t respect us,” he said with a growl. “He only sees Enhanced as a means to an end. He fears us.” He moved closer. “He wants us to be GPS tracked. Can you believe that?! We don’t have to work for people like him.”

“Nicky,” Erica said quietly, “You don’t have to do this.”

“I do,” he replied. “And you should too. We don’t have to be stooges to the CIA anymore.”

Erica choked back a sob. “I can’t leave,” she said. “What about Tom? What about helping innocent people? What about being a hero? Have you forgotten all that?”

Blackwell’s eyes grew cold as Erica spoke. He drew her into his embrace and they stayed silent for an all too brief moment.

“None of that matters. All that matters is that we’re together, but not here. Please, Erica. You can’t stay with them.”

Erica pulled away, a frightened look in her eyes. “You’ve changed Nick.”

At that moment, Blackwell changed. The light had left his eyes. It seemed Nick had pinpointed the exact moment the life in them had vanished for good. “Take care of yourself, okay?” he said in a small voice.

He turned and walked down the hallway, not looking back. Nick looked at Erica, and could almost see her heart snapping in two.

The room dissolved, but the image of Erica would be etched in his mind forever.

 

Erica was already awake as the car shuddered to a halt.

She had been awake for a while, having not been able to sleep very soundly with all the questions bouncing around in her head.

“We’re here,” Tom said, yawning and rubbing his eyes. Erica looked over at Nick, but he was fast asleep, his eyes still moving frantically in their sockets.

She frowned. She hated not knowing things, and not knowing what Nick had seen in his vision was driving her crazy, but she had decided in her brief car ride to not obsess over it. She didn’t need Nick to confide in her. She didn’t need him to be her friend.

 Lizzie, who had just woken up, moved to wake Nick, which was Erica’s cue to leave. She didn’t need him to deny her answers again.

She leapt out of the back of the van. They were in the facility’s parking lot. She couldn’t help but be impressed with how well they concealed it. Not because it was camouflaged (It was quite easy to spot) but by how difficult it would be to imagine it as a CIA headquarters.

They picked an old private airport to create the heart of the Enhanced Division. It only had one runway and one hanger. There was a separate section built later to increase the floor space, but that was all that was visible from the ground. To any casual passer bier, it would appear to be a lightly used airport and nothing more.

But Erica knew better. She knew that inside was much more state of the art than the outside. She chuckled slightly. The CIA really was brilliant.

She walked across the lot, trying her best to rid Nick from her mind. She didn’t need him. She was almost successful…until she reached the door.

Her hand felt cold as it clutched the handle. An icy feeling had washed over her, urging her to turn around. Against her better judgement, she did.

Nick had just emerged from the back of the van and was staring after her, trying hard to meet her gaze. As their eyes locked, Erica was suddenly overwhelmed by his emotions, which flew thick and fast over her. One outshined them all: sympathy. 

Erica stumbled as her mind ached from the temporary connection. She looked up again to see Nick making his way towards her, but she didn’t wait for him.

She pulled open the door and disappeared inside, but her mind didn’t slow. A new question joined the growing list; what was the sympathy about?”

She rushed down the halls and ran into the living room, pulling open her door and slamming it behind her. She collapsed down on her bed, rubbing her face in her hands.

Why does life have to be so complicated? Right when she told herself she wouldn’t obsess over the mysteries of Nick Bennet, another one was thrown right in her face. It was enough to drive anyone mad.

She cried out in frustration and slammed her hands down on her bed. Why couldn’t he just talk to her?!