ﮩ٨ـﮩﮩ٨ـ Tethered ﮩ٨ـﮩﮩ٨ـ

Chapter 37

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• Luna •

Luna adored many books, and one made her sister look like a goddess of vengeance. Liberty stood tall and slender. She was frightful while the porch light behind her cast a halo around her head and her eyes were crimson.

And maybe the book came true, because Liberty was intent on murdering her. Possibly kill everyone in the house.

Greer moved. "Hi. I'm—"

When Liberty raised her hand, he should have acted quickly, but he was like the others Luna had seen. Electricity knocked Greer back.

Her sister was serious.

And she was really powerful.

Liberty calmly faced Luna and Amir. Behind her, more people arrived.

Defectives.

Liberty Carlyle, Luna's older sister, was manipulated.

Things would escalate and become nasty. Real nasty.

"Thought you could hide from BARDA?" Liberty frowned when she glanced at Luna and then at Greer when he stood up. "You can't."

Luna edged closer. "Liberty! Please, you need to—"

Liberty flew at her. Amir and Greer could only hold her by the shoulders, but Luna was helpless, and Liberty took advantage.

She placed her hand on Amir's chest. Amir dodged a headshot at the last second but was hit in the face.

Luna howled when he toppled with her sister on top.

She knew Liberty would murder him unless he took care of her like the Defectives he'd just killed.

Luna came to her senses once Greer grabbed a Defective.

She snatched large chunks of Liberty's long hair and dragged her away from Amir. When she fell, her arms and legs spread like a crab. Liberty raised her head, her eyes sparkling like rubies.

"Don't do this," Luna advised. "Please."

Liberty sprung. Like leaped at Luna's face. "I've been waiting for this."

She smacked Luna.

When Luna fell on her butt, her jaw and tailbone ached. Looking at Liberty, she wiped her eyes.

Liberty turned around and said, "Awesome. I want to do that again."

Luna stumbled when her older sister ran fast. After Amir moved, a Defective raced after her. She struck Liberty's chin after colliding.

Snapping her head back, Liberty's black locks fell like lace. Luna's knuckles ached.

Liberty pulled her ponytail. Luna's spine burned as she clutched her sister's hands. She clung on, nearly ripping Liberty's head off.

It's time to bring her down.

Her sister shrieked, let go, and swayed when Luna stood up.

Liberty pulled Luna's hair again. After falling backward, Luna kneeled.

She shouted, "Stop! We shouldn't be fighting!"

While standing, Liberty smacked Luna in the face, sending her spinning.

Ouch.

Liberty clutched Luna's neck with a thin arm and drove her fist into her back, knocking her down.

Luna winced while gasping.

BARDA's training kicked in, and she gripped her sister's hand before throwing her weight forward. Luna dropped Liberty backward.

She struggled to avoid cutting her Liberty's retina when she muttered something too tumultuous for Luna to understand.

Luna told her, pushing her to her feet, "You're my sister, Lib. Can't you see? You need to fight their hold on you."

"I don't need to do anything." Liberty bled bluish-red. "Because of you, the world is a mess. You and Amir had to show yourselves."

"Good grief. You helped us. You don't remember?"

Liberty scowled.

Luna stared. No time for old news. "We escaped the people you're working with. You're on our side. They injected you with a serum while you were running. I love—"

Liberty yanked Luna's hair and threw her.

They were in full girl-fight mode.

They rolled on the floor grabbing necks. Luna won. "Our friends looked for us and our family. You found shelter."

Liberty tore Luna's sweater collar. "None of that matters."

Luna screamed after seeing Amir and Greer fighting several attackers.

After Liberty slammed Luna into a wall, she wailed. Plaster broke. She tumbled over the couch in the den and fell backward after watching white dust fly everywhere.

That bitch!

Luna lay still, blinking out the stars. Turning, her ears rang.

Liberty pulled them through the Luna-sized wall hole. She was unstoppable. She was like a real-life Lara Croft.

Luna tried to stand, breathing through her ribcage and back. Probably important things broke in the house.

Liberty sprang on the couch and lunged toward her with a violent face. Luna ducked, and Liberty hit the glass table next to her. It shattered.

Her sister laid still in wonder. Luna didn't let her recover.

She gripped Liberty's shoulders after landing on her sister's stomach and burrowing through the broken glass. "You're my sister," Luna said. "You helped us create new identities. Amazing ones." Her head shook. "You were at my wedding, and you've always been the one person I could trust with Sarah, your niece." Luna screamed when Liberty hit her again. "We've been through so much together and have grown stronger. Lib, nothing has ever separated us. Nothing."

Liberty became a terrifying creature, smashing, clawing, and hitting.

"Vikram's a great man!" Luna yelled at Liberty and pinned her down to prevent Liberty's swinging hands from striking her in the face. "Remember him?"

"Yes!" Liberty wailed. "I also remember—"

"You're both trying to survive." Luna's body expanded and she felt blood flowing in several painful places, but she had to reach Liberty. She couldn't do anything else. "You were planning your wedding. Maybe I started this war. I'll never forgive myself for ruining everything. But none of that is important right now. Focus and beat them."

Luna could only keep talking to Liberty, hoping she would escape the organization's control.

"Do you want the world to continue as it is? Fighting for freedom every day? Vikram doesn't since he's been fighting for us. BARDA destroyed his home in India." Liberty's crimson eyes turned brown while Luna continued. "Go to him, he needs you. You're stronger—"

Liberty shrieked and jumped as if Luna was trying to kill her.

The terrifying roar mimicked a dying animal. She cried beneath Luna, closing her eyes. After a few seconds of silence, Liberty sobbed again until Luna believed her sister might die.

"What did . . . I nearly killed you." Another tremor shook Liberty's thin frame. Luna watched her sister's beautiful face crumple and cry large, fat tears. "I'm sorry."

• • •

• Amir •

After the last Defective dropped, Amir went to Luna and Liberty. The wooden foyer was destroyed by a huge hole in the wall.

"Wow." His gut sank when he ran through the open entrance into the other room and stepped over a corpse.

If the sisters were hurt, he would have known. His heart and stomach were still churning.

Greer stood near the den inhaling heavily against a wall. He stayed quiet as Amir stumbled through. The couch and vases were smashed. The carpet was filthy.

Amir slumped when his terrified gaze fell on the room's center.

The girls were sitting on a smashed coffee table, Luna on top of Liberty. No fighting or movement. He froze. Then, he finally heard it. Sounds of a broken person.

Luna cried and rose slowly. Amir caught her attention. She gasped and bled.

He stopped after facing the center and concentrated on Liberty. Luna's sister curled. She was making the gut-wrenching sounds.

"Liberty?" Amir sounded harsh. "It's me. I need to check your injuries."

Her arms were crossed when she said, "I'm sorry. I'm so sorry." That was all Liberty said between sobs.

As Amir reached her, his legs buckled and the glass smashed under his feet. Sitting close to her, he softly touched her quivering shoulder. "Liberty, will you let me look at you?"

Her sobs became light, and a stream of her words began to slide through his mind. She spoke telepathically, mostly incoherently. But its meaning was clear.

The connection to BARDA was broken. He didn't know how, but it didn't matter anymore.

It was surprising that he was able to hear Liberty internally. She had never spoken to him like that.

Holding her up, Amir removed the glass around her shoulders. While she wept, he continued, "Liberty, I need to see your wounds."

"No. Check on Luna," Liberty whispered against his shoulder.

Luna shook her head. "Stay with her. I'm okay. Really."

Liberty clutched Amir's arms, shaking. "I don't know what happened. They woke me up, and all I could focus on was what they wanted. BARDA made me . . . like this."

"Makes sense." Amir examined her scrapes after bringing her to the kitchen counter. "They get inside people's heads."

"I'm so sorry," Liberty mumbled again after she folded her hands in her lap.

"You're all right. Everything is fine." Amir hoped his sister-in-law would calm down so he could find out what the organization had done to her.

She didn't notice. "None of you know what I did, thought, or was okay with them doing to victims. I only spent a few hours with them, but it was enough to turn me into something I don't even recognize anymore." When Liberty coughed, her voice faded and her breathing strained. "They're terrible."

Amir agreed. BARDA was violent.

He understood they had controlled her somehow. He tried not to worry about it because it wasn't her fault. None of it.

Sniffing, Liberty began saying she was evil, which infuriated him.

"They caused your actions. It is not your fault. You trust your family's judgment. Nobody thinks any less of you." Amir pleaded with her. "You're incredible, Liberty. Luna's memories of you two show your personality. Remember that."

He hugged her and the tremors stopped. It slowly became dark outside.

"It was Luna," she whispered. "She . . . did it. I wanted her dead. I wanted to kill her, Amir, but . . ."

"But what?"

"We were fighting, and she kept talking, forcing me to think about things before BARDA kidnapped me." Liberty shiveved when she saw the big hole. "Luna brought up Vikram." Her breath caught on his name. "I remembered more than my rage and sadness when she said his name. I don't know why. My mind . . . it became mine again."

Amir nodded. He understood how it was because he was under BARDA's control for several days.

As Liberty relaxed, he checked the room. Amir didn't realize Greer and Luna had left, probably giving him extra time with Liberty. He worried about his wife now that he knew her sister would be okay.

He helped Liberty stand up. "You don't appear to have any major injuries. How do you feel?"

She cleaned her cheeks with the sleeves of her purple blouse, wiping away tears and bright crimson liquid that wasn't hers. His heart pounded when she inhaled. Luna's exhausted whimper was the same.

"I'm okay, but Luna and I got ugly. She probably hates me now."

"Are you for real? If Luna hated you, she wouldn't have tried to bring you back. Liberty, your sister loves you."

Her daze was broken by his words. Liberty's brow wrinkled. "Do you believe that? Even with you and the other guy here, I was about to hack off her skull. Who is he?"

Amir grabbed a washcloth and dabbed her wounds, replying, "That is Greer. In one of BARDA's underground facilities, he guarded Luna and me. He is a Dark Soul, which is a Lazarus Soul, but he has self-control."

"Oh."

"He isn't horrible." Amir struggled to utter those words. "But don't tell him I said that. We don't need to boost his ego."

Greer entered and she laughed. He ignored Amir. His pupils were wide and his face sallow. Shaken. Amir didn't care why.

"Luna went outside," he said, peering at Liberty, who was trembling. "She's fine," he added. "A little startled."

Amir nodded while Liberty stared at him. Her voice was hoarse. "Go. It's okay."

"Are you sure?"

"Yes, Dr. Khan." Her lips curled. "Thanks for checking on me."

"Of course. That's why I became a doctor."

Amir fought the impulse to advise Greer on how to monitor Liberty, but he knew his sister-in-law was in good hands while he strode near the foyer entrance and turned back. The guard kept her from falling.

Considering her experience, Liberty needed this. He was curious about BARDA, but why bother her when his wife needed him? He'd find the organization after getting his answers.

He took a deep breath and cringed at the shattered front door. Once Zain and Zander returned, they were not going to be happy.

Luna curled on the stairs. When Amir descended the steps, she slowly raised her head and touched his heart with her brown eyes.

"She's okay." It was a statement rather than a question.

Nodding, Amir crouched before her. "You saved her."

Luna shook her head.

"Yes. She told me. Moon, she nearly killed you."

"I know, but . . . I didn't want you to kill her and be burdened with it." She dried her tears.

He never imagined loving Luna more. On his knees, he kissed her forehead. "I love you. Thank you is all I can say."

"You're praising me?" While pressing her forehead to his, she said, "You don't have to express gratitude. We protect those we care about."

Amir stepped up to sit next to her but didn't hold her because he could feel her discomfort. "What hurts?"

She sniffed. "I'm fine."

"No. I feel your pain. Don't argue—you know I'll heal you."

After staring at each other, Luna stuck out her bottom lip, making him laugh. "Mostly my ribs. Liberty hurled me through a wall."

Amir closed his eyes and inhaled. He gently caressed Luna's face to start healing her. "I need you at your best when we fight again."

She frowned. "You'll have to heal everyone."

He laughed and said, "Be still." Amir stared at her while treating her left shoulder. "I'll heal everyone if it helps our mission."

"Yep." Nodding, Luna winced again. "Is she okay? Nothing broken?"

"No serious damage," Amir replied. Luna's eyes drooped and her cheek rested on his shoulder as his energy calmed her. He enjoyed this. It gave him a warm, tingly feeling. "Whatever they gave her changed her."

When Luna's eyes opened slightly, his stomach churned.

He massaged her bruises and continued, "Liberty is with Greer."

Luna's eyes widen. "Oh no."

He laughed. "Worried?"

"No. Not really," Luna admitted, sparing a glance at the smashed window. "Greer is Greer. But he shares the same dark impulses as the Defectives."

"Like me?" Amir supplied.

She shook her head. "You weren't brought up like that. He was. That's different."

Amir laughed hysterically. Luna's reaction to Greer's childhood amused him. "If something happens, he'll protect your sister."

"Still. He isn't Vikram. Why did my sister fight us?" She paused. "They manipulated her with something."

"I know, Moon. Before she busted the window, I could sense her coming," he replied, keeping Moon's gaze.

"We need to create a cure."

He exhaled and touched her cheek. "I'll do that after the war."

"Can't wait." Before leaning in, a car rode up the driveway. Zander's car.

"Uh-oh," Amir mumbled.

Luna shuddered. "We wrecked their house."

"It was an accident," he said, standing and stepping down in case Zander started something. "They'll understand."

He will explain everything.

After Zain stopped next to the Explorer, Zander and Selena got out first with bags in their hands. They paused when they rounded the porch and saw the entryway but no door.

Zander glanced at Amir. "Should we be worried?"

"Um . . ." Amir murmured.

Zain turned and groaned as he held his brother's shoulder. Zander hesitated after inspecting the house's front.

"A small thing happened," Luna said.

"What the hell?" Zain said. "We left for thirty minutes. One hour max. For real. We counted."

If the outside was bad to them, Amir believed they would enter a new world through the front door. Before he finished that thought, Zain was rushing up the steps. He'd know after going inside.

Amir caressed Luna's neck as they entered.

"How did this happen?" Zain's stunned voice faded. "This happened in an hour?"

When he stepped closer, Zander whistled softly. "This is fascinating."

Amir's lips twitched when Zain spun on them, but he knew to hide his smile. "It's time to find a new place to live. This one is destroyed."

Luna coughed, frowning. "Wasn't this your home?"

Zain and Zander chuckled.

"This house belonged to my previous employer," Zander remarked, concentrating. "He's no longer using it."

Amir had a good feeling about what happened to Zander's former boss. But he didn't say anything.

When Zain looked at him, Amir mumbled, "We're sorry."

"It happens. It's no big deal," Zain responded.

Zain and the others handled this disaster well, but Amir thought it was because they were used to losing their houses.

Amir leaned behind Zander and looked toward the room he'd left Liberty and Greer in, but neither of them were in there. He glanced up. Maybe they used another room to get cleaned up in.

After seeing a body, Zander carefully placed his bags on the kitchen floor. "Looks like one hell of a fight."

Selena touched him while assessing the damage. "I'm not surprised, and I don't know why. I suspected this."

Luna smiled slowly at the woman. "Chaos follows us."

"Same here, sister," Selena said.

Liberty and Greer interrupted their bonding from the den. Her sister gasped before seeing the twins and Selena. Her eyes lit up.

"It's okay," Luna said. "They're harmless."

Greer held Liberty's elbow. "Remember what we talked about? These people are friends."

"I know," Liberty said. "But I see them as a threat."

"Control yourself," Greer said, offering her a quick breathing exercise. "You can. It's just BARDA's serums running through you. That's all."

She squinted.

"Control?" Luna murmured to Amir.

He shrugged a shoulder and concentrated on Zain and Zander.

Zain grinned. "Are you responsible for all of this?"

Liberty frowned. "Sorry! Seriously! I love the house, and the plants!"

"I think he understands that," Luna said, approaching her. "Do you know what BARDA is doing and where they're at?"

Liberty returned Greer's stare before meeting Luna's, letting her thoughts flow. One enormous breath. "Most of Dr. Kim's employees knew he was a Defective. He has worked with the mayor of New Orleans, state politicians, Presidents, and Prime Ministers from dozens of nations. They're at St. Matthew's. He's negotiating a treaty for power. He wants Luna dead or fully activated and Amir and Sarah brought in."

Daniel Kim.

Physician extraordinaire.

From their last meeting, Amir recalled Dr. Kim's lack of respect for his patients. When the doctor showed him his house full of sick people, he knew the doctor was up to something. A superhuman doctor treated several patients. In plain sight of everyone?

Selena remarked, looking pale, "We probably know some Prime Ministers. One specifically."

"They're irrelevant." Zander's accent was thick. "Many Prime Ministers and Presidents are no longer a problem because of me."

"Why this war?" Selena asked. "What's the doctor's deal?"

Zander snorted. "Because he's God? After all, doctors are born egotistical."

Amir gave him a cold stare.

"They have every region on their side," Liberty said, tugging a large part of her hair. "They're stronger than we are."

"Hell . . ." After releasing Amir, Luna looked up. "What should we do?"

"Greer told me about the underground communities." Liberty's voice hummed with enthusiasm. "They're unknown to agents. Or at least, remember them. They weren't mentioned when I was under their control. I'd remember it."

"Someone in the Resistance is playing both sides," Zain said. "They're giving BARDA employees Genesis."

Zander agreed. "That works for everyone trying to bring them down."

"Dr. Kim likely knows the communities exist." Luna looked at her sneakers. "He's given serums to everyone. He will sense our allies."

"And they'll leave," Zain concluded for her.

Luna gasped, slouching. "Dr. Kim will be ready for them."

So, using the underground groups was no longer a brilliant idea. A large hole was inside the plan.

Zander looked around. "I know none of you asked for my opinion, but I couldn't give a damn. Find Dr. Kim now. If he's as clever as you believe, he'll hide. Then what? Enzo and his squad may kill most of BARDA's superhumans, but finding the doctor will be impossible."

Greer nodded. "It'd be like putting a band-aid on a flat tire and praying it sticks."

Both of them were right.

Amir and Luna locked eyes. "Going after Daniel Kim alone isn't part of the plan," he told her, ignoring the group's opinion. He was curious about her thoughts. "Before returning to the base, all we would have to do is protect the underground organizations, and we could live anywhere without experiments. We're done."

She gaped. "But we have to catch him before he catches us."

"So, you're saying . . ."

Luna breathed deeply. "Dr. Kim needs a taste of his own medicine. If he hides, we're doomed. So, you know what? Let's end him."

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