Page 55 of Gifted

Darts shoot from Daniel’s eyes, but he doesn’t respond.

I decide to follow his lead. “He’s right. I can’t see what’s in that man’s head, only what’s happening from a third party angle.”

Clausen curses and studies us coldly. I shiver at the expression he trains on Daniel. “I don’t care which one of you gives me that information, but it’s going to happen. It’s up to you how we do it.” He motions to his companions who follow and lock the door.

“What’s going on? Who is that guy?” I ask Daniel. Terrified, I kneel in front of the chair, searching his face. At first, I fear he intends to ignore me. He can’t fade into stubborn silence on me now. After drawing in a ragged breath, he meets my gaze, clearly at war with himself.

“I’m so sorry,” he mumbles. “I’m going to get you out of this.”

“We’ll figure something out. What’s going on?”

He clenches his eyes shut. “They want information they can use to blackmail the man you saw.”

I exhale in disgust. “Why? Why would they do that?”

Daniel stares at the door with a hard expression. “The less you know the better. Just continue telling them you don’t know anything. You did fine earlier.”

“Don’t you think I’ve earned the truth yet? Don’t you think I deserve to understand why I’m locked in a basement? Look at me. I’m in this now, too!”

He does, and the guilt on his face doesn’t make me feel better. “Like I said, I’m sorry you were caught up in this. Follow my lead, and I’ll have you back upstairs dining on gourmet food and hanging out with your new friends by the end of the day.”

“What?” I cry in disbelief. “You really think they’re going to let me go? Now that I know about this place? About what they do to you? Clausen led me down here like this was part of a campus tour.”

“You don’t know what you know, but it’s not over for you. We’re getting you out of this. If we play it right, they’ll have no reason for you to share my fate. It’s me they want. They thought you’d be able to help them, and now they’re not so sure. We’ve planted enough doubt.”

I take a deep breath, wanting to believe him, but how? None of the evidence supports what he’s saying. “What are you going to do?” I ask, not even trying to hide my skepticism. He would have read it already anyway. When he doesn’t look at me, my stomach drops. “You’re going to tell them what they want,” I breathe out.

“I have to. They own me at this point, and they know it. Maybe you’re my trigger now.” His tone is so quiet, so damaged. It must destroy him to admit they’ve won. “Just this once, I’ll give in. Then once we get you away from them, we can recalibrate things back to how they were.”

My jaw drops, anger climbing in my chest. “That’s your plan? I’m not leaving you here on your own!”

He glares back just as hot. “Stop it, Rebecca. You’re loyalty was touching in the beginning, but now it’s become a liability. How can you still not get it? You. Can’t. Be. Here!”

“I don’t get it because you won’t tell me anything! You give me cryptic half-truths and expect me not to wonder about the rest? I know there’s more. I know that table isn’t there for storage!”

His expression hardens as he strains toward me. “The truth isn’t going to change anything. It would just guarantee you’d belong to them forever.” His anger fractures into desperation. “Please stop asking. Let’s concentrate on getting you off their radar and putting things back to normal.”

“No! Normal is you being tortured while everyone hates you over lies!”

He shakes his head, angry tears glistening in his eyes. “What are my options, Rebecca? You think that’s what I want? You think this hell was a choice? There’s only one way out for me. One way, and I obsess over it twenty-four hours a day.”

“You want to end your life,” I whisper in horror. I can’t breathe.

“Of course I do. I’ve tried multiple times.” He swallows, and I’m crushed when his gaze sinks into mine. “It’s my only weapon. My mother came to the same conclusion.” I shake my head, unable to speak. “She did it for me. They were using us against each other, and she thought if she removed herself from their grasp they’d lose their advantage.” His voice trails off. “Instead, they doubled their efforts on me and took more precautions.”

“How long have you lived like this?” I ask, heart pounding.

“Since I was eleven. It wasn’t always like this.”

“When did your mother pass away?”

He clenches his jaw and stares at the floor. “Two years ago.”

“You were born in Germany?”

He nods with a distant look.

“Then how did you end up here?”

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