And here's chapter 10! I've gotta say, you guys are absolutely incredible. Every time I log on, I've got new reviews waiting for me! :)
I woke to something beeping next to my right ear. I groaned in annoyance, reaching out and sliding my hand across my bedside table. My fingers closed around my pencil and I held it to my ear. "Hello?"
"Dan, Zoe's gone." Frank said.
Suddenly awake, I sat up. "No, she's not dead."
"Well, we don't know."
"How can you not know?"
"She's. Not. Here." Frank said slowly.
"I'm on my way." I said. I quickly threw on jeans and a t-shirt. St. Heart's had a pupil free day, so I couldn't get a ride. I'd have to run. I pulled my bedroom window and climbed through it, onto the tree on the other side. I moved slowly across the thick branch until I reached the trunk of the tree. I swung off the branch of the tree, one hand gripping the branch I'd previously stood on and the other gripping a dent in the trunk. I let go and dropped to the ground, landing in a crouch. I took off running in the direction of St. Heart's, pulling out my phone and speed-dialing Becky.
"Dan? What do you want?" Becky asked, annoyance dripping in her voice.
"Becky, thank God you answered. I need you to cover for me. Tell Mum my friend got worse."
"Did she?" Becky asked.
"Something like that." I replied, turning a corner. "I've gotta go. I'll talk to you later."
I hung up and shoved the phone back into my pocket as I reached St. Heart's, skidding to a halt. The gates were closed and I yanked on them angrily. Naturally, they were locked. I looked up at the top of the gates. They weren't high and had lots of small gaps and places for me hold onto. I grabbed the highest rung that I could reach and hauled myself up.
I climbed over the gate and then sneaked into the school, into the caretaker's closet. Usually, I loved the feeling of the elevator going so fast that everything around you was a blur but in that moment, I was too wound up and worried about Zoe to enjoy it. As soon as the doors opened, I stormed out.
Frank, Stella, Aneisha and Tom were gathered around the table. In front of Tom sat a metal bracelet.
"What the hell happened?" I snarled.
"I came in this morning and she was gone." Tom replied.
"Check our security footage." I said. Already, my mind was whirling as it struggled to work out how to get Zoe back.
Tom grabbed his laptop and started typing. I walked around the table and peered over his shoulder as he brought up the security footage from last night. I saw myself walk out and Tom fast forwarded the footage until we saw Zoe wake up. Tom let footage play at normal speed and I watched as Zoe looked around. Suddenly her body went stiff, her back rigid as it held her up.
"Mastermind." I hissed through my teeth. I watched as Zoe's body slowly relaxed and her arms, chained behind her back started moving. I held my breath as slowly, she undid the handcuffs behind her back. Triumphantly, she held up the handcuffs and smirked into the camera.
"Pause it." I ordered. Tom obeyed and I squinted at the frozen frame. "Zoom in on her face."
I waited as Tom zoomed in, until Zoe's face filled the screen.
I pointed to her eyes, a brightly glowing orange. "That's not Zoe. Mastermind's in control. Zoe never did get any stronger. Mastermind was giving her a little more control each day, so he could grow strong enough to keep her contained while he escaped."
Now that I knew for sure who had been control, I was already working out how I would get Zoe back.
"Is there any way we could track Zoe without picking up her twins as well?" I asked.
Frank raked a hand through his hair. "Unless she's got her pencil or a tracker of some sort, no. And as soon as Mastermind took control, he would have destroyed any form of tracking he or Zoe knew about."
"That's it!" Tom cried and started tapping away on his laptop again.
"What's it?" Aneisha asked.
"On that first night, I slipped a tracker into Zoe's pocket. It was tiny, so she wouldn't have known about."
"So neither would Mastermind." I finished. I looked over Tom's shoulder as he brought up the tracker.
"There. It's an old, abandoned warehouse." Tom said.
"I know where that is!" Aneisha exclaimed. I turned to look at her. "You do?"
"Yeah. My dad used to work there, before it shut down."
"Mission on." I said, walking around the table.
"Wait, Dan." Frank said.
Annoyed, I turned back around to face the others.
"Here. You might want this." Frank said. He picked the metal bracelet off the table and threw it to me. I caught it and turned it over in my hands. It was a simple metal bangle, with a small sort of box on it. I raised an eyebrow. "As pretty as this is, how is this going to help me get Zoe back?"
"That is no ordinary piece of jewellery, Dan." Tom said. Quickly, he explained how the simple piece of metal in my hands was Zoe's ticket to having her own body again.
I nodded and tucked the bracelet safely into my pocket. "Let's do this."
"Both of you, be careful. This place will be . . ." Frank warned over mine and Aneisha's earpieces.
"Swarming with KORPS agents." Finished Aneisha. "Yeah, we know Frank."
"Be careful." Frank replied.
"Why do they always prefer dark places?" Aneisha grumbled.
"Maybe they like it because it's dark and dreary and depressing. Maybe that's what hell's like." I said.
Aneisha raised an eyebrow. "I thought hell was supposed to have lots of fire."
I shrugged. "Same difference."
I stopped as we reached a door and listened. Inside, I could hear laughter.
"Master, the boy's reaction is going to be –"
I felt fury boiling my blood as I stopped listening. Crime Minister and Mastermind were in there. I glanced at Aneisha and saw anger and determination on her face, mirroring my own emotions.
I shoved the door open angrily. "You're going to love my reaction when I send you both to burn in hell."
Crime Minister stood up, a malicious smile on her face. "Daniel Morgan. How sweet young love is."
"You know nothing about love." I snarled.
Crime Minister's expression changed from amusement to fury. "You know nothing, boy!"
"Don't need to, to know that you should be dead." Aneisha said.
Crime Minister flung herself towards me and I dodged. She stumbled into the wall and then whirled around to face me. She punched me in the face and I stumbled backwards a few paces, my hand flying to my face. My hand came away red with blood.
"You're going to regret coming here, boy." Crime Minister hissed, a malicious smile on her face. She launched forward, but I kicked her in the stomach, so she flew back into the wall behind her. I heard a thud and she slumped to the wall, unconscious. She must've hit her head on the wall.
I turned to Aneisha. "Watch the door and watch her."
Aneisha nodded and glared down at Crime Minister as she moved to stand by the door. I turned back around to face Zoe, her eyes orange.
"Zoe." I said, taking a step forward. "Remember who you are."
"No!" Mastermind screamed, launching forward. He tried to punch me, but I rolled forward, out of the way. I pushed myself up to my feet behind Zoe and grabbed her wrist, spinning her around to face me. She kicked me in the shin and I grunted, grabbing her other wrist and leaning forward so I was looking into those eyes that were so clearly Mastermind's.
"Zoe. Remember who you are."
She fought harder, but then she stopped, breathing heavily. Her eyes were green again but were flickering uncontrollably.
"Dan." She whimpered. Still holding her wrists, I pushed her against the wall. I reached into my pocket, digging around for the bracelet. It was gone.
"Neish!" I yelled, turning around. "The bracelet!"
Even as I said, I saw it sitting on the floor a few paces away. I grabbed it and then turned back to Zoe, trapping her between my body and the wall, holding the metal ring in front of her face.
"What's that?" Zoe asked. She was still breathing heavily and we were standing so close together that I could feel those movements against my chest.
"This is going to set you free." I said softly. "I just need you to do one thing for me."
Excitement flared quickly in Zoe's eyes, replaced almost immediately by determination. "What do you need me to do?"
"I need you to give Mastermind control."