Last time: I scoffed. "I'm not a dog and my ability isn't a party trick. I can't just do it on command."
The man smirked. "We'll see about that." He nodded again to the guard who grabbed my arm and forced me to sit down in a chair. He tied my hands down with a length of rope and taped some electrodes to my head. The other man came over and said "When you burn through the rope you can get up. Until then, well, let's say it won't be fun."
The man flicked a switch on a nearby machine and I felt electricity surge through me.
A scream tore itself from my throat and the ropes binding me to the chair quickly turned to ash. It didn't stop there, either. A flame leapt to the man's long white coat and began to burn that too. When the guard tried to help the fire spread. I didn't stick around after that. I yanked the electrodes off and bolted to the door. The hinges melted away and the door collapsed outward. I heard an alarm blare and ran down a long hallway.
A guard turned the corner and pulled a tranquilizer gun out of the holster at his waist. He raised it and a panicked look came over his face. He shouted and dropped the gun, clutching his hand to his chest. I dashed past him and saw a door.
I burst through it and spotted a chain-link fence. I darted toward it and put a hand against the cool metal, silently praying that my ability would at least soften the metal so I could get through.
The metal liquefied and I stepped through the large hole I had made. There was a parking lot ahead of me. I yanked on the door handle of the first car I saw, a black Honda Civic, and thanked my lucky stars that someone had left their car door unlocked. I slipped into the diver's seat and swiftly hotwired the car, thinking that the fact that I had a thief for a brother might be a good thing. At times like this anyway.
I threw the car into reverse and backed out before screeching out of the parking lot.
My first thought was that I better call Mack and let him know that I was okay. My second thought was that my first thought was a stupid one. These people were smart. The first person they would ask about me would be Mack. I didn't think that he would sell me out but one can never be too careful; especially when one is running from people who like to use electroshock therapy on their patients. I shivered at the thought of the place and almost stomped on the brake. Where was I going to go? I had never left New York and I didn't have a passport. Plus, even if I did, it wouldn't be of much use to me. I had no doubt that my picture would be all over the TV in a matter of hours.
As I drove around, I mulled the dilemma over. I seemed to remember one of Mack's friends doing something like that. What was his name? Leopold, Larry, Levi, Leroy, Liam? Liam. His name was Liam. If I remember correctly, he had had a crush on me when we first met. I remember him giving Mack a fake ID so he could go drinking before he turned twenty-one. I'd last seen him about a year ago but I knew that he and Mack were close. When I'd last seen Liam, I'd gone to his house to pick up a package for Mack. I could only hope he lived in the same place he had then.
I drove down the winding road that lead to the small house that Liam owned. I pulled into the driveway and idled a moment before putting the car in park and walking to the front door. I had only knocked once when the door was yanked open. Liam stood in front of me, his sandy blonde hair rumpled and his blue eyes annoyed. When he noticed it was me, he seemed a bit calmer. "Hey, Kira. Did Mack send you?"
I bit my lip, feeling rather embarrassed. I didn't know how to ask this. "No, he didn't. Look, I'm in a bit of trouble and I could use some help."