John took a deep breath, unclenching his fists.
The room was deathly silent, William and Declan crouched over a desk as John lounged in a corner. He was working hard to at least pretend that he was calm. It was this or he'd end up looming over the young men trying to puzzle through the scant information they had.
He was mostly certain they were just posturing, looking at schematics for no reason other than a desperate attempt to keep busy. None of the other heads had been able to locate even a shred of evidence that could be somehow linked to anything that had occurred in the last 24 hours which worried John. Surely they couldn't be that incompetent? It had to be for an actual lack of information, else he was fairly certain the blood lust he'd been working so carefully to control would rear its head once more.
Their silence frightened him somewhat. They'd started with boisterous plans, blathering on about doing this and that and setting up this watch and that investigation but as the minutes ticked by, their chatter had grown quieter and quieter until now. They sat at opposite ends of Helen's desk with papers and files he knew would make no difference.
The tension in the room was palpable and it only served to make it harder and harder for John to control his growing discontent with this entire situation. Trusting Rose set him on edge, it always had and now, as he sat and waited for something, anything he could do that would be useful, listening to her advice seemed even more foolish.
Logically he knew there was nothing more he could do, dashing off and slitting throats was what he did best but right now he had no target.
The faint sounds of approaching footsteps distracted him momentarily and he waited, recognising the two gaits in seconds. He found it vaguely strange that they were not bickering or even muttering on their approach but he brushed it aside. Apparently when it came to Rose and Nikola, things had changed more than he'd realised.
Tesla appeared first, holding the door for Rose as she stalked in, her face dark and shoulders tense. There was something dangerous in the way she held herself and it was nothing physical. She was angry. Actually, more than angry; something he understood. It was rage. It filled her up and flooded her every movement. The beast inside him roared, urging him to run, to leave and to save himself from the monster that she was so close to becoming. It was a darkness within her, one that she was too close to embracing for his liking.
"Both of you stop it," she said curtly, narrowing her eyes at Will and Declan. "There is no point continuing with fruitless activities when time is of the essence."
"What do you suggest then?" Will put in. "We can't just sit around and do nothing like some people." His eyes darted to John briefly and John had to work to keep from snarling at him.
"We start with the obvious," she said. "Start with enemies, long lost enemies who may have some kind of grudge."
"But no one is supposed to know that she's alive," Will countered.
"Someone does," Tesla half spat. "They used SCIU's visit a few months back to implant a command into the systems that allowed them the chance to take her."
"What?" Declan and Will howled at the same time.
"Henry's working on it," Rose said, waving a hand absently in their direction. "But there is a slight chance we shall have to evacuate as he works to remedy the problem."
Again, Declan and Will screeched "What?" at precisely the same time.
"Henry has it under control," Tesla put in firmly, ending the conversation as two very confused looks were thrown his way.
"I suspect they've been working for a while now at trying to find her during the surges," Rose murmured, moving to the window. "Perhaps darting in and out at designated points in the hopes of finding her..."
"What is she talking about?" Will asked.
"I suspect she is merely hypothesising aloud," John said, regarding her curiously.
"... though it must be more complex than that. Surely they'd have been caught now..."
She was very firmly off in her own world, he was sure of it and no doubt using her own special abilities to scour the minds of those around her for any skerrick of information.
"Oh."
She grabbed the edges of the window, knuckles going white as she clutched at it. Her shoulders slumped, lips parting in a silent 'O' before her body tensed. Bottom lip trembling she turned in a stilted circle until she was facing the others, back slumping against the glass of the window with a dull thud. Her eyes were glazed and face ashen.
"What?" John asked eagerly, leaning forwards.
"I think..." she breathed. "I think someone is thinking of her." Her arms flew out as her face creased in pain. Again she clutched at the frame before bowing her head, a low moan of pain slipping through her lips. She shivered with a little gasp, the tendons in her throat bulging as she swallowed repeatedly, until her lips sunk into her bottom lip.
"Someone is thinking of Helen."
Underneath the distress, John could hear the relief in her voice and it clenched at his heart.
"We're all thinking of her," Will said, slowly making his way across the room to her.
"No," Rose said, shaking her head as she drew an unsteady breath. "No, not like that. Someone else, someone I don't recognise."
"Who?" Tesla urged, stepping around Will to wind an arm around her waist, supporting her.
"Don't know," she huffed. "Just a flash, 's gone now."
"Can you follow them?" Declan asked hastily. "Track them? I can get a team geared up and ready to go in less than ten."
"Trying," she huffed before closing her eyes again.
For a second nothing happened, a faint crease between Rose's eyes the only indicator that she was making an effort before she lurched forwards with a terrified cry. Tesla caught her, holding her upright as she swayed in his arms.
"I think I'm going to be sick," she whispered shakily. Her legs gave out once more and she threw her weight into Tesla, allowing him to half carry her to the nearest seat.
"What happened?" Will asked, crouching beside her chair and taking her hand. Tesla shot him a look John would have laughed at under any other circumstances.
"I... I tried," Rose breathed, not focusing on either of the men in front of her, instead looking straight at John. "They... I don't know. They were there and then they were gone. Like Helen. Only, I pushed and... I don't know."
"Focus, Rose," John cut in. "Tell us what happened."
She took a deep breath and he watched as her body relaxed, never dropping eye contact. There was something a little disconcerting in her gaze, something that spoke of realisations that John was certain would be even more trouble.
"Someone was thinking of her, they were afraid and..."
"And what?"
"I'm not sure," she said, voice growing stronger. "She... the woman was afraid for Helen but... but of her too."
"Is that all?" he asked.
"Then the woman just disappeared again. I tried to find her again, to follow the voice but... it's some kind of block. They're protecting their minds, I can't... It doesn't..."
"Focus," he said again.
"Just think of Helen," Nikola said, squeezing her hand. "Focus on Helen."
Rose gave them all a fearful little look that set John on edge before closing her eyes once more. They all watched as her face twitched, a small grunt slipping through her lips. It seemed to go on forever like that, her body twitching and shuddering as she occasionally muttered curses. Her face grew paler as the seconds ticked by, a faint sheen of sweat covering her face and exposed collarbone and John watched as William winced, her grip on his hand growing almost too tight for him to stand. Tesla on the other hand was resolute, eyes glued to her face as her grip grew even more crushing.
Finally her eyes flew open with a gasp, both Will and Tesla being knocked back a few steps as her body arched, a strange kind of energy coming off of her in waves.
She was pale and shaky and John was fairly certain she may actually be ready to throw up but the terror in her eyes was unmistakable.
"Oh shit."
