Unleashed

Chapter 3

A/N: I update "Unleashed" every Friday afternoon, one chapter a week. Thank you for the continued support, and I hope you enjoy!

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"So, now that Jenkins is gone, will you guys tell me who you are, and what it is you want with me?"

The Boss and the Chief turn to look at me. They seem a bit surprised I spoke up so soon: we've been airborne for less than five minutes.

The Boss glances at the Chief uncertainly. "I think it's okay," she says, shooting another glance in my direction.

The Boss looks hesitant. "What if we're wrong about her?" he asks, voicing his concern.

"We're not wrong, and you know it," she replies firmly.

The Boss sighs in remission. "Fine," he replies, fixing me once again with his blue stare. "It's probably best she knows the truth before she meets the others, anyway."

"The... others?" I ask. There are more people I have to meet?

"I suppose we should begin by introducing ourselves," the Chief says. "But what I'm about to reveal is top secret information, which means that if we're wrong about you we'll have to keep you in containment for the rest of your life."

I'm not sure if she's exaggerating; nevertheless, what she says disturbs me. However, I'm too anxious for answers to worry about future problems, so all I do is nod.

"Right. Anyway, I'm Miranda Chase, Chief of Police for the Lakeview Police Department."

"And I'm Brian Grant. I suppose my job description would simply be 'the Boss' of all the separate police divisions in Oregon."

For such unusual characters, I'm surprised by how... normal their names sound. It kind of puts in perspective that they live normal lives when they're not, you know, kidnapping teenagers and taking them to unknown locations by helicopter.

"So, what do you want with me? Somehow I feel this is no longer about shoplifting."

"Where do I even start..." Chase mutters, her brown eyes glazed over as she thinks.

"I suppose it begins with the police force itself," Grant chimes in. "A few years ago, all the police in the country swore to dedicate themselves to finding and protecting people like you from the government."

"People... like me?"

"We call them the Marked," Chase says. "We came across the first Marked in Pennsylvania a few years ago. He was on the run from the government, because they were curious about his abilities. So, the police force put him in a program similar to Witness Protection, except we hid him from the government as well. Since then, every police officer in the nation has been on high alert to locate and help the Marked. It's a part of our training."

"But... aren't the police overseen by the government?" I ask, regarding Chase's last statement. "How can you ensure their safety?"

"Everyone has secrets," Grant replies darkly. "Believe me, it wasn't easy. But it also wasn't impossible."

"Well, how many of the Marked are there? And what makes them so special?"

"There are four known Marked to date, all being hidden by us. We believe there should be a round five; that's where you come in."

"You don't mean--"

"Yes," Chase cuts in. "After all, the Marked are called 'Marked' because they're all branded with symbols like yours."

The vibration of the copter below me seems to thrum through my skull as I try to wrap my head around all this. The government wants me? But... why?

"Now, if my hunch is correct, you already know why the government is interested in you. It's okay to tell us your secret now," Grant says, his blue eyes burning through me.

I have no idea what he's talking about. I open my mouth to tell him so, but I before I can even utter a word, chaos ensues.

I hear glass shatter, and look over to see a bullet hole in the window. That isn't all: the bullets keep coming, a few only narrowly missing me. I can see a camouflage-colored plane out the window, still pretty distant but coming towards us, and fast. I don't have to be a cop to know it's a government aircraft.

"How did they find us?" I yell over the noise of more gunshots going off.

"The government aren't oblivious to the fact that their police are hiding something from them. And this is quite obviously a police helicopter." Chase's eyes flash dangerously.

More bullets fly through the window, just barely missing those of us inside. "What are you waiting for?!" Grant yells. "Take them out!"

At first I think he's talking to the pilot, until I realize he's looking expectantly at me. "Me?! What am I supposed to do?!" I yell back at him.

"Don't play dumb: we already know! Just use your powers, already!"

"My what?!" Am I really about to lose my life because this guy thinks I'm something I'm not?

"Grant," Chase whispers, "I don't think she's playing dumb."

"What?" Grant growls. His furious gaze falls on me. "Lacy, do you mean to tell me you don't have any powers?"

"Of course not!" I screech above the sound of the assault. It's a miracle none of us have gotten shot yet; why won't Grant do something other than make crazy accusations?!

"Keith!" he yells, turning to the pilot. "We're going to have to pull the guns on them after all!"

"Right," the pilot affirms, pressing a button on the dashboard in front of him. Two large guns emerge from the sides of our helicopter, and after a few well-placed shots from us I see the military plane go down.

"We're lucky they weren't very good marksmen in there," Grant growls as the assault ends. "But look at what they did to my helicopter! It's riddled with holes!"

"That's not the point! We could have died! Why didn't you just shoot them down earlier?!" I exclaim.

"Why didn't you unleash some sort of supernatural force on them?" he shoots back, as if I'm the bad guy.

"Umm... maybe because I'm a normal human being?!"

Grant looks to Chase for help, but she just shakes her head.

"Do you think we were wrong about her?" he asks.

"Impossible!" Chase replies stubbornly. "She clearly has the Marking: we should know, we both saw it! Perhaps she just hasn't developed her powers yet?"

"How could she not have developed them?" Grant shoots back. "The Marked's powers are tied to their emotions, so unless she's some sort of emotionless robot--"

I stop listening to his rant as something clicks in my mind. Perhaps the fact that I'm pretty much void of normal emotion is the reason I'm not displaying whatever 'powers' they're expecting out of me?

Wait, what am I thinking? This is crazy; they're crazy. People don't have superpowers, even if they do have special birthmarks: that's just a fact of life. My emotions have nothing to do with it.

Chase speaks up again. "We have no choice now but to take her to the Base as planned. Perhaps meeting the others will help her display her natural abilities."

Grant hesitates a moment before nodding. "I suppose you're right. But if it turns out we're wrong about her--"

Chase shakes her head, silencing him. "We can worry about that later. For now, our first priority has to be getting Lacy to safety."