Rogue Read Free Page B

also taken an interest in me. A man who they knew would appreciate what they’d discovered even better than I.
    “You see, Will, from our inception in antiquity, the Knights have excelled at conducting what we would call today ‘deep background’ on people who are of interest to us. And they couldn’t have been more right about this man, or me, for that matter, or the whole situation. It’s no exaggeration to say that this pairing became the turning point in our history.”
    Franklin walked into the room. A sickly sour smell hung in the air, medicinal and threaded with a hint of rot. Will felt a shiver of fear root him to the floor. He forced his legs to carry him forward after his grandfather, toward the man in the chair.
    “I’d like you to meet him, too, Will,” said Franklin, turning to face him once he reached the other side of the chair.
    Will saw an ancient hand rise from the arm of the chair to beckon him closer. Sallow skin hung off the bones, spidery fingers trembled as they waved, fingernails looked like thick yellowed talons.
    “Will…this is my mentor, Dr. Joseph Abelson.”
    When Will finally saw the man’s face, he nearly keeled over.
    —
    The pager buzzed quietly in Nick’s pocket as he reached for a water bottle. Screened by the fridge’s open door, he quickly slipped out the device and glanced at the message screen.
    Go time.
    “Holy crapanoly,” whispered Nick.
    He dropped the pager back in his pocket and took a deep breath as he unscrewed the top of the water bottle. He took a small vial from his other pocket and unscrewed the top. He squeezed the rubber stopper on top, filling it, then drew out the glass vial and squeezed again, emptying the colorless contents of the vial into the water. Nick replaced the cap, pocketed the vial, and grabbed another bottle for himself.
    “Here you go, Brooks.”
    Brooke never looked up as Nick set the bottle of water down on the table in front of her, took a seat across from her, cracked open his own bottle, and drained half of it in a single swig.
    “Hot enough for ya?” he asked, then belched.
    She finally looked up at him. “If I offer to pay you, will you go away? I can afford it.”
    “Come on, you oughta know me better than that,” said Nick, finishing his bottle in another epic swig. “How much?”
    Brooke scowled at him, reached for her water bottle, and looked back at her book. Nick watched carefully as she unscrewed the top, then paused as she finished reading something.
    Like he’d seen his friends do, he closed his eyes and tried to send a thought suggestion to her:
Drink.
    “Are you all right?” she asked.
    “Yeah, perfect, why?” asked Nick, reopening his eyes.
    “Your face was all screwed up, like a baby trying to poop.”
    Brooke took a long sip of water while slowly shaking her head.
    Awesome. The mind thing totally worked. Or maybe she’s just thirsty.
    “I was just trying to think,” said Nick.
    “I forgot—for you, that’s cardio.”
    He glanced at his watch.
    Seven minutes. That’s how long it’s supposed to take before it affects the nervous system.
    “I’m gonna hit the shower,” he said.
    “Thanks ever so much for the update,” said Brooke, turning away, her face buried back in her book as she took another sip.
    Once he was behind his locked bathroom door, Nick answered Ajay’s page with one of his own.
    Done.

WILL’S RULES FOR LIVING #2:
    YOU CAN’T LIVE YOUR LIFE TWO DAYS AT A TIME.
    “Dr. Abelson, this is the young man I’ve been telling you about,” said Franklin, smiling, raising his voice well above a conversational level. “My grandson, Will.”
    The man’s right eye was opaque with milky cataracts. The other had a cold reptilian blankness to it. Wisps of hair clung to his head like cotton candy. The flesh of his face sagged like it was trying to slide off his skull, and the runoff collected in a wrinkled puddle below his chin.
    Abelson extended his right hand, mottled and covered with