Before long, Joel’s energy ebbed and he released Paelen. ‘Why?’ he demanded furiously, ‘why did you do it?’
Paelen saw Joel swaying on his feet. Agent J had hurt him badly. More than just the bruises showing on his arms and body, it was the way Joel was holding himself. His anger had given him strength, but the damage from their interrogation was catching up with him.
Paelen reached out and caught Joel gently by the arms. ‘Please, Joel, get back into bed. You are not well.’
‘I’m well enough to kick the stuffing out of you!’ Joel challenged, looming a full head taller than Paelen.
Paelen smiled. Despite the dire situation, he really liked the spirit of this young human. ‘Of course you are. But you should save your energy for the fight to come. Right now, Emily needs you.’
At the mention of Emily’s name, Joel calmed and let Paelen lead him back to the bed. ‘Where is Emily? How is she? What have they done to her?’
‘She is frightened,’ Paelen explained. ‘She has cause to be. Agent J hurt her. Though I suspect he has hurt you more.’
‘I’m fine,’ Joel said defensively.
‘Did they give you the drug that burns fire in your veins?’
Joel nodded, a shadow creeping across his face. ‘What did they do to Emily?’
‘Agent J asked her a lot of questions. When Emily refused to answer, he squeezed her wounded leg. The pain was so intense, she passed out.’
‘I’m gonna kill him,’ Joel spat. ‘I don’t care if they lock me away for life. I’m gonna kill him for hurting her.’
Paelen chuckled. ‘I believe you are going to have to fight Diana and Pegasus for that privilege. You should be very proud of your friend. She told them nothing.’
‘I’ve tried not to talk,’ Joel said in a hushed whisper. ‘I don’t think I told them about the war in Olympus but I can’t be sure. I’m so used to fighting, when they hit me, I just laughed at them. But then they used the drugs …’
Joel started to shake. The haunted expression was back in his eyes. Whatever they had done to him, it would have a lasting effect.
‘It is going to be all right, Joel,’ Paelen said softly. ‘We will get out of here.’
‘How?’ Joel asked. ‘I don’t even know where we are.’
‘Emily does. She said we are on Governors Island. We are deep underground, but I am free to go wherever I choose. There are serpents’ eyes watching everything in the corridors, but not in the tunnels I use or in our rooms.’
‘Serpents’ eyes?’ Joel asked.
Paelen nodded. ‘Agent J says they can see everywhere in here. That is how they knew when I escaped my room. I was in the corridor and they saw me.’
‘You mean cameras,’ Joel said, finally understanding. He looked around his room. ‘You’re right. There aren’t any. I guess they don’t want them in the rooms in case someone made a record of the tortures they do to their prisoners.’
‘Perhaps,’ Paelen agreed, wondering what horrors they would have witnessed being done to Joel. ‘But that leaves me free to visit all of you as long as I use the tunnels. And when Pegasus is well enough to move, we shall escape.’
‘What’s wrong with Pegasus?’ Joel asked. ‘Is it his wing again?’
Paelen dropped his eyes in shame. He explained about the stallion being shot. ‘I have taken him all the food he needs, but it may be too late. He is gravely ill. I fear Pegasus might be dying.’
Joel’s hands shot out and gripped Paelen’s arms. ‘He can’t!’ he cried. ‘If he does, we’re all dead. Pegasus is the only one who can find the Daughter of Vesta!’
Paelen frowned. ‘What does Vesta have to do with Pegasus?’
‘Hasn’t Emily told you why Pegasus came here?’
When Paelen shook his head, Joel told him what he knew of the Daughter of Vesta and the Flame of Olympus.
Paelen started to pace. ‘So this is why we were not destroyed when the Nirads extinguished the Flame in the temple,’ he said. ‘We must get out of this place. Pegasus must complete his mission and get the Flame back to Olympus!’
‘No kidding,’ Joel said sarcastically. ‘What do you think we’ve been trying to do all this time? But now that we’re here—’
‘We can get out,’ Paelen insisted. ‘We just have to ensure that Pegasus lives.’
‘You’re an Olympian, right?’ said Joel after a moment.
‘I am.’
‘Are you strong like Diana? Can you break me out of this room so we can get to Emily?’
‘I am very strong,’ Paelen agreed. ‘And I can break down this door if needed. But now is not the time to make our move. Pegasus needs time to recover, and so do you.’
‘I’m fine.’ Joel rubbed his bruised chin thoughtfully. ‘OK then, here’s the plan. Keep feeding Pegasus sugar, lots of it. The moment he is up again, come back here and break me out. We’ll free Emily and then Diana and Steve. There should be enough of us to fight our way out of here. Then we’ll go get the Daughter of Vesta and Pegasus can take her back to Olympus.’
Paelen moved back to the vent. He decided not to tell the boy that Emily’s father was not at this facility. Instead, he nodded. ‘Very good. I will see Emily later today and tell her how you are. If they come back for you, do your best to avoid their questions. It will not be long, Joel. You will be free soon.’
28
Emily was feeling better. The antibiotics they were using were driving away the infection from the Nirad wounds, while the painkillers took the edge off the throbbing pain from her leg. Lying in her bed, she watched the nurse changing the dressing on her wound.
The nurse kept blocking her view of the actual wound.
‘How bad is it?’ Emily asked.
‘Bad enough,’ the nurse answered. ‘I’m afraid there was a lot of damage. The surgeons did what they could, but the infection went very deep.’
Emily was almost afraid to ask, but had no choice. ‘Will I be able to walk again?’
The nurse stopped what she was doing and turned to Emily. ‘I really don’t know. Possibly, but you’ll need help; perhaps a cane or even a brace. But don’t think about that right now. Your job is to concentrate on getting better.’
‘Then what?’
The nurse stared at Emily a moment longer but then returned to the task of changing the dressing on her leg. Her silence told Emily more than she really wanted to know. The answer was simple. She had no future. When the CRU had finished with her, she would simply disappear.
‘Have you seen Pegasus?’ Emily finally asked.
‘Your winged horse?’
Emily was fed up with correcting the people here. If they wanted to call Pegasus a horse, let them. She knew the truth, and that was enough.
‘I’m not allowed to see him,’ the nurse replied. ‘They’ve had vets in, though. But from what I’ve heard, it’s not looking too good. I’m afraid the soldiers put a lot of bullets in him. It’s doubtful he’ll survive.’
‘Pegs is going to die?’ Emily cried. She tried to climb from her bed. ‘I’ve got to see him.’
‘Emily, stop,’ the nurse warned, struggling to hold her down. ‘You are not strong enough. You could do more damage to your leg.’
Emily began to panic. ‘You don’t understand. I have to see him. He saved me from the Nirads. I can’t lose him. Not now!’
As Emily fought with the nurse, she didn’t hear the code beeping at the door. Nor did she hear the two men entering her room. All she knew was she needed to get to Pegasus.
Suddenly more arms were holding her down and keeping her from leaving the bed.
‘Let me go!’ Emily howled. ‘I have to go to Pegasus!’
‘Emily, stop!’ Agent J ordered.
‘Leave me alone!’ Emily shrieked. ‘I have to go to him!’
‘All right!’ Agent J shouted as he and the other man overpowered her and pinned her down. ‘All right, if you want to see him so badly, fine. Just stop struggling.’
Emily was pa
nting heavily. She looked up at the agents, her eyes blurred with tears. ‘Please, take me to him.’
‘We will. But with one condition,’ said Agent J. ‘After you’ve seen him, you will answer all our questions. No fighting us, no lying. If you want to see Pegasus, you promise me that you will tell us everything we want to know.’
As Emily stared into his cold eyes, she recalled her conversation with Paelen and how he told her not to hold back but to tell as many lies as she could think of. She nodded. ‘If you take me to him right now, I promise I’ll answer all your questions. But only after I’ve seen him.’
Agent J turned to the second man. ‘Arrange for a wheelchair, Agent O. If Emily wants to see Pegasus, she will.’
A short while later Emily was settled in a wheelchair and being pushed through the halls of the facility. She almost forgot the pain in her leg as fears for Pegasus overwhelmed her senses.
When they reached the elevator, she noted that Agent O had pressed the very last button. They were keeping Pegasus on the bottom floor.
Once there, they travelled down to a room at the end of a long corridor. As Agent J stepped up to the security lock and prepared to press the code, he looked back at Emily. ‘I have your word? You will see the stallion and then answer my questions?’
Saying nothing, Emily nodded.
When Agent J entered the code, he made no attempt to block the key pad. Emily could see each number he pressed and the order in which he pressed them. As the green light flashed and door clicked, she burned the code sequence into her memory.
Agent J opened the door and Agent O pushed her wheelchair forward. Emily peered into the room and her heart twisted in agony.
Pegasus was lying in hay in the centre of the floor. He was covered in bandages and barely breathing.
‘Pegs!’ Emily sprang from her chair. But her wounded leg wouldn’t support her and she fell to the floor.
Agent J tried to pull her back. ‘Emily stop. There’s nothing you can do for him now.’
Tears filled her eyes as rage filled her heart. ‘Don’t touch me!’ she viciously shrieked as she swatted his hand away. She ignored the searing pain from her leg and dragged herself over to Pegasus.
‘Pegs,’ she said softly as her trembling hand reached out to touch the stallion’s dark head. ‘Pegs it’s me. Please, don’t die. I need you.’
Emily’s tears fell unchecked as she kissed his muzzle. ‘Please Pegs, you can’t die. You just can’t.’
As she lay her head down on his thick neck and wept for the beautiful stallion, Emily heard a subtle change in the stallion’s breathing. She didn’t know if the others could hear or see it, but she could. Pegasus took a deep, steadying breath. He knew she was there and was responding to her.
‘Emily,’ Agent J said as he stepped closer. ‘I’ve done as I promised. I’ve let you see him. Now it’s your turn. Come away from him and we can talk.’
In that instant, Emily somehow knew she mustn’t leave him. Pegasus desperately needed her there. She could feel it. But more than that, she needed him too.
Without looking at the agent, she said, ‘If you want answers to your questions, you’ll get them. But I’ll only answer them here. I’m not leaving Pegasus.’
‘That wasn’t part of the deal,’ Agent J said threateningly.
‘No,’ Emily answered as she glared up at him coldly. ‘It wasn’t. But now it is. What harm can there be in letting me stay here while I answer your questions? You get what you want, and I get to stay with him.’
‘It’s not good for you to stay here,’ Agent J said. ‘What if he dies while you’re with him?’
‘Then someone who loves him will be the last person with him and not you!’ Emily said fiercely. ‘But if you try to take me back to my room, I swear I’ll never speak another word, no matter what you do to me.’
Anger flashed in the agent’s eyes. ‘Fine,’ he said at last. ‘You want to stay with the dying horse while we talk, you can stay.’ He loomed over her. ‘I hope you appreciate how I am bending the rules for you, young lady. I will expect the same consideration from you. You will answer all my questions without hesitation and with the truth. Do you understand me?’
Emily lay pressed against the stallion’s neck and continued to stroke his face. ‘I understand perfectly.’
A blanket and two chairs were brought into the room. When the blanket was brought over to her, Emily felt Pegasus tense. He wasn’t so far gone that he wasn’t aware of what was happening around him. He didn’t like the man coming near.
As the CRU agents settled in their chairs, Emily made herself comfortable in the straw. She was as close to Pegasus as she could get, curling neatly in the circle of his neck and head while she stroked his face and scratched his ears. Just being close to him was enough to make her feel better.
‘All right, Emily,’ Agent J said as he switched on his recording device. ‘Let’s take it from the very beginning. How is it you came to be with Pegasus?’
Emily took a deep breath. She knew she could never tell them why Pegasus and Diana were in New York; about the Flame or the war in Olympus. But she wanted to spend as much time as she could with the stallion. Taking Paelen’s advice, Emily lied.
She began with the truth, talking about the huge storm in the city and how Pegasus was struck by lightning and crashed on her roof. But from there, the truth faded into an outrageous story that equalled the best of the Greek or Roman myths.
Agent J sat forward in his chair. ‘And why were they coming here?’
‘Well,’ she started. ‘Diana told me that back in Olympus, a thief had stolen Pegasus’s golden bridle. He escaped by using the messenger’s sandals.’
‘So it isn’t Mercury we have locked away here?’
Emily shook her head. ‘He’s just a thief. Diana said she and Pegasus had been chasing him across the cosmos, going from world to world and through city after city. They finally ended up here in New York. She said they were hit by lightning and got separated. Pegasus crashed on my roof and Diana fell in Central Park.’
‘This thief,’ Agent J asked. ‘Do you know his name?’
‘I can’t remember,’ Emily said, scratching her head. ‘But I think Diana said it began with the letter P.’
‘Paelen?’ Agent O asked. ‘Was his name Paelen?’
‘Yes!’ Emily agreed. ‘That’s it. Diana said that Paelen had also stolen a sack of gold coins from her father, Jupiter. And that she and Pegasus had come here to get it back before her father found out and lost his temper. She said when Jupiter got mad, entire worlds were destroyed.’
‘If he already had the coins, why did Paelen go after Pegasus’s bridle?’ Agent J mused.
Emily shrugged. ‘I guess he’s greedy. Diana said Jupiter wouldn’t care too much about the coins, but he would be furious if he found out about the bridle. So they were hoping to get it back before he noticed.’
‘Gold is gold,’ Agent J said lightly. ‘He had enough, but wanted more.’
‘Wait,’ Agent O said. ‘There’s more to this. The myths say that whoever possesses the bridle of Pegasus can control the stallion.’ He concentrated on Emily. ‘Paelen wanted Pegasus, didn’t he?’
This was the first Emily had heard of the myth. She shrugged. ‘I don’t know. Diana never said. She just told me they needed to get everything back before her father found out. But now the bridle and coins are lost, there’s no telling what he’ll do.’
‘The bridle isn’t lost,’ Agent O said. ‘We have it here.’
‘You do?’ Emily said. ‘Really? Do you have the coins too?’
Agent O shook his head. ‘No coins, but we had the sandals.’
‘Had?’ Emily said, as she continued to stroke Pegasus.
Agent J nodded. ‘But it seems someone has taken them.’
Emily shrugged. ‘Maybe they flew away. Diana told me the sandals have a mind of their own. Maybe they flew back to Olympus.’
‘Maybe,’ Agent J said, not sounding con
vinced. ‘Or we could have a thief in our midst. So, tell me, where is Olympus?’
Emily shook her head and answered with the truth. ‘I swear I don’t know.’ She looked down on Pegasus’s closed eyes. ‘Diana told me that Pegasus was her only way home. If he dies, she’s going to be trapped here.’
‘No, that’s not right either,’ Agent O said. ‘The ancient myths said the Gods were always coming to Earth. There was never anything written about Diana riding Pegasus. Whenever she came here, she came of her own power. What has changed?’
‘I don’t know,’ Emily shrugged. ‘Diana doesn’t talk to me much. I don’t think she likes me. She’s really mad at what Joel and I did to Pegasus when we dyed him these colours to keep him hidden from you. She nearly killed us when she saw him.’
‘No wonder she’s mad,’ Agent O said. ‘Look at the mess you’ve made of her cousin.’
‘Pegs is her cousin?’ Emily repeated in genuine surprise.
‘Diana is the daughter of Jupiter, right?’ said Agent O. When Emily nodded, he continued. ‘Well, the myths say that Pegasus came from a union between Medusa and Neptune. As everyone knows, Jupiter and Neptune are brothers. So that would make Pegasus and Diana cousins.’
Emily looked at Pegasus. ‘Medusa and Neptune are his parents?’ she repeated. ‘How is that possible?’
‘You tell us,’ Agent J said. ‘You’re the one who’s claiming they all come from Olympus. You’re the one who’s spent time with them. Surely they must have told you this.’
‘Pegasus can’t talk,’ Emily said. ‘All I know is what Diana told me. And like I said, that hasn’t been a lot. She really hates me because of what we did to Pegs.’
‘From what we’ve seen, Diana hates everyone,’ Agent J finished bitterly. ‘But what did she tell you about the Nirads? Why are they here? And more over, why were they trying to kill you and Pegasus?’