Blink 6: Rebel Minds, #6

By C.B. Stone

No one is safe now that the government's new weapon is unleashed.

Time is running out.

 

With Jameson back by my side, we've sparked hope across the city. But every step closer to freedom leads the darkness straight to my heart.

 

Surrounded by enemies, my gifts grow. But so does the evil inside me, starving for violence and vengeance. I'm the monster they created. If I embrace it, we win - but lose everything that makes life worth living.

 

The final battle is here. My choice will decide if the city burns or rises reborn from blood and tears. My name is Aria Grace, and today I take back my soul.

 

This is the final installment in the addictive Rebel Minds post apocalyptic romance series. Follow Aria on her quest for justice in a future world filled with mind reading, genetic engineering, and telekinetic powers, combining star-crossed love and thrilling sci-fi action. All books should be read in order. Some installments end on cliffhangers and continue story arcs. Also available as two sets, books 1-3 and books 4-6.

• Language: English
• Publisher: InkedPlot Media
• Release date: Feb 9, 2017
• ISBN: 9781386866565

Book preview

Chapter 1

Aria

You’ve got to be joking, Nick says with a snort. He folds his burly arms across his chest and stares the pretty doctor down in disbelief.

But her words mind control sends shivers through me. Somewhere, deep down, I know that what Dr. Taryn says is true. It sounds farfetched, but it fits. All the pieces fit.

No, I speak up and all eyes turn to me. "I believe her. I know it sounds crazy, but what she is saying fits. Sierra was working on something…" I swallow to get past the lump that rises in my throat with the pain I still suffer over her brutal murder by the Gov.

I continue, forcing my words past a tongue gone thick and dry, And this makes sense of the notes she left behind.

My stomach clenches and rolls with sudden nausea. I haven’t talked to anyone—not even Jameson—about Sierra’s notes. They were only a scribbled jumble of confusing thought fragments, or so I thought at the time, with broken sentences mentioning some remote facility and the secret experiments being conducted there. But now those notes are starting to make a lot more sense. A tremor snakes its way through my body.

Wha—what are you talking about, Aria?

Jameson’s tone is laced with bewilderment. The look in his eyes breaks my heart. How do you explain to someone you love that you didn’t mean to keep secrets from them? I glance around the room as reality hits like a ton of bricks. Everyone’s attention is trained on me. I know by their expressions of confusion and their growing looks of mistrust that I need to start explaining, and fast.

But first I look into Jameson’s eyes and whisper into his mind, I’m sorry. I’ll explain, I promise.

Okay, his voice whispers back to me. I cringe inside, because even with just that one word I can sense the full weight of his hurt.

Care to elaborate, Aria? Thea asks, her stare drilling into me. I lift my chin and stare back. Like she has any room to be mad at me over keeping secrets. She’s been the queen of secrets for as long as she’s been my best friend. Pot, meet kettle.

I—I found out my sister worked for the Gov, though I never knew anything about it until after her death. I shift my weight from foot to foot and plunge ahead.

I found a notebook sticking out of one of her pockets the day she was killed. Most of it seemed to be written in a kind of code or shorthand, but I’ve been able to decipher some of it. She talks about X—I’m assuming this is Project X—and that he is the key. Do you know what any of that means Taryn?

The woman nods, the flaming strands of hair that frame her face moving with the motion. "Yes. X, as we call him, is the key to Project X."

Her light green eyes are bright as she continues, We, of course, were operating under the assumption that we were working toward a type of health initiative that will benefit everyone, sometime in the future… Her voice trails off, her eyes clouding. After a second, she shakes her head and refocuses on me.

But I’m seeing now that was ignorant of me. X has specific, 100% natural abilities that, when enhanced by the treatments we were giving him, manifest more strongly than… well anything I’ve ever seen or heard of before.

Nick makes a sound of derision. And what exactly does that mean? He steps closer to Taryn, and she puffs up, taking on a defiant attitude. He only smirks in response. I’ve noticed that Nick seems to enjoy getting under her skin.

"It means that X can, when under certain influence, control anyone who has been injected with a special vaccine… along with those who already have telepathic abilities. Those who already possess abilities don’t need the vaccine for X to manipulate them."

My stomach knots again and I swallow back a rush of bile. My gaze flies to Jameson, then back to Taryn. "Anyone with telepathic abilities? Or just those who have been created by the Gov?"

Taryn shrugs, her expression pained. I’m not entirely sure. You see, X acts like a type of direct control unit—a bit like a brain. She points to her head. My brain tells my hand to make a fist, she balls up her hand, Then it tells me to punch someone, and she punches Nick in the arm next to her.

She pauses for a moment, and looks around the room. Her voice is more subdued as she continues, "No one questions the order their brain gives them, because essentially they think it’s their idea. X acts in the same way. He doesn’t demand someone do something or force them in any manner."

She swallows, her animated face turning ashen in color, as her voice drops to almost a whisper, He merely convinces them it was their idea in the first place.

Chapter 2

Jameson

I am floored. I can hardly believe what I’m hearing. Yet I know exactly what Taryn is talking about, because I’ve been under that influence before.

How long, I demand. The words are out before I can stifle them, my tone raw. I’m all but vibrating with a surge of anger.

She turns to me, her eyes narrowing. How long what?

"How long has this project been going on?"

Her eyes widen slightly and I resist the urge to mentally yell at her, knowing it won’t do any good. I need her to say it out loud.

Well? I ask impatiently.

Taryn puts a hand to her throat, her expression perplexed. I—I don’t know. I mean, it’s been a long time. Longer even than I’ve worked for them.

I look over at Drew, my gaze hardening. She’s gone pale and Reed is cradling one of her hands in his. I mentally yell at her instead.

Did you know about this?

Her blue orbs meet mine. No.

Don’t lie to me, Drew!

She closes her eyes, swallowing against the force of my anger. I didn’t know, J. I promise you I didn’t. But it does make sense.

I shake my head and give her a dark look. None of this makes friggin’ sense. I turn my attention back to Taryn. "How do we stop h—how do we stop this X?"

She runs a hand over her messy braid a few times in a restless gesture, fiddling with the ends before she tosses up her hands, a sound of aggravation escaping her lips. Gah. I have no idea!

That’s not good enough, Nick retorts. He glowers down at her, his brows raised with expectation.

What, you want me to make something up? She squares off and glowers back at him, unflinching. I shift on my feet, and Aria brushes her fingers against mine in an attempt to soothe my churning