Bad Bloods by Shannon A. Thompson Read Free Book Online Page A

much as I
did.
    “He’ll get better,” I said, waiting for the
reason she came to see me. It wasn’t just for Blake. She had
checked on him herself five minutes ago. She met my eyes like she
understood I knew this. I also knew she had been spying on us. None
of the other members knew why Calhoun was in the house, but Vi was
like Blake—they knew everything, even when they shouldn’t. Michele
too. But the difference between Michele, Blake, and Vi was a simple
one to draw. Michele and Blake didn’t mean to spy; it came with
their abilities. Vi did. She meant everything she did, and knowing
it was wrong, she did it anyway.
    “He’s on the phone,” she said, relenting
information. Alec had finally called again, and Vi described it
like it was a regular conversation. I never bothered reprimanding
her for spying. It was one of the reasons I thought she came across
as more mature for her age, but I was beginning to believe it was
more than that—that, perhaps, Vi was older than she realized—like
she hadn’t aged while hiding in the shadows. This time, though, her
stare gave me shivers.
    She looked away like she could sense my
discomfort. “You’re not going to like his plan.”
    I didn’t ask for an explanation. I went
downstairs and found Cal seated at the dining room table by the bay
window. Cal pointed at the chair next to him like he wanted me to
sit, and I obeyed.
    He never met my eyes as he continued talking
in his phone. “We need to replace your daughter with a threat,
Alec.” So his daughter was gone. “It can’t just be anyone. Think
about it.” Cal tapped his forehead like Alec Henderson sat with us.
“If you have just anyone, they’ll prove it. But if you have someone
who scares them—who reminds them of what they are doing to
Vendona—it will stop them.” He paused, and for a moment, Cal
appeared to be the one running for presidency. “You have to fight
back. That’s why I called you in the first place.”
    Another pause took over, but I quickly heard
a deep voice rambling on the other line, too far away to make out
the words. That’s when Cal pressed the side button, and the speaker
crackled on.
    “You’re right,” Henderson said. He was
actually talking on the phone. Not on the news. Not during an
interview. Not for his campaign. But talking—live—to Cal right now.
“I know you’re right, and I trust you more than any man I’ve met,
but—”
    “The girl who escaped,” Cal interrupted,
stopping both Henderson and my heartbeat. “You know you need
her.”
    “The girl who escaped?” Henderson’s voice
rose an octave. “She’s dead.”
    I barely heard him. I was too focused on
Cal’s eyes. He was staring at me, waiting for my reaction, and I
gripped the table in response. It made sense now. Why Calhoun
wanted Serena around, why he didn’t want me in the initial
conversations, why he didn’t warn me. He wanted Serena to take the
place of Henderson’s daughter. He wanted Serena to fight back.
    “Hello?” Henderson spoke up after neither of
us responded.
    Cal widened his eyes at me, begging for a
confirmation, but I shook my head. He glared. My grip tightened.
Henderson called out again. And I saw Serena, standing in Shadow
Alley, a hollowed out version of herself, and I saw Serena now,
standing in the same alleyway, holding a flower—still hollow, but
more alive than before. Calhoun’s plan made perfect sense. She was
a ghost, and her mere presence would haunt them into silence.
Serena could win the election for Henderson, for us all.
    I nodded, and Cal sighed before he said, “We
have her.”
    Henderson’s intake of breath was practically
a gasp. “They said she was dead.” He exhaled like he had inhaled
too much. “Don’t they always,” he muttered. “This is fantastic,” he
said. “This is fantastic.” He emphasized the last word, over and
over again. “When can she fill in?”
    “Will she be safe?” I asked, speaking up for
the first time. I knew I