The Escape by Teyla Branton Page A

I knew just the way to teach him a lesson, one taught me by the master of control herself, Delia Vesey. I concentrated hard on his hand and it shot out toward the juice, knocking it over.
    A horrified expression filled his face. “You!” he said, yanking back his hand.
    I nodded. “Yes, me. You aren’t the only one with an ability.” I wanted to do something more, but I felt guilty already. He was an idiot, but he was our idiot, and I preferred to practice on people who had consented. Besides, I still wanted to try channeling his ability—when he calmed down—and doing so would be easier if he could walk me through how he created his illusions. I had an idea that might help us free our prisoners, if I could get Ritter and Ava to sign off on it.
    “Goodbye, Oliver.” I pulled my thoughts from his, ignoring the anger. A little humiliation was good for the man. Good for all men, in fact. But I’d probably have to apologize later to gain his cooperation. “Try not to annoy anyone else today.”
    He brought up his middle finger and flipped me off, a smile plastered on his handsome face.
    “How very human of you,” I couldn’t help saying.
    In the hallway, I reached out again, searching for Mari’s mental signature. I found her down a floor, probably looking for Keene in the infirmary. But there were no other life forces on that floor. I hurried to the stairs and sprinted down them, taking two at a time. When I emerged, she was already heading back to the elevator.
    “Hi, Erin.” She didn’t quite meet my gaze.
    “I think Keene is upstairs in Cort’s office.”
    “I should have checked there first.”
    I laughed. “No, he should be here, but since he’s an idiot, like most men, he’s probably not resting.”
    We’d reached the elevator and she jabbed her finger at the button. “I’d say you pretty much described all Unbounded, not just the men.” Her smile returned. “You know, I used to like vacations, but now the idea of sitting around on a beach seems rather dull.”
    “Give it a few months.” Because sitting around on a beach without worrying about what the Emporium was up to sounded like heaven to me.
    “Okay. Then maybe we’ll go together. Somewhere warm.”
    I waited until the elevator opened on the third floor to say, “I warned Oliver to keep his trap shut.”
    Her face whipped to mine. “You threatened him?”
    “Kind of.” My muscles tightened waiting for her disapproval.
    “Oh, Erin. You’re the best!” She hugged me before exiting the elevator.
    “I don’t know about that.” I wanted to ask about her and Cort, to know if she really did have a thing for him, but I’d just pay attention and wait for her to come to me. She’d been seriously broken up by her husband’s death, and I wasn’t about to add to her pain. Hopefully, his betrayal was helping her get over him quickly.
    In Cort’s office, Keene sat on the shiny brown leather couch, fully dressed in gray jeans and a long-sleeved, white V-necked T-shirt, topped by a gray suede vest. I was relieved to see him looking so well after last night’s adventures.
    Cort looked up from his desk and cleared his throat. “Ah, there you are.”
    I took a seat on the couch while Mari ignored the chairs and perched on the arm next to me. “Missed you both at workout this morning,” I said.
    Cort shrugged. “I did it last night. Couldn’t sleep with all the excitement.”
    “As for me,” Keene said with a lazy expression, “I was just playing hooky.”
    I stifled a smile. “How do you feel?”
    “Fine, thanks to Dimitri and Cort.” He met my gaze briefly before looking away.
    “Should you be up?” Mari asked.
    “Well, we have a visit to make, don’t we?” Keene stared down at the phone in his hand. I couldn’t see what was on it, but apparently it was fascinating.
    “Sorry,” I said. “You’re not going. Ava’s orders. Mari and I can shift out if we have to, but you’ll be a liability.”
    “Then you grab me and