Page 41 of Cup of Lies

Eva runs her fingers through my tangled hair. “I don’t like this plan. It terrifies me.”

Truthfully, I’m scared too. There’s so much that could go wrong. The worst that could happen is for Seth to get me into the lab, mess with my mind, and reset me back to the happy housewife I’d been transformed into.

“If I don’t come,” I say softly, “then he’s messed with my head.” I tap on my temple. “At that point, hire someone to extract us. And when I come back to you, help me remember.”

Vivienne clears her throat and speaks up. “How were you able to escape the mental stuff before? You act as if you were able to turn it off and that he might turn it back on. When I was there, it was a lot more thorough. Torturous, endless therapies. Something changed?”

Stem Lock.

Their shortcut to forced complacency.

“I think the storms had something to do with it. Maybe it’s with the Wi-Fi. I don’t know if it’s his phone app or whatever they planted in us, but without internet, it doesn’t seem to work as effectively.”

There’s so much about this that I don’t know.

Too much left up to chance.

And yet I know I have to do this. I have to go back for her.

“Wrap your head in aluminum foil,” Vivienne says.

I bark out a laugh, but she’s not joking. “What?”

“Everyone laughs at the conspiracy theorists, but they’re always right. Ever heard of a faraday cage? You need one for your head.”

She’s serious.

But maybe she’s on to something.

“If it comes to it,” I mumble, “I’ll try that out.”

I hope to God it doesn’t come to that.

Caius

“Get up.”

I wake, dazed and completely confused, reeking of my own body odor. A young man who looks a lot like that Copper guy motions for me to move with his Glock in hand. The kid reminds me of Theo.

My chest aches, but I shove it away. There’s no time to worry about my brother. This shitshow I’ve landed myself in takes precedence.

“Where are we going?” I ask as I stretch my arms that have been untied.

It’s morning now and the sun sneaks its way into the building I’m in. I’m not sure what the original purpose of the hulled out building was, but now it’s missing walls and is apparently used for interrogation, and most likely torture. If a cut to the neck and a bruised head are all I got while here, I’m counting myself lucky.

The kid has a patch that says “Nees.” I’m guessing that’s his name. Why do bikers all have stupid names anyway? Copper, Koyn, Bermuda, Dragon, and now Nees. Now all we need are Tweedledee and Tweedledumbfuck to round out the Seven Not-Dwarves. LuLu could pass for Snow White. I’m not liking this dynamic.

“You’re to get cleaned up at the clubhouse,” Nees says, pointing in a direction outside of the building. “Meeting at nine. Don’t be late or I’ll sic Dragon on you.”

I don’t want this Dragon psychopath anywhere near me. That dude creeps me the fuck out.

Unsteadily, because of sleeping in a wooden chair all night, I stumble after the kid. I’m technically taller than him and have more muscle, but he seems scrappy. My attempt to take him out could either be a success or a horrible failure. If it were just me, I’d chance it. They have LuLu, though, so I can’t get myself killed and leave her with these strangers.

Once outside of the building, I squint against the bright morning light as though I’m a vampire being forced to face his death. The early morning summer sun warms my face, and I don’t catch on fire, so I suppose I’ll live. My eyes adjust as we make our way across a large field.

To the right is a massive, expensive-ass home with a pool and a giant deck area. An open garage is to the left of it. Garage bays on both sides allow air to pass through. Inside, there are several motorcycles—Harleys if I had to guess—with a couple of guys standing around. A hefty guy with a cigarette in his mouth waves at Nees. Nees flips him off in return.

We pass by a huge firepit. Handcrafted Adirondack chairs litter the area around it. Several picnic tables dot the space around that. And near the tree line is a volleyball court with sand.

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