Read Tainted Energy (The Energy Series Book 1) for Free Online Page A

"Was school really bad this
week without me?"
    "No,
it was fine. Um…Belva crapped herself in Chemistry."
    He
laughed so hard tears leaked from his eyes. Yeah, I missed him. Missed the
feelings I had when I was around him.
    Kind of
hated them, too.
    My
Zander heroin.

 
     

     
    Tarek
    Dimension of Exemplar…
     
    D id he say…? Yeah, he said it. Her
name. That one word caused the void in his chest to jump and twitch at the
promise of becoming full.
    His
search was over.
    Tarek's
hand tightened around the mug. "Where is she?" His flat tone
disappeared, and the hard edge he barely remembered made his voice louder,
deeper.
    "I
shouldn't tell you, but...there have been some happenings."
    "And?"
    "Please,
let me take her research. I could–"
    He threw
his mug, just missing the top of Mateusz's head. Ceramic shattered against the
fireplace and amber liquid drizzled along the cracks. Pain seared his stomach,
his throat, burning stronger than the whiskey. Mateusz wasn't going to tell
him.
    Like
hell, he wouldn't.
    "You
know the penalty if you go to her." Mateusz folded his hands on the table,
his back stiff.
    Tarek
sat across from him, his patience snapping. "Tell. Me. Where."
    Mateusz stayed
silent.
    "Where?"
If the guy wanted it beaten out of him, he'd do it. No problem.
    Resignation
had Mateusz's shoulders slumping under his loose jacket when he finally nodded.
    Tarek
leaned his elbows on the table, daring Mateusz to change his mind. He could
already smell her scent, taste her lips...feel her arms…
    "It's
not only you in jeopardy if the Synod catches wind of this conversation. I'm
the only one who stands between us and their ridiculous punishments."
    Tarek
felt the beat of his heart for the first time in years. "You have my word."
    A moment
of hesitation skipped through the room as Mateusz studied his hands. "She's
in purgatory." He stood, adjusting his glasses.
    "No
shit. Which one?" Purgatory could mean so many places–all of them bad.
    "You
must be careful not to interrupt her cycle."
    "Which
one, Mateusz?"
    Mateusz
walked to the screens and inserted his USB into the control panel. In seconds,
every screen gave Tarek heaven. There she was on each flat surface, sweeping
between rows of chairs. She appeared the same except with long hair piled on
top of her head, and her eyes…Were they green?
    Too soon
the video stopped, freezing on her face.
    Lena.
    "What
is this place?" He stumbled to the screens and absorbed the image he could
only find in memories and old holograms since the day they took her.
    Mateusz
stood beside him. "I need to erase this from your screen's memory. Can't
leave any trails."
    Tarek
ground his teeth. "Fine, just tell me where to find her."
    The
older Protector pulled the cover off the screens' control panel, working his
tech magic until Lena disappeared. He then procured a UV pen from his jacket
pocket and touched the tip to the USB. The chip disintegrated in seconds.
    When the
monitors went black, Tarek fought the urge to yank them off the wall. Not
enough. An image would never be enough.
    "She's
in a dimension called Earth." Mateusz moved to the bookcase and pulled out
a large text. Flipping to a map, he touched the tiny button on the spine of the
book. A detailed hologram appeared above the desk. He signaled Tarek over
before touching an area on the map that ballooned to three times its original
size. "Start looking here."
     
    ∞ ∞ ∞
     
    "What
if you don't understand her language?"
    "Details,
Mateusz. Not important."
    "I
would think it extremely impo–"
    "My
chip's been updated. It's a non-issue." Every Exemplian had a microscopic
device implanted in their brains, allowing them to understand and communicate
with people from other worlds. He never failed to update his, just in case he
found Lena.
    Tarek
studied the dimensional map for hours with Mateusz right behind him, pacing,
wiping his glasses…asking stupid questions. But Tarek's attention never left
the hologram.
    The map
narrowed