Free Tainted Energy (The Energy Series Book 1) by Lynn Vroman Page A

through, he'd go to Earth anyway, try to find her. He
promised.
    Memories
weighted his shoulders, pushing him onto the soft grass. She thought Shalen was
the one place where being an Exemplian had its advantages. A slice of reality,
she'd called it. Real life without real-life consequences.
    The
place where the authority snatched her away.
    He could
still feel the overwhelming static in his head when the trees came alive with
at least fifty Protectors, their weapons aimed at her–
    No. No
memories. Not when she had been given back to him. They couldn't take that
away, the privileged assholes.
    Privilege. Stupid word. Wrong
description.
    Being Exemplian just meant they
were advanced enough to play God. Classified as Guides or Protectors, the
labels were too docile for what they did to the universe.
    Lena was a Guide. She called herself
a soul-stealer, always saying, "How else would you describe a person whose
job description involved robbing other dimensions of their most valuable
resource?"
    Life.
    As a Protector, he had the ability
to guard and transport Guides so they could do just that–steal life.
    Synod elders said it was an
Exemplian right, a duty. Only, no one could ask questions while doing it.
    Lena liked asking questions.
    Too many
questions.
    Questions
that pissed somebody off enough to frame her.
    Questions
that stole her away from him.
    No
matter what any of the bastards said, he didn't believe Lena would do anything
to risk a Tainted. Being marked a traitor was the worst punishment the Synod
could hand down, and she'd never chance leaving him forever. Guess that wasn't
a good enough argument because the Synod took her no matter how much he begged–on
his knees.
    If only
she would've trusted him enough to share before they took her.
    If only
he were still her Protector. He would've had the right to follow her.
    If
only…
    If
only…
    He lay
back, staring at the blinking lights, wishing he'd brought his taser. Good
target practice. Arms up and fingers pointed, he aimed at the invasive lights
with imaginary fire. Guides couldn't be killed in their energy form, but a
clean shot would hurt like hell.
    Mateusz
had one more hour before–
    Blip
    The
communicator vibrated in his pocket, and he all but ripped his pants yanking it
out. Tarek jumped to his feet as he pressed the blinking indicator. Mateusz's
hologram projected onto the nearest tree. "What the hell took you so long?"
    Mateusz's
image scattered and formed again, the signal not so great here in the middle of
nowhere. The dim light and crap signal didn't hide how pale and drawn his face
appeared. "She was awarded the Guide. You have a month."
    "Hey,
are you okay?"
    "Fine.
There's just been some… The coordinates were sent to your secured line. Erase
the trail before you go."
    Tarek
stepped closer to the hologram. "Look, I know–"
    "One
month. Find the rogue and take care of it." The hologram disappeared.
    He
wasted no more time. Going against the Synod probably didn't sit well with
Mateusz, but…who gave a shit?
    He
jumped into his shuttle, not waiting for the hatch to close before lifting it
off the ground, racing a direct path back to the cottage. The home he and Lena
built through the three lives they lived together, a sanctuary away from high
evolution. A place that became empty after she left.
    "Lights!"
As soon as the front door opened, Tarek stalked toward his screens, checking
his private feed while lights cast an orange glow in the room.
    EH:
41.1231 ͦ N, 75.3594 ͦ W
    Hepunched
the numbers into the panel and stood back. A rusted box, which must've passed
for a home, appeared. The faded blue skirting didn't hide the thing's
undercarriage, the house about two feet from the muddy ground. Matter of fact,
there were a cluster of houses. All the same. All rundown. But the coordinates
showcased one, and on blocks in front of it sat a guy, skinny and balding. He
smoked a cigarette like it was his job, taking strong pulls, exhaling slowly.
No clue who