Perceive by K E Osborn
AXEL
“I love that color on you, it really screams incarcerated,” Luca quips, trying to break the staring contest between mother and son.
“Still as idiotic as ever I see…” Luca’s smirk reminds me of Harley Quinn. “How is Everly? Shall I get someone to pay her a visit?”
His bright smile drops as he steps forward aggressively, but Kace slams his arm across Luca’s chest, stopping him mid-stride. “Remember what she’s like. She is going to goad us every chance she gets.”
Camilla tilts her head toward her son, looking more and more like the evil mastermind she is, with just a shit-ton of crazy behind her eyes. “You always were so bright… you got that from me, you know, Kace. You’re more like me than you could ever imagine.”
Kace scoffs. “I’m nothing like you.”
She grins. “That’s something I would say. Your father would just get angry and punch something. Me, I’m a thinker, the reasonable one… you, you’re always thinking, aren’t you, son?”
I glance at Kace, furrowing my brows at him. He steadies his shoulders to calm himself. “We’re not here for this shit. We need information—”
“And you think I’m an open book, huh?” She sits back, laughing to herself.
I grit my teeth. “We found Kenzi. You knew where she was the whole fucking time,” I blurt out.
Camilla’s eyes shift to me, a small smirk lighting her face. “Yeah? So, the lovers reunite. How fucking poetic… surprised you’re even here, Axel. You made it clear time and time again, you were only on the team for one thing and one thing only… to find Kenzi. So really, you’re not needed, off you scoot like a sad little puppy.”
My lip turns up as I shake my head at her. “Don’t avoid the topic, Camilla. You knew… for years! You used me.”
She snorts. “Don’t be so shocked. I use everyone, you’re not special.”
Noah steps forward. “Let’s talk about Brandon…”
She rolls her eyes. “That annoying cowboy. What has he gone and done?”
“You were working with him too. We know he’s a double agent. Just like you were.” Noah lets her in on the secret we know she was trying to keep hidden.
She exhales. “I knew the boy was a few sandwiches short of a picnic, but I didn’t think he’d get caught so soon. I thought we were still on schedule… it does make communication difficult being locked in here, though, so thank you for fucking that up for me. That’s sarcasm in case you’re all too dense to pick that up.”
“Brandon has been excommunicated from The Agency. He’s on the run. His access has been revoked. The idiot even tried to use a bypass override code to gain entry, and we stopped that in a damn hurry. We assume that had something to do with you?” Kace informs her.
She sits forward abruptly, her eyes widening in shock as she lets out a small laugh. “You fucking idiots! You’ve just gone and screwed us all in the motherfucking ass.”
We all look at each other as Kace sighs. “Okay, I’ll bite… why?”
“Brandon had my bypass override code to get in and pay Hendrix for the biochemical agent he and Kenzi had manufactured. The one that has the ability to wipe out thousands… no, fuck, millions of people with a single drop if it goes into the water supply. Brandon was giving Hendrix the money so The Agency would have the chemical, and now by blocking him out, he won’t have been able to pay Hendrix, so he will resort to plan B.”
Kace stiffens, craning his neck to the side. “What the hell is plan B?”
“Selling the chemical at auction to the highest bidder. You’ve just put the world’s most dangerous biochemical warfare agent on the market for any fucker who’s willing to pay top dollar for it.”
I step forward puffing out my chest. “Not if we stop him first.”
She bursts into a fit of laughter. “You’re not that good. Why do you think everything is always exploding around you and people are constantly getting hurt? How is your hip, Luca?”
Luca scrunches his face. “Bitch, you did not just—”
“Honestly, this conversation is boring. You and your team have shown me time and time again how relentlessly incapable you are. It all stems down to one thing.. your leader. He only has half-decent genes in him, so it’s not his fault entirely. His father, on the other hand, he’s a complete waste of space. It’s no wonder you’re so inept, Kace, honestly.”
“Keep your cool, Kace,” Jack grunts down our earpieces.
“Camilla, I understand your need to insult. You’re locked away for the rest of your miserable existence in this hell hole. All your control has been taken away, and you can’t stand it, so you’re lashing out—”
“What, I’m Camilla now! Not even Mom? What about Mommy? Remember when you used to cry when you were five, and you had nightmares? Or what about that time you wet the bed—”
“Camilla, don’t be a cunt,” Tanner jabs.
Camilla snorts. “Says you, leading poor Blair on. The guy has had the biggest hard-on for you, and you’re the most frigid bitch under the sun.”
Blair steps forward and Tanner pulls him back. “Leave it, Blair, she’s not worth it.”
“Or maybe you’re not worth it, Tanner. Did you think about it that way?”
“You don’t know shit, Camilla. You don’t know—”
“I know you’re weak, Blair, nothing but a junkie.”
“What the fuck is wrong with you?” Noah calls out.
She laughs. “With me? You need to check yourself, Noah. You have no clue what’s happening in your life. I’ve been locked up for a while, and I bet you still don’t know what’s about to drop into your world.”
Noah furrows his brows as we all turn to him. “What the fuck does that mean?”
She snickers. “Eli, you have anything to say?”
He raises his hands. “Nope, I’m good.”
“Typical, always standing back. Never getting involved. That’s the problem with you, Eli, you’re mister fucking nice guy. Stand upand do something!”
“What the fuck is your deal? Why are you firing shots at us all? I get you’re angry because we took you down—”
“Angry?” Camilla interrupts Kace. “Angry? You stole my life. Not just from The Agency, but ever since you were born. I never wanted you, Kace. This is all Jack’s fault. I wouldn’t be in here if it weren’t for him.”
I turn to Kace, his eye twitching a little as he shakes his head. “Well, you don’t have to worry about me anymore. I’m better without you in my life. A better agent, a better man—”
“If I hadn’t pushed you, you wouldn’t be anything. You wouldn’t be half the man you are today, you wouldn’t be the agent you are either. But you know what? I wish I’d pushed harder, and a lot younger, like when you were in a stroller and pushed you off the face of a cliff. That would have solved a lot of my fucking issues.”
Kace tenses. Hearing his mother say shit like that, even if she is a cantankerous insane whore, is still be hard to take.
“This is getting us nowhere—”
“That’s it, Kace, leave when the going gets tough, just like your father did. Oh, wait, he didn’t leave, I blew him up. Just a shame I only took off his leg when I should have finished the job. You and your father deserve each other. I hope Hendrix drops the chemical in Washington and you all die painfully and slowly. I hope you get to watch the life drain from Lily’s eyes as the foam forms in her mouth and she writhes around in pain, knowing that I could have stopped it. And you… you were the one that killed her.”
Kace pulls out his gun from the back of his pants, and we all jerk back in shock as he aims it straight at Camilla’s head.
Luca steps forward as Kace pants hard, trying to rein in his anger. “Dude, think about this.”
Camilla chuckles. “Oh, he’s thought about it. It’s all he thinks about. Right?”
Kace’s hand shakes as Luca grips his arm. “There’s no going back if you do this, Kace.”
Kace’s lip turns up as he flicks off the safety. “Threaten my father… threaten me all you like, but don’t for a single damn second think you can threaten the woman I love and believe I won’t do something about it.”
“She doesn’t have the chemical, Kace, she can’t do it,” Luca offers.
“But she would if she could, and that makes all the difference in the world.” He takes a step closer to Camilla, the gun almost touching her forehead as she curls up her lip.
“I’d say it was a pleasure working with you all, but it really wasn’t.”
“Kace? Kace… what are you doing?” Jack’s voice chimes down the line.
Kace quickly pulls out his earpiece as my muscles tense.
“Leave,” Kace instructs.
We all hesitate for a moment. “Leave!” Kace yells, making us all jerk with the harshness of his tone.
We all turn, heading for the door.
Luca stops for a second. “Just be sure, Kace.”
Kace nods his head. “Go, Luca.”
Luca walks to the door as Kace presses the gun against Camilla’s forehead.
She smiles wide, like she’s enjoying herself. “Finally, the son I trained has come alive.”
I turn my head walking out the door as the loud blast of the gunshot echoes throughout the room and out into hall.
“Will someone tell me what the ever-loving fuck is going on?” Jack screams down the line, but we all keep quiet.
Bailey widens his eyes, but doesn’t say anything as we all stare at each other.
I’m not sure how I feel.
Camilla has always been there, like a cockroach, she just never dies. It’s so fucking weird to think there could be a world without her in it now. What does that even look like? Movement to my side catches my attention, and I glance up seeing Kace step out. His face is impassive as he places the gun in the back of his pants, closing the door behind him. “Let’s go.”
Kace goes to walk off, but Luca grabs at his arm stopping him. “Dude, stop for a second, are you okay?”
Kace rolls his shoulders. “I’m fine… let’s go.”