Previously...

With a sigh, Jim said what he knew in his heart was the right thing. “We can always use more good guys around here.”

Shadow raised an eyebrow. “You think I’m a good guy?” He shook his head. “Maybe I should stay. You obviously don’t know me very well.”

Jim grinned. “Let’s change that, then.”

Chapter Five

“They’re restless.”

The Shadow’s quiet words bounced off the walls of the deserted corridor. Jim glanced at the row of closed doors. It was after midnight and there wasn’t a sound to be heard in the entire facility, but he couldn’t argue with the assessment.

“The students can feel that something is wrong,” Jim agreed.

Shadow put his back flush against the wall across from Jim and shoved his hands in the pockets of his jeans. “These kids,” he said. “They’re all like us?”

Jim mirrored the other’s man’s stance by leaning against the opposite wall, and crossed his arms over his chest. “Yes. They’re all gifted.”

“Gifted.” Mild scorn laced with bitterness tinged Shadow’s voice. “Is that what you call it?”

Trying to channel his father’s patience and calm demeanour, Jim asked, “What do you call it?”

“Certainly not gifted. Cursed comes closer.”

Jim waited, but the other man seemed disinclined to elaborate. “A lot of these kids come from rough home situations,” he admitted. “They come here because it’s a safe place. They know that they’ll be accepted, no matter what. It doesn’t take long for them to form strong bonds with the other kids. And now…” Jim paused, thinking of the infirmary and six sick students. “Now they’re worried for their friends. Their family.” He looked up at Shadow. “I’d say having a family that cares this much is a gift. Wouldn’t you?”

Shadow shrugged. “Maybe. Maybe not. Sometimes family is over-rated.”

With an irritated snort, Jim asked, “Cynical much?”

“It's better than than blind trust,” he pointed out.

Jim sighed. “We’re not going to agree, are we?”

Shadow shifted against the wall. Whatever reply he was contemplating was forestalled when Trixie joined them. With a dramatic sigh, she slid down the wall until she was sitting on the floor. “Why do girls have to talk so much?” she moaned.

Jim and Shadow exchanged amused glances.

“Um, Trix, you do realize that you’re a girl, right? And that you talk pretty much non-stop?” Jim’s questions were tempered by his affectionate grin. He dropped down to sit beside her. “Now, now. Tell Professor Frayne all about it,” he encouraged, slinging an arm around her shoulders.

“If I want to talk to Professor Frayne, I’ll find your father,” Trixie retorted, sticking out her tongue. “And I’ll have you know that I don’t talk all the time. At least, not about my feelings.” She said the last word with disdain.

Jim sighed and pulled her closer. “How bad was it?” he asked, leaving the jocular teasing behind.

“Malory’s boyfriend is in the infirmary. And Noel’s sister. They’re pretty shaken up,” Trixie said, worry clouding her eyes. “I didn’t know what to tell them.”

Jim squeezed her shoulder. “How are they now? Are they still upset?”

“They fell asleep after the second batch of brownies kicked in. Nothing like crashing from a sugar high.” Though Trixie’s tone was light, it was evident that she was upset.

“I didn’t know what to tell them. And I sure as heck didn’t know what to do for them,” she complained. “Have you heard anything from Brian?”

Jim shook his head. “It’s been quiet here. The boys are keeping to themselves, and we haven’t received any communications from the other staff. But you know that,” he said, reminding her that she would have received the same communications that he did.

“I just hoped someone had been by to talk to you,” Trixie admitted.

“Nope.” Jim’s smile was tight. “It’s just been me and the Shadow here.”

“Oh!” Her face flamed. “I’m sorry,” she apologized to the man across from her. “I didn’t even say hello.”

Shadow’s lips curved upward in tiny increments. “That’s okay. You were upset.”

Reminded of the girls she had just left, Trixie bit her lip. “Yes. And I don’t like it. We need to be doing something. Anything!”

“There’s not much that we can do about the sick students,” Jim pointed out.

“Then let’s concentrate on something we can do something about,” Trixie said, ignoring his wince at her phrasing.

“Such as?” he asked.

She took a deep breath and let it out slowly. “Luke.”

Both Jim and Shadow stiffened. “What, exactly, do you propose to do about him?” Shadow asked, looking away from them.

“I don’t know!” Trixie drummed her fingers on the polished hardwood floor. She thought for a moment before saying, “We need to figure out why he’s so scared of Medico.”

Jim shrugged. “Medico is a pretty scary guy.”

Trixie shook her head. “It was more than that, and you know it. Medico is the kind of guy you’re scared of when you’re in his presence. Not so much when you’re far away from him and he can’t hurt you.”

Shadow turned towards her. “What’s to say he can’t hurt him here?”

Trixie stared at him incredulously, her mouth gaping open. “But how would he?” she asked.

Shadow shrugged. “Medico may not have to be here physically to hurt him. And not all hurts are physical. This is a,” he paused, “gifted person we’re talking about. No telling what Luke is afraid of.”

“But—” Trixie’s question was cut off by Jim’s angry response.

“You don’t think that Medico has someone on the inside here, do you?” he demanded of Shadow and rose to his feet.

Shadow shrugged and maintained his nonchalant posture. “Anything’s possible.”

“No, it isn’t,” Jim bit out. “We’re a family here. Each and every person at this school is loyal to each other.”

Shadow raised an eyebrow. “That’s a broad claim. And probably not accurate.” He held up a hand to forestall Jim’s furious retort. “I’m not saying you don’t have good people here. I am saying that you never know everything that’s going on inside a person’s head. And some alliances are hard to break, once they’re formed.”

Jim threw up a hand in disgust and turned away. “Like I said. We’re not going to agree any time soon.”

“What is wrong with you two?” Trixie demanded. Jim could almost feel her outrage bubbling. “Now isn’t the time for being petty! We need to figure out what’s going on with Luke and then do something about it.”

“Do you really think something is going on with him?” Jim asked. “I mean, we’re always on the look-out for trouble from Medico, but do you really think that there’s a higher threat right now?”

Trixie shrugged. “I just feel like we have an opportunity. Luke is here, at the Academy. And he’s not going anywhere. Shouldn’t we use this chance to find out everything that we can?”

Shadow nodded thoughtfully. “You have a point.”

“And you!” She frowned at Shadow. “We still don’t know anything about you! Like who you are, and why you were waiting for Luke. How do you know Luke?”

Shadow’s eyes hardened, even as the rest of his body appeared to shimmer and fade out of focus.

“What are you doing?” Jim demanded.

Shadow came back into sharp focus. “Sorry. Sometimes my control slips a little when I’m under pressure.”

Trixie winced. “No, I’m sorry. I’m not always the most tactful person,” she admitted. “I’m just really curious.”

Jim snorted under his breath, but looked away when she glared at him.

“I know Luke from way back,” Shadow said quietly. “We used to be friends.”

Trixie’s mouth gaped open and Jim felt tension coil in his chest. “Friends?” he demanded. “You’re friends with Luke?”

“Used to be friends, I said.” Shadow shifted away from the wall. “It was a long time ago. Before he hooked up with Medico.”

Jim’s lips tightened and he struggled to rein in his legendary temper. “And you didn’t see fit to tell us this sooner?”

“I’m sure Professor Frayne has a pretty good idea of who I am,” Shadow said mildly. “What with all the mind stuff he can do. Maybe you should be asking yourself why he didn’t tell you.”

“I’m sure he had his reasons,” Jim said through clenched teeth.

Shadow shrugged and resumed his previous position, arms crossed over his chest.

“So you and Luke were friends,” Trixie said thoughtfully, gazing at the dark man. “What happened?”

Shadow shrugged a stiff shoulder. “Hard to say.”

Trixie rolled her eyes, and Jim couldn’t suppress a quick grin. Once Trixie decided to get information out of a person, they didn’t stand a chance.

“How did you meet him?” she asked, tilting her head to the side.

Shadow looked down the corridor, away from them. “I lived on the streets for a while. He showed me a place to flop.”

Jim watched as Trixie struggled to decide on her next question. She would be torn, he knew, between pressing for more information about Luke, and finding more about the mysterious man who seemed to be on their side.

“How long did you stay with him?” she asked.

“Long enough,” was the clipped reply. “Long enough to know that that wasn’t the life I wanted.”

“What life was that?” Jim asked.

For a long moment, he thought that Shadow wouldn’t answer him. Finally, he pulled himself away from the wall and stretched his legs. “A life of using my gift to take advantage of other people.” His scorn for the word “gift” was again evident.

Jim nodded. The story was all too familiar. Many of the students at the academy had chunks of time between leaving their families and enrolling in the special school, and much of that time had been spent being exploited by humans or other mutants. The Shadow’s story was not unique.

“When Luke started getting involved with a rougher crowd, I got out,” Shadow continued. “He’s resented me ever since. Says I wasn’t loyal to my family.”

“Family?” Trixie questioned.

“He called me his brother. Since I didn’t have any family of my own…” Shadow shrugged. “At the time, I thought it was a good thing.”

“This rougher crowd,” Jim questioned. “Medico?”

Shadow nodded. “Medico patched him up after Luke didn’t get far away enough from a fire one time. After that, Luke stuck to him like glue.”

Trixie raised an eyebrow. “Medico actually helped someone?”

“You know he’s capable of being helpful when it’s to his advantage,” Jim reminded Trixie, his voice tight.

Trixie winced, remembering Jim’s first-hand knowledge of Medico’s helpfulness. “Did you ever have any dealings with Medico yourself?” she asked, turning her attention back to the Shadow.

He shook his head. “He was very secretive. He and Luke only ever met at night, and always alone. Luke was always pumped up afterward. At first, I thought Medico was giving him drugs, but that wasn’t it. I don’t know what Medico was doing to him, but, whatever it was, it had Luke hooked.”

Trixie frowned. “Do we know anything about that?”

Jim shook his head. “None of the people I knew were ever happy after spending time with Medico.”

Shadow shrugged. “Like I said, I really don’t know what was going on.”

“But you and Luke definitely have history,” Trixie mused. “And he’s not too happy with you, is he?”

Shadow shook his head. “He’s been after me to come back and join him. I’m not interested, but he’s not getting the message.”

“Do you think he’ll force you back?” she asked, eyes wide.

His answering smile was grim. “No one forces me to do anything. I told him I wasn’t going back, and I meant it.”

“Luke didn’t seem preoccupied with bringing you back into the fold when you met him in the alley,” Jim said thoughtfully. “His comments were meant to insult you, not to entice you back.”

Shadow nodded. “We haven’t talked in a while. Maybe things are different now.”

“Maybe he doesn’t think he needs your help anymore,” Trixie suggested. “If he’s in with Medico, he has a whole brand new network.”

“They’re strong enough without you,” Jim agreed. “Or, at least they think they are.”

“What does Medico have up his sleeve?” Trixie mused. “It must be something pretty big if he’s no longer recruiting people.”

“It’s big enough to terrify Luke, and he doesn’t scare easy,” Shadow volunteered. “I’m beginning to think you’re right. Now might be the perfect time to figure out what Medico is up to.”

Trixie nodded worriedly. “Before he does something big.”

“He hasn’t taken many chances since he served his prison term.”

Jim’s jaw tightened and he found himself clenching and unclenching his fists. “He shouldn’t be out yet. Good behaviour, my—”

“Professor Frayne?”

All eyes turned to the young boy standing in the doorway several feet down the hall. “Professor Frayne, I don’t feel very good.”

Jim took one look at the boy’s pale complexion and glassy eyes and took him under his arm. “You’re going to be fine, Ben. We’ll take you straight to the Healer.”

A quick look at the Shadow conveyed Jim’s request for Shadow to stay to keep an eye on the other boys, and the Shadow’s acceptance of the request. Trixie sighed and started down the hallway.

“I’d better check on the girls. I really shouldn’t have left them alone so long,” she admitted, a worried look on her face.

“They know where to find us,” Jim assured her. “But it wouldn’t hurt to do another check. I’ll be back as soon as Ben is settled in the infirmary.”

Jim supported the young boy, allowing him to lean heavily on him as they traversed the familiar path to the state-of-the-art medical facility.

“It’s just the flu, right?” Ben asked, groaning as he clutched his stomach.

Jim forced a laugh. “Don’t look at me, buddy. I’m just a teacher. I don’t make those kinds of calls.” He caught a glimpse of fear in the young boy’s eyes and sobered. “You’ll be fine, Ben. Dr. Belden is working very hard to get you all well again.”

Ben nodded weakly, and waited as Jim pulled open the door to the infirmary. Inside, he saw Brian seated at a small table, his head cradled in his arms.

“Got another one for you,” Jim said softly, watching as Brian’s dark head immediately popped up.

After a quick glance at Jim, the Healer focused his attention on Ben. “Hey, there. Not feeling so great?” he asked, withdrawing a thermometer from his lab coat.

Ben shook his head miserably. “I’m so cold. But I was hot before. And my throat hurts,” he complained.

Brian nodded in understanding. “I’ve got a bed for you just over here,” he told the distraught student. “We’ll have you feeling better in no time.”

Jim watched as Brian carefully guided Ben to his room down the hall. He could still make out the calm questions as Brian examined the young boy, but the doctor's voice grew fainter as the distance between them stretched.

“Jim!” Honey’s voice startled him, even though she spoke in well-modulated tones. “What are you doing here? Did you bring another student in?”

Jim nodded. “Ben Hartington just came down with it. How are you holding up?” he asked, noting her pinched expression.

“They’re all resting now,” she said as she sank into the chair Brian had vacated. “But it was pretty hairy for a while.” She shook her head, and Jim could see the sympathy welling in her eyes. “They were so miserable, Jim. Brian is alternating Tylenol and Advil to bring the fevers down as quickly as possible, but I don’t think it’s nearly fast enough.”

Jim sat down beside her and massaged his adopted sister’s neck muscles. “Do you want me to take your place for a while?” he asked.

Honey yawned, but shook her head. “I’m going to lie down on a spare bed for a few hours. Diana is sitting with some of the boys for a little while. Somehow, she seems to take their minds off their problems,” she said, rolling her eyes. “She’ll come and wake me when she needs a break. You and Trixie are monitoring the hallways to watch for anyone else getting sick, right?”

“Shadow’s with us, too,” Jim said.

Honey nodded wearily. “That’s good.”

“Honey. You’re practically asleep. Why don’t you go lie down now?” Jim watched as his tender-hearted sister rose gracefully from the chair.

“I think I will,” she said, flashing him a quick smile. She paused, laying her hand on his cheek. “Are you doing okay? I heard about the interview…”

Jim shrugged. “Yeah.”

Honey looked at him more closely and narrowed her eyes. “No. You’re not okay.”

“Hey!” he remonstrated gently, covering her hand with his. “I thought you weren’t going to go snooping around in my emotions anymore.”

Honey’s hand dropped to her side and she lowered her head. “I’m sorry. It’s just hard not to. And it’s not as if you’re difficult to read. I didn’t even have to half-try, and I could see that you’re upset.”

“Well, it’s nothing to worry about,” Jim assured her.

Just then, they heard the unmistakable sound of a door flinging open. Luke staggered out, his stringy blonde hair dishevelled and his clothing rumpled. “You have to let me go!” he insisted, struggling to navigate the hallway. “I’ll die if I stay here. I have to get back, so he knows that I’m loyal. You have to let me go! I don’t want to die!”

Brian appeared beside him, and Jim helped him force Luke back to his room. “You don’t understand!” Luke told them, his voice hoarse. “This isn’t an ordinary flu. Tylenol isn’t going to bring the fever down. Medico is the only one who can fix this!”

Jim and Brian exchanged worried looks. “We’re doing everything we can,” Brian reminded him. “I have every reason to believe that everyone will be back to normal within a few days.”

Luke shook his head, despair stamped on every feature. “And I have every reason to believe we’ll all be dead by the end of the week.”