Talent Chronicles 2 - Impulse Control Read Online Free

understand everything she reads, we’re not stealing files.”
    “Well, I guess we could always bring Angeline down here,” Karen pondered. “We’d probably need two ‘guards’ to pull that off. Think you get another one of the guys to help out?”
    “You want to sneak five people around the restricted zone after lights out?”
    “He’s kinda cute when he’s about to explode. Don’t you think he’s kinda cute, Elle?”
    “Give him a break. Look, Ethan, I understand your concern—”
    “Oh, I’m real glad to hear that.”
    “—but kids are dying. Little kids. Are dead. These,” she held up the files, “are definite plans for hacking into more little kids’ heads and cutting into their brains, making them into slaves of—“
    “Okay, okay. Get off your moral high-horse before you crack your head. I get it. But I get to sit next to you on the bus ride to Everlast.”
    I couldn’t believe I just said that. I felt my cheeks get hot. Elle blushed. Behind a file folder, Karen rolled her eyes at me.
    “Get what you’re getting and let’s get out of here,” I snapped.

    * * *

    “Okay, we go up this wall. There’s an access door on the roof that’s going to get us in real close to where they’re housing Anderson.”
    The girls hadn’t wasted any time getting Angeline to explain the file to them. Elle had already been ready to go on a crusade for these kids, and Angeline had told her she believed she might have the very Talent that could help them. So without me as the voice of reason, they came up with this great plan to visit Anderson, which had Elle and me staring up the side of this building the next night.
    Elle squinted up and tugged on her braid. “Ethan, I can’t climb that.”
    “I know, don’t worry about that. We can do this two ways. I could climb up and lower down a rope and then pull you up. But you’d have to wait down here by yourself while I made climb. I think it would be better if I just carried you up on my back. If…uh…that’s okay with you.”
    “You can do that?”
    “Uh...yeah.” I felt like an idiot. I didn’t want to sound like I was bragging or showing off or something, but I wanted her to understand she’d be safe. “Look, I’m a shapeshifter, right? It pretty much means I can give myself as much muscle mass as I need. The only thing is that I’ll need my arms, so you’ve got to be sure to hold on. It shouldn’t take too long, though.”
    “Yeah, okay, I can do that.”
    I turned around and Elle clambered onto my back, wrapping her arms around my neck, legs around my waist, and making me really glad Karen wasn’t here to read my thoughts. I leapt up for the first handhold, testing our weight, and then started climbing.
    “Is this why you didn’t want to bring Karen?” Elle asked in my ear.
    “Karen doesn’t have any business climbing buildings in the middle of the night. Not that you do either.”
    “You’re very protective of her.”
    What’s that supposed to mean?
    “I guess. I mean, yeah, I am. Do you know why I’m on probation?”
    “What do you mean, ‘on probation’?”
    “I mean, like, one more strike and I’m on the next bus to Everlast. You didn’t know that?”
    “Why would they send you to Everlast, Ethan? You never do anything wrong.”
    “Nothing except sneak around the restricted zone after hours, steal files, carry girls up the sides of buildings.”
    “You know what I mean.”
    “Yeah.” I pulled us over the edge of the roof. Elle slipped away from me and I shook out my arms, let my form settle, caught my breath, while she sat beside me in the shadows. I wanted to take a minute to let my form settle, so this was probably as good a time as any to clear this up. “I’m sorry, I just figured you and Karen talk so much… Don’t look so worried. It’s not a big deal, I just thought, since you asked about Karen and me—”
    “I didn’t mean to—”
    I cut her off, figuring we didn’t have all night to do the