Page 126 of Victorious

One moment, Sydney was crouched down on the roof, alone, and the next, there were two of her. At least, that’s how it looked at first glance. But the Clarke sisters had always been carbon copies.

The same pale hair. The blue eyes. The heart-shaped face.

The gap between their ages had narrowed a fraction in the intervening years, the resemblance between them sharpening with Serena trapped in time, and Sydney inching forward.

But Eli would always know the difference.

After all, Serena was the one he’d first encountered. The one he’d set out to kill on Halloween, before she led him up the stairs amid the party’s throbbing beat, and pushed him down onto the bed, straddled his chest, and informed him he could try another night.

Once upon a time, Serena Clarke had been the most powerful EO Eli Ever had ever met. Able to bend the world to her will using only her voice.

Which was why Victor had slit her throat. Burned the body so she couldn’t be brought back. And yet, there she was, painted on the inside of the visor.

There was Sydney, collapsing at her feet, as if the effort of bringing her sister back had taken everything, while Serena stood tall, blond hair caught in the cold breeze, blue eyes half lidded and lips twitching in a smirk.

And yet—Serena hadn’t ordered the agents to throw themselves off the roof.

In fact, she hadn’t said a word. Simply swept her sister up into her arms and walked away. The agents didn’t turn to follow. Instead, they started walking, as if they couldn’t see the roof, or the place it ended, giving way to empty air. They didn’t even slow down when they reached the edge.

On the screen, the agent stepped into thin air, and fell, the ground rushing up to meet him. Eli recoiled at the impact.

He’d walked straight off. The way Eli almost had. As if lost in a dream.

“Well?” demanded Noah.

Eli tugged the helmet off and said, “We have a problem.”

XNOW. THEN.

“THEY’RE on foot,” said Noah. “They can’t have gone far.”

The five remaining agents circled, waiting for instructions. The motel was in the middle of nowhere. There were no towns in a ten-mile radius. The only structures were a couple farms, an abandoned theme park, and a shuttered mall.

Noah ordered a drone into the air to search the area for signs of life.

As the drone carved a circle overhead, Eli’s mind spun, too.

Resurrecting an EO resulted in a glitch. An interruption of their existing power. Not a brand-new one. And yet, Serena Clarke had somehow come back stronger. She wasn’t just commanding minds. She was controlling every sense, creating a kind of altered reality. Which was dangerous enough, but her reach was greater, too.

Her original ability was bounded by her voice, extending only to those who could hear it. But on the roof, she hadn’t spoken. And yet, she’d not only influenced the agents there. Eli had been impacted on the floor below. Meanwhile, Noah was on the other side of the motel, securing Mitchell Turner, and felt nothing.

Which meant, at least, there was a radius. An outer limit to her power.

But that only helped if they could pinpoint the center.

“We’ve got them,” said an agent. The drone’s infrared had picked up two heat signatures at the entrance of the shuttered mall.

Something about that bothered Eli.

“We should split up,” he said, “in case that isn’t right.”

But Noah only laughed and headed toward the nearest van.

While they drove, Eli explained the appearance of Sydney’s sister to Noah and Gabriel, who he knew was listening.

When the doctor spoke, the interest in his voice was even sharper.

“I want them both alive.”