Dr. Simon could easily read the minds of everyone who wasn’t able to block him out, so everything I did on my own would have to be kept hidden and buried within steel walls in the recesses of my mind. No one could ever know, not even Finn.
Dr. Banks said I had a few hours, so I laid back and closed my eyes, hoping I could return to my mind.
I waited about one minute and nothing happened.
How was I supposed to get back in? Maybe I had to wish myself in, or think of a memory.
I was starting to sound like a mad person.
Relaxing, I went with something easy. Thinking back to the time me, Finn, and Pike were having dinner around a small fire next to our chopper outside of Sanctum. It was a time of laughter and happiness, right before the tragedy.
Finn’s handsome face was glowing in the firelight. He turned, his eyes catching mine. A broad smile rose on his full lips, and it made my stomach twist. God, I missed him. Every fiber in my body ached to be near him again.
As I relaxed, I could feel myself fading. I kept my breathing steady and before I knew it, I was surrounded by darkness. I lifted my arms in front of me and noticed my veins were bioluminescent.
I did it. I was back in my mind.
I didn’t want to wander too far and never find my way back. The darkness started to get to me, and I was becoming afraid, so I thought of Finn, the one person I could count on. I could hear his voice saying, “Don’t give up, Abi. You’ve got this.”
As much as I wanted to keep my memories on Finn, I needed to see if I could find the only memory I had of my grandmother. There was only one thing I could remember about her visit. Dandelions. It was all I had to go on, but at least it was something specific.
In my mind, I pictured a field of bright yellow dandelions, until I was transported to our old backyard. The lawn was covered with dandelions. Some were in full bloom and bright yellow, and some had transformed into magical white puffs.
My grandmother was standing next to me, as if she were real. It was the only time I’d seen her face. She was so beautiful and had strong resemblances to my mother. Her eyes were dark green and her smile beamed like the sun.
“Come, Abi,” she said, taking hold of my tiny hand. We walked over to a patch of the fluffy white flowers and knelt beside them. She plucked the fattest one and held it up to me. “Do you know what these are?”
“Mommy said they’re weeds.” My voice was high and squeaky.
“No. These aren’t weeds,” she whispered. “These are magical flowers.”
“Magical?”
“Yes,” she whispered. “Now, close your eyes and make a wish.”
I did as she asked and opened my eyes to see a smile broaden on her face.
“Did you make your wish?”
“Yes,” I answered. I had no idea what I wished for.
“Good,” she said, holding the flower up to my lips. “Now blow.”
As I blew, pieces of feathery fluff billowed across the yard, carried away by the gentle winds. I could remember being entranced by them. We watched until the last one faded from sight.
“How are they magical, Grammy?” I asked.
“These are fairy flowers,” she said, taking my hand. “When you blow them, it releases tiny little fairies which carry your wishes to heaven.”
“Really?” I gasped.
“Really.” She laughed, then leaned over and kissed my cheek. “You’re very special, Abi. I knew it from the moment I saw you.”
“What do you mean, Grammy?”
“It’s nothing you need to worry about, my darling. Just remember, when you are ever afraid, pull strength from inside. You have so much power in here,” she said, gently tapping my head. “I can feel it.”
“Huh?” my little voice squeaked.
She laughed again. “It’s nothing. Just know I’ll be waiting for you when the time comes. I love you so much, Abigail.”
“I love you too, Grammy,” I said, wrapping my chubby little arms around her neck.
“Abi,” my mother called. She was standing in the doorway with worry in her eyes. “What have you two been doing?”
“I was telling her about the fairy flowers,” Grammy answered.
“The fairies carried my wish to heaven, Mommy,” I chimed.
My mother sighed and directed her attention to my grandma. “Don’t fill her mind with fairy tales, Mom.”
“It’s good for children to have dreams and an imagination.”
“Yes, but it’s also good for them to have their feet planted firmly on the ground and not bobbling up in the clouds.”
“She’s only four.”
“Yes, but she’s being molded. Their brains are like sponges at this age.”
“She has the gift,” Grammy blurted. As the words left her mouth, my mom’s face hardened.
“Abi, I want you to go up to your room,” my mother said.
“Why, Mommy?” I whined.
“Just listen to me,” she said with a firm voice. “You aren’t in trouble, I just need to talk to Grammy.”
“Okay.” I glanced at my grandmother. “Bye, Grammy.”
“Goodbye, sweet child,” she said, hugging me tightly. Then she whispered in my ear. “If you ever need me, just look inside you.” She tapped my head and kissed my cheek. “I’ll always be there for you.”
The memory faded into the surrounding darkness.
I didn’t even know if she was still alive. If she was, how would I find her?
Look inside. That wasn’t really giving me anything to go off of. Did she think I had some kind of GPS system?
I flashed through a few more of my memories with Finn, and then checked on the steel walls I’d constructed. They all appeared to be strong with no cracks. Maybe my mind was getting stronger.
When I started to feel pain in my head, I decided it was time to get out. I hadn’t moved since I came in, so I turned around and as I stepped, I fell into a black hole.
Screaming, my eyes opened and I was back in bed in the medical room. As I turned, Dr. Simon was walking in.
“Hello, Abi,” he greeted. “How are you feeling?”
“Much better,” I said with a grin.
“Good to hear. You scared me when you fell and passed out. I thought something was really wrong, or that you’d reacted badly to the serum.”
“No. I just couldn’t sleep last night because there was too much going on inside my head. I’m pretty sure that’s what caused my embarrassing episode.”
“Don’t be embarrassed. It happens, and it’s job security for the cleaners. Plus, Chase’s expression was priceless.”
His laughter made me laugh.
“Before we get onto another topic, I want you to know I arranged a meeting with your family this evening.”
“You did?” I sat up a little too quickly and my head throbbed.
“Hey,” he said, dashing over to me, helping me lay back down. “I realized you missed your scheduled meeting with them when you passed out, and I know how much they mean to you. Your fiancé will also be there,” he said with a smile.
“Thank you so much, Dr. Simon.” I couldn’t help but be thankful. Sincerely grateful. He was giving me an incredible gift, and I couldn’t wait. I wanted to jump out of bed, run back to my room, and get ready.
“You’re welcome, Abi.”
“When’s the meeting set for?”
“In a couple hours. I just talked to Dr. Banks and he said he’d be here soon to release you. I just thought I’d come in and give you the good news myself.”
“You don’t know how much this means to me,” I breathed.
“I do. I can read your mind and emotions, remember?”
“Right.”
“In a few weeks, you should be able to do the same. You just have to strengthen your mind, which we have exercises for. Before you know it, you’ll be reading everyone around you. It gets a little overbearing at times, so you’ll also have to learn how to shut it off.”
“I’m ready,” I said.
“I like your enthusiasm.”
“I will do whatever it takes to get rid of the Arvies and get out of this bunker.”
“Good. We’ll start training again tomorrow,” he said. “Make sure you get some rest, and we’ll take it slow. If you have trouble sleeping, you should ask Dr. Banks for some sleeping pills. I take one every night to help turn my brain off.”
“Thanks for the suggestion. I think I’ll do that.”
“Alright, I have to go check on Chase and Chloe in the Arvy chamber. Meet me in the lab at six o’clock. I’ll escort you to the meeting room.”
“Will do,” I said excitedly. “And, thanks again.”
My insides were bubbling with excitement. I was going to see Finn soon, but two hours seemed like a lifetime away.
I DRESSED AND STOOD IN front of my bathroom mirror. Getting ready here wasn’t even necessary, especially when you looked the same all the dang time.
A thin rim of iridescent coloring framed my irises. “What the hell?” Was the bubble seeping out of me?
But that was fake, right? Chase said it was my brain interpreting the serum. Then why the heck could I see it?
I checked the rest of my body, but there was nothing out of the ordinary.
I glanced back into the mirror. If my parents saw this, they would freak.
“Please go away,” I begged.
As if by magic, the iridescent ring faded.
Holy crap.
I was losing my mind. Or, was I controlling it?
I needed fresh air. I felt like I was being suffocated.
Stepping out of the bathroom, I sat on the bed and blocked all of my memories I needed to keep secret, including the moment I just had in the bathroom.
When I was done, I glanced at the clock and it was almost six.
Excitedly, I jumped up and headed for the door. As it opened, Chase fell inside, making me scream.
“What’s the matter?” I gasped, dropping to his side.
He was doubled over and holding his stomach, moaning.
I pulled up the back of his shirt and saw his entire back was covered with welts and bruises.
“Who did this to you?” I snapped. My insides were burning.
His only response was a shake of his head.
I lifted his pained face until his eyes met mine. “Who did this to you?”
His head shook again.
He wasn’t going to answer me, and I still didn’t know how to read his damn mind.
“Where’s Chloe?”
“Room,” he pushed out in a soft whisper.
“Is she all right?”
He nodded.
What was going on around here?
I helped him up and led him to my bed. Then I went to the pad and pressed Dr. Banks’ number, but he didn’t respond.
“Don’t call anyone,” he moaned.
He needed help, so I tried again, but there was no answer. Dr. Banks was the only one I could trust. Frustrated and feeling helpless, I turned to Chase.
“What can I do?”
“Nothing. I’ll be fine,” he said between painful pants.
“You’re not fine. You need to be seen by a doctor.”
“No.” His eyes steeled on mine. “Don’t. They can’t help me.”
“What do you want me to do?” I begged.
He took my arm. “Go to your meeting. Block your mind from this, and I’ll talk to you when you get back.”
“Are you sure you’ll be okay?” My heart was hammering.
“Yes. I just need to rest,” he said, closing his eyes. “Go, so they don’t suspect anything.”
Before I left, I closed my eyes and blocked the whole memory of Chase coming into my room. Then, I picked up the pieces of my tormented self, and made my way to the training room. I couldn’t help my body from shaking, so I stood for a minute just outside the door and tried to calm my nerves. I couldn’t make any assumptions, or even think about what happened, because that would lead to me having to block out more things.
Freaking mind readers sucked.
I quickly blocked the whole conversation I just had with myself before I opened the door. Blocking things was becoming fairly easy, and I could now block something without closing my eyes and concentrating.
I could actually block things while on the go. That was pretty badass.
I also had to block that from my mind, so Dr. Simon wouldn’t know what I could do. This would be never ending. I had to figure out how to block my whole mind because I spent way too much time in my head.
Pushing the door open, I found the room to be empty. I glanced at the clock on the wall. I was five minutes early.
Blank mind. Blank mind. Blank mind.
I was going to see Finn soon and that’s all that mattered. He was going to walk through the door, wrap me in his strong arms and for the briefest of moments, I would be truly happy. The anticipation made me anxious.
At exactly six o’clock, Dr. Simon walked in looking pained.
“Abi, I’m so sorry, but they’ve had to cancel your meeting.”
My stomach dropped. “Why?”
“There’s been a lockdown of this section. Chase is missing and there was a man beaten, who is hanging on to life. He’s been sent to the medical facility and is in critical care. They are suspecting Chase as the culprit and are searching to question him.”
“Oh my God,” I gasped.
“Abi, if you know anything about this—”
“I don’t,” I said truthfully. “Why would Chase beat up someone?”
“I don’t know,” he answered.
“What if he was defending himself? What if it was the person who’s been leaving bruises on him?”
My mind desperately searched for an answer. Why would Chase beat someone to near death? The only logical explanation was that he was defending himself. The welts and bruises all over his back were proof of that. But my tongue was tied.
“Abi, there are things you don’t know about Chase and Chloe,” he said. “They’ve come from a broken family and were raised by someone who abused them often and brutally. They were neglected and relied solely on each other for the past thirteen years, which is why they have a hard time trusting anyone. When they arrived here a few months ago, they were severely malnourished, and spent the first two weeks in medical.”
“I thought they were residents here?”
“They’ve been residents for a few months. They were two of the first survivors brought in from the outside.”
This information had me completely baffled. I now had two conflicting stories.
“I was first introduced to Chase and Chloe while performing a psychiatric evaluation. They were labeled mentally unstable, but the moment I walked into the room, I knew they had the gift of telepathy. Understandably, they put up barriers, but that made it hard for me to read their minds. In the few months I’ve been with them, they’ve given me bits and pieces of their life, and I’m not even sure if any of it is real. I can’t help them if I don’t know what’s wrong.”
“What do you mean?”
“Sometimes when a person is abused or has a mental imbalance, they create a safe place in their mind in which to hide. It’s a place they can feel safe when the world around them is turbulent; a secret place where no one but themselves can go. Most times those places don’t even exist.”
My world was spinning. I was thrust into the middle of a twisted game filled with deception and strategy, and my part in the game was to find out who the hell was telling the truth.
One side, if not both, was lying to me.
In my mind, I was wrapping every thought flowing through my head into an impenetrable barrier. I knew Dr. Simon was trying to read me because his eyes were focused and his face was hard-set.
“Do you know where Chase is, Abi?” he asked.
I knew the question would come up, so I wasn’t caught off guard.
“Not at the moment,” I answered.
“I want to help him,” he sighed. “If the soldiers find him first, they’ll take him to a cell and he’ll be exiled. If I find him first, maybe I can keep that from happening. I need all of you in order to make this Reader program work. I can’t afford to lose even one. And I can guarantee Chloe will be useless if her twin is exiled.”
My mind was like a tornado. Distrust, suspicion, and doubt were wreaking havoc, casting doubt upon everyone here.
I didn’t want Chase to be exiled, but I still wasn’t sure if Dr. Simon was telling me the truth. I really had no choice. Sooner or later, someone would find him, and I would probably be charged with aiding and abetting.
For my family’s sake, I had to make sure I stayed here. I couldn’t be exiled. I knew at this point in my life, I wouldn’t survive on the topside alone. Not to mention, Finn would come after me and be slaughtered. The thought drove a shiver up my spine.
It was one of the toughest decisions I had to make, but I had to make one.
“Promise you’ll help him?” I asked, gazing deep into his eyes.
“Yes. Chase needs help. Like I said before, I’m in charge of him. I’ll make sure he gets the proper attention he needs and if he is charged as an Intransigent, I will appeal his case.”
I dropped my head and took a deep breath.
“He’s badly injured,” I finally said. “He came to my room with huge welts and bruises on his back, like someone had beaten him. He needs medical attention.”
“Where is he?” he asked softly.
My heart felt torn. I didn’t know if I was making the right decision, but he did need help.
“My room,” I whispered.
“Stay here. I’ll be back to get you. I don’t want him to think you had any part of this.”
I closed my eyes and nodded.
As Dr. Simon walked out of the room, I walked over to a chair and fell into it.
Had I made the right decision? There was no way to know at this point.
I needed Finn. I wondered what he must be feeling at this moment. The anticipation of finally getting to see him, and then the overwhelming disappointment of not being able to, was heart crushing.
This place sucked, just like the other one.
FOR MY PEACE OF MIND, I needed to make sure Chase had the best care. There was no one better than Dr. Banks. He’d given me his direct number, so I walked over to the pad on the wall and punched in the numbers.