The Forbidden Trilogy (77 page)

I hadn't seen his death myself, but I couldn't imagine the
horror of watching my best friend get shot in the head. I'd been so
self-absorbed lately, that I'd never even asked him about it, but that would
have to wait for another time. I avoided Darren, and instead headed toward
Robyn, who was still eating.

Robyn looked up from her plate as I sat beside her. Her mind
buzzed with the same nervous energy as her boyfriend Norm. "Hey, Sam, have
you eaten?"

"Yes, Susie brought me something before I could even
escape my room. She rightly assumed I would skip breakfast if given a chance.
Hey, do you know where Mary's room is? I need to talk to her about Ana."

Robyn sighed and looked relieved. "Yeah, I helped her
settle in when she first got back, though I wouldn't go out of my way to help
her again."

"Why not?"

"She borrowed a blanket for that first night and still
hasn't returned it."

"Sounds like her. Why not just go get it back."

Robyn shrugged. "I don't know. I just don't want to
make a big deal out of it, you know?"

I nodded, totally understanding. I used to feel the same
way, willing to do anything to avoid confrontation with Mary, scared of what
she would do in retaliation. But her bullying had to stop. "Clearly it's
bothering you. You should tell her you need it back."

"Yeah, maybe later." Which meant never.

Well, I couldn't push her if she wasn't ready.

Robyn finished eating, still looking nervous and tapping her
foot excessively.

I was about to ask her what she was so scared about when a
rush of hateful thoughts hijacked my mind. I ran into the hallway, with other
students on my heels, and found the former school jock, Curtis, pounding Greg
in the face. Curtis and his friends laughed and made jokes, calling Greg
"fag" and "homo" and other vile names.

Intent on stopping it, I stepped forward, but Gary pushed
past me, yelling like a wild banshee.

Before he even got close enough to hit the guy, Gary used
his control over metal to swing open the lockers and bash Curtis in the face.
Then he pounced and started punching and hitting Curtis relentlessly.
"Don't you ever touch him again. Ever!" he screamed, bloodying
Curtis's nose.

The scene brought back another image: Drake had beaten a man
to a bloody pulp with his bare hands. The fact that he'd been capable of so
much violence had scared the crap out of me for a long time, and I couldn't let
Gary become that.

"Gary, that's enough." Other hands, Greg's hands,
broke through and helped me pull the guys apart. Curtis lay on the ground,
groaning. I had half a mind to kick him in the groin myself, but enough was
enough. "Someone get Susie."

Gary brushed me aside and focused on Greg. "Are you
okay?"

He gently examined the cut over Greg's eye, but Greg pulled
his hands away. "I'm fine. It's just a scratch."

Susie charged down the hall and sent a wave of calm across
the students. "What happened here?"

Gary glared at Curtis and pointed his finger. "That
asshole and his friends beat Greg and called him a bunch of homophobic
names."

Susie looked at Greg. "Is this true?"

He just nodded, his eyes sad.

Susie pointed to two kids. "You two, help Curtis to the
clinic. Greg, you should come too, so I can take a look at your eye."

Curtis and his friends left, and Gary and Greg moved to
follow, but Susie stopped them. "Not now, Gary. Cool down first. You can
come by later for some bandages for your hands."

The crowd dispersed reluctantly, and Gary hugged Greg.
"I told you... we shouldn't stay here. It's the same old thing." His
thoughts careened as he walked away.
'Thought this place would be better.
Just want to live somewhere without judgment of any kind. Want to leave but
Greg doesn't want to. Can't leave him.'

I hoped he wouldn't let that anger eat too deeply into him.
That wouldn't end well for anyone.

Soon, only Robyn and I remained in the hallway. "Thanks
for waiting," I said. "Now, where's Mary's room?"

***

An hour later, and I had to admit Mary didn't do it. It was
a painful admission, since I'd pinned all my hate—and hopes—on her, but aside
from a few cloudy spots from when the Seeker controlled her mind, and the part
where Drake had almost killed her, she had nothing to hide. Given what she'd
been through, I almost felt bad for her, especially since some of it had kind
of been my fault. Her terror at waking up in the IPI treatment facility, scared
and alone, had particularly chilled me.

Mary sat on her bed, arms crossed. "You
satisfied?"

I nodded and stood to stretch. Her room surprised me, too
tiny for a roommate, and nearly monastic in its plainness. A red blanket
hanging from the bed provided the only dash of color—and that probably belonged
to Robyn.

I was about to leave, but paused. "I'm sorry for slapping
you." The words almost stuck on my tongue.

She shrugged. "No big deal. I would have slapped
myself. I deserved it."

No argument there. She'd been a mega-bitch to everyone since
forever. But seeing her now, alone in the dark, so self-conscious about the
scars she carried from the fire, I pitied her. "Are you okay?"

"I'm fine." She scooted back on her bed and put a
pillow on her lap. "Things are really different now."

"That's true. I sometimes wonder if it was easier at
Rent-A-Kid. Life had been simpler, before we knew the truth." Mary's
bullying notwithstanding, I'd enjoyed my life there, before Drake and the baby
and all of this.

"We can't go back to ignorance, and I'm not sure we'd
really want to. But knowledge carries its own burdens." She looked up at
me as if waking from a trance. "Good luck, Sam. I really do hope you find
who took her. She's a sweet baby."

The vivid memory of Ana, rather than the idea of finding
her, sent me into a spiral of hurt. I missed her so much I couldn't stand it.
The knowledge that, if I broke down and gave into the pain Ana would pay with
her life, kept me moving forward.

Anger boiled in me. Mary had been my prime suspect. If not
her, then who? No one else at Rent-A-Kid had it in for me—that I knew of. Was
it Norm or Robyn? They'd acted weird, but I couldn't imagine my friends
betraying me like that. I decided not to scan them until I'd checked the rest
of the school. Hopefully, I'd figure out what happened before I even got to
them.

After checking off Mary's name, I scanned the list and
started from the top.

Five hours later, only a handful of people remained, all of
whom were close to me. Nobody else had hidden anything of relevance. One guy
had smoked pot the week before, and a girl had made out with her boyfriend when
she was supposed to be in Algebra, but that hardly qualified as suspicious
activity for a group of teenagers, paranormal or not.

Bernard, Father Patrick and Susie had insisted that I scan
them, and while they all had very interesting pasts, they knew nothing about
Ana and felt horrible about her kidnapping.

I stopped and stared at my list. Which friend's mind would I
violate first? As I weighed my options, Susie put her arm around my shoulders.
Her calm spread through me in waves, but even she couldn't touch the cold fear
at the center of my being.

"How are you holding up, Sam?"

I slumped into her shoulders. "Honestly, I'm a wreck.
Drake promised he'd be here, but he's not. No one knows anything about Ana, so
now I have to probe my friends. And when Drake does get here, I'm not sure
it'll make a difference. We had a lot of problems to work out anyway, and his
leaving didn't help. His ability to control minds has always made me
uncomfortable, and even after learning it myself, I hardly ever use it. In
fact, I haven't used it at all since Ana was born. He has no trouble taking
over other people, though, or beating them to death, and I just don't know if I
can trust him. At this point, I don't know if I can trust anyone."

Susie pulled me closer. "You can't let your mistrust of
one individual destroy your trust in all of mankind. Who should be believed?
Who should be ignored? It's a test, a personnel dilemma. Some may pass your
test, and some may fail, but they will do so individually."

I understood that, but still had to ask, "And if one
has already failed?"

Her compassionate smile made the world seem a kinder place.
"Everyone deserves a second chance to make things right."

"I'm not sure I can let him. I'm not sure he can make
things right, no matter what he does."

"You must have faith, my child. Without faith, there is
no trust. No one is beyond redemption."

***

Brad and Desirai sat in an empty classroom, heads bent over
a computer.

"Hey guys, what are you working on?" I hated to
interrupt them, but best to get the interview out of the way. My list of people
had become distressingly short, adding to the desperate fear I'd felt since Ana
disappeared. Only force of will allowed me to put on a neutral face and try to
interact like a normal human being.

Brad rose and hugged me. "Are you okay? Any luck?"

I shook my head. "Sorry, but you guys are next. No one
else has known anything so far. It's not that I think you would hurt
Ana...."

Desirai came up behind Brad and hugged me as well.
"Nonsense. You need to do this. We understand. Don't worry about it,
Sam."

Yes, this needed to be done, but what would happen later,
when everyone realized I'd seen into their most private thoughts and secrets?
No one liked being around someone who could do that. It had been hard enough
before, when everyone could pretend to forget about my abilities, but they
couldn't pretend anymore. Would I have any friends left when this was over?

A scan of Desirai's and Brad's minds revealed what I'd
expected. They didn't do it, they didn't know anything about who did, and they
were happy and in love. Also, their short story idea was pretty awesome, and I
told them so.

Brad smiled. "Thanks! But, um, sorry we couldn't be
more help."

Ha! Now people were apologizing for not being the bad
guy. This seriously sucks.

I wanted to duck out of there and continue my search, but I
was also a friend and needed to act like one. Even though the scan had already
revealed the answer, I asked, "What have you been up to, Brad. Anything
exciting?"

He grabbed Desirai's hand, and a twinge of jealousy shot
through me, but I kept my fake smile plastered onto my face. "Well, yeah,
actually. I've been thinking of interviewing paranormals, like for television
and radio, putting a spin on what we can do, getting it out into the world so you
guys don't have to hide anymore."

"I think that's a great idea. If anyone can do us
justice, it's you."

"Thanks, but I'm not sure about it yet. The world may
not be ready to know about you guys, and I don't want to put any of my friends
in harm's way by outing you. I'm talking to Father Patrick and Bernard about
it, and we'll be talking to some of the other people with para-powers to see if
it's the best idea. When you've found Ana, and this is over, I'd love to talk
to you about it too."

"Sure. Let's talk later. Have fun writing your
story."

Next, I went in search of Greg and Gary, who were playing
chess in the rec room. "Hi, Greg, how's the cheek? I'm so sorry about what
happened earlier."

He shrugged. "I'm fine. Douchebags will be douchebags,
no matter where you are."

Judging by Gary's frown, he didn't have such a nonchalant
attitude about it.

"If it's any consolation, Bernard had a serious talk
with Curtis. He won't do it again."

Greg snickered. "Yeah, we'll see. Don't worry about me,
Sam. It looks bad, but really, I'm fine. I just have some big decisions to
make."

I nodded and wondered if one of those decisions involved
leaving. Where would they even go? The world didn't know about paranormals yet,
and from what I'd seen in the news, gay relationships weren't exactly embraced
by the mainstream public either. The real world would target them on two
fronts. But, it was their decision, not mine. Greg's power to mentally hack
into and take control of electronics wouldn’t raise as many eyebrows as his
partner's power over metal. They could probably hide their abilities, but how
long could they hide so many parts of themselves for the sake of fitting in?
Would they even want to?

They consented easily enough while I scanned their minds. No
information about Ana, but, as suspected, they were considering leaving. How
hard it must have been for them to be judged for their love. People were so
stupid sometimes. What did it matter whom a person loved, as long as it didn't
hurt anyone else in the process?

Two more checks on my list, and then I went in search of
Norm and Robyn. This interview made me the most nervous, as they clearly had
something to hide, and part of me dreaded learning any more secrets about my
friends.

They cuddled on the couch in the media room, watching a
comedy. Made sense; Norm had always been a funny guy, quiet until you got him
on stage, but then he could make anyone laugh. He'd been a favorite in our
talent shows at Rent-A-Kid.

But today neither laughed at the shtick on television.
God,
it couldn't be them, could it? That just doesn't make sense.
"Um,
guys, it's time. I need to scan you."

Robyn looked at Norm, and he nodded. "Before you begin,
there's something we want to tell you."

My skin turned cold and clammy. This was it. Were they about
to tell me what happened to my daughter?
Oh God.
I clutched the list of
names in my hand so hard it tore.

Robyn burst into tears. "We're pregnant!"

My shoulders slumped and my body released all the tension it
had been carrying. Relief and disappointment battled for control of my heart.
On the one hand, I was glad my friends hadn't betrayed me. On the other, if
they'd known something, I might be closer to getting my daughter back.
Damnit!
I'm getting nowhere.