Eve sighed. "Look, it’s not like I like having to steal. But I’m trying to look out for myself, for us. We have to be strategic. This money won't last us forever."
“Eve, you can’t let them turn you into this person.”
“What person?”
“A person with no code,” he replied.
She rolled her eyes. “I do have a code. Live. Survive. That’s my code, and it means I can’t always play nice. You should understand that.”
"Fine. Next time I'll send you to the store. Computer name?" he said when a text box appeared on the screen and prompted him to enter a name.
She stared at him blankly.
"What login name do you want for the computer?"
"MisterPebbles," she offered.
He typed in the name and continued pecking at the computer. "All right." He turned to her. "It's all yours now. Password is 'Indiana_Eve'. Get it?"
The blank expression sailed over her face again.
"Since we're on this mission to find precious items—faders—and stop SPI from getting weapons. And you're from Indiana."
"But we're not archaeologists. Anyway, I never liked that movie."
"Loser."
She stuck her tongue out at him.
"Well, keep the wireless turned off. I'm sure they have other ways of tracking us, but let's not make it easy. Your sandwich is in that bag—I got you a southwestern chicken hoagie. You're welcome." He winked at her, before pulling out a disposable phone he'd purchased. He inserted a SIM card and excused himself to the bathroom.
She closed her eyes and took a bite of the hoagie. For the next five minutes, she savored every bite. Nothing had made her appreciate food more than being practically starved by SPI. After finishing the final bite, she gulped the lemonade and turned to the computer screen.
"How are we going to find AJ Taylor?" Mauricio asked, emerging from the bathroom. He stood near the window.
"I don't have a clue."
"Do you have any hacking skills?"
Eve shot him an amused look. "Do people still use that word...'hacking'? Seems a little outdated."
"Yes, they do. Hand me the computer," he said.
She did as told and watched him bring up the command prompt and then proceed to type in some code she didn't understand.
After a few minutes, he cleared his throat and turned to her. "Uh, just so we're using our time wisely, while I'm doing this, you can work on the story, yeah? The one that's going to win you a Pulitzer for journalism? I bought pens and a notebook. They're in the other bag over there." He pointed toward the desk next to the window.
She laughed and took this as her cue. "Sure thing, boss. I'll get out of your hair."
"I know I said you'd look good in spandex," he said, watching her walk to the desk. "But I have to say, this T-shirt and panties look is even better."
She glanced over her shoulder and winked at him.
***
It was almost sunrise, and Eve was passed out on the bed—pen and notebook on her chest—when Mauricio exclaimed, "Got her!"
She sat up and looked left and right until her gaze landed on Mauricio. He was sitting at the desk with the light of the computer illuminating his face.
"I know where she's staying. We got her."
"Oh. Right," said Eve, registering the import of his words but failing to care at this early hour of the morning.
"She's staying only ten minutes from here. I can walk it."
"Hmm-huh," Eve murmured.
"I'll go to her this afternoon. See if she's willing to join us." He saved the document and turned off the computer before joining her on the bed. “While I’m gone, maybe you can use the quiet time to write.”
"Awesome," she managed to say, not registering anything he said and too sleepy to muster up an ounce of genuine enthusiasm. She fell against her pillow and, in mere seconds, was asleep once more.
***
Marie Cooper removed pink and blue rollers from her hair and combed through the bouncy curls. Eve stared at her mother, admiring the way her curls and dark skin seemed to shine in the sunlight. "Isn't sand interesting, Eve? Millions of tiny grains of minerals and rocks and shells. But mostly it just sort of looks like one big sheet to us, huh?" She smiled, squatting to meet her daughter at eye level. "Until you try to pick it up. See?" She grabbed a handful of golden sand, and it poured through her fingers.
Eve reached down to grab a handful yet gasped when she saw her feet. They were sinking into warm sand.
"Here, try it," said Marie Cooper, smiling a big smile. She grasped Eve's hands and lowered them to the sand.
In a panic and struggling to move her feet as the sand rose to her calves, Eve snatched her hands away. "Mom, I'm sinking," she screamed. "What's happening?"
From a distance, a strange woman approached, running toward her but looking back at the shore as though she was being pursued. As the woman drew closer, Eve squinted to get a clearer view of her. "Mom, we have to—" Eve began but stopped. "Mom?" she shouted, looking around as the sand reached her waist.
Marie Cooper was gone.
The strange woman was still approaching, and now Eve could see that she was limping.
"Help me," Eve screamed, reaching for the woman.
For a moment, her fearful brown eyes swept over Eve. She glanced over her shoulder before pulling Eve up and dragging her to the nearest patch of grass several feet away. "This...forest. I can't save," the woman said, taking a step back and stumbling.
"Forest?" said Eve, looking at the sandy beach. "What forest?"
The woman's mouth opened wide and her face contorted, as though she was crying out in pain. But there was no sound.
Still lying on the grass, Eve watched in terror as the woman's face changed from pale to tan, and a familiar set of features materialized.
"Agent Yu?"
The woman paced, mumbling something to herself. Her eyes narrowed on Eve all of a sudden, and she stopped.
Just as Eve started to speak, everything went dark.
When she blinked, she found herself staring at the ceiling of the hotel room. It took her seconds to realize there was no beach, no sand.
"You all right?" Mauricio mumbled, lying next to her. "You were shaking."
A glance at the clock next to the bed informed her that it was morning. "Yeah. Just a weird dream."
He turned over and, not a minute later, was snoring again.
With a long yawn, she got up, grabbed the laptop off the desk, and went to the bathroom. Sitting on the floor and leaning against the bathtub, she stared at the blank document on the computer screen.
As she closed her eyes, she began typing. Images of the dank, empty cell flashed in her mind only to be replaced by images of herself chained to a hospital bed while Doctor Thomas and Agent Grobeck hovered over her. She pressed her eyes shut, not wanting to erase the images. She needed these images.
Submerging herself in this quicksand of painful memories, she cried as she typed at rapid speed. She was afraid she'd lose the courage to write the story if she didn't get all the words out at this moment.
About one thousand words and several cramped fingers later, she closed the laptop and cleaned up, trying her best to suppress the terrible memories she'd dredged up. After putting on a sweater and jeans, she stared in the mirror at her face. I need the other face. She let this thought replay until the rosy cheeks replaced brown ones and thin lips replaced fuller ones.
She pushed the red hair behind her ears and headed downstairs for breakfast.
The cafe was already filling up with hotel guests and people in suits on their way to work in the office buildings nearby. One bored-looking bartender was staring at a television above the bar. Eve passed the large booths and sturdy wooden tables covered in white cloths. The deep red fabric of the booth seats gave the place a 1920s vibe. It reminded her of her favorite buildings in Chicago.
As she took a seat at the bar, the bartender tore his gaze from the television for a momen
t and turned to her. He flashed her a fleeting smile. "I'll go get you a menu. Just a mo—"
"No worries. I'll take French toast, scrambled eggs, and coffee," she said.
He nodded and hurried to the espresso machine at the other end of the bar. In a moment, he returned with coffee and milk. "Sugars are there," he pointed and left to greet the second customer who had sat at the other end of the bar.
Eve sipped coffee and looked out the window. She'd give anything to hear Zoey's voice. On mornings when they were not together, Zoey always sent her a voice text that usually consisted of a simple "Morning, lovely" or "Morning, Eve, you were the first thing on my mind. Love you." She smiled at the thought of how much it would comfort her to see one of those messages again. I can't keep this up—I have to call her.
"Is anyone sitting here?"
She looked at the tall, dark-haired man standing next to her and smiling. Like so many other patrons in the cafe, he looked like he was on his way to work—somewhere particularly snazzy, she decided, given that he was wearing a three-piece suit. She admired the pink-striped tie. "No. Help yourself."
He sat next to her.
Meanwhile, Eve retreated to her thoughts of Zoey until the bartender arrived with her food. As she commenced eating, she felt the man glance at her.
"I'm sorry, Miss?" he said.
This time she noticed his thick English accent. I am not in the mood for small talk, not even with an attractive British man. She inhaled and glanced at him.
"If you don't mind, I'd like to buy you another coffee."
"I think it's free refills," she replied, not looking at him.
"Perhaps a mimosa?"
Here we go. She took a deep breath. "Sure."
As he flagged the server, Eve drained the cup of coffee and did her best to put on her friendliest face.
He extended his hand. "I'm Orson."
She wasn't surprised by his firm grip. This was a man who took himself very seriously; she'd concluded that the moment he approached her. "Nice to meet you, Orson. I'm Res."
"Res. That's a beautiful name."
She smiled.
Not waiting for her to respond, Orson proceeded to explain that he was in town "on business" from London. She could sense that a nagging loneliness plagued him. There was a certain sadness in his eyes. Even if she wasn't in the mood for conversations with strangers, she had to admit that there was something magnetic about him. She listened to him talk about the science and research firm he'd started with his brother and how he was hoping to expand its reach.
When he got up to leave later, she accepted his phone number on a napkin, knowing that she'd never contact him again. But she supposed it was nice to have a normal conversation with a normal person, for a change.
She pulled the prepaid phone from her jacket pocket and dialed Zoey's number from memory. As the phone rang, she laid twenty dollars on the bar and made her way to the hotel lobby.
"Hello?"
Eve was quiet, her eyes wide. What do I say? Shit, why didn't I think this through?
"Hello?"
"Hi-hi. Zoey, it's me."
"Eve?"
Struggling not to cry or draw attention to herself, she swallowed. "Yeah. I—"
"Gabe, oh my God, come here! It's Eve. I'm putting you on speaker," she hollered. A pause and some loud shuffling followed.
"Eve?" said Gabriel. "Where are you?"
"Where have you been? I thought you were dead. Everything was still normal in your apartment, all your clothes still there. But you were gone. I tried calling you and even visiting your dad and calling that friend of yours, AJ, but I didn't have her number," Zoey exclaimed, sobbing and sniffling.
"Look, I don't have much time."
"What do you mean?" asked Zoey. "What's going on? And why do you sound...weird?"
"Zoey, just let me finish. I don't have much time. I don't know if this call is being traced."
"Traced?"
"I'm okay. I mean, well, not really. I'm just...things are very difficult right now. But I'm safe here in Philly."
"Philly? You're in Philadelphia?" asked Zoey.
"Yeah. It's a long story that—"
"We're in Philly."
“What? Why?” Eve's mind was racing.
“Mom died.”
“Oh, shit. I’m sorry, Zoey.”
“Where are you staying? We’re heading back to Chicago on an early morning flight tomorrow, but we have to see you.”
Eve sighed. “I can’t say. Just meet me at the City Hall, in the Big Circle, at six."
"Eve?"
"Six," she repeated and ended the call before Zoey could respond.
Her heart nearly dropped out of her chest, and she leaned against the sofa. Fear, worry, relief, excitement. An array of feelings crashed over her in one massive wave. She thought about her normal conversation with the normal man named Orson, about the story draft she'd written just over an hour ago, and about whether Mauricio would be able to find AJ today. But none of those things mattered right now.
She was going to see Zoey and Gabriel again.
***
After spending the rest of the morning and part of the afternoon at a coffeehouse two blocks from the hotel, Eve returned to the room. Thoughts of Zoey and Gabriel swam around her mind as she walked along the quiet hallway. How much she longed to feel their arms around her, how much she needed to tell them, how much she couldn't tell them. She'd have to figure out how to tell them enough to explain her disappearance but to not endanger them. Tell them only what they need to know.
When she opened the door to the room, she froze.
AJ was pacing and mumbling to herself, while Mauricio was sitting on the bed. At once, he turned to Eve and smiled.
AJ surveyed Eve and glanced at Mauricio in confusion. "Who's she?"
Eve stepped in and shut the door, her eyes glued to AJ.
"Stop pacing, Miss Taylor," he said.
She looked at Eve. "Are you another fader?"
"AJ...it's me," replied Eve, approaching her.
She backed away, her mouth hanging open and her gaze shifting from Eve to Mauricio.
He offered AJ a reassuring nod. "It's her."
Eve met AJ's huge brown eyes that conveyed surprise. "It's a new ability I have. To look like other people."
She moved away from them and reached for her coat hanging on the desk chair. "I don't know what kind of games you're playing, man, but this ain't my kink. I'm out of here."
I need my face. Eve closed her eyes for a moment and opened them.
That's when AJ screamed and dropped the coat. Covering her mouth, she staggered backward.
"A lot has happened, as you can see," said Eve, taking a couple of steps toward AJ. "I was so worried about you, about whether you were safe. I uh—"
AJ thrust her arms around Eve and squeezed the air out of her. "Eve," she cried. "I thought you were dead."
"I'm sorry I didn't call. I couldn't risk it. And I sort of forgot your number."
AJ stared at Eve with watery eyes. "I didn't think I'd see you again." She wiped her face with the sleeve of her shirt and sniffled.
Eve noticed her bandaged arm. "They chipped you, too?"
"Yeah, but I took it out. We flushed it down the toilet to throw them off my trail."
Mauricio cleared his throat and stood. "Right after we left Miss Taylor's hotel, we went to a pharmacy and took bandages and first aid stuff."
"Took? I guess that means you're getting used to stealing shit now?" Eve smirked at him.
"You're a bad influence," he teased. "Anyway, she's agreed to join us and help find the other trainees. And she has a flash drive."
Eve caught the flash drive when he tossed it to her. She turned it over in her hand.
"My assignment here was to get that and turn it over to SPI," said AJ. "I don't have a fucking clue what's on it."
Eve pocketed the flash drive. "Who cares right now? I have so much to tell you, AJ."
"You can st
art by telling us where you were all day," said Mauricio.
"I finished the story," Eve declared, beaming.
He looked impressed. "Already?"
Nodding, she pulled the laptop from her backpack and went to the desk.
"Story?" said AJ. “Also, you can shape shift now?”
"Yeah. I'll fill you in later. And we're meeting someone this evening," Eve replied, turning on the computer and typing in her password.
"Someone who can help us?" Mauricio asked.
She smiled. "I hope so."
***
Wearing red-framed glasses and a thick pea coat, Zoey stood under the archway of the City Hall. As the icy wind beat against her coat, she pulled the winter cap over her ears and folded her arms across her chest. She scanned the area. Aside from a redheaded woman in a black jacket walking toward her, she was alone in the courtyard.
Eve slowed as she approached Zoey who cast her a fleeting disinterested look. She stopped a couple of feet away, met her gaze, and watched an apprehensive expression settle on her face. Of course, this pale face and red hair made Eve a stranger to Zoey. She smiled as she thought about a quote that had never meant much to her until this moment. "Remember when we read Another Country together in college? 'Strangers' faces hold no secrets because the imagination does not invest them with any'... " She paused, trying and failing to remember the rest of the line. “Well, something about lover’s faces being mysteries. I think Baldwin was on to something with that."
Zoey stepped back. "I'm sorry? Do I know you?"
"You always liked that quote."
"I'm sorry," said Zoey, walking away. "I don't have any money or drugs."
"Zoey, it's me. Eve."
She stopped at once, her back to Eve. When she turned around, she surveyed the strange woman and shook her head. "Look, I don't know who you—"
"Zoey Res Ellis. It's me."
AJ and Mauricio stood at Eve's side, invisible and silent. He gripped her hand and whispered so that only she could hear, "This is Res?"
"How do you know my name?"
"The same way I know raspberry-flavored lip gloss was your favorite in college. I always liked the taste of it when we kissed."
Zoey covered her mouth and clutched her scarf with her free hand. Her head tilted to the side, and she looked Eve over. When her hands dropped to her sides again, she stumbled over her words. "How—what—I don't understand."
Eve and the Faders Page 16
