Keeper

by Jessica L. Randall

  Something whizzed past my head. I gasped, and glanced back to see the guard holding a gun. I tugged Micah, pulling him to a stop.

  “As far as I can see, you are a threat,” he said, his accent heavy. “Do not move.”

  We froze, holding our hands in the air. How was I going to explain to my mom that I’d been arrested in France?

  I already knew what might happen to Micah if he got caught joy-riding around the world with his homework, and that thought was a lot more terrifying.

  The guard slowly walked toward us. As he reached for handcuffs Micah lunged for him, giving him a shove. The guard’s hand shot out, pushing Micah before falling backwards off the bubble. Before I could grab Micah to help him regain his footing, he fell toward the concrete below.

  Pain flooded my head as I watched Micah fall. I reached out, as if there was something I could do to stop him. Then he stopped in midair, hovering inches above the ground.

  I stared with my mouth hanging open. But if Micah could move boulders, it made sense that he could stop himself from cracking his head against the ground. As he landed gently on the concrete I realized I had to get it together before the guard did. I hurried to find a place to slide down the spherical wall to the ground.

  Micah was waiting for me, his phone gripped in his hand. He pressed the screen and we felt ourselves rising up through the air, invisible to the guard who limped across the grounds searching for us.

  Chapter 17

  We stood inside the pod, clinging to each other. Finally Micah pulled away. I’d expected to see relief on his face, or even humor, but not horror.

  “What? That was amazing! Don’t worry, it’s not like that guy knows who we are.”

  Micah stared, his expression dark.

  “Will you just say something? Tell me what’s wrong. Is it my head? I don’t know what happened, but it hurts.” I dropped into my chair, my fingers searching for a wound as I waited for Micah to start the awful immobilization process.

  Micah reached down and touched my head tenderly, his brow creased with concern. “I think you are uninjured,” he said, his voice suddenly curt, “but I can conduct an examination when we reach the ship, to make sure.”

  He sat down and the seats slid inward. Micah turned the pod around, so we were facing the sea again. He looked straight ahead, his mouth clamped as if he didn’t plan on speaking to me again.

  Kaela was right. Complicated—and moody. Not to mention extra-terrestrial. I knew how to pick ’em.

  “Is this about the way you stopped yourself from falling? Is that like an alien power you’re not supposed to use on Earth or something? Kind of like how Harry Potter can’t do magic outside of Hogwarts?”

  He didn’t budge.

  “I thought you were supposed to be up to speed on all things Earth culture,” I mumbled. “Hey, I’m just saying, you already took a test subject for a spin, literally, and maybe figuratively seeing as how we just made out in France. Will breaking one more rule really make a difference?”

  When he turned to me, I could see my attempt at humor hadn’t penetrated the steely look on his face. “That wasn’t me.”

  “What are you talking about? I just saw you do it. You kept yourself from bashing your head on the concrete just like you moved the rocks.”

  “That wasn’t me, either.” Micah leaned over me, helping me fasten the harness and headpiece. “It was you.”

  A laugh burst out. “That’s crazy.”

  “We can’t do that,” he said, his words clipped.

  “Well, I have news for you. Neither can we.”

  Micah strapped himself in and the pod started moving.

  “The other day you developed an allergic reaction the same time I did,” he said. “I tried to explain it away, but I knew it was important. I let myself believe the rocks were a coincidence. But it’s no use pretending anymore. There’s something unusual about you. About our connection.”

  “Hey, I’ve never experienced a connection like this either. I’m scared too, but it’s kind of incredible. And don’t worry about me. Moving things with my mind will probably turn out to be a pretty marketable skill.”

  The truth was I didn’t quite believe him, but I was turning out to be wrong more often than not these days.

  “It might have something to do with my lack of inhibitor,” he said, as if he were thinking out loud. “Although I’m not the first of my kind to fall for an Earthling.”

  My chest tingled at his words, but Micah was still staring straight ahead, his mouth turned down, his hands twisted firmly together in his lap. That’s when I understood he was ashamed that he had feelings for me.

  All the shining, shimmering feelings inside of me withered, making me realize that my attraction for Micah had made me hopeful and curious when I should have taken my dad’s advice and run as far and as fast as I could. I’d been an idiot, applying sunscreen and grinning as I ran toward shark-infested waters.

  I was in it now, watching the fins circle around me. It was time to try to figure out what kind of danger I was in, and if it was possible to get out.

  “You did that thing with your eyes, right?” I asked, starting to feel sick as the pod picked up speed. “You said that created the bond between us. That’s why we’re connected, and why—why I can’t stop thinking about you even when you act like a complete jerk, and you have feelings for me even though it disgusts you.”

  “How can you think that?” The pain in his voice told me I’d hit my mark.

  “You’re ashamed of how you feel.”

  He was quiet for a moment. “I’m sorry. If I could undo all of my training, my lifetime of effort to meet certain expectations, I would. I need time.”

  “Don’t worry, you’re not the first guy to feel that way, although the last time it had more to do with my crazy dad than my species. Can’t you just undo what you did? Like, look into my eyes and un-click it.”

  “Lexi, the bonds we create make it possible for us to communicate and persuade. They often result in feelings of trust. Not love.”

  I swallowed, glaring harder at the effect the word had on me.

  “Our feelings are ours.” There was pleading in his voice. “As for simply undoing it, the effects may fade over time when a subject—a person—is released, but it can’t be undone. Even if it could, whatever happened to us is most likely irreversible. You need to understand, there is no precedence of our species having a bond in which physical symptoms are shared. As for the telekinesis, there is a precedence, although it is incredibly rare. That is why my people are here.” He paused. “We believe all humans have the potential to do what you just did, and we want that power. But in most humans, it is not accessible. I’m afraid your genes, combined with something I’ve done, or we have done, has accessed a part of your brain that gives you the ability to move inanimate objects. Who knows what you are capable of?”

  “Even if that were true, even if I had superhuman abilities, why would that be so bad?”

  “It makes you very desirable, as a specimen.” This time he spat the word like it was poison.

  His words sunk in, and I sat silently as we sped toward the dark of night. Foilhatgirl had said sometimes you don’t come back. If what Micah had told me was true, I’d just graduated from Lifer to Keeper.

  Chapter 18

  After we docked, Micah silently helped unstrap me. I tried to read his expression, but his eyes were the most distant of stars, barely glinting with recognition.

  “Do I get to go home now?” I asked. Traipsing around France with Micah, I’d forgotten what I was. Our last conversation had reminded me.

  He led me back into the corridor. “There are some studies I’d like to conduct.” His voice sounded regretful, but I wasn’t sure what those tones meant. Were they for me? For himself?

  “Are you asking, or telling?”

  “We need to know what’s happening—to both of us,” he said. “I’m as much of a lab rat as you are now.”

  We loo
ked up sharply at the sound of footsteps running down a corridor. Miriam met us as we turned a corner. She was muttering something in a language I didn’t understand.

  “English, remember?” Micah said.

  “I’m so glad you’re both back.” She smiled stiffly at me, then turned back to Micah, shoving a hand into her silky blonde hair like she wanted to pull it out. “He’s here. I’ve been trying to cover for you, but he knows you took the pod.”

  Micah’s face became all hard, sharp angles as Miriam grabbed his arm, dragging him down the corridor. I followed close behind, dread filling my gut.

  “What did you tell him?” Micah asked.

  “I told him you were conducting research that was far above my clearance level,” she said, glaring.

  “Miriam, I am sorry about our earlier conversation. I will fill you in on everything soon.”

  Everything? I hoped not everything.

  She stopped shortly, facing him. “The allergic reaction?”

  He nodded, and her eyes widened in excitement. If she looked this excited about a pineapple allergy, I couldn’t wait to see what she’d do when Micah told her what else he thought I could do. Or maybe I could wait.

  “I’ll tell you about it later,” he said, “but right now we need to hide Lexi. I am not ready to explain why I took her.”

  When was he going to explain that? And how?

  “This is getting out of hand,” Miriam said firmly. “You need to bring her to him. He’s starting to suspect you’re delaying your research because you can’t handle it. You need to show him what you have. It’s better to have inconclusive results than none at all.”

  I swallowed.

  Micah moved to stand between Miriam and me. “Give me a little more time, Miriam,” he said. He’d asked me for the same thing. I couldn’t help but wonder which one of us he was schmoozing.

  “Fine. I hope he buys it. I’m not sure I do.” She paused a moment, as if thinking, then she jerked her head, signaling us to follow her.

  We hurried behind her, the dread spreading from my stomach and throughout my body like a disease. At least Mr. Regulations wasn’t planning on handing me over to the dreaded he, whoever that was. The thought of coming face-to-face with the person who made those two lose their cool made me want to run back and take my chances flying the pod myself.

  As we reached a metal door it opened and Miriam jumped back.

  I peered around her to find out why, and felt the color instantly drain from my face.

  The eyes caught my attention first. They were larger than Micah’s, with a more dramatic tilt. Rather than being black, like the alien drawings you saw in the tabloids, the huge irises were pale blue. He or she was shaped something like a human, but the head was large and there was no hair in sight. Where Micah and Miriam had a satiny sheen to their skin, this creature’s white skin glistened with what looked like a thin layer of mucus.

  A shiver rippled through me. When all I knew were hybrids, I could pretend Micah’s people weren’t so different. That he wasn’t so different. It made it easier, less frightening. All that fell away as I stared at the full-blooded alien before me.

  Micah and Miriam straightened.

  “Welcome, Teavers,” Micah said.

  Teavers cocked his head when he saw us, then opened his tiny mouth. “Micah, I hear you have been doing extra hours of specimen research. Are you keeping your project a sec—secret?”

  I shivered at the sound of his voice, tinny and high pitched. It occurred to me that I’d heard it once before, the first time I was abducted.

  Micah straightened. “No, sir. I just wanted to make sure my tests were thorough. I would not be happy receiving anything other than a superior evaluation.”

  The creature nodded, as if pleased. “Good. I would prefer that you follow the schedule, but your timing could not be better. Follow me.”

  I forced myself to follow, stiff with fear.

  A metal door opened and I gasped as I walked into the room. Along the back wall were a line of young people that looked a lot like Micah and Miriam, but with varied hair-color. A few of them looked like Teavers. Their eyes widened, traveling up and down my body. There was an eagerness in their faces. I shivered, certain that if Teavers had given them permission their pale hands would have been all over me in an instant.

  The room looked a lot like the lab Micah had taken me to before, only it was slightly larger. I noticed two large pictures on the wall. One showed the inside of the human body, the other was of their own species. They looked more similar than I would have thought.

  “I have brought these students to see your facility today,” Teavers said. “It looks like they also have the privilege of seeing their first human specimen.”

  Micah glanced at me, fear in his eyes.

  “Do not be nervous, Micah. You were in their place not long ago. Prepare your subject.”

  Micah paused for only a moment before setting his jaw and crossing the room. He pulled out a white gown.

  If Micah had taken me way out into space and left me there, floating helpless without oxygen, it couldn’t have hurt any worse. I clenched my teeth together as my eyes met his.

  Please. His voice in my head was an invasion. Cooperate. It will be better.

  Better for who? I asked.

  His eyes turned to the floor, and he walked toward me, holding out the gown.

  They all stood still, watching me, expectation on their faces. I tried to push down the panic rising in my chest as my fingers wrapped numbly around the gown. I’d never felt more like vermin in my life.

  Teavers turned toward the students. “Remember that at this stage only Earth languages are spoken for the benefit of the researchers here, who need to be fluent. We have discussed how specimens respond more favorably when they are provided with a gown. Why?”

  One student jutted his chin out. “It puts them at ease, and develops trust.”

  “That is right.”

  “Because I should thank you for giving me permission to wear clothes,” I spat, anger bubbling its way up through the fear. I glared at Micah. Just like these students, he’d been taught how to make me trust him. My brain must not be any bigger than Twitchy’s, because I had trusted him.

  Micah’s eyes warned me to shut up, but it was too late.

  Teavers tilted his head stiffly, looking at Micah. “Does your subject not respond to mind manipulation?”

  “She does,” he responded. “I was just conducting an experiment to see how she responded to certain stimuli without it.”

  Stimuli? Was that how he described our kiss? My lips turned up in disgust.

  “I recommend you put her under now,” Teavers said sternly.

  Micah nodded. My eyes darted around, desperately searching for a way out, or some way to fight. But as I stared at the room full of eager aliens and hybrids, I realized there was nothing I could do. I took a deep breath and waited for Micah to make me even more helpless than I was.

  No calm clouded my emotions. I almost wished for it as I stood there shivering, but it looked like he was keeping his promise. Would he keep the other one, about not letting any harm come to me?

  Micah took my arm, and I stiffened. He led me over to a metal sheet that jutted out, providing a small amount of privacy. I shuffled behind it, removing my pajamas and pulling the thin gown over my head. I knew if I didn’t, I’d lose the freedom to do it myself.

  I walked out, standing exposed in a room full of beings, their eyes probing me again. Micah avoided my eyes as he led me to a table.

  They won’t hurt you, he said silently as I lay down on the table. I won’t let them.

  How could I believe him? Everything he’d worked for his whole life was at risk. His life itself was at risk.

  Teavers called the students forward, then looked down at me. “Miss ...”

  “Larkin.” Micah’s voice was quiet, but void of emotion.

  “Miss Larkin,” he said, acknowledging me as a sentient being for the
first time, “my students would like to inspect you more closely. You have the privilege of being the first human they will study.”

  I would have rolled my eyes if I wasn’t using every ounce of energy to keep from gripping the edges of the table or screaming. I thought of begging Micah to take away the fear, but even though I could see no hope in my situation, I wanted to be able to freak out if necessary. My emotions could give me a chance to fight back, if only for a moment.

  I clung to Micah’s promise that they weren’t going to hurt me, even though I had no reason to trust him. He hadn’t stopped them from humiliating me and treating me like an animal, and it seemed all he’d done so far was lie to me to get a gold star in his studies.

  “You may touch her,” Teavers said. “If Micah has done as I asked she will remain calm.”

  I closed my eyes, pretending I was somewhere else as fingers brushed against my calves and arms—some of the contact was sticky and cold. Some of them prodded me through my gown.

  “Micah’s level of achievement gives him certain advantages,” Teavers said, his voice threatening. “However his choice to take a specimen out in a pod is concerning. I am curious as to what type of experiment he was conducting. Care to share with us, Micah?”

  There was a slight pause. “I was conducting an experiment on the possible benefits of a stronger bond between subject and researcher.”

  I squeezed my eyes, determined not to give them a demonstration of what a crying Earth-girl looked like.

  “I devoted more time to bonding than is generally recommended,” he continued, “until I could trust that the subject would be compliant without manipulation. I felt for our bond to be pushed farther than the usual limits, and therefore create a useful experiment, time needed to be spent outside of the ship, somewhere she would prefer to be.”

  “And was this experiment successful?”

  “I believe so, sir, although I have not had time to review my findings.”

  “I greatly anticipate learning all of the details. What generation is your specimen?”

  “Second, sir.” There was the slightest rasp in Micah’s quiet voice.