He finished walking over to the couch and took a seat next to her as the Commander began his speech. He glanced over to see if there was any sign of recognition on her face, but there wasn’t. Emery had told him that she’d been six years old when her father was permanently deployed, which meant that Alexis would have been three years old—far too young for her to recognize the man on the screen.
Torin twiddled his thumbs as the Commander continued to speak, stealing glances at Alexis every minute or so. Should I tell her? It wasn’t his place, but it felt wrong to keep such life-changing information from her. It’s not your job to fix their family, he reminded himself. Let Emery take care of it.
As the Commander signed off, Alexis powered down the television. She turned to face him, her expression weary. “I think my favorite line was ‘There’s a sickness among us’.” She gave a half smile. “Do you think it has anything to do with this?” Her eyes lowered to her legs.
He followed her gaze, then shrugged. “It might. Who really knows?” He forced a smile, but she didn’t seem to buy it.
While the Commander’s speech had been chock full of compassion and empathy, Torin had hoped it’d be at least a little informative. But that was the government—vague, political, and ambiguous. They gave just enough information to satiate the public’s appetite without really telling them anything.
“Maybe I should volunteer to be a test subject in Operation Revive,” Alexis thought out loud.
Her statement caught him off-guard, and he coughed, almost choking on his own spit. “Why would you want to do that?”
“I don’t know. If other people are suffering from the same condition I am, maybe running some tests on me could help others.”
“That’s really generous of you,” he started, his forehead wrinkling with concern, “but let’s not get ahead of ourselves. I’ve been running tests on you—the same tests that 7S would run, mind you, and I haven’t found anything yet. What makes you think they could find something?”
“Well, for starters, they have an actual lab,” she pointed out. “We’ve just been sitting in your apartment, running tests using some program on your holopad.”
Without meaning to, he clenched his jaw. “It’s the same program that 7S uses. I work for them, remember?”
She crossed her arms as she leaned back into the couch. “I know, I know.”
“Just give me one more week. If I can’t figure something out, then you can volunteer to be a test subject.”
She seemed to consider this. “Three days,” she negotiated.
“Let’s meet in the middle,” he suggested. “Five.”
She wrinkled her nose, then nodded. “Deal.”
They shook on it.
“Well, it looks like I have a lot of work to do,” he said as he stood up from the couch. “I’ll be in my office.”
“I’ll be out here,” she teased.
He gave her a small smile, then turned to head toward his desk. He was halfway there when a knock sounded at the door. “I wonder who that could be,” he muttered under his breath. His question was answered almost immediately as a female voice called out his name.
It was Emery.
11
Emery stood outside Torin’s apartment, hands shaking after knocking on the door. No answer. She’d called out his name, then immediately regretted it. After the way she’d last treated him, she wouldn’t be surprised if he never wanted to see or speak to her again.
Just as she turned to leave, the door opened. Torin’s hair was tousled and unkempt, his eyes twinkling with his usual boyish charm. With the way he was leaning on the doorframe with one hand in his pocket, wearing a white t-shirt and faded blue jeans, he looked like he’d just stepped out of a 1960s film. Her breath caught as his eyes met hers.
“Hey,” he said cautiously as he slid his hand along the doorframe. “I wasn’t sure if I’d see you again.”
She swallowed the giant lump that had suddenly formed in her throat, her words caught somewhere in between grief and lust. She’d always been attracted to Torin, but seeing him, like this . . . feelings began to surface that she hadn’t even realized were there. Feelings she thought couldn’t exist after everything that had happened.
Silence lingered in the air until the words finally came to her. “I still haven’t forgiven you, but you were right.” She sighed. “I can’t hold a grudge against you. And there’s a lot that we need to talk about.”
“I’ll say,” he agreed as he swung the door open further to reveal the living room.
Her eyes widened as she focused on the figure sitting on the couch. It was her sister. “Alexis?” she called out in confusion as she pushed past Torin and ran into the living room. “Oh my god, it’s really you! You’re safe!”
The expression of disbelief on her sister’s face matched her own. “Emery!”
They stood there, in the middle of the living room, hugging each other and rocking back and forth. Emery gave another squeeze before letting go. “I can’t believe this. How did you . . . ?” Her voice trailed off as her gaze shifted to Torin. “Does this mean—?”
He nodded, almost as if he’d predicted that she’d ask about her mother.
“Where is she? Is she okay?” Emery pressed, eyes darting around the room.
Alexis placed her hands on Emery’s shoulders and turned her sister’s attention back to her. “Mom’s not doing so well, Em,” she whispered. “You need to prepare yourself.”
Emery shook her head. “Prepare myself? What do you mean? Where is she?”
Alexis’s bottom lip began to quiver as she looked over at Torin. “She’s here . . . physically.”
Emery knit her brow. “I don’t understand—”
“What Alexis is trying to say,” Torin interrupted, sensing the discomfort, “is that your mom is physically here, in my apartment. But mentally and emotionally, she seems to be elsewhere.”
“I want to see her,” Emery demanded. “Now.”
Torin hesitated, but knew better than to argue with her. The stubborn bull always won. He led her to the guest bedroom and pushed open the door ever so slightly.
There, lying motionless in the bed, was her mother—her pale, frail mother. Her once rich red hair was faded, wisps of grey and white protruding from the roots. The skin around her eyes was wrinkled, more so than she remembered. She entered the bedroom and knelt next to her mother’s bed. “Mom?” she whispered as she laid her gloved hand over the blanket. “Can you hear me?”
“She’s due to wake up in about ten minutes,” Torin announced as he checked the status on the holopad.
“Due to wake up?” she asked as she gently shook her mom’s shoulder. “She should just . . .”
He set the holopad down and walked over to the edge of the bed. He took a deep breath, then said, “Before she wakes up, there’s something you need to know. Your mother appears to have long-term memory loss.” He paused. “Her short-term memory is improving, but she doesn’t seem to remember anything before waking up from Dormance.”
“That’s not possible. Everyone else who woke up from Dormance was fine—” Her voice faltered as the realization hit her. Pressing a hand to her mouth, she fell at her mother’s bedside. Novak erased my mother’s memory.
A dark expression rolled across Torin’s face. “I’m so sorry, Emery.”
A tear escaped from her eye and slowly slid down her cheek. “She won’t remember me?”
He shook his head. “I’m afraid not.”
“What about Alexis? Does she remember Alexis?”
He shook his head again, his expression solemn.
Her leather gloves crinkled as she clenched her hands in and out of fists. In what cruel universe would someone take away a mother’s memory? It was heartless, inconceivable. Then again, her mother had been the creator of Alpha One. Why would Novak erase my mother’s memory?
“Because she knew something,” Emery thought out loud.
“Huh?”
She gazed at Torin. The look on his face resembled that of a lost puppy. “Novak erased my mother’s memory. She must have known something he didn’t want us to find out.”
He seemed to consider this. “But what was it? What did she know?”
“I haven’t a clue,” she said with a sigh, “but I do know one thing. You have to find a way to bring her memory back.”
“I’ve been trying, believe me. It’s harder than it looks.”
“Well, I need you to try harder.”
He shot her a stern look. “Don’t you think I’m trying my absolute hardest? Come on now.”
In that moment, she could feel her sadness transforming into anger. “I can’t believe you’ve had my mother and sister here the whole time and didn’t tell me when we saw each other at the cemetery!”
He stared at her with a blank expression. “Emery, you wouldn’t even talk to me, let alone listen to anything I had to say. What did you expect me to do?”
“You should have just blurted it out!” Her blood was boiling. “I’ve been searching for my mother and sister for over a year, Torin. You knew that. And you’ve had them here the entire time!”
“Okay, just . . . calm down,” he coaxed as he sat down on the bed next to her. “You’re right. I should have told you. And I’m sorry I didn’t.”
“We need to get both my mom and sister to 7S Headquarters right away,” she said hurriedly as she swiped through her phone. “I need to tell my dad. I need to—”
“Emery, listen to me.” His voice was harsh. “Your mother and sister are not going anywhere. I’ve been running tests here. The Seventh Sanctum won’t be able to figure anything out that I haven’t already.”
“This isn’t your decision.” The words tasted sour the moment they left her mouth.
Without warning, he stood up from the bed, his face taut with anger. “It is my decision. You made it my decision when you chose not to listen or talk to me. I’m the one who’s been taking care of your family, so I sure as hell have some say in what happens to them!”
She stopped typing as she gazed up from her phone. Her mouth pressed into a firm line as she spoke. “It’s my family,” she hissed. “My father, the Commander, needs to know.”
“Emery, please!”
But she was already halfway out the door.
“Let’s go, Alexis,” she ordered as she opened the front door.
“I can’t,” her sister whimpered. “I need to stay here.”
Emery eyed her with a bewildered expression. “You don’t need to stay here. I’m your sister and I said it’s time to go. Now.”
“But Emery . . .”
“What?” she barked as she threw her head back. Alexis choosing now, of all times, to be difficult was the absolute worst timing imaginable.
“Look.”
Emery sighed as she brought her head back to its normal position. “What is it?”
Alexis stood up from the couch and stepped out from behind the coffee table. Emery’s eyes grew wide as she observed the color of her sister’s legs.
“Oh my god, Lex.”
Her sister’s legs were the same color as her hands. She eyed her gloves, feeling tempted to pull them off, but resisted the urge.
“It’s bad and it’s only getting worse. Torin is running some tests, so I need to stay here. For observational purposes.” Alexis crossed her arms. “I hate to do this to you, but I’m not going anywhere.”
12
Byron’s phone chimed as an incoming call lit up the screen. It was Emery. “Hello?”
A holoimage of his daughter appeared before him. “Hey dad, are you busy?” She was out of breath, eyes wide and panicked, like something big had just happened.
“I have a meeting in thirty minutes.” He paused, listening as her rapid breathing filled the airwaves. “But I can push it forward if needed. Is everything okay?”
She shook her head. “There’s something I need to tell you in person. I’ll be there in five minutes.” And with that, the call ended.
He set the phone down on his desk, befuddled by her last statement. What was so important that she needed to speak with him in person?
Like clockwork, Emery arrived at his office five minutes later. He stood from his chair to greet her with a hug, but she stopped mid-step and waved a hand in the air in a shooing motion. She shot him an apologetic look. “I’m sorry, I’m just upset,” she said as she began pacing back and forth.
He lowered his arms, embarrassed, then preceded to fix a button on his shirt that didn’t need fixing. “What is it you need to tell me?”
She stopped pacing, then ran a hand through her tangled crimson hair. “It’s about Alexis. And Mom.”
His ears perked up. “Oh?”
As she drew in a deep breath, he could tell that what she was about to say pained her before she’d even started speaking.
“Err, well, I know where Mom and Alexis are.”
“Well, that’s great news, Em. I’ve been wondering—”
“I wish it were great news,” she mumbled, her voice barely audible.
He felt his face pale. Just from the look on his daughter’s face, he could tell the news wouldn’t be what he was hoping to hear.
“First, the good news,” she went on. “They’re both alive and safe. They’re at Torin’s.”
“Well, that is good news.” He loosed a breath he hadn’t realized he’d been holding in. “At least we know where they are. So what’s the bad news?”
She cast her eyes down toward the floor. “The bad news is that Alexis has the same symptoms I do. The skin below her knees is grey.”
He clenched his jaw at the unsettling news. “And your mother?”
“Mom seems to be,” she bit her lower lip, searching for the right word, “suffering from memory loss.”
He sucked in a sharp breath, as if he’d just had the wind knocked out of him. “What else?”
“Mom can’t remember anything that happened before Dormance. She doesn’t remember our family.” The last sentence came out as a squeak.
He slowly lowered himself into his chair, his head falling into his hands. He squeezed his eyes shut. Novak had been a monster—that he’d already known—but this? This was cruel. This was inexcusable. “I need a minute,” was all he could manage to say.
She gave a solemn nod as he swiveled away from her to face the holowindows. It’d been twelve years since he’d last seen Sandra—twelve years since he’d been permanently deployed to work for 7S. With the fall of Dormance, he’d hoped that everything would return to normal. That he’d get to see his family again. That he’d be reunited with his beautiful, loving wife. Apparently, these delusional expectations were far from reality. The inception of Alpha One, the creation of Dormance—her project—was her rise to fame. Sadly, it was also her demise.
He turned back around in his chair. “Did you get to talk to your mother?”
She shook her head. “I was in shock. I yelled at Torin and Alexis. I acted like a complete fool.”
“I’m sure your reaction was perfectly understandable,” he soothed. “And what about Alexis? Does she know that you share the same conditions?”
“No. I kind of stormed out of the apartment. I tried to get her to come with me, but she insisted on staying.”
He nodded. His eyebrows furrowed as he considered his next move. “I need to see her, before it’s too late. We don’t know what the long-term effects of your condition are, and if your sister is exhibiting the same symptoms, something could happen before I get to see her again.”
The last time he’d seen his youngest daughter, she’d been three years old, playing in the backyard in the sandbox. Emery had been nearby, helping her scoop piles of sand into her bucket, their ultimate goal being to build a sandcastle. But, much to their dismay, when they’d turned the bucket over, the sand had fallen out of formation back into the pit. Byron re
membered bringing the hose over to where they were playing. He’d saturated the sand, showing his daughters that the right amount of liquid would make the sand particles stick together. They’d been amazed by the discovery. This wasn’t all that surprising, what with their mother’s interest in the sciences. He’d only hoped that his daughters would carry the same wonderment and sense of discovery with them into adulthood, and, while Emery had, he’d never known about Alexis. He’d never had the chance to know.
Emery interrupted his thoughts. “I’ll find a way to bring her back to the house,” she assured. “I’ll let you know once we’re both there and maybe you can come over for dinner?”
Byron nodded. “That sounds nice.”
“Okay. Well, I don’t want you to miss your meeting, so I’m going to head out,” she said as she grabbed her purse and headed for the door.
“Hey, Em,” he called out.
She turned around to face him, her hand on the door handle. “Yeah?”
“Do you think she’ll remember me?” He paused. “Your sister, I mean?”
A hint of a smile touched her lips. “If she doesn’t, we’ll remind her. But I have a feeling she’ll know, just like I knew.”
“I hope so.” He returned the smile as he watched the door close behind his daughter.
But what if she doesn’t?
13
For a couple of days, Torin had contemplated how to resolve his unusual situation with Emery. The look on her face when she’d first seen her sister at his apartment flashed across his mind. First shock, then relief, then despair as he’d explained what was going on with her mother.
Could he really blame her for being upset with him? If he were to put himself in her shoes, he probably would have been just as upset, if not more so. As any good friend would, he’d given her some space, but the clock was ticking, seemingly faster with each passing day. He needed to discuss his research with her as soon as possible, especially what it had unveiled regarding both her mother and her sister. He wasn’t exactly great at waiting, so he decided to make the first move.
Restitution (The Alpha Drive Book 3) Page 4
