by Dee J. Stone
“Ray?”
Someone runs toward us from a horse on the other side. Stealth. X slides off his horse and holds out his arms. She runs into them. “Ray.” Her voice is soft, low. A flash of pain crosses his face. His jaw clenches. Stealth doesn’t remember last night. It must be so hard for him to go through this a second time.
He rests his cheek against hers, shutting his eyes, his breathing getting heavy. They stay like that for a little while. Stealth lifts her head and smiles shyly. She kisses him before saying, “This is the best dream ever. It feels so real.”
X looks at Kale and nods. Kale steps forward. “Hey, Stealth. There’s a lot we need to tell you. Is it okay if we do it telepathically so it can go faster?”
She looks from Kale to X with her eyebrows scrunched. “Okay.”
Placing his hand on her forehead, Kale shuts his eyes. Stealth’s eyes are in a daze as she takes in all the information. When Kale’s done, she gapes at the three of us. “Wow. So this is real. And you’re going to erase my memories?”
“Just of the dream,” Kale says. “So your mom won’t find out.”
“If that’s okay with you,” X adds.
“Yeah.” She squeezes his hand. “I’m so happy you’re here. All of you. Hi, Stretch.”
I wave.
“You probably all hate me.”
X shakes his head. I say, “No,” while Kale says, “Hell no, Stealth.”
“How can we after all you did for me?” I tell her.
She brings the tip of her white ponytail to her mouth. “I’ll tell you anything. Anything you need. Just ask.”
No one raises the topic of the Blades’ headquarters. Kale must have shown her the argument she had with X.
“Do you know how your mom’s controlling the humans?” X asks. “We assume it’s through the virus.”
“It is.” She motions for us to sit down on one of the benches on the carousel. She and X sit in the front while Kale and I sit behind them. They sit backwards to face us. She takes in a deep breath. “My mother’s main goal is to heal my dad. But she doesn’t want the humans to get healed, too. She wants to kill them all. The virus will eventually kill all the humans. My dad…he’s getting worse. That’s why she kidnapped your scientists. If she doesn’t have the cure, he’ll die. They’re working hard on it. Once he’s cured, she’ll release the other virus, the one that will kill all the humans instantly.” Her gaze goes to the floor. “She framed the Keepers, which caused the military to go after you. She wants to make sure you’re scattered and lost and confused and have no way to create the antidote. And she also wants to have the humans not trust the League anymore. To break up the alliance between the government and the Keepers.”
That’s pretty much what we gathered.
“Why would she go through all that, though?” Kale asks. “If she’s using the virus to control the humans not to take the cure?”
“She wants to be extra careful. In her eyes, the humans are not allowed to be cured. No matter what. And she’d do anything to make that happen.” Her lower lip trembles. “I’m sorry. I wish I could stop her. I really do.”
X wraps his arm around her shoulder and pulls her close. “Maybe you can. Tell us everything you know.”
She swallows. “She’s using the president.”
“President Ashford?” Kale asks. “The president of The United States?”
“Yes. He’s her puppet. She controls him to do whatever she wants, and the humans follow him.”
“I don’t understand,” X says.
“She’s using her telepathy to control everyone,” she explains. “But it takes too much energy to control and monitor the minds of billions of people. It’s easier to control one person and have everyone else follow him. Like he’s the central brain and they’re the rest of the body. They follow what he does—what my mom tells him to do.”
No one talks. Only stare at each other. Kale’s mouth hangs open, probably like mine, except mine’s reaching the floor. X’s eyebrows are furrowed.
“Let me see if I understand correctly,” he says. “The virus doesn’t control the humans not to take the antidote, but to copy what the president does. He’s Vlayne’s puppet. She can do whatever she wants, and he’ll listen. And everyone else will follow him.”
Stealth nods.
“What about other countries?” Kale asks.
“As long as they have the same virus, they’re programmed to follow the president of the U.S. too.”
Oh, geez. They’re like robots.
X’s hands are fisted on his lap. Stealth rubs his knuckles to loosen them up. “Remove her hold on the president, and you stop her.”
“But how the hell are we supposed to—?”
Kale doesn’t get to finish his sentence because we’re shot in the air. Oh, no. Oh, crap. We’re being thrust out of her dream.
“Erase!” X says. “Kale, erase!”
“I can’t. It won’t—”
We’re dumped on the floor. My face is pressed against the wood. Lifting my head, I see we’re in some sort of house. In a nursery. A man and woman are hovering over a crib. The baby is crying.
“What the—?” Kale whispers. “Who the heck is that?”
“Did you erase her thoughts?” X asks.
With wide eyes, Kale shakes his head.
This is bad. So, so bad. X takes my arm. “Stretch, you need to get us back to Stealth before she wakes up.”
My gaze goes to the couple. The man’s arm is draped over his wife’s shoulder. Her body quakes like she’s crying. The baby still wails.
X shakes me a little. “Please, Stretch. You can do this. You need to. We’ll help. Let’s focus our minds on Stealth.”
I take in huge gulps of air and release them slowly. Shutting my eyes, I focus on getting back to Stealth. I feel the guys’ energies flow through me as we channel our thoughts to her. Less than a minute later, we’re shoved back into the sky, then fall onto the carousel.
X jumps to his feet, looking around for his girl. She rushes into his arms. “What happened? Are you okay?”
X hugs her close. “We’re fine.”
“What was that?” Kale asks her.
“What was what?”
She didn’t come with us because she’s not telepathically connected. X tells her where we ended up.
“I have no idea. I don’t think that was part of my dream.”
“So…I did that?” I ask.
“Did you go into someone else’s dream?” X says.
I rub the back of my head “Dunno.”
We stare at each other. X clutches Stealth like he never wants to let go. Her eyes are sad. She knows they’ll have to part soon and that she won’t remember this. It sucks.
The place starts to get blurry. “Uh, guys. We need to go. Fast.”
X’s face is full of pain. His clutch on Stealth tightens “All right. Kale, erase Stealth’s memory.”
She nods, letting him know she’s okay with it.
As Kale does it, X turns his head like he’s hiding his tears. Shoving his hands into his pockets, he walks away.
Kale finishes just in time before we’re thrown out.
Chapter Twenty-Six
X paces around our room. “We need to tell Samson and Cindy what we learned.”
It’s after four in the morning and we should be tired, but we’re not. I’m wide awake with the info Stealth gave us. I can’t believe Vlayne is using President Ashford as her puppet.
Kale scans around. “But they’re not home yet.”
X grabs a notebook and sits down. He poises the pen over it. “Clearly they haven’t found the Blades or a solution to the problem. I don’t think they will.”
Kale drops down next to him. “Probably not.”
“Can you contact your parents?” X asks. “Don’t give them details, just tell them we need to discuss something important with them. In case someone intercepts your message.”
“Got it.”
X conti
nues to write in his notebook. I play with my limbs, stretching them, then retracting them.
“Done,” Kale says. “They’re on their way.”
***
Kale, X, and I are on the couch in Samson and Cindy’s office. They’re at the desk. They look like they haven’t slept in years. I swear they’ve aged a good ten years since we were attacked.
“Okay, boys,” Samson says. “What is it?”
X and I look at Kale. He’s always the guy to inform his parents about these things. “You’re not going to like what I’m about to tell you, but hear us out. Please.”
They exchange a look before nodding. Kale inhales, then exhales. “We met with Stealth.”
Cindy sits up sharply. Samson’s face gets white.
“We went into her dream,” Kale continues. He gestures to me. “Stretch got a new ability ever since he came back from the dead. He can go into people’s dreams and have real conversations with them.”
Samson and Cindy don’t look too happy to hear this.
“So,” Kale says. “The three of us went into Stealth’s dream. I connected us.”
“Boys—”
“I erased her memories. That way when she woke up, Vlayne wouldn’t read it in her mind.” He looks from one parent to another. “We were careful.”
Cindy sighs. Samson rubs his temples. “How are you so sure her memories were wiped?”
Kale shifts in his seat. “Because we tested it on you, Dad. We learned that Stretch can bypass telepathic holds and that I can erase the memory of the dream.”
Samson’s jaw clenches. “Is that why you woke me in the middle of the night?”
“I know we invaded your privacy,” I say. “But we’re trying to save the normies.”
Now Cindy massages her temples. “Do you realize how dangerous this is?”
“Yeah, we do,” Kale says. “But it’s for the humans.”
“We don’t have time to argue,” X says. “We need to tell you what we learned.”
Samson leans back in his chair. “You’re right. Go ahead.”
Kale tells him everything, how Stealth wouldn’t tell us the location of their headquarters, how we were thrown out and had to go again the next night, that the virus is the same one her dad has, just as we suspected. He then mentions Vlayne controlling the president.
Samson and Cindy’s eyes are huge. We wait for them to talk, but they’re dumbfounded. In shock.
“Can you guys undo her hold on the president?” I ask.
Cindy intakes a shaky breath. “No. Vlayne’s telepathy is too strong.”
We fall against the back of the couch.
After about a minute, Kale says, “What if we pool all our energies. We take all the telepaths we know and connect us so our power will be greater than Vlayne’s. Maybe we can push her hold off the president. Then we’ll convince him to tell everyone to accept the antidote from us.”
Samson and Cindy talk it over telepathically before Samson nods. “Alright. That seems like the best option.”
Cindy gets up from her seat and sits near Kale. “This isn’t the time to reprimand you for your actions.” She holds up a finger. “But I want you to know that I’m not happy. Proud, yes. Very proud.” She pats X and my arms. “But not happy. The next time you have an idea to do something dangerous, come to us.”
“Going after the ShadowBlades four months ago, sending Stealth undercover, going into her dreams.” Samson shakes his head. “Do you want to get yourselves killed?”
“No,” Kale says. “We were just trying to help.”
“We found a solution to the problem,” X says. “That’s what’s important.”
A small smile tugs the corner of Cindy’s mouth. “The three of you are going to send me to an early grave.” She pinches Kale’s cheek.
“Geez, Mom!”
She bends close to him. “Keep yourselves out of trouble.”
“Okay,” he mutters, rubbing his cheek. “When are you going to gather the telepaths?”
She glances at her watch. “It’s too early right now. Your father and I have a few things to discuss first. You three should get some sleep.”
We say goodnight, head for our room, and collapse on our beds.
***
I’m falling down the hole. Aw, man. Am I going into Furball’s dream again? I don’t remember thinking about her before I fell asleep. Maybe it’s my parents this time. But I didn’t think about them, either.
I fall on my butt. On the cold ground. Ouch. Am I ever going to get this landing under control?
Voices. I’m a few feet away from a building. Hold on. I know this building. The White House.
The—the president? What the heck am I doing here? Was I thinking about him before I fell asleep? Well, of course I was. I mean, we did find out the way Vlayne’s operating. So yeah, he entered my mind a few times.
Okay, I’ve gotta breathe and remember it’s only a dream. But oh, man. I’m invading his dream. If he sees me, he’ll remember it when he wakes up. Vlayne will probably read it in his mind.
I squint at the house. People come in and out, dressed fancy. Like some sort of party is going on. And I’m crashing it.
Just as I get to my feet, I’m tossed into the house through an opened window like a rag doll.
Man, the place is packed. People are all over. I don’t know who they are—I’ve never really paid much attention to current events or politics. Quickly, before anyone can see me, I hide behind a closet. I notice the vice president and his wife talking to some other people who seem important. The First Lady is also here, chatting up some woman. So are their kids, two girls and one boy, all dressed perfectly. I don’t see the president.
Again, what the hell am I doing here? Does this have to do with Vlayne? Could she know about my new power and be screwing with me?
Nothing seems to be going on. People are just eating, talking. Some couples are dancing. This is a dream. Maybe the president’s, maybe his wife’s. I have no clue. I’m not sure if this is how parties go down in the White House, since I’ve never been to one.
Oh, man. Does someone plan on assassinating the president? Did I fall into this to save his life?
I watch some more, but nothing’s changed. A few minutes later, the president walks into the room. He looks normal, not like he’s being controlled by an evil villain. I guess since it’s his dream—that’s what I assume, anyway—he’d be normal.
I’ve got to make sure he doesn’t see me.
Cameras are in his face. Some people cheer. He waves his hands to quiet them down. Then he steps onto a podium as everyone sits down. After clearing his throat, he starts a speech on his re-election. Re-election? But he’s got three years until then. His second term must always be on his mind and that’s why he’s dreaming about it. But what the heck does it have to do with me? Maybe I’ve got to learn something. Something to help us remove Vlayne’s hold.
This speech is so boring. He goes on and on about the issues he plans to fix in his next term. My head droops and droops and droops.
Clapping. They’re so loud I jump and bang my head against the wall behind me. Ow. President Ashford seems so pleased with everyone’s reaction. His wife and kids walk over to him, smiling brightly. He takes her hand, leading her to dance.
Dreams are so weird. Especially this one. I’m pretty sure re-elections don’t happen like this. But it’s not my place to criticize the president’s dream, not when I’ve had some crazy ones myself.
I keep watching, waiting for the president—or whoever’s dreaming this—to wake up.
Wake up. Wake up. Wake up.
A voice says, “Congratulations President Ashford on your second term.” The entire place roars with clapping and cheers. I peek my head out, watching the leader of our country bask in his glory.
The place gets fuzzy. Finally, I get to leave this place. I’ve never liked politics. I just don’t get it.
Everything starts to sway. A second later, I’m launched throu
gh the roof, into the sky.
I jump up in bed. Scratching my head, I look around. What did the dream mean? Was it something important? Should I worry about it?
The clock says it’s six AM. I’ll tell the guys about this later. Maybe they’ll help me figure it out. I yawn and fall back in my bed. Hopefully this time, if I go into a dream, I’ll go into one I actually understand.
Chapter Twenty-Seven
The first thing I do when I wake up is tell the guys about my crazy dream. “What the hell? Kale says. “The president?”
“I know. Weird.”
“Did he see you?” X asks.
“No. I hid behind a closet.”
He sighs in relief.
“What do you think it means?” Kale asks. No one says anything. “X?”
He grabs a notebook and scribbles something inside. “No clue.”
“Maybe it doesn’t mean anything,” I say. “I mean, I was thinking about everything Stealth told us. That’s probably why I went into the president’s dream. He’s the foundation of all this, isn’t he?”
Kale twists his mouth. “I guess.”
“Do we tell Samson and Cindy?”
X shakes his head. “They’re going to be busy today gathering telepaths. I don’t think we should bother them.”
“You think the telepaths will be able to remove Vlayne’s hold?” I ask.
“I hope,” X answers.
Kale frowns. “Sucks Stealth can’t tell us the Blades’ hideout. But I get it. She’s a Blade and can’t betray them.”
“She’s also protecting us,” I add. “And Lindsay.”
X clenches his fist.
“Her choice wasn’t easy, man,” Kale says.
He doesn’t say anything.
“We gotta remember that Vlayne’s her mom. Yeah, she’s the evilest person in the world. But she’s still her mom. Can’t be easy for her.” He looks from X to me. “I really hope the telepaths come through.”
We’re quiet.
I poke Kale’s chest with my finger. “You gonna be part of it?”
