PANDORA

by Rebecca Hamilton

  I stood from the table, tears blurring my vision, and my hands shaking. “I’m sorry, but I can’t do this.”

  I turned on my heels, ignoring my mom’s pleas to stay. Her voice shook as much as my nerves. I didn’t stop running until two blocks down. Even then, it was only because I couldn’t see through the tears.

  My world had just been turned upside down.

  SIXTEEN

  I SAT ON THE couch, my legs tucked underneath me, looking out my window, waiting for the tears to stop falling. With my pendant between two fingers, I dragged it across the chain, side to side. The zipping sound increased and decreased in pitch, giving me something to focus on besides the crumbling of my heart and sinking in my stomach. The pain of knowing I had done the unthinkable.

  The incredible hole I felt in my chest was raw, burning like salt added to an open wound. My tears fell in steady streams along my cheeks, soaking my shirt. The idea was so far beyond me. To believe something as miniscule as a necklace could set my dad off never occurred to me. I didn’t know the meaning of it any more than I did when I found it.

  What did my dad mean by mixing blood with them? Who was ‘them?’ How was it unnatural?

  I never in my life, thought I could do anything to disappoint my dad enough to disown me once, much less twice. I’d never saw him so upset before . . . ever . . . at least not that I remembered. Not even when my brother died.

  A soft, distant melody played. It took a moment before I realized it was the communicator ringing on the table in front of me. I looked at it and took a deep breath, letting it out in a heavy sigh.

  Not now.

  Still processing the last bit of information I received, I let it ring, unsure whether I wanted to learn more. Maybe my mother was right about my memories taking me down a road I didn’t want to go.

  The melody stopped. I sighed again, returning my gaze to the scene out my window only for the damned thing to start singing again. I picked it up.

  “Hello . . . ”

  “We need to meet.” It was the same man from before. The sound of his voice filled my ears and, suddenly, I wasn’t so opposed to more information. I wiped my face and sat up straight in my seat. Ready or not for answers, here I come.

  “Okay, when and where?”

  “I’m at your door right now.”

  “You know where I live?” I asked, my dad’s words temporarily forgotten. Of course, after I asked, I realized there could’ve been a tracking chip placed in the communicator. Had I thought of that before, I wouldn’t have taken it home with me.

  “I told you we were very close. Now, please, let me in.”

  I stood and slowly made my way to the door. The small screen above the keypad showed not just a random man standing on the other side of my door with a communicator held to his ear, but the one I dumped coffee on. He turned to the camera and waved. I couldn’t see anyone else in the hall, so I pushed the button.

  He stood staring at me, the look of alarm in his eyes causing me to question what happened. He wore a navy blue shirt with a long, black coat and slacks. It brought out the color of his eyes more, making the silver and gold specks stand out against the deep blue.

  “I thought I told you to stay home?” he asked.

  “No, you told me to keep the communicator with me. I thought you said you didn’t know me.”

  “I said I couldn’t say I knew you. There’s a difference.”

  “It’s still a lie,” I retorted.

  “If that is how you wish to see it, then a lot of things are lies.”

  “How long have you been following me?”

  “Long enough,” he replied coolly. “May I come in?”

  No.

  Then again, I was right about him. We knew each other. I needed to know how. Stepping to the side, I let him through. He faced me, staring so intently I felt I was on display. I couldn’t tell if he thought I was the most captivatingly beautiful thing he’d ever seen or his most terrifyingly dark nightmare come to life. It could’ve been both. With the night I was having, it wouldn’t have surprised me.

  Clearing my throat, I gestured toward the couch. “Please, have a seat.”

  I waited for him to sit before reclaiming the spot I had.

  “You’ve been crying,” he said, as if it was a shock to him.

  “How observant of you.”

  “But, you never cry . . . ”

  I chuckled sarcastically. “I’m a woman. I assure you, I cry. Not that it’s any of your business.”

  “You have to tell me what you remember,” he said, changing the subject suddenly. “Otherwise, I can’t protect you.”

  “Why do you want to protect me? What is it about me that has everyone telling me to stay away from everyone else and to not trust myself?”

  He looked at me like he wasn’t expecting the conversation to go this way.

  “I mean, if you wanted to protect me so badly, where were you when I was in the hospital? How about when I’m having those horrific nightmares? Or, let’s try this one. When you insisted you didn’t know me after I dumped coffee down the front of your shirt?”

  “Those are very good questions. The answers to them are too long for me to give right now, as we are very short on time. You really need to tell me what you remember.”

  “I already did.”

  “There’s something you’re not telling me. I want to know what it is.”

  “How do you know what I have and haven’t told you?”

  “I can sense what’s in your mind.” His gaze fell to my necklace. Instinctively, I covered it. After what happened, I wasn’t sure if I should even wear it.

  “Do you remember how you got that necklace?”

  I wanted to ask what he meant, but when I gazed into his eyes, there was only curiosity and pure desire in them. “I found it in a box that was hidden in my closet. I know it means a lot to me and caused some sort of wedge between me and my family.”

  “Were those bracelets there too?”

  “I suppose you are going to ask about the ring as well?”

  He stiffened for a brief moment then relaxed again. It was barely noticeable. He probably thought I didn’t notice.

  “I know where you got the ring.”

  “Where?” I asked.

  “I gave it to you.”

  “Why?” My voice sounded off even to my own ears.

  “That is a part of the story I don’t have time to tell,” he said.

  “Well, I’m not giving you any more answers until I get some of my own.” I crossed my arms over my chest and pressed myself into the corner of my couch.

  He sat silently for a few moments, seemingly thinking to himself. “You were in a relationship with someone before the accident. He gave those to you.” He pointed to my adored trinkets. “Do you remember their meaning?”

  “You need to know this to gauge how much I remember?”

  He nodded slowly, just once with something hidden in his stare. Why did it feel like he was too far away from me?

  I forced myself to look away. “I don’t remember the meaning, but I feel very protective over them. I wouldn’t even take my necklace off when my dad demanded it.”

  He stood immediately. “You went to your family’s house?”

  The way he said it was very much the way my dad reacted when he saw the pendant.

  “How is it you knew when I left but not where I went? I thought you were following me? Who was this guy anyway? He couldn’t have been that bad if I fell in love with him.”

  “Don’t be so sure about that,” he said, sounding more resigned.

  “Why?”

  “Let’s just say he was responsible for your memories disappearing and leave it at that, shall we?”

  “No. I want to know who he is and how he’s responsible. Did he cause the accident?”

  “No! Look, talking about him isn’t going to help me protect you.”

  “Who are you to protect me?”

  “If I tell you, the resu
lt could be very dangerous.”

  “Why?” I stood from the couch to pace the floor in front of it, keeping note of his movements.

  “You intercepted potentially catastrophic information and were caught. You were going to tell someone very high up and influential but were stopped.”

  “The accident,” I said.

  He nodded. “They got to you before I could.”

  “I don’t understand . . . the hospital . . . the doctor said—”

  “Elsa . . . ”

  I pursed my brows with the strangely hypnotic way he said my name.

  He brought his fist to his mouth. “Elsabetha, you have to understand, they want you to remember. They want to find the rest of us. You have been followed by them as well, since before you left the hospital. Please, tell me what you remember.”

  My lips parted when the doorbell sounded. I turned my attention to the door then back to my strange visitor. He placed a finger to his lips, as he stepped to the door, spending a split second there before walking back.

  “Tell her tonight isn’t a good night. Say you just want to go to bed but you’ll call her tomorrow.”

  I watched him disappear into the back of my apartment. The bell rang again. Stepping closer, I saw Jenna on the pop-up screen. Following his instructions, I pushed the intercom button. “Hey, it’s not a good time. Can I call you tomorrow?”

  “I just got a call from your mom. Open up, honey. Let’s talk about it.”

  Yeah right, straight from the woman who warned me to stay away from you.

  “No, I’m sorry. I just want to be alone for right now. I’ll call you tomorrow.”

  I released the button and watched her stare at the door for a few moments with her arms crossed over her chest. Then she turned her attention down the hall, talking to someone.

  A few men dressed in all black ran down the hall. My arm was gripped, pulling me across the living room floor, into my bedroom. We stopped at my window while my visitor looked down at something beyond the glass. He pulled a small keypad the size of a thumb from his pocket and pressed a button, then quickly replaced it.

  “Hang on,” he said, pulling me onto his back. He held up another small item from his pocket that created a low, sonic pulse, knocking out the window.

  The sound of my front door crashing in forced me to suck in a deep breath. Before I could let it out, he ran and jumped out of my window.

  I wanted to scream. Since I was suspended in the icy air on the back of a stranger, falling from the ninety-fourth floor of my bedroom window, it seemed like a logical reaction. But I held it in. I felt safe. Something inside me confirmed it. Strange as it may seem, considering the circumstances.

  A transporter turned toward us, leveling out just as we landed on the roof with a soft thud. It hovered long enough for the door to open, allowing us to climb in.

  Blake, the man from the game, was driving. I did a double take as I found his face. Why was I not surprised?

  “Good evening, Elsabetha. Nice to see you again.”

  “Uh, hi,” I said as I was led to a seat and strapped in.

  Justin walked into view with a smile on his face. His appearance didn’t seem all that startling either.

  “Hello to you too, Justin.”

  “Where to, boss?” Blake asked.

  “Avalon,” my protector, Boss, said.

  Blake looked at me then back to him. “Are you sure that’s a good idea?”

  Before I heard the answer to his question, Justin shoved a cloth covered with something foul into my nose.

  SEVENTEN

  WHEN I WOKE, I was lying in an incredibly soft bed. A fire popped and cracked nearby. Smoke filled my nose. I wanted nothing more than to shift position and sink further into the cloudlike bed. Then I realized that what had happened wasn’t a dream. It was very real.

  I sat up quickly, letting my eyes adjust to the dim lighting. Not only did the round bed feel like a cloud, but looked like one too, covered in soft, white linens. A large rug covered the cement floor with several smaller ones littering the rest of the room. There was a single window in the wall that curved out, following the cylindrical shape of the room. A large, heavy curtain was pulled to the side, letting the cold wind blow in. Most likely for the smoke from the fire to escape. It was set inside a large, metal disk at the farthest corner of the room, raised from the floor by iron legs.

  Standing from the bed, I moved slowly to the window. Nothing but green and white filled the view. I started to stick my head out when a loud shuffling startled me.

  “Good, you’re awake. Maybe now you can tell me what you remember . . . ” The familiar stranger said. My aggravating protector sat in a darkened corner of the room. The one place I hadn’t looked.

  “You need to give me some answers first,” I said, walking to him. I balled my fist, swinging to hit him. I would have, too, had he not caught my hand.

  He stood from the chair, pushing me back as he moved, and forced my fist to my side. “Fine. I’ll answer what I can.”

  “What the hell do you think you’re doing, knocking me out like that?”

  “I didn’t. Justin did. It was necessary to make sure you weren’t being followed.”

  “That’s bullshit. I could’ve been followed awake or not.”

  He shrugged. “No matter.”

  “Where am I? What the hell happened back at my house? Who the hell are you?”

  “You’re safe in Avalon. A headquarters, hidden from the knowledge of humans and Aagrarians.”

  “You have got to be kidding me,” I muttered.

  “Like it or not, Aagrarians are here, hiding until the Nepherium are taken down. Then they will act, proving to humans how utterly and absurdly gullible they were for believing the lies.”

  I raised an eyebrow at him and crossed my arms, leaning against a wall. “And what are you? Human or Nepherium?”

  His eyes found mine, locking me inside his gaze. “You weren’t safe anymore. They knew you were remembering and that I was nearby. I had to bring you here.”

  “What about your girlfriend or wife?” I asked. He looked at me strangely, so I continued. “That night I spilled coffee on you. You got a call . . . ”

  “That was just a message. I played it off like I was expected somewhere in order for us to not be seen together. In case the wrong people saw us . . . which they did anyway.”

  “Why would that matter? What do you have to do with any of this?” I turned, walking toward the window, and looked out. Large snowflakes fell.

  “We were very close.”

  “You keep saying that like you’re hinting to something I should already know. Who are you to me, if you and I were so close? Partners?”

  “Something like that,” he said softly.

  A peaceful sigh escaped between my lips. “I’ve been here before. I remember this room and the view.”

  I turned my attention to him. He stood stiffly with clenched fists and a pained expression. He lifted his gaze to mine and gave a firm nod.

  “I remember feeling at peace here, even now. That’s how my memories are. I only remember bits and pieces of a whole. When I try to force myself to remember what is beyond the void, it seems to grow and take more of what I had.”

  “Is that how you remembered how to open the box?”

  My eyes closed as the flashing images revisited me. “And some things just come second nature. Like spouting off information. Speaking Latin.”

  “And the nightmares?”

  “What about them?” I asked.

  “Tell me about them.”

  I left the window and sat on the edge of the bed. “I think they’re memories of the accident, pushing their way through. I’m in a transporter, and I notice I’m alone, facing death. But before it hits the ground, I wake up.”

  He nodded. “Anything else?”

  “I keep getting the feeling that you’re keeping something from me. Something important.”

  “I’ll tell you when it’s safe
or when I have no other choice. For now, your memories can get you killed, which makes knowing what you remember pertinent to protecting you.”

  “What about Justin and Taberious? They both thought I was dead.”

  “They were told to believe you were dead in order to protect themselves from the very person responsible for trying to kill you.”

  “And that was who?”

  “Alexander Barabbas.” His eyes found mine and with the tone in his words, I knew that was why I felt uneasy around him.

  “Figures. That man had my nerves prickling ever since he visited me in the hospital. Why didn’t he just finish me off if he wanted me dead that badly?”

  “He was using you to find us. I don’t know how he planned to do it.”

  “I think he was trying to woo me into telling him . . . but even that doesn’t make sense. Wait—what do you mean us?”

  “Nepherium.” I heard the fear that thickened his words.

  “What?” I said, barely above a whisper.

  “I’m Nepherium.”

  “Caelo me juvate,” I muttered then ran, as fast as I could, out of the room. I found myself placed between two opposing forces. An unwilling pawn in a dangerous game. Despite my asking, I felt beyond any help, especially from Heaven. Whether Jenna lied to me or not, I didn’t want to risk finding out if the Nepherium were behind the accident the hard way.

  I ignored the pleas to stop and listen, running through the halls, opening and closing doors. I came to a flight of stairs and took them two at a time until they ended at another long hall. Desperately searching for a door leading outside, I ran into dead end after dead end. Finally, I turned around to find Taberious, Justin, Blake and Partner staring at me with wide eyes and holding their hands up, palms out.

  “Relax, Elsabetha. We’re on your side,” Justin said.

  “What side is that exactly?” I snapped at him. “You knocked me out!”

  “The side of good,” my ‘supposed’ close partner said. “Please, let me explain.”

  “No. I’m not a puppet that gets to be the weight to tip the balance and end the game. I’m not going to be told who to stay away from! Jenna and Alexander told me the Nepherium were responsible for my accident, while you are telling me it was Jenna and Alexander. My dad disowned me because of my necklace. I have no memories. I have a lover somewhere who took them. All this because of something I overheard. I’m done! I want to disappear. I’m tired of being fucked with.”