The Complete Lost Children Series

by Krista Street

  Mica cocked her head. “I know I just met you, so I can’t believe I’m saying this, but I believe you.”

  “I do too,” I said.

  Conroy’s hands relaxed. A smile lifted his cheeks.

  “Well, I don’t believe you,” Flint muttered. He glared out the window.

  Conroy’s gaze drifted to Flint in the rearview mirror. His smile dimmed.

  If only Flint could feel what I did. I switched my vision, activating the part of my brain that was dormant in others. Conroy’s cloud appeared. The beautiful rainbow of dancing colors billowed around his shoulders. It was unlike anything I’d seen before. Some of the colors mirrored the colors in our clouds: red, pink, orange, yellow, green, indigo, violet and gold. However, other colors mixed in it too: magenta, silver, navy and at least a dozen more. All of Conroy’s colors were faint as if they’d been washed out in a spring rain. All except for two bright colors: blue and pale green. The blue matched the blue in our clouds. However, none of us had pale green.

  As always, I couldn’t explain why we had colors. I also couldn’t get a firm read on Conroy’s cloud. The rest of the population had some form of white, gray or black. The whiter the cloud, the more kind a person was, the darker, the eviler. Nobody else had colors. And as for why Conroy had so many colors, I had no idea.

  However, my gut told me Conroy wouldn’t harm us. And if there was one thing I always listened to—it was my gut instinct.

  “So how’d you make the memory drug you gave us in April?” Mica asked.

  “It was something I created last year, in the lab back home,” Conroy replied.

  By home, I assumed he meant the hidden cabin we’d left in the Forbidden Hills.

  “But how did it work?” I asked.

  “The drug targeted specific cells in your brains. Upon reaching those targeted cells, it severed all neuronal activity to your long-term memories. Basically, your memories are still there. However, you don’t have access to them.”

  I sat up straighter. “They’re still there?”

  “Yes.”

  How does he know that? “So this drug must be different from the one you gave us as babies?”

  “It’s much safer. Age doesn’t affect it.”

  That comment reminded me of the two oldest children in our original group of ten. I’d never met that older set of twins since they died from the sensory enhancing drug Conroy administered to them. I swallowed uneasily. If I’d been older when he gave me my drug, I could have died too. Luckily, I was only a few months old when Conroy stole me—plenty young for my brain to adapt.

  Mica squirmed in her seat. “I still gotta go to the bathroom. How much longer?”

  “Just ahead.” Conroy put his blinker on and glided the Pathfinder off the interstate. I glanced behind us. Sure enough, Di followed.

  “I gotta go!” Mica squealed. She bounded out of her seat the second we pulled into the gas station.

  Conroy followed Mica. Cool air swirled into the car before he slammed his door. I unbuckled my seat belt, but Flint made no move to leave.

  It had been a long day of driving. Conroy’s original plan had been to helicopter us straight to his reclusive Arizona home, but after a brief discussion, none of us wanted to leave the Suburban behind. Call us sentimental, but when one’s life is as erratic as ours, familiar things have greater meaning. However, none of us considered what keeping the Suburban entailed. That sentimentality had resulted in a nine-hour drive. It also meant Conroy had to purchase a vehicle since nine of us in the Suburban was too crowded.

  “We better get to the bathroom.” I opened my door. “Who knows when the next stop will be.”

  Flint grabbed my hand before I stepped out. His sudden grip made the charm bracelet I wore jingle quietly. The charm—a heart with an inscription reading Love You Forever—glinted.

  “Lena, we don’t have to go with Conroy. You know that, right?”

  The urgency in his voice made my stomach sink. I settled back beside him. A strong gust swirled into the car from my still open door. It whipped my long dark red hair around my face.

  “I think we should,” I replied.

  “But we don’t know if we can trust him.”

  He gripped my hand tighter. His palm was so warm. Another steady push of energy rolled off him.

  Feeling Flint’s energy was something I’d grown used to during the past two months. For some reason, the power inside him radiated out. It was hard to miss, at least for me. The drug Conroy gave me as a child resulted in my unique ability to see auras around people or clouds as I called them. However, it went a step beyond that with Flint. I could also feel his. When he was angry, aroused or felt any other strong emotion, the power rolling off him increased. The strength of it right now was enough to tell me he was very serious about ditching Conroy.

  I slammed my door closed. Jacinda and the rest of the gang were getting out of the Suburban. I knew none of them would be able to hear us with the door closed, except Jacinda that is, thanks to her enhanced auditory sense.

  “We can’t leave Conroy.”

  “Why not?” Flint demanded.

  “I know you don’t believe it, but I know that Conroy would never hurt us. Just like I knew when we first met in August that you’d never let anyone hurt me. Those gut feelings we’ve all had about things? They’re our subconscious trying to break through. Don’t you see that?”

  He gazed out the window, his expression brooding. “Then why don’t I trust him?”

  I swallowed uneasily. That’s a very good question. “I don’t know.”

  A sharp knock on the window made me jump. Jet and Jasper’s faces plastered against it. Amber hung just behind them, grinning.

  “Hey love birds, you two coming in?” Jasper called.

  I forced a smile. “Let’s go.”

  With stiff movements, Flint opened his door.

  The twins and Amber sauntered away. Laughter trailed in their wakes. As usual, the twins’ jokes prevailed, even in our current circumstances.

  I inhaled the evening air. Already, it had cooled. Flat desert landscape surrounded us. The sky blazed purple from the setting sun. Distant mountains hovered on the horizon, hinting at colder temps to come.

  “Chilly here.” I shivered.

  Flint reached inside the vehicle and grabbed his jacket. He slipped it around my shoulders before I could protest. The parka practically swallowed me.

  Flint leaned down and kissed me softly on the neck. His lips lingered. Another push of energy rolled into me. Worry lined its edges.

  “Are you two coming?” Jacinda stood by the door to the gas station. Her long blond hair trailed down her back. I hadn’t realized she was waiting for us.

  “Come on.” I tugged Flint.

  Our footsteps slapped the pavement. Flint glanced over his shoulder several times, his gaze curious. According to Conroy, we needed to be cautious in public. He claimed O’Brien still had eyes all over the country, people paid to watch out for a group of eight individuals matching our descriptions. I wasn’t sure any of us believed him, though. The eight of us had been together for two months, granted it was on a secluded ranch, but still, there had been no sign of men watching us anywhere.

  “How has it been riding with Conroy?” Jacinda asked.

  “Good.” I had to look up to address her. It still amazed me that we were half-sisters. I figured our fathers must have been complete opposites. Her dad a Norwegian Viking and mine an Irish midget. “Interesting too. Conroy’s been telling us about the drug he gave us. It targeted our long-term memories.”

  “Is that right?” Jacinda cocked her head causing her long, blond hair to fall over her shoulder.

  Flint held the door. A large shelf of candy bars greeted us the second we stepped inside. I eyed the Snickers with interest, but Jacinda steered me away.

  The travel center was large and clean. Scents of hot dogs and nacho cheese drifted in the air when we walked by the food station. Navajo art and souvenirs hung
on display throughout the aisles. Halloween decorations draped from the ceiling. One ghastly ghoul looked particularly disturbing with its black, vacant eyes and open tooth-filled mouth. The normalcy of this lone travel stop was exactly what I needed.

  Some of the nerves left my stomach as Jacinda pulled me to the back of the gas station. An array of sandwiches lined the refrigerated section. They beckoned to me. Even though I’d been well fed for the past two months, my days as a homeless vagabond, when food was precious, still lingered.

  “Bathroom first.” Jacinda rolled her eyes.

  I grumbled but followed.

  When we stood at the sinks, washing our hands, I asked, “How long do you think it’ll be before we leave for Chicago to search for the other lost children?”

  Jacinda’s hands stilled on her paper towel. With a start, she resumed drying them. “We’ll have to see what Conroy discovers about his old group. It would be foolish to leave immediately.”

  “Jacinda! Lena!” The bathroom door banged open.

  Di stood in the doorway. She wore her usual all black attire which mirrored her midnight hair and dark eyes. “Come on, we’re leaving.”

  “Already?” I threw my paper towel in the trash. “But we’ve only been here five minutes, and we haven’t bought anything to eat.”

  “Then hurry up.” She glanced over her shoulder before stepping into the restroom. The door closed softly behind her. Looking past us, her eyes darted to the bathroom stalls. She lowered her voice. “Is anyone else in here?”

  Jacinda glanced at the empty stalls. “No, just us.”

  “Good,” Di said. “Because we need to get moving.”

  My heart rate increased. “Why? Did something happen? Did someone spot us?”

  Di shook her head curtly, her short hair swaying with the movement. “No, but Conroy has something for us at his house. He just told me about it.”

  I gave Jacinda a questioning look.

  Jacinda merely raised an eyebrow and shrugged. “This is news to me too.”

  “What is it?” I asked Di.

  Di smiled. Her eyes carried the manic gleam I was becoming to recognize all too well. “Another drug he wants to give us, but this drug will make us remember.”

  CHAPTER TWO

  “What?” There was no way I heard her correctly.

  Di nodded vigorously. Her dark eyes practically glowed. “It’s another drug to counter the effect of the first one.”

  “Seriously?” My mouth dropped. “As in, a drug that will make us remember . . . our pasts?”

  “Yes!” Her eyes brightened.

  A mixture of fear and curiosity filtered across Jacinda’s face. Similar emotions swirled inside me as the implications of another drug sank in. If this drug works, will we remember everything, even our earliest childhood memories? I thought about what those memories might hold.

  Memories of O’Brien Pharmaceuticals. Memories of being experimented on.

  Do I want to remember that?

  But I already knew the answer. With the bad memories came the good. Flint and I had both felt something for one another since the moment we laid eyes on each other. I wanted the memories of him and me. I wanted to remember everything, everything I had ever done or experienced.

  My mind raced with what I knew about Conroy’s drugs. The drug may not work. Or a side effect could occur. I bit my lip. Not even a second passed before I knew what I was going to do.

  I was willing to take that chance.

  The door to the restroom banged open. Flint’s figure towered in the space. Heat and raw energy radiated off him.

  “All of you, follow me. We’re leaving without Conroy.” Flint’s chest rose heavily with each breath.

  I took a step toward him. “I guess you heard Conroy’s got another drug for us? A drug to make us remember everything he erased?”

  Flint’s jaw tightened. “Oh, I’m sure he’d love to drug us again, but there’s no way I’m taking that, and I won’t let you either.” He stepped inside the restroom, the door closing behind him.

  I softened my tone. I knew when Flint was in a mood like this—so concerned for my safety that he went wild—only soothing reason could permeate his stubborn resolve. “But what if it works?”

  “And what if it doesn’t?”

  “But it could.”

  “Or it could kill us.”

  “It won’t kill us if it’s like the drug that made us forget. That one’s safe, remember?”

  Flint took a deep breath and closed his eyes. “But what if it isn’t safe, Lena?” He opened his eyes. “Then what? What if it damages us? Or causes one of us to get sick?”

  Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Di and Jacinda discreetly leave the restroom. I stepped closer to Flint and laid my hand over his. “The first drug didn’t. So why would this one?”

  “Conroy’s drugs aren’t to be taken lightly.” His tone grew hard. “Remember what Conroy said they did to some of the kids at O’Brien? Irreversible encephalopathy? Those kids died. We’re now grown adults. If what Conroy said is true, our brains don’t adapt as easily. Each day we get older, the risks increase.”

  “But this drug isn’t like those,” I countered. “It didn’t give us abilities. It just took away our memories.”

  His nostrils flared.

  “Conroy wouldn’t do this if it weren’t safe. Remember what I said? I trust him.”

  He stared at me for a moment and then whispered, “Babe . . . please.”

  I crumbled when a pained look crossed his features. His blatant fear made me pause. What if his fears are valid? What if this second drug kills one of us and tears us apart? Just like he fears?

  I shook my head internally. No, it wouldn’t do that. This drug was different than the ones Conroy gave us as babies. He’d said so himself. But no drug comes without risk and side effects.

  I shook that thought off too and wrapped my arms around Flint. The heat searing off him went right through the parka. “You’re not going to lose me. I think we can trust Conroy. He knows what he’s doing.”

  “You don’t know that.” He crushed me tightly to him.

  “No, I don’t, but I believe that and for me, that’s enough.”

  He cupped my cheeks, forcing my head up to meet his dark eyes. “If I ever lost you . . .”

  I laid my hand over his. “You’re not going to get rid of me that easily. Haven’t you noticed I’m made of tougher stuff than that?”

  A haunted expression clouded his face. I knew he was thinking about Aaron, about the physical injuries I suffered last month because of the psycho cowboy. Injuries I overcame.

  “We better go.” I pulled away from him.

  When we emerged from the restroom, a few people glanced our way. I’m sure having a large male inside the women’s restroom wasn’t something one saw every day. Especially not a male as breathtakingly handsome as Flint.

  Tall, strong and lean, Flint had a body most women drooled over. His face was equally attractive. With olive skin, a long, straight nose, piercing, deep-set dark eyes, and a full but firm mouth, he was incredibly beautiful. I glanced down at myself. Small frame, pale skin, and unruly dark red hair summed up my looks pretty succinctly. In other words, I wasn’t exactly a fashion model, but I knew I was attractive. The curves I’d developed since putting weight on helped, and Flint’s reaction every time he ripped my clothes off told me exactly how appealing he found me.

  “Hey, guys!” Jasper called.

  The twins, Mica and Amber stood together, at the travel center’s front door, waving.

  “Let’s go!” Jet called.

  I quickly scanned our audience again. Everyone seemed like benign strangers. I still assessed each of them curiously. Considering what Conroy believed, the little old ladies two aisles over could be two of O’Brien’s spies. I shifted my vision until their clouds appeared. Both white or ivory. Good clouds. They were kind, honest people.

  Hardly spy material.

  A few Native Americ
ans perused the aisles. A lone clerk manned the cash register. All white or ivory clouds. I switched my vision back to normal. The clouds disappeared. While I trusted Conroy, he did seem rather worried for nothing.

  It wasn’t until Flint and I stepped away from the restroom that I saw another stranger in the gas station. A man stood in the corner. He was alone and wore dark shades despite the evening hour. A cell phone was pressed to his ear. His lips moved. He appeared to be watching us. I switched my vision again. When his cloud appeared, I stepped back.

  Dark gray.

  “What’s wrong?” Flint said.

  I scanned the entire travel stop again to make sure I hadn’t missed anyone else. No one—just the man in the corner. My gaze swung back to him.

  He was gone.

  Unease slithered through me. I shook my head. Now, I was acting paranoid.

  “Lena, is everything okay?”

  “Yeah, I saw a man with a dark cloud, but he’s gone now. That’s all.” I pointed to the corner by the soda machines. “He was standing there. He wore sunglasses and was talking to someone on a cell phone. His cloud was dark, and he was watching us. Did you see him?”

  Flint shook his head.

  I ran a hand through my hair and berated myself for getting caught up in Conroy’s worries. “Let’s get going. I think everyone’s waiting for us.”

  A minute later, we were climbing into the Pathfinder. The dark clouded man was nowhere to be seen. “That’s weird. It’s like he disappeared,” I muttered to no one in particular.

  Conroy clicked his seatbelt in place. “Who disappeared?”

  “Oh, just some guy I saw in the gas station. He had a dark gray cloud and seemed to be watching us.”

  Conroy’s movements stilled. “Watching you?”

  “I’m sure it was nothing.” I settled in beside Flint and fastened my seatbelt.

  “What did he look like? Describe him to me,” Conroy demanded.