by Kim Falconer
‘See you in class? It’s jujitsu tonight.’
‘Planning on it.’ I patted my bag and left.
* * *
I took the stairs to ground level, submitted to the scanner again and collected my .32 and holster. With the cool air left behind, I found walking into the sweltering sun twice as brutal. I trotted down to the street, mulling over what Rourke had said. ‘Screw it.’ I pulled out my phone and tapped Rossi’s name. ‘I’m free.’
‘Where are you?’
‘Precinct. Downtown.’
‘They didn’t arrest you again, did they?’
‘No. Meeting with Rourke.’
‘I’ll be there in fifteen minutes.’
Did he have a jet? Or maybe he was just around the corner. Clearly not at the hospital, which was forty minutes away, if there wasn’t another car on the road. I’d planned to grab a late lunch before he arrived, but a snack would have to do. I went to the coffee vendor up the street, looking over my shoulder. Rourke was right. I was beginning to see a potential killer in every face. Definitely not soothing on the nerves, or fair to the general population. I searched for something more pleasant to busy my mind and the thought of Miguel Rossi as sexy guy in my future popped into my head completely uninvited. I slammed the door in its face. Not going to happen, for so many reasons. Armed with a list of questions, I sat on the precinct steps and drank my coffee between large bites of a fresh nori roll. There wasn’t long to wait. Ten minutes later, he pulled up in a silver Audi. Nice.
Rossi leaned across and opened the door from the inside. I got into the passenger seat, thinking he looked good in a strong, powerfully built, slightly feral sort of way. He was wearing dark sunglasses, making his chiselled jaw stand out, jeans that fitted perfectly, and a long-sleeved grey tee-shirt. Who was this guy? He wanted something from me, I could tell, but what? If Rourke hadn’t said he checked out, I wouldn’t be in the car with him. Yeah, I was a bit uptight. We ran out of polite conversation in less than a minute, then settled into an uncomfortable silence. Fun. I wondered if it would be this stilted if we were chatting online.
I broke more ice. ‘So what’s the deal with Kathleen Jones?’ My voice fractured the air between us.
‘She owes me a favour.’
That made me blink. ‘So, now I owe you?’
‘Not how it works, Ava.’
Okay. Every answer took me deeper into the confusion as the world rushed by. I checked the speedometer. ‘Speed cameras next two blocks.’ How could he not know that?
He downshifted, and took a left on West Sunset.
‘Where’re we going?’
‘My place. It’s a few minutes north. Is that alright with you?’
North? The only places a few minutes north were so upmarket I’d never been near one. I nodded, and again, the awkward silence settled in. After ten minutes of staring at highway 405, I tried a new angle. ‘Your paper on blood antigens and typology interested me.’
‘Of course it would.’
Could he be this arrogant? More minutes of silence dragged by, so I got out a scalpel and cut deep. ‘I know you have links to CHI Tech.’ I was on the edge of my seat, ready to throw myself out of the speeding car if this conversation went south.
‘Had, not have.’ A cloud crossed his face. ‘I worked for them years ago. Not any more.’
‘Before or after the Big One?’
‘Before.’
I crossed my arms. ‘You’re not old enough.’
He looked at me like I’d just spoken Swahili.
We took the Mandeville Canyon exit. Once an inland park, this bit of turf was now prime beachfront. I squinted as the sun made the seascape sparkle. Okay, a billionaire if he has property along this coastline. We wound our way down to the Sunset Strip Yacht Harbor, the sparkling sea opening up to show the new and extremely rugged California coastline. I was mesmerised, and scared shitless. That much open space, that much water? Um, no. Not for me.
‘Is there any progress on identifying your attacker?’
The subject change pulled my attention back. ‘Like I said, we met up again.’
‘And?’
‘I shot him dead.’
‘What do you mean “dead”?’
‘I mean, no pulse, no respiration, the usual indicators.’ He was a doctor, right?
‘Tell me what happened.’ His hands gripped the wheel.
‘He stalked. I shot. Twice. Point-blank. He wasn’t breathing. No heartbeat. CPR didn’t help. Then, when I wasn’t looking, he disappeared. And no, he wasn’t dressed in the latest fashion of bulletproof vest.’
‘You must have missed his heart, if he didn’t go down.’
‘Are you listening? He went down, alright. I was drenched in the bastard’s blood. Then he upped and walked away.’ I lowered the window, letting in the salt breeze, wondering why it was so hard to converse with this guy.
‘And the cops picking you up?’
I shut my eyes. Did he miss the part about the reanimated corpse? I was trembling. Saying it aloud was making it real again. I hadn’t fully processed this crap.
Rossi put his hand on my shoulder. You really don’t know?
I nearly flew out of my seat.
‘Breathe, Ava.’
I wanted to jerk away from his touch, but after a moment, the feel of it, the weight of his palm pressing down, the strength of his fingers, settled me. He was like a grounding wire. Calming. When he took his hand away to turn into the parking lot, I felt like I might float out of my seat. ‘Did you hear me? I shot a man dead and after a little rest, he bailed.’ I thought about that for a second. ‘No, he up and jogged away!’
It happens.
The words were sounding in my head, but his lips weren’t moving. It wasn’t the first time. As I grappled with it, we pulled to a stop. I jumped out of the car before he was around to my side. ‘What did you just say?’
‘It happens, Ava. You know that.’ He frowned as he spoke, as if rethinking something.
I rubbed the back of my neck, and then lifted my eyes, taking in our location. The view swept all previous thoughts from my head. I’d only seen this harbour once, when it had been built, and that was a live online feed. In person, it was even more spectacular. A large chunk of the Aftermath funding had gone to repair the new coastline, making it livable, fast. Sunset Strip south of Old Ranch Road had never looked so good, so they said. Rows of yachts filled the berths, their tall masts rocking slowly in the wind. Rich people’s paradise. The scene stretched out in a horseshoe shape that covered a mile of coastline. ‘You live here?’
‘For now.’ He gave me that quirky half smile of his. ‘I’ll show you.’
I guess a former CHI Tech employee who sued those bastards and won would be loaded. Like really loaded. Sure, I was expecting upmarket, but this? It was beyond the major leagues.
‘This way.’ He opened his arms toward the docks.
I followed him down wooden steps, the smell of the sea hitting me full in the face. It was mixed with a bit of tar, creosote, gull droppings and fish. I didn’t mind. The water made me nervous though, as it would anyone who couldn’t swim.
Rossi gave me an incredulous look, then went back to leading the way.
Eventually, we stopped in front of one of the larger yachts. ‘This is you?’
‘In the summer.’
The boat was long, maybe a hundred foot, sleek, white with a mast nearly twice the length. Under the bowsprit was painted a black jungle cat’s head in simple, sumi-e design. ‘Do big cats like water?’
‘This one does. Leopard3, contender in the super-maxi circuit, Farr’s signature design. A classic.’
‘I have no idea what any of that means.’
He laughed, and we crossed the plank and stepped aboard. Hello, vertigo. I paused to gain my bearings as the world undulated beneath my feet. ‘You live on this?’
‘It’s the only place I can sleep.’
I scrunched my face. The guy had some quirks. Rossi led m
e around the decking until we stood facing the sea. The panorama was spectacular, if you liked such a thing. Personally, I felt freaked. Aside from the cool wind, and incessant rocking, there was all that water. It brought up my worst childhood fears. I couldn’t afford to go there.
What’s wrong?
I shot a look into his eyes and saw myself, reflected in his shades. My hair was down, sweeping around my face, my expression dumbfounded.
Ava, can’t you hear me?
I took a step back. What the hell was going on with this guy and my head?
‘Come out of the wind.’ He unlocked the cabin door. ‘We’ll talk inside.’
I followed him down the steps into a world I wasn’t expecting. The main room was huge, with dark teak floors, a plush black couch running down one side and oriental throw rugs and cushions. Light streamed in from the windows above the bulkheads. It didn’t look like he hung out here much. It was spotless. At the other end, just before the kitchen, there was a large desk and although it wasn’t cluttered like Rourke’s, I could tell he spent time there. An ultra-thin LCD screen sat in the centre, with a microscope and centrifuge on either side. There were shelves above the work area, filled with books, held firmly in place by black bands across each row. Next to his desk were multiple drawers, like a filing cabinet made of rosewood. I glimpsed the kitchen opposite his work area, which had teak cupboards, matching the floors. Beyond was a closed door.
I took a seat with my back to the kitchen, keeping the exit in sight. Rossi sat beside me, turning to face me straight on. Oddly, he appeared to be a bit nervous too. It didn’t instil confidence.
‘You’re good at staying in form. I’m impressed, Ava.’
What is he talking about? ‘Jones said you’d have answers, but I’m only hearing riddles.’ And your damn voice in my head. What is up with that?
He laced his hands together, thoughtful for some time. ‘Fair enough, but if you really don’t know, I can’t say much until I contact Teern.’
‘Here we go with the Teern thing again.’ I crossed my arms. ‘What is it, really?’
He looked exasperated. ‘Ava, check around. No one can see us. No one can hear us. You’re safe to speak openly. We don’t have to pretend any more.’
Maybe it was the enclosed space. Or the rhythmic undulation reminding me I wasn’t on solid land. Or this man and his riddles. Whatever. I made ready to bolt. ‘Listen, Rossi!’ Heat rushed to my face. ‘I want answers and I want them now. What is this Teern company? Why did you send me Jones?’ I cleared my throat. ‘Thanks for that, by the way, but she said for me to take my questions to you. Here I am. I want answers, or I want the hell off this boat!’
He held out his hands, like calming a wild animal, or maybe fending one off. The look on his face was not what I’d expected. It was so perplexed it took the aggression right out of me, or most of it anyway. I slid back down to the couch. ‘Please. I’ve been on edge ever since the first attack.’ And the underwater hallucinations in the hospital, along with the voices in my head, aren’t giving me much peace of mind, either.
He ran his hand through his unruly hair and started to pace. Was he muttering to himself? That couldn’t be good.
‘I don’t know what’s going on, Ava. You seem to have no memory, and I need Teern’s advice. I can’t speak freely without seeing him first, but he’s in the Atlantic.’
‘Teern’s a person? Daniel Bane said it was a sister company.’
Rossi flinched. ‘You can’t believe what he tells you.’
‘Says the guy who can’t tell me jackshit?’
He started ranting. Mid-sentence, Rossi turned to me. ‘Who are your guardians?’
Perfect. The question I hated the most. No. Not true. I hated the answer, so I didn’t say anything. I guess he could read it in my body language, because he started filling in the blanks.
‘Maybe you lost them in the Big One? Is that what happened?’
Great. My second most-hated question. I spoke just to shut him up. ‘Ironic, isn’t it? Thirty million lives were lost that day, and two of them had to be the only decent foster parents I’d ever known.’
‘Foster?’ He cut me off before I could say more. ‘You can’t have been fostered.’
That was it. I snapped. ‘Stop right there.’ My voice cut like a filleting knife, and there was no space for him to answer. ‘I have news for you, boy wonder!’ I sucked in my breath as I stood to deliver a rapid-fire account of my hell-born childhood. ‘Abandoned as an infant, passed around foster care, buried alive in the system. Finally landed a decent family and they died in the Aftermath. Then CHI Tech had me. That’s right. I was one of their lab rats for over a year, until I escaped. Lived on the street. You don’t want to know how. Rourke, a beat cop at the time, introduced me to MMA, and a school that would have me. It’s been better since, but don’t you ever, ever fucking tell me I couldn’t have been fostered. Are we clear, Dr Rossi?’ When I was done, my chest was heaving and my eyes stung.
He sank to his seat. ‘You don’t know where you came from?’
New tag. Stupid as hell smart person. ‘That’s your takeaway? Pay attention! My mother gave me up. No record of a father. Raised in the system. Foster parents died. It was no party beforehand, but it all went to hell after that.’
He shook his head, disbelief in his eyes. ‘It’s not right.’
‘No shit, it ain’t right.’
‘That’s not what I meant.’
I was beginning to wonder if I would ever understand this man.
‘Ava, I have no idea why you don’t know this, but you’re Mar, for the deep blue’s sake.’ He blew out his breath. ‘Ring any bells?’
Mar?
Yes. Mar.
Maybe I was marred, or marginalised? ‘Not hearing any ding-a-lings.’
He paled. ‘Mar. Of the sea?’
I stood there, waiting. ‘Speak English.’
He scrubbed his face with his hands. ‘For a start, you know you’re different, right? You have more strength and perception, far more, than you are using.’
‘Are you kidding? I have to hide my abilities as it is. Damned hyperbolic phase of my …’
No, Ava, you’re holding back.
His voice rang between my ears. ‘Get the hell out of my head!’
‘Alright. Settle down.’ He was back to placating me. ‘I’ll speak aloud, but that’s another natural ability.’ He stared past me. ‘Maybe I know what happened.’
I crossed my arms and lifted my chin. ‘This ought to be rich.’ My patience was rice paper thin.
‘You were somehow abandoned …’
I started to walk out the door but he held up his hand. ‘Wait. Let me finish.’
Authority rang in his voice. It made me think he’d been holding back as well. I stood, arms crossed. ‘You have thirty seconds to make sense.’ I glanced at an imaginary wristwatch.
‘Without guidance, you grew up believing you were like the others, limited in so many ways. Social and cultural conditioning has defined you. Tricked you into thinking you were just like them. Maybe a little stronger, but that’s all. It’s left you …’ He stopped to search for the right word.
Impeded? Arrested? Retarded?
‘I was going to say, underdeveloped.’
I didn’t know where to begin. ‘What “others” are you talking about?’
‘Landers, of course.’
‘Make sense!’ I shouted.
‘Humans. You can pass, but you’re not one of them.’
That tipped the scale from bizarre to ‘get the hell out of here’ instantly, but he sensed it and moved to block the door. Did I have to fight this guy?
‘You have to know that what you think, the thoughts that you hold in your mind, define what you’re capable of. You’re thinking too small, your perceptions are too narrow. It’s held you back in so many ways.’
What psycho-new-age-hippy school did you graduate from? I moved back a few steps, opening my peripheral vision. There was
no other way out.
A ‘hippy’ school called Stanford University where I did my first undergrad degree, but that was long before your time.
He was in my head again, making with the telepathy. It was the last straw. I bolted to the right, feinted left and headed straight for the exit. I didn’t run two steps before he was on me, wrestling me down to the couch. ‘Let go!’ I hit him hard with a left hook.
Rossi cut loose a string of curses in some foreign language. At least, they sounded like curses.
I stopped struggling. He was surprisingly stronger than I’d expected. I had to think my way out of this, use brains, not brawn. ‘Let go, please,’ I said softly.
He let go immediately, seeming surprised. ‘Ava, I’m not going to hurt you.’ He took off his sunglasses and looked me in the eye, holding my gaze while I sat up. For a moment, I was lost in the intensity of him. Neither of us spoke until he shook his head, breaking the spell. ‘We have to find where your guardians are entombed. And give you back the memories.’
I didn’t like the sound of any of it. ‘So they are definitely dead? And you want me to awaken more memories? On top of the night terror upbringing I already have stored in my head? No, thanks.’ I made to stand. ‘I can find my way home.’
‘Wait, please.’
We had a staring contest that ended in a draw, both of us settling down at the same time. Rossi folded his hands together. Something flashed across his face and I could tell he’d made a decision. He spoke slowly, deliberately, like I was a kid, and not a very bright one. ‘Ava, what has happened to you is terrible, and I promise to make it right. All your people will help you, and we’ll find your mother.’
‘You just said she was dead.’
He let out his breath in a rush. ‘This is worse than I thought.’
‘How?’
‘I doubt your mother is dead. That would be virtually impossible, unless …’
I held up my hand. ‘Let me stop you right there. Can you find my birth mother or not?’ The thought of having answers to my hereditary blood disorder seemed more important than any of the lunatic ideas tabled so far.
‘Birth mother?’ His brow wrinkled. ‘We can find your guardian, of course, but first, you need the memories. It might make you more comfortable with your hearing.’
