by Jo Ramsey
“He’s good at fighting off a lot of things,” Lauren said. “I met him once. I couldn’t read him at all. I read minds and emotions, but I couldn’t get his.”
“He got away from them. He’s in hiding now.” Garrett took another breath. “They found out where you are, Kellan. Shad didn’t tell them and they couldn’t read his mind, but one of them was able to pick it up. A finder like Mireille, I’m guessing. They’re on their way here.”
He paused. “We’re going to keep you safe. Lauren, go get the others. We’ll take care of this, Kellan, I promise you.”
Chapter Nine
GARRETT AND Lauren didn’t say anything until I pulled myself together. I took a few deep breaths and the handful of tissues Garrett held out to me. Once I wiped my nose a couple of times, I felt better. Not much, but enough that I could cope. And pray.
Father, please protect me from those who seek to hurt me. More important, please protect these people who are trying to help. I don’t want anyone else to be hurt because of me. Watch over them, and watch over Shad and Sadie. And please let me be safe. Amen.
“I know it was a shock to hear that,” Garrett said. “I don’t blame you for being upset.”
“It isn’t only that I’m upset,” I said.
“It’s because we’re helping you.” Lauren smiled. “I can totally relate, believe me. Thinking you’re all alone and then finding out you aren’t.”
“Exactly.” I smiled back. At least she didn’t hold my crying against me.
“I was going to have you start school on Monday.” Garrett leaned against his desk. “Assuming you decide to stay, that is. Given the circumstances, it may be best to wait. This town is fairly safe, but you should still probably stick close to home—to the house—until we’re sure the threat is past.”
“Yeah.” Too many things swirled around in my brain. I couldn’t even think right then about whether I’d be staying. The people around me would be in danger if I stayed. Fear hit me like a punch in the gut. Gene and his buddies might hurt someone in the house to get to me.
I couldn’t let that happen. I should just leave and take my chances.
Then again, I might not be able to make it on my own. I hadn’t done too well so far. Otherwise we wouldn’t be having this conversation now. The warmth of the house was more than physical. As long as I was there, I would be safe.
“I’ll be right back.” Lauren left the room.
I’d forgotten Garrett had asked her to bring in the rest of the group. She left the door open, and Charlotte walked in almost immediately. “Garrett, I need—” She stopped. “Or I can keep waiting a little while longer. What’s wrong?”
“I’ll explain when everyone’s here.” Garrett folded his arms. “I’m not ignoring you, Charlotte, but there are sometimes more important things to deal with.”
“I know.” She sniffed and rolled her eyes. “I’m not saying you have to pay attention to me right this second. It’s just something I’ve been trying to address for a week or so now. I just said I can wait awhile longer.” She turned to me. “You’re causing a ruckus already, huh?”
“Charlotte.” The warning in Garrett’s tone was clear.
“I’m not starting anything.” She walked over to the window. “I want to go to the beach when you’re done with whatever lecture we have to listen to this time.”
“We’ll see,” Garrett said. “Depending on the outcome of this discussion.”
Derek walked in with Treese. They were both a little red, and I had a pretty good idea they’d been together somewhere doing something Garrett wouldn’t approve of.
Lauren came back with Mireille and a guy I hadn’t met yet. Mireille closed the door behind them. “Everyone else is working or out,” she said. “What’s going on?”
“Has everyone met Kellan?” Garrett said.
“I haven’t.” The guy I didn’t know walked over to me and held out his hand. “Nate.”
“Nice to meet you.” I didn’t shake his hand. My own were still warm, which worried me. I had a pretty good reason to feel threatened, and I didn’t want to take it out on anyone here since they weren’t the ones threatening me. “Sorry. I’m afraid I’d burn you.”
“Okay.” He looked a little confused but backed off.
“Kellan, hold on to your control,” Garrett said. “There’s no reason to use your ability right now.”
“Which is why I’m not shaking Nate’s hand,” I snapped. He didn’t have to lecture me in front of everyone. I had my power under control.
Lauren walked over to stand on my other side, hands on her hips. “Garrett, maybe you should just tell everyone what’s going on.”
She glared at him. A laugh bubbled up in my chest, and I barely held it back. She was backing me, and I wanted to hug her for it.
Garrett’s eyes narrowed a bit, but all he said was, “Yes, that’s a good idea. For those who haven’t heard, Kellan came to us with Shad’s help. This morning Shad called to inform us Kellan’s stepfather and two other men tracked him down and threatened him if he didn’t tell them where Kellan was.”
“So we send him back to his stepfather,” Charlotte said. “Problem solved. We’re here for kids who don’t have families, not ones whose families are looking for them.”
Anger surged through me. Not heat or fire, but close. I narrowed my eyes. My fingers twitched with the urge to flip her off, something I had never done to anyone. All I’d done to her was keep Garrett from jumping to make her happy, and she was ready to throw me out.
“Charlotte, shut up,” Treese said.
“We’re here for anyone who needs us,” Garrett said. “Kellan came to us for a reason. I know his story. You don’t have to. We are going to help him. If you’d rather not be part of it, it’s your choice, but do not tell me how to handle the situation, Charlotte.”
“Whatever.” She plopped down on the floor and folded her arms in a copy of Garrett’s position. “Go on with your grand plan, then.”
“Tell me again why she’s here?” Nate said.
“Enough.”
Garrett didn’t raise his voice, but everyone except Mireille jumped. Charlotte studied her fingernails, and the others looked at the floor or their shoes.
“My stepfather and his friends aren’t trying to find me to bring me home.” If the others were going to help me, they had a right to know what they were helping with.
I took a deep breath and blurted it out. “One of his friends tried to rape me. I burned his hands really badly. For all I know, he lost them. They’re hunting for me to make me to pay for what I did. Or maybe you missed the part where Garrett said they threatened Shad.”
I was shaking by the time I finished, and flame was building in my gut. Thank God no one was close enough to touch me accidentally, because I probably would have set the whole place on fire.
Fury shoved against my gut and brain, red and stronger than I remembered it ever being. If I let it go, it would consume me and everyone around me. The red-black hunger reached out, and I pushed it away.
At the same time, part of me reached back to the fire. I craved it. I wanted to hurt Charlotte for what she’d said.
I closed my eyes. I was right on the edge of losing control, and I wouldn’t do that here. Except for Charlotte, the group wanted to help me. The least I could do was keep myself from burning down their house.
“He tried to rape you?” Charlotte sounded different now. Hushed and a little choked, as if she didn’t know whether to cry or not. “And they think you did something wrong by defending yourself?”
“I think they wanted him to do it.” I opened my eyes. I was pretty sure I was back in control, but I took a couple of steps closer to Garrett. Somehow I sensed if I started to lose it again, he’d help me. “I’m transgender. Female to male. The guy said something about teaching me to enjoy the body I was born with. Their church is really messed up, and I believe Gene told him to do it because they don’t approve of me being trans.”
&nb
sp; Nate swore. “I’m glad you burned the fu—idiot. You are what you are. What the hell did they think they were doing?”
“People with strong beliefs sometimes go about them the wrong way,” Garrett said. He looked at me with a raised eyebrow.
I nodded to let him know I was okay.
“On top of the threats against Shad, one of the men tried to use mind control to cause him to kill himself,” Garrett said. “They have abilities. Kellan wasn’t aware of it before, so I’m not sure if his stepfather has them or only the other two men.”
“Either way, it makes them more dangerous,” Derek said. “If one of them can control minds, we might be screwed.”
“Not if we control his first,” Charlotte said. “Don’t forget some of us have that ability.”
Apparently now she was on my side. Or at least not on Gene’s side, which was close enough to the same thing. I still didn’t like her, but I was willing to tolerate her if she gave me the same courtesy.
“The most important thing is to make sure they can’t get to Kellan,” Garrett said. “We’re on lockdown until we’re sure the threat has passed. No one leaves without checking in with me or Mireille, and no one comes in unless she or I let them in. If you have friends coming over, clear it with us first. I’m sorry to have to do this, but we need to keep everyone safe.”
“I’ll get in touch with those who aren’t home,” Mireille said. “They’ll have to check in when they’re on their way back. And they’ll have to defend themselves if anyone threatens them.”
“Does anyone else feel like we’re in a comic book about that group of mutants?” Treese said.
“No, you’re the only mutant here,” Derek replied.
She swatted his arm, and he laughed.
“This is no joke,” Garrett said. “Some of you have been in this situation before. Remember Marian?”
“She brought them here,” Nate said. “She wasn’t in trouble. She was causing it.”
“True, but it’s the same result.” Garrett stood up. “Shad said the men know where Kellan is, so they’re almost definitely on the way. They might not be able to find the house, but they’ll be trying. So again, lockdown. Check in before you leave the house or if you have anyone coming over. Don’t wander around by yourself.”
“I’m supposed to meet some friends in the city later,” Treese said. “Does this mean I cancel my plans?”
“It means I’ll drive you to the train, and I’d like you to find out whether one of your friends can meet you there,” Garrett said. “If not, be very alert to what and who is around you. You should be safe enough on a train even if you aren’t with anyone else, because there will still be plenty of people around you. If the men who are looking for Kellan are smart, they won’t try anything where they would be seen.”
“They might not even realize you’re one of us,” Mireille said. “Keep yourself shielded.”
“Definitely comic book time,” Treese said. “Shields up and hiding in plain sight.”
“This is not a joke,” Garrett said again.
“Dark humor, Garrett. If we don’t laugh, we’ll lose it.” Treese shrugged. “Okay, fine, so it isn’t a joke. I am aware of that.”
“Good.” He paused. “Okay. Mireille, go ahead and contact the others. Derek and Nate, I’d like one of you with Kellan at all times inside the house. At least until Royce, Eben, and Damian return.” He held up a hand. “No, you don’t have to go to the bathroom with him.”
Most of them laughed. I didn’t. When Garrett assigned people to follow me around even inside the house, it hit me exactly how serious this was. Gene and his pals could walk right in and take me no matter what we did. It would have helped if we knew what their abilities were and whether Gene had any, but we only knew one of them could control minds. And one was probably a finder.
“Shad said the incident happened early this morning,” Garrett said. “He estimates about 3:00 a.m. our time. If they are aware Kellan’s in the Boston area, they may already be here. They might have been able to get a last-minute flight. Go about your regular routines. Do your homework if you have any. Watch TV. Whatever you would typically do. You’ll know if there’s a problem.”
He nodded to Mireille, who opened the door. “Go ahead.”
I took that to include Lauren and me, even though I wasn’t sure he’d finished his discussion with us. We followed everyone else out of the room. Garrett didn’t stop us.
“We have a game room.” Lauren walked beside me down the hall. “Video games, board games, and even a pool table. We can play something.”
“Yeah.” I didn’t know anything about video games. Before Mom had met Gene, she’d said I was too young for them. And of course after she’d met him, video games just plain weren’t allowed.
“Do you know how to play Furious Fifty?” Derek asked. He was walking right behind us, apparently taking Garrett’s direction seriously.
“I don’t know what it is,” I said.
“It’s the biggest video game of the last five years, that’s all.” Charlotte wasn’t far behind. And she hadn’t lost much of her sarcasm, even if hearing what had happened to me at home had knocked her down a few notches. “Where did you live before, a cave?”
“A house in Arizona,” I snapped. If she was going to be annoying, I’d throw it right back at her. “With a very religious stepfather who didn’t believe video games or most TV shows were acceptable entertainment.”
“The same über-religious dude who wanted to have you raped because you’re trans?” Something thudded behind us. “Yeah, he’s wicked good at judging what’s acceptable, huh?”
“Charlotte, chill,” Lauren said. “You knocked down a lamp in the living room.”
Charlotte muttered a curse word. “It pisses me off. No one deserves that.”
“Right.” Lauren stopped and turned to face her. So did Derek and I. “No one does. You know it as well as anyone.”
I didn’t need psychic powers to figure out Charlotte was so infuriated by what had happened to me because something similar had happened to her. Something worse, judging from her reaction. I felt bad for her, but I tried not to. If she was anywhere near as tough as she acted, she wouldn’t want pity any more than I did.
“Yeah, I know.” Charlotte took a deep breath. “I’m going to go pick up the lamp before Garrett or Mireille notices. I’ll catch up with you guys in the game room.”
“I thought you were going to the beach,” I said.
“Maybe, maybe not. I wouldn’t be leaving for a while anyway.” She turned and walked away.
The game room was in the finished basement, and it was huge. Stuffed couches and chairs surrounded a pair of large-screen TVs. One TV had a video game system attached. The other had a cable box and a Blu-ray player. Behind one group of couches was a pool table with the balls already racked.
Nate came down while I was still standing there trying to figure out what to do first. At home after Gene came along, my choices had been read a book—preferably the Bible—or play a preapproved board game with my sisters. Not exactly exciting or fun, but I didn’t have any other options thanks to Gene. A few times I went to friends’ houses and watched TV or watched them play video games. I wasn’t allowed to play because I didn’t know how, and I didn’t have many friends anyway, especially after I came out as trans.
“Welcome to Winthrop,” Nate said. “You’re not the first one who’s had someone after them when they showed up here. Don’t listen if anyone gives you a hard time about it.”
“I’m trying not to.” I couldn’t help blaming myself. If I’d been more careful in Albuquerque and Denver, Gene and his friends might not have been able to follow me. I shouldn’t have left any trace at all, but I had. In both places. I’d been way more visible in Denver, but burning the desk clerk in New Mexico hadn’t been the brightest thing.
If I were still here after all this was over, I’d ask someone to teach me better control of the pyrokinesis. I’d done okay in
Garrett’s office, because now I knew what to expect. I recognized the signs, and I’d already learned some skills to hold it in. I still had a ways to go, though. I couldn’t always ask people to stay away from me if I felt like I was about to lose it.
Derek turned on the TV with the game console. “I want to play Furious Fifty. Anyone else?”
“I’ll play.” Nate plopped down on one of the couches. “Kellan?”
“I don’t know how to play video games.” I didn’t feel as weird admitting it to these guys as I had to my friends back home. “My stepfather didn’t allow them in the house, and my friends wouldn’t let me play at their houses. I kind of blew up one girl’s system.”
“Blew it up?” Lauren sat on another of the couches and crossed her legs as if she were sitting on the floor. “How?”
“She let me play, and all of a sudden the picture started flickering. Then the controls stopped working.” The girl had blamed me for it, of course. At the time I hadn’t seen any way I could have done it, so we’d had a huge fight. I hadn’t even thought about it in the four years or so since it happened. She dropped me as a friend right afterward. I was in the process of figuring out I was trans, so I didn’t miss her friendship because I didn’t really want to be friends with girls at that point.
“Psychic energy can mess with electronics sometimes,” Nate said. “I crashed about five computers at my school before I figured it out. I knew a guy who couldn’t wear watches or even own clocks because his energy field messed them up.”
“Maybe you shouldn’t play, Kellan,” Derek said. “These things are expensive.” He laughed.
So did I. He obviously wasn’t being mean or anything. He was trying to make a joke out of something I couldn’t help, something that would have been a little scary otherwise. Dark humor, like Treese had said. Treese, who hadn’t come to the game room with the rest of us. For some reason that worried me.
“Where did Treese go?” I asked.
“She had homework to do before she goes to the city,” Derek said. “And she isn’t feeling well. She gets migraines when there’s stuff going on.”
