I ran upstairs to the room Jessica and Gerry shared. For siblings, they always got along fairly well, but I knew Jessica dreamed of a separate bedroom. The walls were gender neutral red. A mini television was resting on top of an XBOX 360 on top of a large dresser drawer that they both shared. It was positioned on the opposite end of their bunk beds, which occupied the right side of the room. A writing desk like mine sat under their window with a decent view of the woods. The moon shone right through it.
What amazed me was Jessica and Gerry who were sitting in the middle of the room. A pencil floated in the air between them. Jessica waved her right hand while Gerry waved his left. It was some kind of tug of war.
Jessica said, “You are going to have give up eventually, jerk face.”
Gerry laughed maniacally. “And let you win? Never! Do not call me jerk face.”
Jessica waved her arm across her body, sending the pencil across the room. She said, “That is 20 to 0. You done yet?”
Talk about me being intimidated. Finally I had someone that understood and lived through what I was going through but she was the one that had the powers. How could I ever impress someone like that? I lightly wiped my face to erase my stupid thoughts.
Jessica brushed her brilliant red hair out of her eyes that shone under their bedroom light. She said, “We have a visitor, Gerry,” and invited me to sit next to her.
I attempted to play it cool with diminishing returns, “How did you do it?”
She smiled happily, “That was one of my secrets I wanted to tell you, but now I have the chance to show you. Pick an object in the room.”
“Anything?”
Gerry frowned, “Get on with it, Alan.”
I picked a note pad that sat by itself on the writing desk. Jessica gave me a mischievous look and went to go grab it and bring it in the middle of the three of us. She opened it up.
She said, “What would you like me to do with it?”
I responded, “You are going to make me choose?”
“Fine,” she giggled as she began waving her hands around the notepad counter clockwise and then reversed directions.
Slowly, a few of the pages began to tear themselves from the pad and float around the room. I had to duck a few times to avoid having my head torn off by a mean paper cut.
Jessica spread her fingers and twirled them around. The sheets began to fold themselves in rhythm with the way she was moving. One sheet folded itself into a paper frog and another folded into a tiger. The last sheet landed underneath them, where the frog and tiger playfully chased each other. They flew around the room like they were on a magic carpet until they landed in the middle of our small circle.
Jessica laughed at me. I hadn’t realized my jaw was hanging open. I reached my arm up and wiped the drool from my mouth. I said, “That was, uh, pretty cool.”
Gerry, who had a fantastic ability to let you know how dumb you were, said, “Not that cool. It is nothing compared to the things she’s really capable of, but we have to keep it under wraps because we’ve been living in Ashton.”
Jessica interrupted, “Ever since he learned about Draio’s existence he has hated living here even more.”
“Why didn’t you tell me about all of this?” I said.
“And have you run away from me like every other boy I have tried to show my abilities to?” She said. “You had to learn on your own. I just wished it was under better circumstances, you know?”
I nodded my head, “Yeah, better circumstances.”
I looked at Gerry, “What can you do?”
He gleefully sat on his bottom bunk and said, “Useful things,” as he flicked his wrists, switching the TV on. He blinked his right eye to make the channels flip forward.
I said, “I shouldn’t have asked,” and laughed with Jessica.
She said, “So, what do you think of all of this?”
“Your father says we might be joining him in London to hunt down Lathon. I have a sneaking suspicion that my parents might be there too.”
Gerry broke in, “It sounds like an amazing idea. Anything is better than Ashton.”
Jessica turned around to him, “You do not know any better, Gerry.”
I faintly could see his eyes watering as Gerry said, “I could have known better.”
Jessica said, “We hope our dad will take us to Draio when this is all over. I want to live there.”
“But, it is burnt up. There is nothing there but a school,” I responded.
“We can rebuild it. It would be cool if you could come too. I’d appreciate the company.”
Gerry scoffed, “What am I? Chopped liver?”
Jessica punched him in the knee to which Gerry mock rubbed from the pain. She said, “You are okay, too.”
Anxious, I left their room and looked over the edge of the staircase.
Jessica called after me, “What is it?”
“He’s been gone a long time. Your Dad.”
“He will be back. He is only going a neighborhood over, silly.”
Something didn’t feel right. I knew that with how fast LeCarre could move, it should not have taken him that long to grab some of my stuff and return.
Jessica said, “If you are going to worry all of the time like this, Draio life may not be for you.”
I mumbled, “I’m beginning to think that too.”
I stumbled down the stairs and opened the front door. There was no one outside of their homes and there was no sign of any Silhouettes. I said, “Jessica? Come here, please.”
Jessica stopped at the top of the stairs, “What is it?”
“You know how you said I worry too much?”
“Yes.”
I said, “Well I don’t think that is going to stop unless we run over to my house and make sure everything is ok.”
Jessica rolled her eyes and returned to the room. I thought I had lost her interest for a moment but then she returned wearing a light jacket. She said, “Lead the way. Gerry is coming too.”
“Perfect.”
We headed out of the house and into the street. Jessica decided to make a game of it and we all ran at full speed out of the neighborhood and into mine. I luckily was able to keep up with her speed with the experience I had been gaining from running for my life. Still, we paused at the head of my neighborhood once we got to it so I could refresh.
Jessica laughed at me, “Doomsday does not wait for you to catch your breath.”
I winked at her and took off in the direction of my house. I knew she and her brother were running just behind me but I couldn’t believe I was winning. It was almost a little satisfying until I saw the golden creature running across the street from my home.
I screamed, “Peaches!”
She spotted me and galloped in my direction. I could see in her widened eyes that she was traumatized. I leaned down so she could cuddle up into my arms as she whimpered. I knew she was a scaredy cat most of the time, but I sensed something was definitely off kilter.
I said, “What is it?”
Her nose pointed in the direction of the house and I witnessed the first sign of trouble: The front door was lying in a scrap pile in the front yard.
The Silhouette (Alan Quinn and the Second Lifes) Page 32