by L. J. Fox
This thought freaked her out. She couldn’t stand the thought that anyone would harm her grandparents. Andy suggested they drive up to Katunga next weekend and talk to her grandparents. She fought the idea for a while, knowing how furious her grandparents would be for telling Andy about the gifts, and how worried they would be about her. Eventually she agreed that they needed to be brought into the loop. She owed it to them. If there were any secrets they were keeping from her, then this was the time to find out. This would give her something to think about for the next six days.
Chapter 19
The next six days seem to drag by for Layne. She felt that both her and Andy were keeping up appearances, pretending everything was fine when they were on full alert at all times. Following her and bugging Andy’s room were bad enough. Gregory seemed involved somehow, and she worried about what else they could potentially do.
She only visited Andy’s room once during the week. To not visit would have been too obvious that she knew the bugs were in place. The hour she spent at Andy’s unit was a play-acting role where they both pretended to study. It was all very innocent and simple. As previously planned, they talked about their plan to spend the weekend studying in the Common room and eating pizza. Later they giggled at the thought that bugs would be planted in the Common room.
The idea was to throw the unseen enemy off the scent so they could drive up to Katunga. If the unseen enemy were monitoring their accommodation and common room, then the easier for them to slip away. Layne felt guilty but she couldn’t even tell Amity where they knew Amity would not be able to keep the secret and most likely tell Gregory.
Later that Sunday after they had visited the market, Amity had trudged into Layne’s room and sat down on the end of the bed. She looked pale with dark circles under her eyes. She did not look like the bubbly Amity that Layne knew. She was withdrawn and lethargic. Layne could detect a chemical smell to her but could not identify what it was. Amity explained that there had been a visit from Gregory the night before. They had enjoyed a few drinks but not what she considered a huge amount of alcohol. The next thing she knew was waking up on Sunday morning. She was highly embarrassed and could not believe she could have crashed after such a small amount of alcohol. Amity was upset at what Gregory would think of her. Tears flowed down her pale cheeks as Layne comforted her, concerned for her safety.
Layne couldn’t tell Amity that she believed Amity had been drugged and knocked out so Gregory could stalk Layne and Andy. All she could do was sympathise with her and assure her that Gregory would be understanding. Poor Amity. Layne hoped the drug would not affect her any further. She certainly didn’t look well on Sunday.
Andy was angry when he found out about Amity. He knew that she could have been seriously harmed. They worried how they could go away on the Saturday and leave Amity alone. The unknown enemy were upping the danger factor.
Classes were interesting for the week. Andy positioned himself where he could watch Gregory who was watching Layne. Lunch times were normal with a group of them eating together including Gregory. Layne was worried about Amity and her pseudo-relationship with Gregory but just didn’t know what she could do about it. It was a big relief when Amity told her that she was going to spend the following weekend back in Ringwood with her family. She had not seen them since starting the term and she was very excited about seeing her dog again. Layne was very relieved.
They had a plan for Saturday morning, knowing that they both may be watched, and that there were bugs in Andy’s room. They did not want to be followed or give the unknown enemy any indication that they were gone. In case they knew which vehicle was Andy’s, he would drive it on Friday night and pretend it had broken down just up the road. Andy had spent many hours with his mechanic father growing up and knew exactly what to do to his car for it to appear broken down.
Andy would record audio of himself lightly snoring and play it on Saturday morning so the people listening to the bug would think he was still in bed. He would then race to meet Layne who was to climb out of the window and climb down the fire escape. Together they would sneak out to the car and away they would go.
Chapter 20
The plan went smoothly and in the early hours of Saturday morning they were driving north towards Katunga. The drive usually took around 2 ½ hours but they wanted to be careful not to be picked up for speeding, so they drove carefully and sedately. Along the way, the sun rose to their right, the first golden rays lighting the road.
“There are a few other things you should know before we get there.”
Layne announced as they headed up the freeway. Andy gripped the steering wheel a bit tighter.
“Go on.” Andy sounded worried. Was she going to tell him that she was really an alien?
“I want you to know everything, so nothing shocks or surprises you when we are there.”
As the situation had worsened, she had realised she would have to tell Andy more than originally intended. Also, once in front of her grandparents it would be difficult to let them know that he only knew part of the story. She had gone this far with owning up, she may as well go all the way.
Andy braced himself.
She took a deep breath. “Apart from the strong senses, I also heal. My body heals fast.”
He glanced across at her trying to understand what she was telling him. “From injury? How fast?”
“I have never really been sick or injured. A cow accidentally pushed me against a barbed wire fence when I was younger, and I cut my leg open, right down the side of my shin. It was deep in some parts and the skin was a bit shredded. There was much debate over whether to take me to the doctors for stitches, but they decided against it. The skin had grown across by the next day and the scar was gone within four days.”
Andy glanced across at her confused. “Why wouldn’t they take you to the doctor? What’s wrong with a doctor?”
“Well … I guess they have always been worried that a doctor might be able to tell I am different … somehow, especially if I heal quickly. That might freak a doctor out.”
Andy nodded slowly, wondering how a doctor may behave when confronted with a little girl who heals in front of his eyes.
“I have never had a tooth filling; I have never had a broken bone or caught a cold. I have never seen a doctor or dentist or been in hospital.”
He chuckled. “You are like a super-human being. You are perfect. Just what I was looking for.”
“I am not perfect” she giggled.
“Tell me something about yourself that is not perfect.” He challenged.
She paused. “Well … I … I … I don’t like Vegemite.”
“Ha! That doesn’t count.”
“The other thing I want to talk about is my parents. I don’t know much about them. I tell people that they died in a car crash, because it is easier to say that. People don’t ask questions if they think they were killed in a car accident. They just say sorry to hear it, but to tell the truth, we don’t know where they are. They went missing when I was three years old. They took me to my grandparents to look after me while they travelled north, and no one knows where they are. Their car was found abandoned on a public road, but they have never been found.”
“God, Layne. How horrible. I am so sorry. No wonder they are so protective of you.”
“I have some memories of them but not much. We will need to talk about them with my grandparents and I know my grandmother will cry. She always gets upset and my father was her only child.”
“That’s incredibly sad.” Andy thought of his own parents, and how he would feel if something happened to them.
Do you think the two things are linked in some way?” he asked.
“What do you mean?”
“The disappearance of your parents and now someone following you?”
He glanced across at her. He didn’t want to scare her but both events were extremely suspicious. She stared out the window deep in thought. That idea had never crossed her mind at al
l.
“I don’t think so. That was sixteen years ago. I can’t see how it would be related.”
Layne was quiet for a few minutes and then she said softly.
“I wonder about my other grandparents. Who are they? Why have I never met them? Did my parents have any gifts? The other thing I should mention is that my grandparents will be really angry with me for telling you about all this.” She looked across at him.
“It will be ok. When they realise the possible danger, they will be glad I am involved.” He hoped.
They arrived in the township of Katunga around 8am and the town was just coming to life. The farm was a few kilometres further on. She found she was excited to see her grandparents and the house again, and she was excited to be showing Andy. By now her grandparents would have had breakfast, being early risers, finished milking and would be pottering around outside feeding the animals. This was a perfect time to arrive. They should be right at the end of their chores.
As they pulled up in the circular driveway next to the old two storey weatherboard farmhouse, Layne asked Andy to drive the car into an old shed to the far right of the house. She just felt safer with the car out of sight on the off chance that the unknown enemy came looking for her, or parked at the front gate like they used to.
By the time they had parked the car and stepped out, Sally and Bon had run in and were jumping all over Layne in excitement. She laughed and bent down to pat the two of them. They walked out of the shed just as her grandparents were heading towards them with a puzzled look on their faces. When they saw Layne, they both broke into a grin. She ran up to them and gave them both a big hug. When the welcome was over, her grandmother stepped back and looked at Layne.
“Is everything ok honey? Why did you drive into the shed?”
Both grandparents were looking from Layne to Andy and back again.
“Let’s go into the house and chat. This is Andy, my friend from uni. Andy – this is Nina and Ross, my grandparents.”
She stepped back to draw Andy closer to them. He held out his hand and shook her grandfather’s hand then nodded at her grandmother.
“Pleased to meet you both.”
Chapter 21
Inside the kitchen, they sat at the kitchen table as Nina brewed coffee. There was some idle chit-chat while Nina finished making the coffee. Her grandparents trying to appear upbeat while they were worried about the visit. Once everyone had a cup in front of them, and Nina had sat down, she spoke.
“You have come to tell us some news?”
She looked from Layne to Andy expectedly. She was trying to keep her face bland of expression, but Layne could see the worry lines.
“Yes” replied Layne. “I wanted to tell you that I am being followed.”
She said it bluntly and watched both their faces for a reaction. Andy was watching them closely too. The reaction was immediate. Her grandmother drew in her breath and seemed to hold it. Her grandfather looked from her to her grandmother and back to Layne. His eyes were wide, afraid.
“Tell us the details.” He said carefully.
“Let me just start by saying that Andy knows about my gifts.”
She saw them both widen their eyes in shock. She knew her grandfather was about to say something, and she guessed it would be a scolding, so she held up her hand for him to wait for her to finish.
“I have had a car following me since I turned eighteen. It is a dark car and there are two men in it. The car used to park behind the trees near the front gate. I also used to see it when I went to town and sometimes near the school.”
She looked from one grandparent to the other. They had a shocked and frightened look on their faces and kept glancing at each other.
“Why have you never told us?” asked her grandfather. She could hear his heart had accelerated in the last couple of minutes.
“I didn’t want you to worry and I knew you would never let me go to Melbourne if you knew. They never came anywhere near me. They just watched me.”
Andy sat quietly sipping his coffee. He would glance from one face to another. Being a good people analyst, he could see that the car following Layne did not come as a surprise to them though they obviously were not aware of it and were horrified at the thought.
“One week into university a new student arrived, and I know he is like me.”
Neither grandparent had touched their coffee, and Andy could see all this was extremely disturbing to them.
“His name is Gregory, and I can’t smell him or hear his heartbeat. He gives me the creeps and is always watching me. He is clearly not there to study but there to watch me. I have no idea why or what he wants. I have been avoiding him. Last Saturday night we were playing cards in my room and I knew he was listening in the hallway.
Her grandfather spoke “You are talking about that serious man we met at the café?”
She nodded and continued. “Sunday morning the black car followed us into town, and Sunday afternoon there were listening bugs planted in Andy’s room. I have had to confide in Andy as it now involves him. They are watching him too, and he had already noticed a few things about me.”
Both grandparents looked across at Andy. Andy spoke for the first time.
“First, let me assure you that you don’t need to worry about me being indiscreet about Layne’s gifts. I have witnessed Gregory’s fixation with watching Layne and I have seen the black car following us. I am taking this very seriously. I don’t want anything to happen to her. She has become very important to me.”
He stressed the last few words and looked across at her as Layne blushed. Nina had been sitting quietly staring at Layne feeling shocked and terrified at the thought that all this time people had been following Layne and they had been unaware. This was the type of thing that the two of them had been worrying about all her life. Ross reached across the table and placed his hand over his wife’s hand.
“We came here today to let you know what is happening ... and to find out if you may know more about this situation.” He looked across from one to the other.
He let the statement sit for a few minutes and then he added.
“I think you do.”
Nina reached across and grasped Layne’s hand. “Oh darling, you should have told us about the people following you. We would have ….”
“What?” Layne asked sharply. “What would you have done? Stopped me from going to Melbourne.”
She said it as a statement rather than a question. Immediately she felt guilty and rubbed her grandmother’s hand.
“I’m sorry Nana. I want to know if you know more. Are you keeping something secret from me?”
Ross and Nina again looked at each other, eyes questioning the other. Both nodded slightly, unspoken agreement.
“We’ll tell you everything we know, but it is not much.” Ross said. He took a sip of coffee and started.
“Your father, Brad, wanted a break from farm life. He was not sure if the farm was for him or not. We understood. He had spent most of his life on this farm and it was all he knew. It is a big world out there and he wanted to go discover it, so he decided to live in Melbourne for a while and try doing some other things. We supported the idea. We didn’t want him to work the farm if his heart was not in it.”
Ross took another sip of coffee. He glanced across at Nina. Her eyes were already starting to tear.
“He used to come home every second weekend to visit and one weekend he brought a girl with him, your mother, Beverley. He was just so totally in love with her. We had never seen him behave like he did with Beverley. He hung on every word she said, and she was the same. Such a lovely girl. She looked like you Layne.”
He gestured to her. She nodded. She had seen the very few photographs in existence. She had one in a frame in her room.
“They both visited every second weekend for about six months. We got to know her quite well and we loved her. Looking back now, we realise that she had gifts but at the time, we put things down to coincidence. It was
a coincidence that she knew I needed to go to a doctor as I have heart problems, or that she knew it was about to rain.”
At the mention of her mother having gifts, Layne sat up straight in her chair. She had never heard this before and had not even thought of it. She had always assumed she was the only one, just a freak mutation or something. Finding out her mother also had gifts changed things for her. She always knew when it was about to rain, and so did her mother. She sometimes knew if someone had a serious medical problem, and so did her mother. She looked across at Andy incredulous and he looked amazed at the revelation as well.
“They got married in the garden here. They didn’t want a wedding with guests and family. It was just a quiet affair with a celebrant and us as witnesses. You have seen the photos Layne.”
She nodded. That photo in a frame took pride of place in the farmhouse lounge room. Layne left the table to pick up the photo. Her mother was wearing a simple, sundress that was white with flowers on it. Her long honey blonde hair was blowing back in the wind. Her father wore black trousers and a white shirt. He had thick brown hair brushed back from his face. He passed the photo to Andy who shook his head at the resemblance between Beverley and Layne.
Her grandmother then picked up the story.
“They continued visiting us regularly and they were so happy and in-love. Then you came along, Layne, and it was the perfect family.” Tears were welling in her eyes.
“You were so gorgeous and incredibly advanced for your age. You were one year old when your Pop had a pacemaker inserted. The next time you visited you sat on his lap and kept putting your ear against his chest. You could barely say any real words and yet you knew there was something different in his chest. There were lots of other signs when you were little, but we never asked Brad about them. We figured he would tell us if we needed to know. We just loved you and your mother and accepted the gifts that you seemed to have.”