by John O'Riley
“Don’t get caught,” Julie said.
“You trust Lynette to keep quiet about this?”
“Yes, she’ll be okay with this.”
Jeremy wasn’t sure Lynette would be so accepting of this plan but she surprised him by taking the news easily. He didn’t sense any deception or concern from her. She seemed to feel it was necessary and accepted the need for the deception. The two of them made the trip over to the mental care facility and stepped into the lobby. They flashed their badges to the receptionist who immediately called a doctor by the name of Tom Zimmerman. He had a harried air about him as he burst into the room. Jeremy and Lynette introduced themselves as they briefly displayed their badges.
“We need to ask you a few questions about the patients,” Jeremy said.
“I’ll do what I can but you’ll need to understand that limits of confidentiality may apply,” Doctor Zimmerman said guardedly.
“Have any of the patients been behaving unusually or has there been any trouble lately?” Jeremy asked.
“I already explained what’s happened to you guys when I reported the missing patient,” Zimmerman said with a touch of exasperation.
Jeremy delved into his mind to pull in any stray thoughts that may be useful. The doctor had called the police earlier because a patient had somehow escaped. Everyone in the lobby had somehow been knocked unconscious without any physical damage to their bodies but there had been some drops of blood by the front door. The patient who escaped was named Rose. The surveillance camera had filmed the occurrence but there hadn’t been time to watch the tapes before the police had arrived to collect them.
“I know you already explained this but can you think carefully about Rose and her behavior before the escape?” Jeremy said. “Is there anything you might not have thought of when you talked to the officers who had first arrived on the scene?”
Zimmerman frowned in thought. He hadn’t remembered anything strange about Rose but he could vaguely remember now that two of the orderlies had complained several times about her being creepy. They couldn’t list anything concrete about her but had just said that there had been something disturbing about her as if she may become cognizant at any moment and attack. Zimmerman quickly brushed aside these fleeting thoughts as irrelevant.
“You thought of something important,” Jeremy said. “Rose had disturbed one or more of the orderlies.”
“How did you know that?” Zimmerman said with astonishment.
“Your body language indicated what you were thinking and I took a hypothetical guess,” Jeremy said smoothly. “Can you tell me if they said anything specific about her behavior?”
“No, they didn’t. They couldn’t name any reasons for their feelings.”
“I would like to talk to them,” Jeremy said.
“All right but we’re extremely busy. Can you get by with talking to just one of them?” Zimmerman asked.
“I suppose that will have to do.”
Zimmerman called an orderly by the name of Ken into the room.
“Hi,” he said guardedly.
“These are police officers who are doing follow up questions about Rose’s escape,” Zimmerman said. “I’m not sure why it’s so difficult for them to track down an insane woman who should stick out like a sore thumb in public.”
“It’s just a little bit harder to track down one person among millions than to make sure they don’t escape from a fully staffed mental facility,” Jeremy said coolly.
Zimmerman’s jaw clenched but he didn’t offer a response.
“Tell me about Rose,” Jeremy said to the orderly.
“She suffers from severe disassociative disorder and autism. We can’t be sure how aware she is of her surroundings because she’s so unresponsive. She just lays down or sits in the same spot that you leave her unless you have her move. She rarely does anything on her own,” Ken said. “She gives me the creeps. It feels like she might just suddenly attack me without warning.”
“Why do you feel that way?” Jeremy asked.
“It’s just a feeling,” Ken said.
“Think carefully. Is there anything else about her behavior that is unusual?” Jeremy asked.
He probed deeply into Ken’s mind and realized there was something strange that shouldn’t be there. An energy imprint that was related to what he’d found in Emily’s mind. It wasn’t exactly the same but oddly similar. Jeremy tried tuning into the energy signature but couldn’t do it. Unfortunately, he didn’t have the time to concentrate for very long. He and Lynnette asked several more questions then left the building.
“You found something, didn’t you?” Jeremy asked as they approached his car.
“Yes, I was touching various objects in the room to get impressions. Rose did something to weaken the psychic imprints. When she sent out the psychic pulse, it left an imprint of her intention behind. She feels threatened by Emily and Nathan and intends on keeping them unconscious until her plans are achieved. She is extremely powerful – stronger than we can imagine. It’s like there’s some sort of energy that is all around us and she can tap into it,” Lynette said.
“That’s disturbing,” Jeremy said. “Do you think we’ll be able to protect Emily and Nathan from further attacks?”
“I don’t know. It doesn’t seem like it’s possible.”
A chill of foreboding crawled down the back of Jeremy’s spine as he wondered if Rose would soon consider him a threat as well. Obviously, Emily and Nathan were the strongest precognitives and their abilities would somehow reveal Rose’s plan before she could complete it. It was imperative that they awaken soon.
“I wonder how much time we have before it’s too late to stop her,” Jeremy said gravely.
“She’s so strong I’m not sure that it’s possible to stop her even now,” Lynette said.
When they returned to the Phoenix Center, Jeremy took his turn watching over Emily with Skylar. Kate had finally taken a break and was gone. Jeremy fervently wished there was something he could do to help her. For hours, he tried breaching the barrier that ensnared her mind but once again failed to achieve any results. It was after midnight and Jeremy was debating how much longer he should keep vigil before going to bed when he sensed an intruder’s presence. He immediately contacted Julie telepathically so she could round up reinforcements. Jeremy pushed back against the intruder but found the individual so strong that he could only delay the arrival. The attacker approached Emily and energy pulsed around her, strengthening the imprisonment of her mind. Jeremy struck out savagely against the attacker and abruptly realized it was Rose. He had suspected but now her image flashed in his mind and he knew for sure. She obstinately continued working on Emily even as Jeremy continued to push her back. Julie and a large group of telepaths were suddenly there helping him. Rose was forced to halt and unexpectedly and she linked with Jeremy. He sensed her cold anger directed at him as he hadn’t allowed her to finish.
“You’re going to be sorry you did that,” Rose threatened. Her anger changed to surprise. “You’re Jeremy Winters.”
“I’m not going to let you kill my sister.”
“I’m not killing her. She needs to be kept out of the picture for awhile longer. I don’t want complications. Unfortunately, you’re a problem since in the original timeline you were dead. How is this possible?”
“Leave her alone. You have no right to attack her,” Jeremy said menacingly.
“You’re a multipath and you were supposed to die about a week after the electrical storm. I wonder if you’re part of the reason things haven’t gone quite right,” Rose said.
Her mind began to wrap itself around Jeremy but he pushed enough to prevent her from gaining a firm grip. He could tell she was trying to trap him in a coma like Emily but suspected she would kill him once he was incapacitated. Rose continued her efforts for awhile longer before abruptly leaving. Fatigue swamped through Jeremy’s body and he sat down heavily on a chair.
“Are you all right?” Skylar aske
d.
“I’m just tired and frustrated,” Jeremy said.
“She tried to put you in a coma,” Skylar said.
“Yes, she did,” Jeremy confirmed.
He stayed up late to keep an eye on Emily but finally had to retire to bed. Unfortunately, he woke up with a terrible headache and realized he’d made a mistake. It was late in the morning so he quickly shaved, showered, and changed into a clean pair of jeans and sweatshirt before checking in on his sister whose condition remained the same. Kate and a telepath he didn’t recognize were posted in her room. Jeremy went downstairs for a quick bite to eat and met with Julie to discuss a few important scheduling matters before returning to Emily’s room. He spent all day trying to tune into the entrapment that kept Emily in a coma to no avail. For some reason, it was impossible for him to affect it in any way. He lost track of time and found himself dozing in the chair next to her bed.
A precognitive vision abruptly replaced a dream. Images of Psi-Tech, Rose, and Kevin flashed through his mind. He saw newspaper articles featuring the expansion of Psi-Tech by the opening of new facilities across the country. An impending sense of doom crashed over him as dark images swirled uncontrollably through his mind faster than he could make sense of. One vision pertained to his sister dying. There was chaos in the United States following a government collapse and anarchy. Jeremy saw Psi-Tech becoming a government entity controlling the states of Washington, Oregon, and Idaho. Other disturbing events rushed through too quickly for him to remember. He abruptly awakened to find Skylar and Kate standing over him with anxious expressions on their faces.
“What did you see?” Kate asked.
Jeremy hesitated before telling them what little he could remember.
“I saw the same thing. We have to save Emily,” Kate said.
“How can we do that?” Skylar asked.
“We need to have a meeting with Julie,” Jeremy said.
“She’s not going to come up with any ideas that you couldn’t think of yourself,” Skylar scoffed.
“You might be surprised,” Jeremy said.
He left the room to find Julie who was currently working in her office. She glanced up at him then frowned with concern.
“What’s happened?” she asked.
Jeremy explained the situation and Julie nodded slowly in acknowledgement.
“I’ve been thinking about a plan but I’m not sure I could convince people to follow through with it. I wouldn’t have mentioned it or even tried except for the dire circumstances. I’m sure with what you’ve told me, it would motivate a lot of people to help out,” Julie said crisply.
“What exactly is this plan?” Jeremy asked.
“It involves linking with Emily and helping her to break out of her mind,” Julie said.
“We would risk a high probability of being trapped in comas along with Emily,” Jeremy pointed out.
“Not if we had a large enough group linking together,” Julie said. “I was thinking we could get fifty or so people to go along with it.”
“How could you possibly convince that many people to take such a risk?” Jeremy asked.
“I’m sure you and Skylar will volunteer.”
“Definitely. Now we only need forty-eight more people to join us,” Jeremy said flippantly.
“Trust me. I can do this,” Julie said confidently.
Jeremy was taken aback by her strident tone. She never failed to surprise him with her ability to achieve great things. He never would have expected that their psychic network would grow to over five hundred people. It was so large now that he no longer felt any changes when new members joined which happened constantly throughout the day.
“I’ll get back to you on my progress in the morning,” Julie said.
“Thank you for helping me with this,” Jeremy said gratefully.
“You’re welcome. Now, get some rest,” Julie ordered.
The following morning, Jeremy found his mother and Skylar eating breakfast with Julie and her husband, Ryan. He joined them with a bowl of granola and some orange juice.
“I’ve got terrific news.” Julie smiled at him. “We’ve got eighty-two people who will be ready to link with you and Emily at eight o’clock sharp.”
“How did you do that?” Jeremy asked.
“I have my ways but really it involves a little bit of deception,” Julie admitted. “After I explained the gravity of the situation to each member, I insinuated that I already had fifty people who’d volunteered so that there would be practically no risk. Compared to the precognitive vision you had as well as the ones the other precognitives had in our psychic network, people were very receptive.”
“I’m impressed,” Jeremy said.
He found it difficult to eat breakfast but forced himself to do so. He didn’t want his body weak while he linked with Emily in a couple of hours. When the time finally came for them to act, the four of them gathered in her room. At around eight o’clock, Jeremy’s mind was flooded with telepaths who had volunteered for this assignment. He waited until several minutes after the time because stragglers kept arriving. Finally, Jeremy reached out to his sister’s mind. Unfortunately, he couldn’t ease into it. After spending several moments trying this, he forced his way in. Emily’s mind exploded with pain and Jeremy cringed and telepathically apologized to her.
Her mind was too deeply embedded within the imprisoning energy to respond to his contact. As a group, they delved deeper into her consciousness. Suddenly, a surge of power burst from her for no apparent reason. Jeremy, Skylar, Kate, and Julie were tossed like rag dolls across the room. An unnatural chill dominated the air as Emily abruptly sat up screaming. Her black eyes stared sightlessly forward as the lights flickered. Jeremy felt the absence of her presence in the psychic network like an aching loss and realized that this was what had killed his sister in his vision. They had somehow torn her loose from their link and triggered multipathic abilities which would block her from reestablishing a connection with them. Multipaths always died within a week from the point that their abilities awakened. Jeremy swallowed a huge lump that swelled in his throat as he berated himself for effectively murdering his sister and subsequently propelling the events that led to the collapse of the U.S. government and anarchy.
Chapter 19
Kevin was still sleeping as Rose finished her breakfast in the large, luxurious two-story house in Redmond. She was certain that even if Sharon figured out that she was working with Kevin, she wouldn’t be able to track this house down. Rose’s future self had arranged the purchase of this property through someone that implicitly trusted her and followed the complicated set of instructions given. Rose had three fake ID’s waiting for her here and one of those was the owner of the house. A pleased smile curved her lips as she reviewed the plans in her mind and silently congratulated herself on a job well done. Very soon, she and Kevin would become very powerful political figures.
Unfortunately, Rose hadn’t heard from her future self as planned which meant that the outcome of events may not go as she had anticipated. She stepped in her bare feet in the backyard. A myriad of fruit trees and evergreens spread around her and offered privacy from neighbors. Rose strolled to the large slab of quartz crystal embedded in the ground facing the small pond. She sat down on the quartz platform and activated her very unique talent to communicate with herself during different time periods. It had some severe limits but gave her a huge advantage over her enemies. One of the strange quirks of her ability was that it was far easier to communicate with herself the greater the distance in the timeline. Rose frowned with puzzlement as she went as far toward the end of her life as possible. She would simply touch base with her oldest self and download the memories she’d accumulated which would provide her with more than two hundred years of additional information, practice, and memories. It was strange that she was having trouble making contact. It should have been easy because of the vast distance of time. Rose finally received a response and stilled at the unfamiliarity of
the mind she met with.
“You shouldn’t be doing this,” her future self said.
“What do you mean? I need to know how our new plans will shape up.”
“Things aren’t going to go as you predicted but everything will turn out for the best.”
“You feel very different,” Rose commented.
“The years have changed me. You should go now.”
“No. We must link our memories together so I know what happens.”
“All right,” her future self said reluctantly.
Rose eagerly established the memory link and hurriedly pulled at the information, embracing it into herself before her future self could change her mind. She quickly realized that events were indeed drastically different as was her character and mind. Rose had somehow become weaker and this weakness threatened to contaminate her present self. She tried to block the link but the memories continued to flow as her future self kept it open. Fury raged through Rose as she collected herself and roughly broke the upload.
“What in the hell do you think you’re doing?” Rose demanded. “You’ve become weak and you’re dragging me down with you. Don’t you realize that if you give me your memories that you’ll ruin my ability to correct what’s happened while you’re in your current state?”
“Things have changed. You don’t need to do the terrible things you’re about to do. I want things to be different,” her future self said passionately.
“I don’t care what you want!” Rose screamed furiously. “What’s happened to you?”
“No matter how much you change things and no matter how many new goals you meet, you’ll never be happy. When you get to be older, you’ll wish you hadn’t carried through with your plans.”
“You’re wrong.” Rose seethed at the lack of cooperation she received. An idea suddenly struck. “Someone from Phoenix Enterprises is going to figure out what I’m doing. Tell me who is the key.”
“I’m not going to tell you anything.”
“I knew Phoenix Enterprises was a threat. That company is completely out of my control and Jeremy keeps ruining my plans,” Rose said. “I’m going to have to kill him.”