“Can you see a license? Anything?”
“It’s got Texas plates.” He leaned his head out the window and tried to focus on the license plate numbers.
“It’s them, Erik. I know it is. I can feel it.” My heart was racing fast. I had the same feeling I’d had with the black sedan back in Minnesota.
“I know. I feel it, too,” Erik said, keeping his eyes on the SUV.
The road I was on started to break off with several country roads intersecting. “Erik, which one?” Before he could answer, a maplike image appeared in my head. It had a gridlike pattern. I could see one line lit up, and I immediately knew to turn right. A green light suddenly appeared on the road in front of me, as if telling me to stay on it.
“Erik, do you see that?” I pointed to the road.
“See what? Sam, I’m trying to get the numbers but you turned and now . . .”
“Look at the road. It’s glowing.” I looked over at him. He was still focused on locating the SUV.
“We lost ’em,” he said. “I’m almost positive they turned into Brittany’s place. We gotta get home.” Erik positioned himself forward again, still holding Brittany with one arm. “Hey, you took the right turn. Guess you were paying attention. Keep going and then turn left at the water tower up ahead.”
“Yeah, I know,” I said. The green line highlighting the road turned left, right by the water tower. “Erik, don’t you see the road? It’s got a bright green light over it. Look!”
“I don’t see anything, Sam. Just drive.”
“It’s like it’s telling me where to go. It’s incredible.”
Erik paid no attention, focusing on what might be following us. When we got back to the farmhouse, I kept quiet about what I had seen. There were too many other things to worry about.
CHAPTER THIRTY
Sisters
We placed Brittany in the basement bedroom where I had been sleeping. She started to wake up shortly after we arrived.
“Mom? Why do I feel so tired? Mom?” Brittany put her hand to her head, likely feeling the effects of the dashboard. She opened her eyes slightly. “Where am I? Mom? What happened?”
Erik was sitting next to her on the bed. Jack and I stood behind him. “Brittany. It’s me, Erik. Remember? I came to your house. You weren’t feeling well. You got dizzy and hit your head. And then you blacked out.” Erik was either good at making up lies or had this planned all along.
“I did? Then why am I here? Where am I?” Brittany asked, looking around the room.
“You’re at my house. I didn’t think I should leave you at your house alone. After hitting your head and all.”
“Yeah, okay, thanks.” She lay back down on the bed, still holding her hand to her head. “Do you have some ice or something?”
“Sure.” He motioned for Jack to go get the ice. I remained quietly in the background. By the time the ice arrived, Brittany had fallen asleep again.
“It’s the sedative,” Jack explained. “It has different effects on people. Some people it knocks out for hours. Others go in and out of sleep.”
While Brittany slept, Erik went upstairs with Jack to get his thoughts on the black SUV. I kept watch over Brittany. Getting a closer look at her, I could see my mom and dad in her. That made sense, of course. She was their daughter. But it was odd seeing the resemblance on her. People used to say I had my dad’s eyes or my mom’s smile, but I didn’t see it. Now, looking at Brittany, I knew what they meant. She was definitely a product of my—our—parents.
Brittany rubbed her eyes and moved onto her side. I looked upstairs, wishing Erik and Jack would hurry back.
“Uhhh, my head.” Brittany was waking up again. I didn’t know what to do. We hadn’t gone over what to tell her. “What am I doing here? And why does my head hurt so much?”
I handed her the ice bag that was next to the bed. “Erik brought you here, remember? You hit your head, so he brought you here to make sure you’re okay.”
“Oh yeah, I kinda remember that,” she said, pressing the ice against her forehead. She held her other arm over her eyes to shield them from the light. “And who are you again?”
I froze, unsure what to tell her. “I’m Erik’s—friend. I’m visiting from, um, California. Los Angeles.”
“That’s cool.” Her speech was slowed from the drugs. “L.A. Wow. I would loooove to go there. Movie stars. Hot guys everywhere. Great clothes. You’re sooo lucky.”
“Yeah,” I said, continuing with the story. “I like it there.”
“So you and Erik are friends? I don’t know hoooow you do it. I could never be friends with a guy that hot. I’d be like, all over him.”
“Erik? Yeah, he’s like a brother to me. We’re just friends.”
“Good. ’Cause I’m sick of my boyfriend. He treats me like crap. I like Erik. He seems nice. And he’s a great kisser.” She smiled to herself.
I wondered if she was lying. Had she really kissed him? And he kissed her back? That wasn’t part of the plan. How dare he? I was surging with jealousy even though I knew I shouldn’t be. Erik and I were just friends. I had made that clear to him. I just hadn’t convinced myself of that.
“Do you need more ice?”
Brittany sat up and took the ice bag from her head. “Here, take it. I don’t think it’s helping. I need aspirin or something.” She handed me the ice bag and finally opened her eyes. She did a double take when she saw me and then just stared.
“What’s going on here?” She bolted from the bed, still a little wobbly from the drugs. “Why do you look like me? Like, almost exactly like me? This is freaky. I’m gettin’ outta here.”
“No, wait. I can explain.” I tried to grab her, but she was already halfway up the stairs and ran right into Erik, followed by Jack.
“Brittany, we need to talk to you,” Erik said. “Go back downstairs.” Brittany started to push against him, but she got dizzy and started to fall. Erik held her up. “Okay. We need to get you to the sofa.” He guided her back down the stairs.
“I don’t wanna talk. I wanna get out of here!” Brittany tried to get up. Erik held her down.
“We’re gonna tell you some things that might sound really strange, but we need you to listen, okay?”
Erik sat next to Brittany as she kept her eyes on the staircase, which Jack was now blocking. Erik proceeded to tell Brittany that she was in danger. He told her about the black SUV headed to her house and how the people in it might be trying to kidnap her. He did a good job of not telling her too much about our connection with GlobalLife. After all, none of us knew if we could trust Brittany to keep her mouth shut if she happened to escape.
“So what’s her story?” Brittany looked over at me. “She looks like me, don’t you think? Just look at her. Do you see it?”
Erik looked at Jack to see if he wanted to take over. Jack nodded for him to go on. “Yeah, she does look like you. You were adopted, right?”
“Yes,” she said slowly. “Wait a minute. Are you saying we’re related? She’s my long-lost cousin or something?”
“No, she’s more than a cousin. She’s your sister. Your twin sister actually.”
Brittany looked at me again, then got up to take a closer look at my face. “No way. Now that I see her again, she doesn’t look that much like me. Just look at me and then look at her. Not to be mean or anything, but come on.” She used her hands to show off her body and then swept her long, straight hair around so it rested on one side of her shoulder. “This,” she pointed at herself again, “is nothing like that.” She pointed at me.
“Brittany, you may not see it, but you do look like her,” Jack said. “You’re practically identical.”
We did look exactly alike, the only difference being our clothes, the way we did our hair, and how much makeup we had on.
“I can’t believe you would say that!” Brittany glared at him, then turned back toward me again. “Look at her hair. It’s all wavy and messy. And she has no makeup on at all. And what i
s she wearing? Jeans and some baggy t-shirt? She’s probably fat under all those clothes.”
I turned away from her, embarrassed and saddened by what she had said. I felt like I was back in middle school being bullied by Caitlyn. I wasn’t going to sit there and listen to more of her insults. I got up and went into the bathroom, slamming the door shut.
I could hear Erik through the door, yelling at Brittany. “How could you say those things?! You just met her. You don’t even know her. You find out she’s your sister and those are the first things out of your mouth? Even if she wasn’t your sister, who talks that way to someone?”
“Okay, okay, enough,” Jack said. “Sam, when you’re done, can you please come out so we can continue this?”
I came out of the bathroom to find Erik sitting on a chair across the room, away from Brittany, who was sitting on the sofa, arms crossed.
“Brittany, this is Sam.” Jack pointed at me, then at Brittany. “Sam, this is Brittany. You two are sisters. End of story. I don’t care if you two get along or don’t get along. The fact is that you’re both in danger. Brittany, some bad people are already after Sam and we are fairly certain they’re coming to get you, too.”
“Why? Because of her?” Brittany wouldn’t look at me. I didn’t understand why she was so mad at me. I hadn’t done anything. I didn’t ask for a sister. And if I’d been able to choose, she would have been the last person I would ever pick.
“It’s a long story, but you can’t blame Sam. These people have been watching you for years. They know everything about you. And now they want to take you.”
“Yeah, whatever.” Brittany stood up. “I’m done listening to this crap. I don’t know why you’re doing this, and I really don’t care. I’m getting the hell out of here.” Brittany walked to the stairs and shoved Jack to get him out of her way. But he was far too strong. He didn’t move an inch. Erik went over and grabbed Brittany around the waist, throwing her back on the sofa and holding her down.
“Let go of me! I swear, I’ll call the cops. You people are going to jail! All of you! That means you, too, sis!” Brittany was fighting Erik, hitting and kicking him.
“Did you even hear a word we said?” Erik was practically sitting on her to keep her still. “People are trying to kidnap you!”
“And what do you call this?” Brittany yelled back at him.
“Bad people are trying to kidnap you. They may even be trying to kill you. We don’t know. But we do know that they’re coming for you either way.”
“Fine. Let them try to get me. I can handle them.” We all looked at her small, thin frame. Even with my enhanced muscle strength, I couldn’t take on men with guns.
“I’ve had to deal with plenty of my mom’s boyfriends. When she’s passed out drunk, and they come after me. Let’s just say, I can take care of myself.”
“These people have guns, Brittany. And explosives,” Erik said. “Think you can fight that?”
“So go to the police. Tell them your story,” Brittany said. “You won’t do it because this is all a lie.”
“The people who are after you have connections within the police. Bad cops being paid to do their dirty work,” Jack explained. “If we go to the police, we could be walking right into the hands of the enemy.”
Brittany got quiet and stopped fighting Erik.
“I think you and Sam should have some time alone,” Jack said. I shot a look his way to indicate that I had nothing to say to Brittany. He ignored it. “Erik?”
Jack went into his lab while Erik headed up the stairs. “I’ll be right upstairs if you need me.” He closed the door at the top of the stairs.
It was just the two of us. Sisters who wanted nothing to do with each other. Brittany got up and started looking around, trying to find anything that might work as a weapon.
“So how long have you known these guys?” Brittany asked as she rifled through the drawers of an old wooden desk that sat in the corner of the room.
“Just met them,” I said coldly.
“You just met ’em?” She stopped and turned to me. “You said you were friends with Erik.”
“I lied,” I said with a blank stare.
“Figures. That’s all you people do is lie.” She slammed the drawer shut, finding nothing, not even a sharp pencil. “You’re staying with complete strangers? You ran away from home and this is the best you could do?” She plopped down on the sofa and put her feet up on the table.
“I didn’t run away from home. Erik didn’t tell you everything. I was captured by the people that are after us. They took me prisoner. They drugged me. They ran tests on me. Very painful tests. After weeks of that, I was somehow able to escape. Honestly, I don’t even know how. It’s all a blur.”
“Why didn’t you go home? Tell your parents?”
I looked at her, realizing that we hadn’t told her about my parents. “They killed my parents.” I said it slow so it would sink in. She looked surprised but wasn’t getting all that I was telling her.
I said it again, even slower. “They killed OUR parents, Brittany.”
She didn’t move. She just stared at her feet on the table. “I thought you were adopted.”
“No. My—our—parents didn’t know about you. We were conceived in a lab. I was given to my—our—parents. You were placed in a surrogate. Then you were adopted.”
I could see her trying to take it all in. Trying to imagine what her parents looked like. What they might have been like. How her life would have been different with them.
“Listen, Brittany. If they knew, I swear, they would have done anything to get you back. Anything.”
“Tell me about them,” she said flatly.
“Um, okay. They were super nice—to everyone, not just people they knew. And they were funny. Well, Dad’s jokes were kind of corny but . . .” I tried to think of what to say. There was so much I missed about them. “Mom really loved holidays. Always made a big deal out of them, decorating the entire house. Dad liked to cook. He made dinner almost every night. And he loved making breakfast. He made great pancakes. Mom always made the eggs. It was one of the few things she could cook. She was more of a baker, always making cookies or cakes.”
I glanced over at Brittany. A stream of tears was running down her face.
“Brittany? Hey, I’m sorry. I said too much.” I went and sat next to her. I felt horrible. I had gone on and on about how wonderful my life had been. How wonderful my parents were. I painted a picture of this perfect home. But it was everything that Brittany had never had. Instead she had an abusive, alcoholic mother who brought home strange men that Brittany had to fight away. She grew up never knowing if her mother would have food on the table. She had to live in a trailer with a partially collapsed roof that probably leaked water when it rained.
“I’m so sorry, Brittany. I really am.”
She sat there, still staring at her feet. “I don’t understand why they would give you a perfect life and put me in hell.” She wiped the tears from her face.
“I don’t know either,” I said, not wanting to tell her Jack’s theory. “That’s what we’re trying to tell you. They’re bad people, Brittany. A person’s life means nothing to them. They use people and they get rid of people. We’re all disposable to them. And I don’t know why. I don’t understand it.”
“I hate you,” she said, looking directly at me.
“What? Why?” I backed away.
“I just do. I hate girls like you. Smart girls. Looking down on girls like me. I hate you.”
“Where did this come from? I never said I was smart.”
“I can tell that you’re smart. Probably got into some fancy college. What are you gonna do now? You’re missing school. Now you won’t graduate.”
“I’m done with school. I graduated early,” I mumbled.
“Hah! Just like I said. Smart. It’s ’cause your parents gave you everything. You had stuff I didn’t have, like violin lessons and dance lessons.”
I wasn�
�t sure what to say. I hadn’t had those things, but I had grown up with plenty of other advantages.
“And I hate you for knowing them. Our parents. You had them all to yourself. For 17 years! And I hate you for that!” Tears started rolling down her cheeks again.
I went to give her a hug but she shoved me back. “DON’T touch me. I don’t care what they say. I am not your sister.” She got up and stormed into the side bedroom, slamming the door behind her.
A few minutes later, Erik came downstairs. “Where is she? What happened?”
“Let’s see. She hates me. She hates me some more. Oh, and just to be clear, she hates me.” I smiled sarcastically. “But I don’t care for her either, so we’re even.”
“Sam. Come on. That’s not fair. How did you think she was going to react?”
“I don’t know, but not like that. She blames me for everything. She even said she hates me because she thinks I’m smart. That doesn’t even make sense.”
He sat down next to me on the sofa. “She’s angry because you had everything she didn’t. Good parents. A house to live in. Food on the table.”
I moved closer to him and lowered my voice in case Brittany was listening. “It’s not my fault that she didn’t have those things. I feel bad for her. Really, I do. But I can’t take the blame for things I had no control over.”
“I know. Just give her some time alone. We dumped a lot on her all at once.”
“Yeah, you’re right. Maybe after she’s given it some thought, she’ll only hate me for 99 reasons rather than 100.”
The door behind us opened and Jack came over. “Sam, I’ve been running more tests on your DNA. We need to talk.”
CHAPTER THIRTY-ONE
Lessons
“Shouldn’t we talk about what to do with Brittany?” Erik asked.
“What’s there to talk about Erik? She’s stuck here. If she goes home she’ll be walking into a trap.” Jack thought for a moment. “Okay, yes, we should talk about it. But I need time to think about that situation. For now, let me show you this.” He set his laptop down on the table in front of us and pushed Erik aside so he could sit between us on the sofa.
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