Hunted (Parallel Series, Book 3) (Parallel Trilogy)

by Christine Kersey

  “Morgan,” Jack said. “I’d like you to meet Susanna.” He gestured toward the woman, who smiled at me. “She’ll be posing as your mother and she’ll be dropping you off at Camp Willowmoss tomorrow.”

  “Oh.” For some reason I’d assumed it would be Dani taking me there.

  “Hi, Morgan,” she said, then glanced at Jack. “Or should I say Hannah.”

  “Who’s Hannah?” I asked.

  “That’s the name that is encoded into your contacts for the retinal scan.”

  “Oh.” I felt like an idiot for not catching on. “Okay.” I turned the name over in my mind, getting used to the feel of it. “What’s my last name?”

  “Jacobs.”

  “Hannah Jacobs,” I murmured.

  “Keep in mind,” Jack said. “Hannah Jacobs is a real person.”

  “What?” This information was unexpected.

  Dani nodded. “That’s right. We had to use a real person. A person who’s been weighing herself regularly. We can’t very well drop you off and give them a name that’s not in their database.”

  “So this Hannah that I’m impersonating, where is she right now?”

  “She’s in a safe place.”

  I didn’t understand. “So, if she weighs the same as me, why didn’t they come pick her up and bring her to a F.A.T. center?”

  “She was using her annual waiver, so they don’t know about her weight gain yet.”

  “Annual waiver? What’s that?” I asked without thinking.

  Dani looked confused. “You don’t know what an annual waiver is?”

  My face flushed and I scrambled to give a reasonable explanation as to why I didn’t know something that any rational person in this world would obviously know. “This whole thing is just stressing me out.”

  “Everyone gets a few weeks a year where they don’t have to weigh themselves,” Nathan said. “You know, like if you go on vacation and a scale isn’t available or something. But you’re not supposed to use it more than, like, three times a year.”

  I smiled at him gratefully, then shook my head like, duh, I knew that. “Oh yeah. Of course.”

  “Anyway,” Dani said. “When she last weighed herself she was close to her weight limit, but not quite there. Then she supposedly went on vacation and now you’ll be dropped off as her and they’ll help you get back on track.”

  I nodded. “So it was weight gained on vacation.”

  “Exactly.”

  I thought about the all-inclusive cruise ship vacation a girl at school—in my other world, obviously—told me about. She’d said it was like a food orgy—people eating constantly. I wondered if those vacations existed here. I kind of doubted it.

  “Hannah’s information is encoded into your contact lenses,” Jack said.

  I wondered what this Hannah Jacobs thought about me using her identity. Did she go along with it willingly?

  “Early tomorrow morning Susanna will pick you up,” Dani said. “The two of you will drive to Camp Willowmoss and she’ll check you in. They won’t be expecting you, but they have procedures in place for drop-offs.”

  I’ll bet, I thought, wondering how the experience would be different from the first time I’d been processed. “You haven’t told me the plan for getting me out.”

  “Yes,” Jack said. “We know.” He glanced at Dani. “Once you finish gathering the information we need, this is how it will go.” He outlined a plan that involved a team stealthily breaking in to Camp Willowmoss and bringing Amy and me out.

  The plan sounded pretty good, although after having gone through an escape once before, I knew things didn’t always go the way they had been planned. “How will you know I’ve gotten all the information you need? And how will I know when you’re coming?”

  “Good questions,” Jack said. “Like we told you before, there is a program embedded in the chip in the glasses that will connect to the wi-fi at Camp Willowmoss. That’s how we’ll download the video you’ve recorded.” He paused. “Unfortunately we won’t be able to warn you when we’re coming, but believe me, when our team gets there, you’ll know.”

  I nodded, not feeling one hundred percent confident, but trusting them nonetheless.

  “You have a very busy day ahead of you tomorrow,” Dani said. “I suggest you get a good night’s sleep. Susanna will be here tomorrow morning at five.”

  And so it begins, I thought. I’d enjoyed sleeping in a bit while staying at Jack’s, but that would become a thing of the past. I told everyone good-night and got ready for bed.

  Not surprisingly, I had a hard time sleeping. I tossed and turned all night, anxiety making a good night’s sleep impossible. A mixture of excitement and dread about the next day’s events washed over me—excitement that the mission I’d been working towards was finally here and I’d finally be able to get it over with. But the dread was even stronger as I had no idea how things would go.

  It ended up being easy to get up and be ready by the time Susanna arrived as I’d been awake and staring at the dark walls well before it was time to get up. At breakfast I found I had no appetite—the knot in my stomach took up all the space.

  When Susanna arrived everyone was there to tell me good-bye, everyone but Brynn. She had to be at school. Soon enough we were on our way. I stared out the window—I couldn’t see much in the dark morning—and imagined everything going smoothly and perfectly. As the sun rose and we got closer to Camp Willowmoss, my hopes rose too. There was no reason everything couldn’t go exactly as planned. Right?

  When I saw the exit sign for Camp Willowmoss, my stomach clenched and I got a terrible pain in my gut. The blood drained from my face and I thought I might pass out.

  “Are you okay, Hannah?” my fake mom asked.

  At first I was startled by her calling me that—I was nowhere near used to it—then I looked at her. “Not really.”

  “I’m sure everything will be just fine.”

  I wondered how she knew that. Did she have a crystal ball in the back seat that she had failed to show me?

  “When I check you in, they’ll just see a chubby girl who has come to get some help. Nothing more.”

  I desperately hoped she was right. I nodded, but didn’t feel any better. We exited the freeway and after a few minutes Camp Willowmoss came into view. I couldn’t pull my gaze away from the building where I’d spent the worse nine days of my life. And where my sister had spent much more time than that.

  Everything looked so different from before. Of course the first time I’d arrived I’d been immobile in the back seat of Hansen’s car. And the second time I’d been outside of Camp Willowmoss it had been the middle of the night and I’d been busy running for my life with Billy. So of course it looked different.

  Susanna pulled into a parking place near the guard shack. As I stared through the car window at the fence next to the guard shack, I vividly recalled the night Billy and I had run through that opening with Hansen’s threat to kill me fresh in my ears.

  Susanna opened my door, bringing me back to the present. “Ready, Hannah?”

  I had to admire her ability to stay in character, but I was having a hard time doing the same. I had to become Hannah Jacobs. If I didn’t believe it, no one else would. “Yeah, Mom.” I forced one foot to touch the parking lot.

  Susanna smiled, obviously pleased with my answer. “Good. They’ll get you the help you need here, sweetheart.”

  Wow. She was really into this. Then I realized an Enforcer had walked up behind her and was listening to every word we said. I didn’t want to look at him—what if he recognized me? But I had to know if it was Hansen. I wore my glasses and had my colored, retinal scanner-tricking contacts in, but I still had a hard time looking at the man in the uniform. If new kids who were dropped off at F.A.T. centers were supposed to be scared, I would have no trouble playing that part.

  As I put both feet on the ground, I glanced at the Enforcer behind my “mom” and felt a rush of relief that it wasn’t Hansen. Maybe he ha
d been moved to another F.A.T. center and I wouldn’t see him at all. That thought gave me confidence and I looked at Susanna. “I know. It will be for the best.” Then I got out of the car and she shut the door behind me, giving me nowhere to hide.

  “Let me just get your things.” She walked to the trunk and popped it open.

  As I’d gained weight, Dani had bought me a few things to wear and now those items were packed in a bag that Susanna lifted from the trunk.

  “Here you go, honey.” She wheeled the bag over to me and I took the handle.

  “Thanks.”

  “Can I help you?” The Enforcer said.

  “Yes, you can,” Susanna said. “I’m here to drop off my daughter for a little stay to help her lose a few pounds.”

  I looked at the Enforcer to see what his reaction would be and it was just as I’d expected, though that didn’t remove the sting. He sneered at me as he looked me up and down, never looking at my face.

  “Yes, I can see she can use our help.”

  Anger that all he saw was an overweight girl swept over me. How would his expression change if he knew it was the infamous Morgan Campbell standing in front of him? I pictured his eyes widening in shock. I relaxed a bit—of course it was a good thing all he saw was my body and not who I really was.

  “Follow me.” He turned toward the guard shack and walked through the opening in the fence.

  We followed him up the concrete path toward the main doors. We entered a foyer that had a reception area with a pair of couches, side tables with magazines, and a long counter where a woman sat in front of a computer monitor. Several beautiful green plants were placed around the room, making the space appealing. It reminded me of an upscale doctor’s office—all warm and inviting.

  I’d never been in this room before. Obviously this area was reserved for the families so that when they dropped off their loved ones, they would believe they were taking them to a wonderful place that was just there to help. Only one door led out of this room and I knew what was on the other side. I’d been there before. And it was not warm and inviting. It was cold and frightening.

  “Louise will help you,” the Enforcer said, motioning to the woman at the counter. Then he went back outside to make sure no one entered or left without his knowledge, leaving Susanna and me alone.

  “How may I help you?” Louise asked.

  “I’m here to drop off my daughter,” Susanna said with perfect calm.

  I, on the other hand, was anything but calm. My heart pounded and I had a hard time looking away from the door that I knew I would soon be entering. The door to the lion’s den, as Billy had called it. Oh how I wished Billy was with me now. I needed him. Desperately. How could he have left me on my own? Yes, I knew it was my choice to come back—a choice I was now seriously doubting—but he must have known I’d need him more than ever right now. Even if he wouldn’t be standing next to me, just knowing he supported me would have made a tremendous difference.

  “What is your daughter’s name?” Louise asked, her hands poised over her keyboard.

  “Hannah Jacobs,” Susanna said.

  I was glad she’d answered because I had lost my ability to speak. The desert had nothing on my dry mouth and throat.

  Louise asked Susanna a series of other questions and had her sign a small stack of papers. All the while I stood frozen next to her, my thoughts flying in a million directions at once.

  “You’re doing the right thing,” Louise assured my “mother”. “Your daughter will get the help she needs here.” Then she smiled at me. “A healthy you is a healthy world.”

  A shiver of dread raced up my spine and blasted into my skull, and I knew I’d made a colossal mistake.

  Chapter Fourteen

  “Tell your mother good-bye, and then we’ll get you processed.” Louise said it like she was checking me in for a routine doctor’s appointment. She came around the counter and stopped, waiting for me to say my good-byes.

  “Wait,” I managed to say, but my throat was scratchy and the word was barely audible.

  “What was that?” Louise asked.

  I swallowed convulsively. “Wait.” This time it came out loud and clear.

  Susanna pulled me into her arms and murmured into my ear. “You can do this, Morgan. You’re strong and powerful. You are in control.”

  I pulled back from this woman who was playing the role of my mother and stared at her.

  She smiled in a way that conveyed she meant what she’d just said. Then she nodded once. “Your family—especially your sister—wants this for you.”

  I got her message loud and clear, and as I thought about Amy, I forgot a little bit about myself, and was able to pull myself together. “Right.”

  “I’ll come visit you as soon as they allow me to. Okay?”

  I hoped I would be long gone before then. “Okay.”

  She pulled me into another hug and I enjoyed the warmth of this stranger’s embrace. I knew I wouldn’t have anyone giving me that same kind of affection once I passed through the door to the right of the reception desk. She released me and I tried to smile to show I would be okay, but my chin quivered and had to bite my lip to keep my emotions in check.

  “Go with Louise now, honey,” Susanna said.

  I nodded, then turned away from my “mom” and toward the woman waiting next to the counter.

  “Right this way, dear,” Louise said.

  I wondered if her demeanor would stay friendly once we stepped through those doors. Was her kindness all for show? For the families, that is. Not for me.

  I walked toward her, forcing my feet to move, and glanced back at Susanna. She smiled warmly, like a mother would. When I turned back to Louise, she was holding the door open for me.

  “Please come this way,” she said.

  Beyond her I saw sterile white walls. The same walls I’d seen the first time I’d been brought here. The stark difference this time was that instead of a pair of Enforcers gripping my arms and forcing me down the hallway, I was going on my own. That thought gave me a tiny bit of courage. I was doing this by choice—and I had a mission.

  We walked down the hall, me pulling my suitcase behind me, and walked past the door that I seemed to recall was where the unfriendly Tammy had checked me in. We stopped next to another door. This one I remembered as well. This was where I’d met Dr. Bradley. Last time an Enforcer had brought me here and locked me in. This time Louise opened the door and invited me in.

  “The doctor will be with you in a few minutes,” she said. “Please make yourself comfortable.” Then she left and I didn’t hear the door lock.

  What a difference it made when you came there voluntarily, I thought. It made sense though. Someone forced to come in was less likely to be cooperative, so of course they would keep a closer eye on them. Then it occurred to me that maybe they only inserted the tracking chip into the people who were dragged in. Maybe I wouldn’t even get one this time. That would vastly simplify things when it was time to get out.

  Feeling better, I changed into the gown that had been set on the exam table—isn’t that what someone who came here voluntarily would do?—then I sat on the paper-covered table.

  A few minutes later Dr. Bradley arrived.

  This is it, I thought. This is the first test of someone who knew me before. Now when she sees me she will either recognize me, or my new look and extra weight will hide my true identity.

  “Good morning, Hannah,” Dr. Bradley said. “How are you today?”

  “Okay.”

  “Good. Welcome to Camp Willowmoss.”

  “Thanks.”

  “I’m Dr. Bradley. I just need to do a brief exam, then someone will come take you to your room.”

  I nodded, wanting to keep our conversation to a minimum.

  She waved a card in front of her monitor, then set it on the counter and looked at me. “Please step on the scale.”

  I did as she asked.

  She looked at the numbers, then said, “Ok
ay. Go ahead and sit on the exam table.” She went to her computer and typed something in, then came back to me. She took my blood pressure—which I was certain must have been higher than usual—then she listened to my lungs and heart. She went to her computer and typed some more, then stepped back toward me. “I’m glad you came here voluntarily, Hannah. You have some hard work ahead of you.”

  “I do?”

  “Yes. You need to lose at least thirty pounds.”

  Though this wasn’t a surprise, it was still disconcerting to hear. It was more than what I’d had to lose before.

  She went to the cabinet and pulled something out, then came back to me, a needle in her hand.

  “What’s that?” I asked, knowing exactly what it was.

  “We require all residents of Camp Willowmoss to have a chip inserted, Hannah.”

  “Why?” I recoiled, as if needles frightened me—which was laughable when I thought about the knife Billy had used to slice out the previous chip. A needle was nothing in comparison.

  “It tracks your heart rate during workouts, among other things.”

  It was those “other things” that had me worried and I wondered if there was any way to avoid getting the chip inserted. I scooted back on the paper covering. “I hate needles, Dr. Bradley. Isn’t there a different way to track my heart rate when I work out?”

  Her friendly demeanor slipped. “No, I’m afraid there isn’t. Now please hold still.”

  Though I wanted to fight this, I decided it would be a bad idea. I could see it playing out in my head—Dr. Bradley would get an Enforcer or two to come hold my arm while she inserted the chip. And evermore they would keep an eye on me as I would be labeled uncooperative. I scooted forward and held my arm out, a tentative smile on my face. “I’m sorry. I’m ready now.”

  Her friendly smile slipped smoothly back into place. “Very good.” She pressed the needle into my arm and a moment later she was done.