Shine: Season One (Shine Season Book 1)

by William Bernhardt

  Jenni’s swayed and put her hand on the entry hall wall.

  Camille moved past her and took the stairs to the second floor. “Why didn’t you tell me?”

  “The same reason you never came out and said anything to me. The information is dangerous.”

  Camille waited for Jenni to follow her into the bedroom, then closed the door. “We aren’t safe here anymore. There was a letter on the thumb drive from my father. I didn’t delete it before they took the thumb drive from me. Both of us have been compromised.” Camille looked away from her friend’s accusing eyes. “You were right. We should have destroyed it when we had the chance.”

  Jenni sat heavily on the bed. “It wouldn’t have mattered for me. If you’re father found that list, then someone else put it together. It was just a matter of time until they came for me.”

  “The Shine events in Seattle and Santa Monica weren’t the fault of Shines. The government set us up. My father found as much information as he could and left it for me in the thumb drive. My parents died because he knew that information.” A tear trailed down her cheek as she sat next to Jenni. “My parents’ deaths were my fault.”

  Jenni put an arm around her shoulders and pulled her in for a hug. “Not true. Whether you’d been Shine or not, your father would have worked where he did and discovered what he did. The people he learned the information from were to blame.” Jenni sat up and wiped the tear from Camille’s cheek.

  Her hands, sweaty moments before were dry and her whole body felt cooler. Camille eyed her friend. “You control temperature somehow.”

  Jenni shrugged and smiled. “I’m really good at warming up icy feet.” The spark of humor in her eyes dimmed. “We can’t let them win. We need more information and a plan.”

  They spent the day looking at everything they could find on the Seattle and Santa Monica Shine events. Jenni’s brow wrinkled as she stared at the photo of the three women in uniforms, Camille had seen in her earlier search. Running her fingers over the screen, Jenni enlarged the picture trying to read the crest on the uniforms. It was a light house shining amidst the dark clouds of a stormy sky. Under the lighthouse were words written in what looked to be Latin.

  Jenni enlarged it again. “What does Commutans Lux Vestra mean?”

  Camille opened up another window and pulled up a language translator. She typed in the words and read. “Changing your light.” She snorted and closed the window. “The rehab center those women are being held in put that on there for sure.”

  Jenni ran her finger along the image of the lighthouse. “This is what we’re meant to be. A light guiding the world during dark times with our gifts, not pariahs being hunted and changed by the government.” She shrunk the image back to its original size. “We have to help each other or this is going to be the future for all of us.”

  Camille threw herself back onto Jenni's bed. "Do you know how your name could be on this list?" She looked over at her friend as Jenni stood to pace beside the bed.

  "My parents took me to a Vietnamese doctor in the city when my Shine first appeared. I've no way of knowing who the doctor spoke to about it." Jenni said, as she turned and opened her closet.

  Jenni pulled a large empty suitcase from the back of her closet and hoisted it up on the bed beside Camille.

  "What're you doing?"

  Jenni glanced her way as she started taking clothes from the closet. "We can't stay, Cam. They’ll lock us up like those other women. We have to become the lighthouse for others like us. To do that, we need to leave and start gathering others like us."

  Camille’s heart pounded in her chest. "What about your father? Michael?"

  Jenni stopped, her chin on her chest as her shoulders sunk. "My father and I have spoken about this. We knew the possibility existed that the SSS or the government could discover my existence and come for me." Jenni turned and pulled a small locked box from the top of her closet. "I barely know Michael. He'll forget me and move on when it’s clear I'm gone for good."

  Jenni opened the box and Camille's eyes widened at the stack of hundreds and twenties as Jenni transferred them to a blue zippered pouch lying at the bottom of the box.

  A lump formed in her throat. This was really happening. Her chest burned. She released the breath she held. This was her fault. If she'd never found that thumb drive, it couldn't have been stolen. Her home would still be safe.

  She rubbed her neck where the thief had hit her. She still had a slight headache from the ordeal. She glanced up as her friend returned to the bed to place more clothing into the suitcase. Seeing the tears glisten on her friend's cheek, Camille realized how selfish she was being. Her face burned. She stood and opened her arms. Jenni's face crumpled as she stepped into Camille's embrace. Her friend was leaving the only home she'd ever known, a man who could have been her soul-mate and her only family.

  "I'm having difficulty understanding God's plan in this. I don't want to be on the run for the rest of my life, always wondering if the SSS or the government will discover where I'm hiding. My father is old. He planned to retire as soon as Michael felt ready to take over. I should be here caring for him."

  Camille made soothing sounds as she rubbed her friend's back, her own tears flowing. Where would they go? How would they manage without giving themselves away? They would need jobs. The rest of Camille's savings and Jenni's money would only last so long.

  She shuddered. Maybe Jenni could hide at her place until this blew over. Surely, her father's copy of the list hadn't been the only one. If they'd wanted to gather up those Shines, they'd have come for Jenni before now.

  "Maybe we're being too hasty. The list on the thumb drive couldn't have been the only one. My father had to have gotten it from somewhere. If they'd wanted you, they could have come for you at any time."

  Jenni pulled away from Camille, her brow furrowed in thought as she pulled up the bottom of her t-shirt to dry her face. "We don't know who it was that took the thumb drive. This may be God's way of telling us we need to fight against what's being done to us." Camille opened her mouth to protest, but Jenni shook her head and held up a hand. "We can't hide forever. If none of us stand up and fight back, we might as well walk right up to the SSS or one of the government's rehab facilities and turn ourselves in. You and I can become the lighthouse that guide’s others like us to a safe harbor. They can’t be allowed to change who we are, Cam. It's up to us, don't you see?"

  "Can two people really fight back against the government?" Camille asked, wrapping her arms around herself.

  Jenni pulled her shoulders back, her eyes filling with determination. "Not alone, but there are others like us. If we find them and join together, maybe we stand a chance." Jenni grabbed the list Camille had printed. "We'll start by finding them."

  Camille nodded and began searching the net for the names on her list. She admired her friend's courage. Camille didn't want to be a hero. She simply wished to find a new safe haven and hide.

  CHAPTER TWELVE

  Jenni’s father returned from work and Camille called Jeremy about their date. She’d wanted to give the Phams privacy as they discussed the implications of what Camille had discovered on the thumb drive.

  Now she sat in Jeremy’s truck as he pulled up to a pond surrounded by trees that sat on his family property. Camille's heart threatened to pound itself right out of her chest as Jeremy helped her out of his truck. It was going to be a perfect first date. She glanced shyly at him and froze. He stood in a bright shaft of sunlight, his eyes sparkling a bright blue as he smiled over at her. Her heart fluttered in her chest. This was such a bad idea. All the reasons she shouldn't be here circled in her head. She shoved aside her doubts and followed him toward the pond. Rays of sunlight filtered between tree branches to dance on the water like fairies playing tag. She smiled. She'd have the memory, if nothing else.

  "This place is beautiful."

  He smiled. "A picnic at my favorite place on God's Earth seemed like just the spot for our first date."


  A blanket lay spread across the ground with a low camp table set beside it holding a bottle of wine in a bucket of ice, two unlit candles in their holders and a picnic basket. A small speaker attached to an mp3 player played soft piano music.

  Camille smiled. The soothing notes of “Moonlight Sonata” were one of her favorites. "Beethoven? You surprise me, Mr. Walker."

  He led her to the blanket. "I enjoy instrumentals when I need to think or don't want the intrusiveness of music with words."

  She lowered herself to the blanket as he pulled two glasses, a cork screw and a plastic wrapped plate of cheese, meat, and bread from the basket.

  "This is exactly what I needed. It's been a long day and tomorrow promises to be longer," she said, taking the glass of Chardonnay he held out to her.

  She took a drink, allowing the acidic liquid to sit in her mouth as she closed her eyes and savored the flavor. The birds and Beethoven played in the background. Yes, she'd needed this moment of perfect peace before the storm building on her horizon broke.

  The sound of plastic wrap pulled her mind from the troubling thoughts trying to intrude. She opened her eyes. Jeremy pulled the plastic from the plate and balled it up, shooting it like a basketball into the picnic basket. Camille reached for a piece of the cheddar and realized he'd paired the wine and cheese perfectly. She smiled. A man after her own heart.

  "What's that smile about?" he asked, eyebrow lifted.

  Camille's happiness evaporated as reality, ever ready to pounce, crept back into her thoughts. "You can pair wine and cheese. Why couldn't I have met you earlier?"

  Jeremy leaned in closer. "That sounds almost like regret in your voice, but we're here now. The future is wide open."

  Camille glanced away from his penetrating gaze. "My immediate future doesn't have a place for a serious relationship right now, if it ever will."

  She glanced back and he winked at her. "God has an amazing sense of humor. When it’s meant to be, He sees that it works itself out, even when you think there's no way it could."

  Camille rolled her eyes. "If God thinks being forced to sell my home because my dad is accused of the murder of my mother and his own suicide that voids the life insurance is funny, then God is not the kind, loving God my mother taught me about."

  Jeremy's smile faded as he covered her hand with his own and squeezed. "That wasn't God, Camille and you know it. Humans are given the freedom to make our own choices and most of the time we choose terribly." He leaned forward, so that their breaths mingled. "What's important is that you're here and I'm here. There's the potential for something great between us, if you're brave enough to give it a go."

  Camille closed her eyes against his penetrating gaze and struggled to breathe through the pressure building in her chest. Why couldn't she have met him in another life when she wasn't plagued by her Shine and the world's view of it? Manic laughter threatened to spill from her throat, but she pressed her lips together to hold it in. Maybe she should tell him about her Shine. He wouldn't be so keen on exploring their potential then.

  Swallowing the lump in her throat, Camille opened her eyes. "Jenni and I have a long road trip planned. I'm not sure when we'll return. You'd do better to find someone else to explore potential with."

  Jeremy frowned. "A road trip? Like a vacation? When are you leaving? How long do you plan to be gone?"

  She shrugged and wrapped her arms around herself. "It's something we've been planning. We want to travel while we're both still single and don't have families." She bit her lip. "We leave tomorrow."

  "What? For how long?" he asked, incredulous.

  Camille stared at the pond as something from beneath the surface caused ripples to disturb its smooth surface. "We haven't decided. Depends on what we find."

  Jeremy stood and began to pace, disrupting her view of the pond. "So you'll be gone a couple weeks? A month? All summer?"

  She glanced up at him. "We don't know." He stopped pacing with his back to her and stared out over the pond. Camille lifted her eyebrows. The peace of the date had been very short lived. Camille stood. "Look, this was great, but maybe you should take me back to Jenni's house."

  He swung around, face set as he moved toward her. He stopped inches from her, their eyes locked. He lifted his hand and tucked the hair blowing across her face behind her ear. Camille shuddered as his finger brushed her cheek. Her eyes lowered to his mouth. His hands cupped her face as he leaned down and covered her mouth with his. Camille wrapped her arms around his neck and closed her eyes as heat moved from her lips, down her body.

  Lost in the sensation of his hard lips and his harder body, Camille moaned. He pulled back. She opened her eyes. "You shouldn't have done that."

  "It's real, Camille. I've never felt like this over one kiss in my life. Every time we're together, it feels as though a current of electricity is running under my skin." He inhaled loudly. "You feel it too, I know you do."

  Camille stepped back. "We shouldn't do that again. I'm leaving. Tell your grandfather I'm willing to sell so long as it’s another iodine mine and not that women's rehab facility being built on my land."

  Jeremy's eyes flashed. "My grandfather can hang for all I care. I didn't bring you here to entice your land from you."

  "I know, but my life doesn't have room for a relationship right now." She made her voice go cold. She had to push him away for his own good. "I'm willing to sell, but I need to finalize everything in the morning. I assume your grandfather has the money sitting ready in some fat bank account. Tell him to meet me at the bank when it opens tomorrow morning."

  He clenched his jaw and turned away from her. Camille bent down and began to return everything to the picnic basket.

  "Leave it. I'll take you back to Jenni's and come back later."

  Camille cringed inside, but kept her face carefully blank. She stood and walked to his truck in silence. It had to be this way. Inside her heart broke into a million pieces for what could have been.

  CHAPTER THIRTEEN

  Camille paced near the bank's entrance, ignoring the busy traffic filling the town's main street. She'd packed all her personal family photo albums, mementos, and important files into three large boxes and stored them in Jenni's attic, marked with her name. She hoped Dr. Pham wouldn't mind holding them for her until a day when she could return for them.

  She kept out only a few pictures and her mother's jewelry, which she had stuffed into one of two large suitcases with her clothes and placed into the trunk of her mom's old Honda. She'd been sad to leave her vintage Volkswagen Beetle, but knew its bright red color and unique shape would only attract attention they didn't need. Her mother's Honda wouldn't be noticed no matter where they went. It was shocking to realize how little she truly needed from the home she'd grown up in.

  She checked her watch again. Where was Jenni? She'd spoken to her friend a couple of hours before. They'd agreed to meet at the bank so they could leave as soon as she'd finished signing the deed over to Jeremy's grandfather. The old man had already been here, taken the deed, paid her and left. Jeremy hadn't come. She'd ignored her disappointment. What right did she have to expect anything else from him?

  She left most of her money in her savings account, knowing that to withdraw such a large amount would garner too much attention. She'd added Jenni and Dr. Pham's names to her accounts after her parents’ deaths since they were her only family. The tragedy had taught her you could never be too prepared.

  Wondering where her friend could be, Camille again cursed the theft of her tablet. She glanced at her watch. Her stomach churned. Something wasn't right. Jenni should have been here thirty minutes ago. She glanced up the town's main street, buzzing with weekday morning business, but didn't see any sign of Jenni or her little white electric car.

  The prickle of unease intensified. Jenni didn't change her mind, ever. If she wasn't here, something was wrong. Camille jumped in her car and raced to Jenni's house. As she turned down the street, her unease became alarm. A large
black car, back windows tinted black, pulled away from the house.

  She slowed her car to get a good look at the driver and slammed on her brakes. She recognized that square jaw and military haircut. The male intruder she'd hit with the shoe. She looked at the person sitting in the passenger seat, sure it'd be a woman, and stopped breathing. Gary, looking behind him into the backseat, sat next to the man in the car. Camille hit the gas. Why was Gary with the intruder? Had she been wrong to think the Walker's had nothing to do with the break-ins? Had Jeremy lied to her? She remembered the black car had been pulling away from Jenni's and had to wipe her clammy hands on her pant leg. Why had they been at Jenni's and where was her friend?

  CHAPTER FOURTEEN

  Camille swung into the Phams’ drive with a screech of tires. The garage door was open and two large suitcases sat beside the opened hatch back of Jenni's car. Camille threw her car in park, jumped out, and ran into the house.

  "Jenni? Dr. Pham?" she yelled.

  She strained her ears, but the house remained silent. She raced through the utility room and into the kitchen. One of the dining room chairs was missing. Another chair lay overturned on the floor next to Jenni's large purse. Heart pounding, she passed into the living room and froze.

  Her voice, a strained whisper, shook as she called out to Dr. Pham where he sat, tied to the missing dining chair, his head slumped over onto his chest. "Dr. Pham?"

  She knelt next to the chair and placed her hand over his chest. Tears pricked her eyes as the reassuring beat of his heart thumped under her hand. She picked at the knots in the rope until they fell loose and she could pull them from his body. Grabbing him with a hand under each arm, she half carried, half dragged him to the couch and laid him down, noticing the lump on the back of his head. She ran into the kitchen and grabbed a bag of frozen spinach from the freezer and a hand towel then placed them so that the spinach lay between the bump on his head and the couch.