Shine: Season One (Shine Season Book 1)

by William Bernhardt

  She watched him walk away, fatigue chased away by her racing heartbeat. Was this feverish excitement something she produced in others? Didn’t seem likely. No boy had ever behaved as if he found her irresistible. Though she was judicious with her brain hugs and mental stroking. And before her escape from St. Augustine’s, she’d never intentionally tried to elicit a specific response from anyone.

  Nero nosed his head under her hand, reminding her he still required petting.

  “Come on, Nero.”

  The cat eagerly trailed her to the couch, leaping beside her. He kneaded the couch a few times before curling up beside her, purring and gazing at her as if he thought she might be hiding a can of tuna somewhere.

  She was surprised how long her Shine lasted on the cat. He seemed to have developed a permanent connection to her. What was different? Did the cat just like her? That seemed unlikely considering what Derrick said. Were animals more affected by her Shine?

  What if she could affect a person with as much impact she affected this cat?

  Would that be so different from the way Derrick affected her? True, she wasn’t climbing into Derrick’s lap or trailing him around the house. But what if she could make people like her and want to help her? It seemed to work on the guard, if only for a moment. Was that so different from the effects serotonin and oxytocin produced when a person fell in love? People acted like idiots in the throes of infatuation. She’d seen it. Was this any different?

  And was she willing to try it on someone? she wondered, as exhaustion dragged her into sleep.

  CHAPTER 3

  Cassie woke to voices, one she didn’t recognize, agitated and growing louder. The other belonged to Derrick, barely a whisper, pleading for quiet. As her brain roused from sleep and her senses clicked on, she kept her eyes closed and scanned quickly.

  Derrick remained calm, but her scan showed he was fighting himself. The stranger, in the throes of panic, suffered no such conflict. His amygdala resembled a thunderstorm of lightning bolts.

  “Calm down. She’s okay.”

  “You don’t know that. You know nothing about her,” the unfamiliar voice replied.

  A ripple buzzed across Derrick’s brain, a bright red warning. She knew that meant his adrenaline was flowing. Fight or flight would be triggered soon. But for now he continued to defend her.

  “I gave her a ride. She’s really quiet and sweet. Nero loves her. I can’t believe she’d hurt anyone.”

  She heard a click. Light struck her eyelids as the television whirred to life. The voice of a newscaster, garbled at first, then clear, filtered into the room.

  “…believe explosions were the cause of a raging inferno at St. Augustine’s Refuge For the Mentally Deranged, a former mental health treatment facility now housing Shines due to public as well as personal safety concerns. We go now to Gloria Reyes, our reporter live on the scene. Gloria?”

  Cassie’s eyes flew open. She had to see what was happening. The two boys faced the television, their backs to her. The words “BREAKING NEWS” hovered above the newscaster like a storm cloud.

  “Thank you, Stacy. Behind me, you can see the devastating results of a Shine escape gone horribly wrong. Cassandra Gold, known Shine undergoing treatment at St. Augustine’s, somehow managed to orchestrate her escape last night. Facility manager Kimberly Klein is here with me. Ms. Klein, when did you realize Shines had escaped in the midst of the chaos?”

  The camera panned to reveal a tanned, toned, middle-aged woman, bright red lips curled into a plastic smile and shrewd blue eyes staring out beneath a furrowed brow. Friendly, yet concerned. The woman’s straightened, platinum-blonde hair hung well past her shoulders. She adjusted her dark jacket over her filmy blouse. The buttons strained where the fabric stretched taught over her full chest.

  Cassie shuddered, the memory of the woman still strong enough to frighten her.

  “As you can imagine, our first concern was the safety of all our girls,” Ms. Klein replied, her voice a soothing cadence. “Once we completed the evacuation and determined no one was left inside the building, we discovered Miss Gold was among the missing.”

  A picture of her appeared in the upper left corner of the television, her pale eyes distinguishing her for anyone watching. She’s different. She’s scary.

  When had her eyes turned so hollow and hopeless? The SSS Tipline raced repeatedly along the lower edge of the screen with instructions to call immediately.

  Ms. Klein’s fake smile was still in place, but she knew it masked severe perturbation that some of the girls had escaped her grasp. She hoped Glimmer was one of them.

  Gloria nodded, her face grave, then continued the interview. “We’ve heard reports that the security cameras were scrambled. Is that true? Did Cassandra have help from someone inside the facility?”

  Ms. Klein chuckled. “Of course not. The cameras malfunctioned as a result of the explosions and subsequent fires. St. Augustine’s is committed to the education and reintegration of Shines once their therapeutic treatment course is completed. No one on our staff would want to see a Shine on the streets before they’re ready. We care about the girls and wish to see them healthy and stable.” She gestured behind her to the smoking remains of the building. “And this is exactly why. Uncontrolled Shines are a danger to themselves and others.”

  “And you’re certain Cassandra Gold was responsible for the explosions? Isn’t it possible she, like the others, simply wandered off during the confusion?”

  The plastic smile faded for a moment before Ms. Klein hitched it back into place. “Eyewitness accounts place Miss Gold out of her room before the first explosion rocked the facility. We know she used her Shine to overpower her roommate and the ward nurse before she moved on to control nearly twenty nurses and security personnel as she fled the scene. This was definitely the result of her Shine.”

  How could that woman stand there and describe the lockdown cells as rooms? That place was a prison. And she was certain the girls were subject to torture or experiments or maybe both. Too many rumors circulated to ignore them completely. Something terrible happened to Shines in that place. Thank Gandhi she escaped before she found out what.

  “But don’t worry. We will find Miss Gold and bring her back for the treatment she so desperately requires.”

  Ms. Klein smiled from the television, but Cassie’s blood went cold.

  “Now if you’ll excuse me,” Ms. Klein said, winding down the interview, “I’m expecting Reverend Trent and his staff at any moment. The SSS has graciously agreed to help transport the displaced Shines to a new facility where they can continue their treatment.”

  A young girl Cassie didn’t recognize pushed past Ms. Klein and snatched the microphone from the reporter. Her wild eyes gazed into the camera.

  “Help us! Please! We didn’t do anything wrong. Don’t let them keep us here. This isn’t a treatment facility…”

  Ms. Klein grabbed for the microphone while the stunned reporter gaped.

  “They torture us here,” the girl persisted, leaning toward the microphone even as Ms. Klein tried to wrench it from her hands. “They hurt us. They’ll never let us go. They want to kill us all!”

  A nurse/guard appeared, syringe in hand. She injected the girl under Ms. Klein’s watchful eye. The girl continued to plead and scrabble for the microphone, grabbing at the news crew as she was dragged away, her voice growing fainter and fainter.

  The reporter smoothed her hair. “Ms. Klein, would you care to comment on that girl’s claims?”

  “With pleasure.” The facility manager took the microphone and stared into the camera. “What you just saw was another example of the negative impact of Shine. Miss Gold can manipulate the emotions of people around her. That girl is suffering from a Shine-induced terror, like a waking nightmare. My staff have sedated her and they are working to determine the best way to detox her from the residual effects of her Shine contamination. I urge anyone with information about the whereabouts of Cassandra Gold to
come forward immediately. Please do not attempt to approach or detain her. She is a danger to those around her. Thank you.”

  “Back to you, Stacy.”

  “Thank you, Gloria. Anyone with information about any of the escaped Shines, please call the SSS Tipline immediately. Also, if anyone has any information regarding the whereabouts of Leah Roberts, the nurse who disappeared from St. Augustine’s and is presumed a hostage of Cassandra Gold, call the local Shine Enforcement Unit. Her family is worried about her.”

  A picture of the missing ward nurse appeared on the screen along with a phone number to call with information.

  She gasped. It was the nice nurse from her ward. The one who allowed her to leave rather than report her escape.

  The boys turned around and saw she was awake.

  CHAPTER 4

  Cassie sat up. Nero yawned and blinked at the boys.

  “I told you she was dangerous,” the newcomer whispered, eyes wide, brain a neon sign of sheer terror. “What did you do with the nurse?”

  “Nothing. Please. They’re lying. I didn’t do any of the things they claimed I did.”

  “That’s what they all say. Shines are a bunch of liars. You left St. Augustine’s. Why are you running away if you didn’t do anything?”

  “Come on, Nathan, calm down.” Derrick’s words were quiet but firm. “Give her a chance to explain what happened.”

  She gently sent out a feeler, trying to find some empathy in Nathan to stroke, anything in his mind other than fear and anger. But he was a blaze of terror. Her brain hug found no footing. This felt like tossing a glass of water on a forest fire.

  How could someone be so scared of her? She’d never hurt anyone in her life. Fear mongering and blatant lies produced this blind panic. She fought the anger bubbling up inside her.

  “That woman on the news, Ms. Klein? She’s lying.” She met Nathan’s eyes, hoping he could see the truth behind hers and searching for any sign he believed her. “I didn’t do anything to that nurse. She let me leave the ward. They must have found out. Who knows what they did to her.”

  “They? Who’s they?” The boy didn’t believe a word she said. The gossip and lies were too entrenched.

  “The people who control the Shine treatment facilities. I don’t know who they are. The SSS, the Patrols, the facility managers.”

  “Oh, sure. We’re supposed to believe this is all some big conspiracy. Derrick, call the Tipline. I’ll keep an eye on her. Better get Nero away from her too.”

  “What that girl said on the news…is that real?” Derrick asked. “Do you know her? Did they…hurt you while you were there?”

  Something in his eyes startled her. A scan revealed a dark cloud of sadness.

  “I saw girls dragged from their cells…screaming.” She shuddered at the memory. “I wasn’t. But I knew it was only a matter of time. My counselor brought Ms. Klein to my last therapy session. She said I wasn’t responding. Ms. Klein…she looked crazy. Told me they have a special treatment for stubborn girls.”

  Derrick glanced at a photo on the wall. In the picture, he stood beside a girl, their arms thrown around each other. He squeezed his eyes shut. The cloud of sadness thickened.

  “She’s someone...special?”

  “My twin sister.” He choked and took a deep breath. “She was taken about six months ago. All she did was make people feel warm. I don’t know how. She didn’t know how. But it was really nice in the winter. And she never hurt anyone. She wouldn’t. She liked making people feel good. How did the Patrol even find out?”

  “All it takes is one call. The Patrol doesn’t even bother to find out if the report is truth, gossip, or a malicious lie. They just…” She cocked her head. “Do you hear—”

  “Choppercars!”

  Derrick grabbed her arm and dragged her to the door. He flung it open, pulling her onto the landing with such force she nearly fell.

  “It’s too late,” she called over the deafening thumping blades of a descending choppercar. Two more droned above the apartment complex, bright spotlights circling.

  “Flick!” Derrick pressed her against the wall where they huddled in shadows.

  Four Patrolmen stepped from the choppercar, white uniforms quivering in the draft from the spinning blades. They carried weapons.

  One lifted a bullhorn to his mouth.

  “Attention, residents. Do not come outside. Remain inside with your doors locked.”

  “Back in! Go, go, go!” Derrick whispered, shoving her toward the apartment.

  Back behind the bolted door, she fought the terror welling up in her chest. She couldn’t go back. Shine treatment was bad enough before. Now that she’d escaped, they would show her no mercy.

  Nero circled her ankles, his pace frantic, as if he too sensed the danger. He meowed softly.

  “We’ll hide you,” Derrick said.“We can—”

  “I won’t,” Nathan interrupted. He emerged from the bedroom area, cell phone in hand. “Besides, it won’t do any good. I gave them our apartment number.”

  Already she heard heavy boots clomping up the stairs.

  Derrick launched himself at Nathan, grabbing him by the shirt and shoving him against the wall.

  “What the flick, Derrick?”

  “You dog biscuit. Why’d you turn her in?” He slammed the boy’s head against the wall.

  “She’s a Shine! She’s dangerous! Don’t you get it? She’s controlling you.”

  “No way. I’d feel something if…” He turned and looked at Nero, still faithfully circling his new friend’s ankles.

  “Dude, you don’t feel anything! That’s part of their power.”

  She wondered if this boy, who seemed quite confident in his Shine knowledge, ever encountered a Shine before today.

  Derrick lifted his eyes from Nero to meet her gaze. Did her fear show on her face as clearly as his pulsed through his mind? She started to send out a tendril to push him back onto her side—but she reeled it back in before she passed his skull. Why prove his roommate correct?

  “Do you think I’d be hiding in a stranger’s apartment, starving and penniless, if I could control people?”

  Derrick shook his head. He threw Nathan aside.

  “Don’t listen to her!”

  “This is exactly what happened to my sister. Someone like you reported her and the Patrol took her away. What if she’s being tortured? I won’t hand over another girl.”

  “Dude, Shines need to be controlled.”

  “My sister never hurt anyone.”

  “This Shine blew up a building!”

  His words felt like a slap across the face. She didn’t blow up anything.

  Did she?

  A fist pounded on the apartment door. The three jumped.

  “Patrol. Open up. We have a report of an escaped Shine.”

  Derrick turned to her. She felt his disappointment and sadness, so different from Nathan’s terror.

  The Patrol thumped on the door again. Their limbic systems crackled with excitement and anxiety. She knew they worried what would greet them inside the apartment.

  “Open the door.”

  “Use your Shine,” Derrick said, standing beside her. “Blast them or whatever you do. I won’t let them take you away.”

  “Dude, are you psycho? Don’t encourage her! What are you? A Shine sympathizer?”

  She couldn’t do what he suggested. She didn’t think she could blow anything up. But maybe she could at least calm the situation, like she’d done at St. Augustine’s.

  “We will break down the door!”

  She reached out, searching the minds on the other side of the door, negotiating the synapses firing through the amygdalae, hoping for a way in. She found a tangled web of pulsing resistance.

  Nathan dashed to the door and wrenched it open.

  Three Patrolmen stood in formation, the lead member flanked by two backups. All of them leveled weapons and zeroed in on the sole female. She sensed the fourth Patrolman waited be
low, just as agitated as these three.

  Nero stopped circling and sat firmly in front of her, crouched low, eyes blazing. She reached in to stroke his happy center. The low rumble in his throat changed to a purr.

  “We are taking you into custody, Miss Gold. Ms. Klein is eager to have you back under her supervision.”

  “You mean back under her thumb. Subject to experiments and anything else her demented mind can dream up. No thanks.”

  She stepped back, knowing no escape lay behind her. The door, blocked by the three Patrolmen, was the only way out.

  “If you won’t come willingly, we will take you by force.”

  “No.” Derrick positioned himself between her and the Patrolmen.

  Nero stood, arched his back, and issued a warning meow.

  “A Shine sympathizer? We’re authorized to use force on them, too.”

  They advanced into the apartment.

  Nathan’s hands shot into the air. “Look, we don’t want any trouble. Just take the Shine and go.”

  “If she’ll come willingly.”

  She’d never go with them, willingly or otherwise.

  At her feet, Nero hissed. She did nothing to calm him.

  She focused on the three Patrolmen, determined she could find the way in and calm them as she’d calmed the cat. Maybe if she worked on them one at a time…

  Squinting with the effort, she focused all her attention on the lead Patrolman. She snaked through the conglomerate of mixed-up emotions, seeking the pleasure center, hoping to release a cascade of sympathy. Like searching for someone’s ticklish spot. She needed to find just the right place.

  The Patrolman jerked and blinked, glancing around the apartment. Certain she’d found the spot, she gave him an extra push.

  He frowned but lowered his weapon.

  “Sir?” one of his partners asked.

  She dove into that one’s mind next.

  “What…what’s happening?” the lead Patrolman asked. He appeared confused and disoriented.