by Lisa Beeson
Sorry Adam, not a chance.
She was almost halfway across the parking lot, when she heard the Progeny come out of the restaurant.
“Wait, please! How did you do that back there?” he shouted, trying to catch up to her.
“I don’t know what you’re talking about. Please leave me alone,” she said over her shoulder as she kept heading towards the road.
“I’m not trying to be a creep or anything, I just wanted to give you your cut,” he shouted after her.
She peeked over her shoulder to see him holding out one of the twenties he’d won off the guys inside. Ari stopped and turned around, curiosity winning over caution. “Why would you want to do that?”
He caught up, and gave her a self-conscious smile and a shrug. “I wouldn’t have won it if it hadn’t been for you. That was amazing!” He waved the twenty in front of her, hoping she’d grab it.
She didn’t want to take it, but she could use the money; if only to pay back Adam for the meal. Reluctantly she took the bill and put it in her pocket.
“My name’s Jonas Wheeler. Look me up in a couple years when you’re older. If we teamed up we could make a killing.”
Adam burst out through the front doors, and then came straight towards them, looking big and dangerous.
“You okay, Ari?” he asked. It sounded more like a threat to Jonas, and less of a question of her well-being.
Jonas looked like a deer caught in the headlights.
“I’m fine. I just over reacted,” she shouted, trying to divert Adam’s attention away from pummeling the poor guy.
Jonas asked under his breath so that only Ari could hear. “Who is that?”
“Umm…my Uncle,” Ari whispered back.
“Is he like us?”
She shook her head. “Nope.”
Adam came up to them, not looking reassured by Ari’s previous response. “What’s going on here? Why are you harassing my niece?” Adam looked down at Jonas like he would be perfectly willing to rip his arms off and beat him with them, if he didn’t like his answer.
Jonas held up his hands in surrender. “Hey, I’m not trying to harass anyone, man. She just helped me win some money playing pool, and I was just trying to give her a cut. That’s all, I swear.” He kept his hands up while he slowly stepped backwards, away from them and towards his own car.
Adam looked over at Ari for confirmation; she nodded and pulled out the twenty as evidence. Jonas took that moment to turn around and speed-walk the rest of the distance to his car.
*****
Adam could see that they were telling the truth, even though it confused the hell out of him. He’d seen her in the booth nowhere near that guy’s pool table, how could she have helped him? But the guy didn’t seem to be a threat anymore, so he put a protective arm around Ari’s shoulders, and guided her back towards his truck. “You almost gave me a heart attack back there. The way you ran off like that, with that guy chasing after you. The waitress practically tackled me to make sure I paid the bill.”
Ari smiled, probably picturing Lacey tackling him to the floor.
“But seriously, Ari… What the hell is going on? How did you manage to help a guy win at pool while sitting thirty feet away in our booth?”
When they reached the back of the truck, Ari shrugged off his arm and turned to face him. “Remember how I said you wouldn’t be able to recognize the third group of people? Well, he was one of them. They’re called Progeny, and they have special abilities, kind of like me. They’re descendents from a god-like race that decided to mix it up with humans, way back in ancient times...supposedly. Their radiant light is brighter than a normal human’s is. It seems the brighter the radiant light, the more impressive the ability. Anyway, not only can I affect normal people’s emotional energy, but I can also amplify a Progeny’s special ability.”
The wheels were turning in Adam’s head, as he was trying to make sense of what she had just said.
“I try to stay away from them, because I was told that that kind of power amp can be addicting. And if I cross paths with someone who doesn’t want to give that up, well….” She looked down at her shoes, letting him connect the dots. “When Jonas caught up with me, I could tell he wasn’t like that. He just genuinely wanted to thank me for helping him sink a nearly impossible shot.”
Adam raked his fingers through his hair, closing his eyes. He was trying to give her the benefit of the doubt. “The words coming out of your mouth are telling me that you are crazy, but your eyes and mannerisms are showing me that you’re telling the truth. And I saw the way that guy looked at you, like you were doing something to him…” He blew out a puff of air, and pinched the bridge of his nose. “You said ‘abilities like yours’. Are you one of these…‘Progeny’?”
*****
Ari didn’t appreciate how he put air quotes around the word Progeny, but she could see he was making an effort. So, she let it go and shook her head no.
“Then what are you?”
She looked up into his eyes. “I don’t know,” she said with a sad smile. “That seems to be the million dollar question.”
Adam looked conflicted, but then he put his hand on her shoulder, and gently nudged her towards the passenger side of the truck. “Get in. You are going to start from the beginning and tell me everything. Then I’ll decide whether to get the cops involved or not,” he said before making his way over to the driver’s side.
Ari hesitated. It was obvious he didn’t believe her, but for some reason he was helping her anyway – why? It was going to get dark soon, and she needed to get back on the road, but she had no idea where she was. This seemed to be her only option other than wandering around in the dark. She would have to figure out Adam’s motivations later. He wasn’t throwing off any creep vibes, so she threw caution to the wind and hopped into the truck. Adam got in and moved stuff around to give her more room. Then he put the key into the ignition, and looked at her expectantly.
Ari let out a defeated sigh. “Alright fine, but it’s a long story.”
Adam started up the engine and then looked over his shoulder as he backed out of the parking space. “That’s okay…” he said, and then turned forward, and put the truck in gear. “…I’ve got time.”
They drove out of the restaurant’s parking lot and turned out on to the highway. As they drove down the road, Adam cleared his throat to signal her to start talking. Ari looked over at him ruefully. “Hold your horses, I’m gathering my thoughts. I don’t know where to start.”
“How about the beginning…” he prompted.
Ari rolled her eyes. “Ha ha, smarty pants. Fine, I’ll start from the beginning, but I’m warning you…I have a hyperthymestic memory.”
“And what the hell is that?” Adam asked.
“I can remember everything that’s happened to me...”
“Of course you can,” he mumbled under his breath.
She ignored him. “…so please don’t interrupt and hold your questions until the end.” And with that, she started her story….
Chapter 3
“First, let me tell you what I know about the Riley’s.
Phil and Tess Riley moved to Isle of Hope, Georgia, from Washington D.C. after they had their first child, Lydia. Just south-east of Savannah, it felt like the perfect little southern community: full of live oaks dripping with Spanish moss, wrap-around porches, and southern hospitality.
Phil was a family therapist with a practice in Savannah, and he’d already written two successful self-help books. Tess was a registered nurse, but decided to put that career on hold to stay home with Lydia full time. Everything was ideal until Lydia was diagnosed with leukemia when she was eight years old.
Tess had always had a green thumb, but to fight off the stress of having a sick child and to give Lydia the best chance of fighting off the disease, she dedicated a portion of their backyard to an herb and vegetable garden. She became an expert on foods and herbs with healing properties. And to Tess’s credit
, Lydia, after going through chemo and a steady diet of organic fruits and vegetables, went into remission for two years. But, after Lydia had turned ten, the cancer came back with a vengeance.
It was during this second round of chemo, while she was staying in the hospital, that Lydia met a boy about her age named Jack. They quickly became friends. Lydia, who had always had a fantastic imagination, would tell him stories, and Jack would draw pictures to go along with them.
Jack had a malignant tumor on his lower spine; his Mother had neglected to get him treatment before there was irreparable damage, and he was now paralyzed from the waist down. Her alcoholic tendencies caused her to lose job after job, so she gave him up to the state since she didn’t feel she was able to care for him anymore. He was now at the hospital to get the tumor removed.
So, when the Riley’s were at the hospital with Lydia, they would visit with Jack as well. He was a friendly kid with strawberry blond hair, a nose full of freckles, and an infectious smile. But as Jack was getting better, Lydia was getting worse. And, as most people who have come to terms with their fate, she wasn’t worried so much for herself, but for the people she loved who she’d leave behind. She made her parents promise to take care of Jack, because he had no one else to love him. And she knew they would need each other when the time came for her to pass on.
Unable to deny their daughter’s last wishes, the Riley’s started the process to become Jack’s foster parents. They began preparing a room on the first floor and building wheelchair ramps for the front and back porches. They did everything the state required to become foster parents.
And three months after Jack legally became part of their family, Lydia passed away.
After mourning their devastating loss, the Riley’s decided to honor their daughter’s memory and loving heart by becoming foster parents to special needs children. Between Tess’s nursing background and Phil being a therapist, their home would be the perfect place for these children.
And though they fostered many kids through the years, they only adopted three: Jack, Sadie, and Hector. Jack had already gone off to college by the time they had adopted Sadie, and shortly thereafter, they adopted Hector.
Sadie had been in a horrible car accident with her biological parents when she was three years old. Her parents didn’t make it, but Sadie survived, although she was now prone to epileptic seizures due to head trauma from the accident. Other than that, she was a beautiful and charming little girl who loved to dance.
Hector came a couple years later, though he was only thirteen months younger than Sadie. He had been in three other foster homes before coming to the Riley’s. He never let his type 1 diabetes get in the way of being a very athletic kid. He also had a great sense of humor, and a very loyal heart.
Hector was the last child the Riley’s took in. They were getting older, and felt that their family was complete. That is until Dan Ramsey, a case worker for Georgia Child Services, gave them a call asking if he could come by to talk. Normally, they would have passed on the offer, but Dan was a good friend, so they decided to hear him out.
He came by and there was the usual small talk and pleasantries, and then he brought out a file. He explained that he knew they weren’t taking in anymore kids, but he just had a feeling in his gut that this was the home that this child was meant to be in.
He told them that she was found by a fisherman, floating down a canal on some debris after Subtropical Storm Andrea had hit. She was bruised, battered, and unconscious, so he took her to the hospital right away. She was at the Children’s Hospital in a coma for four weeks. When she gained consciousness she became very agitated and had to be sedated, but since then she had been very cooperative and docile. She hadn’t said a word since waking up, but the doctors say that it was psychosomatic. She couldn’t remember anything before the coma, and no one had come forward to claim her. In fact, it was like she appeared out of thin air; she had no dental or medical records anywhere. Most likely her parents were undocumented immigrants, and didn’t survive the storm.
Dan told them there was something special about this girl. According to the doctors, when she woke up she didn’t understand English, or even Spanish. But in a matter of two weeks she had not only taught herself to understand English, but could read it as well. Dan told them that he’d been to see her. She was distant and anti-social, but when he looked into her eyes he saw a bright intelligence there. She was a sad, lost little girl who needed the right home to bring her out and let her shine.
The Riley’s looked at each other and spoke through their eyes like most people who have been married a long time can do. They both knew they couldn’t deny this little girl, but they told Dan it was a family decision. So they brought in Hector and Sadie, who were now nine and ten years old, and filled them in on everything. Then they asked how Hector and Sadie felt about having a little sister.
Hector asked how old she was, and Dan told him that they weren’t sure since she couldn’t remember and there weren’t any birth records, but the doctors determined she was about five years old. Sadie asked what her name was, and Dan said that she didn’t have an official name yet, but one of the nurses started calling her Ariel, since she was found in the water and didn’t talk. So everyone started calling her that for lack of anything else.
The Riley’s all groaned. Tess said it was horrible to put that stigma on the poor child. Dan assured them that it wasn’t set in stone, the girl barely acknowledged the name anyway. They could come up with something else and make it official.
Both Hector and Sadie said that they were cool with a new little sister. So the Riley’s prepared for one more to join the family.”
“Wait, you’re supposed to be telling me about your story,” Adam interjected.
“I told you not to interrupt!” Ari said, frustrated. “If you insist on making me tell you my story, then you’re just going to have to deal with the way I tell it. So please, just hush and listen!
“The first thing that I can remember is waking up in the hospital. Though at the time I didn’t know it was a hospital. To me it was just a strange unfamiliar place. I was in a bed with tubes and wires coming off of me. And I was consumed with an overwhelming sense of fear and panic. I had to escape. I had to run. I had to get away from…something. I couldn’t remember what.
I yanked off the wires, and ignoring the pain, I pulled out the tubes connected to me, causing beeps and alarms to go off, which made me freak out even more. I jumped off the bed and ran out of the room and down the hall. I must have been a wily little kid, because no one was able to catch me until I reached the front entrance. A large male nurse grabbed me before I could make it out the doors. I tried to fight him off with a manic fury, until someone injected me with a sedative. Then it all went dark.
The next time I woke up, the fear and panic were replaced by sadness and a fierce longing for …something… someone? My heart was yearning for something my mind couldn’t remember.
My arms and legs were strapped down by restraints to prevent me from running off again, but they soon came off when I proved to be docile. The doctors and nurses would talk to me, but I couldn’t understand what they were saying. Their voices were soft and their intentions were good, so when they’d motioned for me to do things, I’d do them. If they put food in front of me, I’d eat it. The nurses would turn the T.V. on in my room to PBS, to keep me entertained. I didn’t understand it, but it was colorful and musical so it kept my attention.
To me, everything felt distant and wrong; things weren’t as they should be.
Sometimes they’d take me to a room with toys and other children. I wasn’t interested in interacting with them, and since I just sat there and didn’t say anything, they weren’t interested in me either.
Soon I started to understand the words people were saying to me, but even though I understood the words I couldn’t speak them. It was like there was a wall in my mind that they were all stuck behind – like the wall that was holding back all my memo
ries.
Once the doctors realized I could understand them, they started asking me yes or no questions. They told me to nod my head for yes, and shake my head for no.
“Do you remember your name?”
No – I shook my head.
“Do you know how old you are?”
No – I shook my head.
“Do you know where your parents are?”
No – I shook my head.
“Do you remember where you lived before you came here?”
No – I shook my head again.
All the answers they wanted were behind the wall in my mind, and it frustrated me. So I tuned out. I was no one, from nowhere.
Between the alphabet books they let me look at and watching the PBS shows, I figured out how to read. Once it clicked, it seemed so simple. Each letter had a sound – put the sounds together to make words.
When they took me to the playroom, I went straight for the books they kept on some shelves. I went through all the easy ones pretty quickly. The more I read, the easier it became. Soon I began reading a set of child encyclopedias that they had. My mind was taking in information, processing it, and storing it, but I still couldn’t connect with anyone or anything. Everything still felt off. I was still trying to hold on to something that was out of reach.
One day a man came to see me. He asked how I was – I didn’t know, so I shrugged. He asked me if I wanted a new family. That had made me stop and think – Did I? I knew what families were. I had read about them and seen them on T.V., and I had seen kids with their parents at the hospital – was that for me? I didn’t know, so I shrugged. He looked into my eyes and I understood his intentions. He wanted what was best for me, he wanted to help me; I wished that he could. My hand reached up to the side of his face, as if on its own. It felt like something that I might have done before; it felt like something was supposed to happen…but nothing did. So, disappointedly I put my hand back down, and turned my attention back to Sesame Street.