By the time they set out twenty minutes later, the climb much easier leaving the backyard than it had been entering it, they each had a backpack loaded with everything they’d likely need over the next few days, including food, water, blankets, a flashlight, and a laptop. With more food and rest in their systems, the weight wasn’t as bad as it could have been, and it felt solid and reassuring against Jemma’s back.
Even if it wasn’t much of one, it felt like they had a plan.
EIGHTEEN
Resources
The backpack felt as if its weight had doubled, at least, by the time they reached the road. Jack straightened, looking out at the evening traffic.
“Ready?” he sent.
Jemma looked down at herself. She was covered in dirt and mud. Her jeans had some scrapes and at least one actual tear, though it didn’t feel as if the stick that had been the culprit had broken skin. Her once-white shoes were brown, and what she could see of her skin looked the same. Another look at Jack confirmed that he appeared equally bedraggled. “Are you sure someone will give us a ride instead of just calling the police?”
“Fairly. There are a lot of trails through here, plenty of people who try to go tubing on the river and get in over their heads, sometimes literally. I figured we’d pretend to be one of them.”
Jemma nodded. “That could explain the lack of cell phones, too.”
“Right.” He grinned at her, then tilted his head toward the road. “So?”
“I guess we’ve already taken long enough to get here. The woods were rougher than I expected. Let’s do this.” Jack reached out his hand, and she took it, taking strength from their increased connection. They crossed the northbound lane first, stopping in the grassy median. Jack held up his other thumb, wearing a disarming smile, and Jemma settled for trying to look like she wasn’t about to jump out of her skin, focusing instead on the feel of his palm against hers.
Several cars flew past without slowing. This part of the highway didn’t have many businesses, but the speed limit wasn’t as high as it was further north, and Jemma was able to relax some as she noticed that most people weren’t even looking at them.
It didn’t help them find a ride, but at least they weren’t as conspicuous as she felt.
Finally, someone slowed, coming to a stop a couple yards away from them before dimming the lights. It wasn’t quite dark out yet, but Jemma appreciated the gesture, and it helped her see the driver of the red pickup. His face was covered in scruff, his hair long. He took up a large portion of his front seat, but she could tell even before he got out that he was tall as well. He walked over to them, stopping just a few feet away, and smiled almost shyly, holding up his phone. “You folks need a ride?” it asked.
Jack nodded up at him and let go of Jemma’s hand to grab the pen and pad of paper they’d put in an outside pocket of his backpack. We were out hiking and I dropped my phone in the creek, he wrote. We didn’t have a backup map.
“Where’s your car?” typed the stranger. “I can take you to it.”
We were supposed to be picked up tomorrow morning, but I think we’re in a bit over our heads. Some friends are at the theater by the mall. Any chance you could take us there instead?
The man looked at them for several quiet seconds before nodding. “I’m not in a real hurry and was headed that way. I’m Tim. You are?”
Jack flipped to the next page of the notepad before answering, and Jemma continued reading over his shoulder as he wrote their middle names. I’m Patrick, this is Evelyn.
Tim nodded again. “Toss your bags in the back and hop in.”
Jemma rubbed her shoulders after taking off her backpack, then climbed in after Jack, careful not to kick the sheathed sword resting on the floorboards. “Is this a good idea?” she sent, hesitating with her hand on the open door.
“I’m not getting any bad vibes off him,” sent Jack. “Plus, at least the sword is on our side of the truck.”
Letting Jack’s grin reassure her, Jemma closed the door and buckled her seatbelt.
The ride was quiet, the truck swayed, and the last of the sunlight faded as they drove the half hour to the theater. Jemma felt weariness setting back in within a few minutes. Jack took her hand, running his thumb along hers in a way she wouldn’t have guessed he’d done often enough for her to miss.
“It’s okay to rest.”
Jemma sent disagreement. “I don’t want to sleep.”
“You don’t have to sleep. Just relax.” She felt amusement, affection. “Plan, if that helps.”
She took a deep breath, then released it, letting her head rest against his shoulder, then started running through various scenarios and the options they had for reacting to each, getting absorbed enough that she didn’t realize where they were until they came to a stop at the theater.
“You want me to stay until you’re sure you’ve got a ride? Or you need to text someone?” Tim typed. Jack shook his head and gave a thumbs up.
Thank you, mouthed Jemma. She got out of the truck, stopping when he typed again.
“Next time you go out in the woods, make sure you’ve got someone with you who knows what they’re doing, or at least a real map.” Jack nodded, then joined Jemma outside the truck. When they’d both retrieved their bags, he waved at Tim, who drove away.
“I forget how late it gets dark this time of year,” sent Jack. “I checked the time before we got out. We missed the start of the movie.”
“I don’t see her waiting at the ticket counter, either.” Jemma rubbed her arm. They walked closer to the counter, then checked around front, peering inside the lobby as much as they could without drawing attention. “Jill?” Jemma tried to send. Her hand flew to her head, reflexively trying to stop the pain that had spiked at the failed attempt at contacting her sister. She felt Jack put his arm around her waist and led her around the corner of the building. She sat with her back against the cool concrete until she could focus on his connection again, the strength of it lessening the pain.
“What happened?” he sent finally. His arm was still around her waist, and she suspected they looked like any couple relaxing before a movie.
“I tried to reach Jill. It didn’t work.”
“I hope actually Talking to her doesn’t hurt as much as trying.” Jack sounded concerned, and Jemma leaned into him, closing her eyes.
“I think I tried too hard. I’ve gotten used to trying to send through that barrier or whatever it is.”
“Still,” sent Jack, “not that I’m complaining, but why doesn’t Talking to me bother you? What is it about our connection that makes us different?”
“We’re what they were trying to find.” Jemma frowned. “They were looking for us even before the Event. I think maybe…” She hesitated. “This is a guess, and one that makes me feel like maybe I’ve been watching and reading too much science fiction, but we’re living in a world where telepathy is real, so bear with me.” Jack sent silent encouragement. “I think maybe under the right circumstances, we’d have been able to Talk without the Event. The rest of the Talking, it isn’t natural, isn’t supposed to happen, and that’s why it’s causing problems.” Seconds passed before Jack responded.
“Makes as much sense as anything else.” They listened to cars drive by, and Jemma regained her strength. “We’ll wait here until the movie gets out. We should be able to tell. Should’ve grabbed one of the watches they left.”
“Felt better taking only what we really needed.”
“True.”
Jemma started talking Jack through some of the ideas she’d had and discarded, some of their options for staying hidden and yet seeking out information. They would need internet, power, and anonymity. The libraries weren’t an option since Jemma knew all the employees, by sight if not by name. Coffee shops would work during the day if they stayed in back rooms, but that didn’t give them a place to sleep, nor did it offer transportation. There were plenty of coffee shops within walking distance of their current locatio
n. They’d be a little bit close-for-comfort to the blood bank that had started it all, but they would also be near several parks where Jemma thought they might be able to sleep undetected, as long as the weather stayed warm and relatively dry.
“Hopefully Jill understood the text about us being broke and will bring enough that we can stay in food and drink for a while,” sent Jack, “and keep from being kicked out of the coffee shops, but I think that’s a solid plan.”
“We’ll want to stay off the main roads, I think, in this part of town. The highway that far out of town was different.”
“You’re right. They might think to look for us here,” sent Jack.
Jemma glanced toward the parking lot, then sat back against the building again, glad the theater was fairly slow on a Thursday night. On Fridays, the side lots were full, too, and Jack and Jemma would be much more visible to people coming and going.
“Jemma?”
At the sound of her sister’s mental voice, Jemma stood. “Jilly!” She kept her connection with Jack open, letting him hear her side of the conversation. He stood up beside her, listening.
“Where are you? Don’t come out. I might’ve been followed. Just say where you are.”
“You might’ve been followed? Are you okay? Around the corner of the building, right of the ticket counter.”
Jemma heard footsteps stop just on the other side of the corner, then saw a thin trail of smoke and caught a whiff of bubblegum scent. “Jilly, are you smoking?”
“You’ve been gone for like five weeks and all you leave is some cryptic note. Is that really what you want to talk about right now?”
Jemma met Jack’s eyes, trying to calm herself. She loved her sister, but nobody else could get under her skin quite the same way. “Do Mom and Dad know?”
“God, Jemma, it’s just an e-cig, and no, they don’t know I smoke, but I need an excuse to stand here and—”
“No. Jill,” she interrupted, “do they know I’m here?”
“No.” Jill sounded more subdued this time. “I knew they’d want to come, and every once in a while I catch someone watching me, you know, like you mentioned before you left.”
Jemma clenched her fist. Were they watching Jill because of Jemma’s abilities, or were they considering taking her sister, too? She knew her sister couldn’t Talk farther than normal; she’d have been able to hear her in the movie theater. “You’re being watched?” She saw Jack’s brow furrow. “You’re being careful?”
“Yeah. This is the first time I’ve gone out alone in ages. I’ve been bringing friends with me or whatever. It makes Mom happy, anyway.”
“How are Mom and Dad?”
“They’re okay. They’re confused. I told them you wouldn’t have left unless you had to.” She paused. “That’s true, right?”
“I wouldn’t have left unless I had to,” she answered firmly. “I can’t…” Jemma swallowed. “How much can we tell her?” she sent Jack.
“If she’s being followed, even being here might not be safe,” he answered. “But we’re also going to be trying to get the word out, so…” He rubbed his neck. “I’m not sure there’s a right answer, here.”
“There are some bad people, and we’re trying to stop them,” she sent finally.
“You?”
“I know, I know. Hold the skepticism, please. You know I research. Is it too much to believe I found out something I shouldn’t know?” Jemma winced at the half-truths.
“Okay, maybe not.”
“We’re trying to get the information in the right hands, without getting anyone hurt in the process. We got caught for a while, but we got out, and now we’re trying our best to figure out who’s safe to talk to and who isn’t, but we don’t have any money or—”
“I brought some. I’ll set it down before I leave. It’s everything I had, and Dad’s gonna kill me if he finds out I emptied my savings, so you better survive this so you can pay me back.”
Jemma felt a surge of affection for her sister. “I’ll do my best.”
“I’d better get going,” sent Jill. “Oh, is Jack with you?”
“Yeah, he’s right here.”
“Have you guys hooked up yet?”
Jemma closed her eyes at the unexpected blush that raced across her cheeks. “Jilly.”
“Okay, fine, be that way. Anyway, I’ve been visiting his dad a couple times a week. He seems kinda sad, misses Jack and all, but he’s doing okay otherwise. He has a new nurse I think he likes working with. The guy makes him laugh.”
“Thanks, Jill. I’ll let him know. Be safe. Text Mom before you leave so she knows you’re on your way.”
“Yes, ma’am.” Jemma could almost hear her roll her eyes before there was a shuffle and fading footsteps. She counted to sixty before moving around the corner and picking up a small envelope with cash, putting it in the pocket of her backpack rather than trying to count it in the dim light beside the building. She looked at Jack.
“She said she’s been visiting your dad and that he’s doing well.” Jack broke into a smile and wrapped Jemma in a hug. After a moment, she returned it, squeezing him before pulling away. “Come on. We need to find somewhere to sleep for the night.”
NINETEEN
Options
“You know you have a lot of great ideas, right Jemma? I’m not sure that this was one of them.” Jack looked out at the park, and Jemma nodded. The lot she’d led them to was much smaller than she remembered, and it was considerably more open. If there were even a cursory search of the parks in the area, they’d be found immediately.
“What are our other options, though? Without a credit card or ID, we can’t get a hotel room. It’ll be impossible to find a safe place abandoned at this time of night, at least on this side of town. Maybe if we were closer to home, I’d know of some better places, but here?”
“Would you be able to sleep here?” Jack asked quietly, gesturing toward a bench that had seen better days.
Jemma looked around again, rubbing her arm. “No.”
“You wanted to plan, anyway. So we’ll find somewhere dark, where we won’t be spotted easily, somewhere with power and WiFi, and we’ll start our research. If we can find somewhere to sleep that takes cash, that’s great. If not, maybe we’ll be tired enough to find a spare alley by that point.”
“An alley might be safer than this place.” Jemma sighed. “Where are we headed, then?”
“There’s a bar I went to once or twice that has internet. I haven’t been in years, so I don’t think anyone will recognize me, and we shouldn’t be carded unless we try to buy alcohol.”
“Caffeine sounds like a good idea, anyway.” Jemma let her hand drop to her side. “It’s in walking distance?”
“It’ll take us probably thirty minutes, staying off the main roads, but yeah, it is.”
“All right. Lead the way.” She looked at the park one last time before following him, longing for sleep and the safety of her theoretical plan. They did, at least, stop in the public restrooms to clean up, not adding to the filth as they washed the mud from themselves as best they could.
The walk to the bar was uneventful, their entrance unchallenged. The room was nearly empty, just a few patrons on barstools, and the man behind the bar nodded to them as they walked in. They chose a table toward the back of the room, Jemma sitting with their bags while Jack took the notepad and pen up to the bar. He came back a couple minutes later carrying two sodas.
“Forgot to ask for cash to pay him. They’ll do a tab, obviously, but I think they’ll leave us to ourselves better if we pay as we drink.”
Jemma retrieved the envelope, her eyes widening as she saw the variety of bills. Jill had managed to get them about five hundred dollars, and while that wouldn’t get them very far if something big came up, it was a lot more than she’d expected. She handed Jack five dollars and put the rest back in place while he paid.
“Everything all right?” he asked when he returned, sitting back down.
; Jemma sipped her cherry soda while answering. “She just gave us more than I thought. We really could stay at a hotel for a few nights if we had ID. I mean, I’m not sure whether that would be the wisest use of funds or not, but we could.”
“She’s a good kid. Despite the smoking.” Jack pulled out his borrowed laptop, and Jemma sent a groan and plugged in the one she’d picked from the house.
“I don’t want to think about that. Research. We’re researching. We’re looking for someone high-profile enough to help us take these people down, or at least to get them the help they need with their own research, right?”
“That’s right.”
“That’ll be an easy search term. We’ll be done in ten minutes.” Jemma let her sarcasm seep through, and she looked at Jack to see him smiling at her.
“You’re the Queen Googler, remember? Think about everything we’ve managed that wasn’t in our skill sets. This? Something we’re actually good at? This will be easy.”
Jemma nodded, then turned her attention to the laptop, pressing the power button and releasing a breath when it turned on. It had been a good assumption that it just had a dead battery, but it had only been an assumption, after all.
“WiFi password is on the bar napkin,” sent Jack. “Just don’t login on any of your accounts, and you should be fine.”
Jemma sent an affirmative, connected to the internet, then opened up a web page. She started with the local news. Somebody in the area would be easiest, of course. There just weren’t too many people locally who had real pull, and she wasn’t entirely sure what she was looking for.
She widened her search to the state. There were more rumors about telepathy statewide, but nothing connected to anybody in a position of power. She marked a page to go back to, an article about the governor starting a special project looking into the Event, mentioning it to Jack as she moved on. The governor seemed maybe a bit too high profile. Additionally, the fact that he’d started a program made Jemma wonder whether he might be involved with the project; it would be a perfect cover for studying telepathy, finding others with advanced abilities. It made her more than a little nervous, considering seeking him out. Still, it was a possible lead, and that was better than nothing.
Listen (Muted Trilogy Book 2) Page 13