Wilkins nodded at Jack, then quickly walked out. As he raced down the hall, I continued to hear his thoughts. “The police will never believe who was really behind this. I’ll be the one they come after! My career is over! Why did I have to keep working with GlobalLife? I knew all that money would only get me into trouble.”
I watched as Wilkins sprinted out of the building. I could no longer hear his thoughts.
Erik searched the room for hidden cameras. Hidden microphones were also a possibility. “Dad, get up.”
Jack didn’t move. He was white as a ghost. Erik grabbed a piece of paper from Paul’s desk and scribbled something on it. He handed it to Jack.
Jack read it, then bolted from his chair. “We should go.” Brittany and Erik gave him a strange look. He shot them a look back that made it clear they were not to speak. We all left the building in silence and didn’t speak again until we were in the van.
Once we were on the road, Jack started asking questions. “Now what exactly did you hear, Erik?”
“That Professor Wilkins somehow did this to Paul. He didn’t say how he did it. Could have been an injection of something. I don’t know.”
“So that’s why we raced out of there?” Colin asked. “You’re saying that the professor guy killed Paul?”
Brittany gasped. “Seriously? That’s awful. I liked Paul. He was so nice.”
“And Wilkins said GlobalLife made him do it,” Jack confirmed. “Are you sure about that, Erik?”
“Yes. Well, he said something about GlobalLife. I can’t remember exactly how he said it.”
“He said that he had done all this research for them and kept quiet,” I explained, filling in the story. “And he said they made him do it because they found out Paul had a file. It has to be that file we just opened. But how did they know?”
Jack sped down an on-ramp to the interstate. “We have to get away from here. This is proof that GlobalLife is watching that whole place. The lab. Paul’s office. Who knows? They could have been watching his house. Those helicopters the other day? They probably were from GlobalLife.”
“Dad, slow down. I see cops ahead.” The police were over a mile away but Erik could see them with his enhanced vision.
Jack slowed down. “Keep a lookout for more of them.”
“If GlobalLife knew we were there, they would’ve come and got us,” I pointed out.
Jack shook his head. “We don’t know who was watching. It’s a huge corporation. If there were people from GlobalLife watching Paul or Professor Wilkins, those people may not even know about you and Erik. I told you, GlobalLife only lets a small group of employees in on these high-level projects.”
“So that’s good, right?” Erik asked. “If they don’t know about us then it’s not a big deal if they saw us.”
“I’m worried that GlobalLife had a camera planted in Paul’s lab. If so, the main security offices at GlobalLife will review the video. Someone there will recognize us.”
“But Paul would have known about a camera,” I said. “He told us he checked that room for cameras all the time.”
“Yes. But they could have placed the cameras there last night, knowing this was going to happen to Paul. I’m sure that GlobalLife is monitoring Paul’s lab today to see who shows up looking for him. And since we were the first ones there after his death, I know they’ll be trying to identity us. We should have never gone back there this morning.”
“Why would they wanna kill him?” Brittany asked.
Jack sighed. “Sounds like they found out he had that file. But the fact that this happened at the same time we were there has me very concerned. It could be a coincidence, but I just don’t know.”
We drove for several more hours, heading east through California. Eventually Jack stopped for gas. “I need one of you to drive for a while.”
Erik tried to read Jack’s face. “Are you all right, Dad?”
Jack seemed to be in a fog. “I need some time to think this through. Paul’s death. Or murder is more like it. I just don’t know what it means. Is it a message for us? Do they know where we are? Are they following us right now?”
Colin volunteered to drive. Jack went back to the third-row seat. Erik stayed in the passenger seat and Brittany and I sat behind him.
We got back on the interstate and I tried connecting with Erik’s mind. “Erik? Are you listening? You should probably talk to your dad. He seems really upset about losing his friend.”
“It’s more than that. I think … worried that … next.”
“What did you say? Your thoughts were cut off.”
“He’s worried … next.”
“Erik, I’m only getting part of what you’re thinking.”
“That’s … because … part … saying.”
I tapped Erik on the shoulder. “I can’t hear what you’re thinking.”
“Yeah, same here. You keep cutting out. It’s like when we were trying to hear Brittany and Colin the other day and that helicopter went by.”
“It could be cell tower interference,” I suggested.
“We always have cell towers around us. That’s never affected us before. Let’s try again.”
“Can you … me … now?” Erik smiled at me as he imitated an old cell phone commercial.
“No. I only heard a few of the words.” I thought back to him. “Did you hear any of that?” I asked him out loud.
“I heard ‘no’, ‘few,’ and ‘words,’” Erik said.
“And I only heard part of what you said.”
Erik turned back around as we both thought of possible explanations.
I nudged his shoulder again. “Erik. Is there something in the van that could cause some type of interference?”
“What are you thinking?”
“Well, maybe I’m being overly cautious after what happened, but what about that laptop Paul gave us? What if it’s bugged? Sending out a signal? Or what if someone put something on or in the van?”
Erik bolted out of his seat and crawled back to where his dad was sitting. “Erik?” I looked behind me. “What are you doing?”
He was talking quietly to his dad, likely telling him my theory. Jack got the laptop from behind his seat and starting taking it apart. After a few minutes, he put the laptop back together. Erik shook his head at me, indicating there was nothing in it.
“Colin, pull off at the next exit,” Jack said. “I need to check something.”
When we stopped, Jack checked under the van, under the hood, and anywhere else a locator or listening device could be hidden. Then he got back in the van. “Well, it’s all clean. But that was a good idea, Sam. It was worth checking. Colin, do you want to keep driving?”
“Sure, no problem.” Colin stayed in the driver’s seat and Erik sat next to him.
Jack took the back seat again. “We’re driving till we get to Minnesota. No stops, except for meal and restroom breaks. So everyone will have to take a turn at the wheel.”
I looked over at Brittany, who wasn’t listening. She’d put her headphones back on and was staring out window.
“I’ve got a road game if you guys are interested,” I said to Erik and Colin.
“Sure,” Colin answered.
“Okay, I’m in,” Erik said.
“Well, it’s kind of stupid but we’ve got nothing else to do. It’s like a scavenger hunt. We each make a list of things for the other person to look for. So for example, if I’m making Colin’s list, I could say that he has to find a purple convertible, a black minivan, a car that has beads hanging from the rear view mirror, and so on. First one to check off all the items wins. Got it?”
“Yeah,” they both said.
“Okay. I’ll make the lists. Let me get some paper.”
“Wait a minute,” Colin said. “You both have like, superhero vision and can see miles ahead. That’s not fair.”
“Then you can make the lists for Sam and me,” Erik suggested. “Make them extra hard.”
Colin agreed, com
ing up with items for both Erik and me to find. I made the list for Colin. We started the game and Colin found two items right away, which irritated Erik.
“Sam, you made his list too easy,” Erik complained.
Colin smiled. “Because she wants me to win, don’t you, sweetie?”
Erik looked back at me. “Sam, did you rig the game in his favor?”
“No. He’s just lucky.”
“There! Right there! A car without a hubcap!” Colin exclaimed. “Now I got three!”
Erik shook his head. “That’s it. No more Mr. Nice Guy. I haven’t been using my distance vision to look ahead, but that’s over now.”
“Bring it on, my friend,” Colin kidded. “Bring it on.”
I rolled my eyes at their competitiveness. “It’s just a game, you guys.”
Erik sat up straight. “So I need a car with Alaska plates.” He leaned forward toward the front window, then sat back and rubbed his eyes.
Colin laughed. “What’s wrong there, partner? That superhero vision not working for you today?”
Erik leaned forward again. “Huh, I guess it’s not.” He rubbed his eyes, then opened them again. “I can only read the plates on the cars right ahead of us. Usually I can read them from at least a mile away. Hey, Sam, how far can you see?”
“I don’t know. I wasn’t trying to look that far. I was just looking in the area around the van to make it fair for Colin.”
“I told you she wants me to win,” Colin said to further annoy Erik.
“I’ll try looking farther out.” I hadn’t practiced using my vision skills much. In order to see really far, I had to imagine my eyes and mind connecting. I focused on a car about a mile away. But after multiple attempts, it still looked blurry. I focused on another car. Still blurry.
Erik was getting impatient. “Sam, how far can you see?”
“I can only see what a person with regular vision would see.”
“Yeah. Me, too.”
“Does it come and go?” Colin asked. “Or do you have to do something to make it work?”
“You have to focus, but that’s it,” I responded.
“Kid with a balloon in the car!” Colin yelled. “Got another one!”
“Okay. You win,” Erik declared. “Game over. Maybe I’m just tired. I’m gonna sleep for a few hours.” He went to the back of the van next to Jack.
I went to sleep, too. I woke up four hours later. It was dark out and Colin was still driving. I decided to test my vision again, this time my night vision. I looked out at the dark road. Normally I could see perfectly in the dark. This time everything remained pitch-black. I closed my eyes and tried again. Still nothing but darkness. I didn’t want to worry anyone so I kept quiet about it.
“Colin, let’s stop at the next food exit.” Jack’s voice startled me. He leaned up behind my seat. “We’ll get something to eat and switch drivers.”
It was another half hour before we reached an exit. Our only option was a truck stop restaurant, but we didn’t care. Everyone just wanted a break from the van.
During dinner, I tried mind-talking to Erik again, but it didn’t work. Our telepathy problems seemed to be getting worse.
Erik was sitting next to me. He leaned over and talked quietly. “I told my dad we were having problems with it. He’s gonna run some tests after dinner.”
“Where? In the van?” I asked.
“He just needs to draw some blood.” The waitress was back at our table with the check. “Let’s talk later.”
Before getting back on the road, Jack took some blood samples from Erik and me. Then Erik drove while Jack analyzed the results. Brittany went to sleep on the second-row seat, leaving Colin and I in the seat behind her.
“So what does he think is wrong?” Colin asked.
“I don’t know but I’m not gonna worry about it. We’ve had enough bad news today with Paul. I don’t need any more.”
“Here, why don’t you go to sleep.” Colin put his arm up so I could lean against his chest.
“No, it’ll hurt you. You’re still too bruised up.”
“It’s okay. This is my good side. Come on.” As I rested on him, he kissed my head and gently rubbed my arm. The van was getting cold and his warm chest felt good. It put me right to sleep.
Hours later I was still in the same spot. Colin was tapping my arm. “Sam, wake up. Jack needs to talk to you.”
“What time is it?”
“It’s 9:30.”
I sat up next to Colin. Jack was in the seat in front of me.
“What is it? Is something wrong?”
Jack turned back. He had the laptop open in front of him. “Yes. Putting that DNA in you and Erik has slowed the timer, but it came with a few side effects.”
CHAPTER FOURTEEN
Luke’s Journal
“I probably don’t want to hear this, do I?” I leaned over the seat. “What it is now?”
“Well, the DNA continues to disrupt the timer. You can see that right here.” Jack pointed to the screen, which showed a bunch of coding. He scrolled down. “But then if you look here, you can see that it’s also affected the switches in your DNA that give you your abilities. It’s trying to turn them off.”
“So my abilities will go away?”
“If it continues like this, then yes. Erik said you already noticed them weakening.”
“Yeah. I’m having trouble hearing his thoughts. Both of us have lost the ability to see far away. And I’ve lost my night vision.”
“If it’s happening that fast, then in a few days, you may no abilities left. Same for Erik.”
“Are there other side effects?” Colin asked.
“Not that I can tell,” Jack replied. “Just the loss of abilities.”
I noticed Erik was still up front driving. “How did Erik react to the news? He’s had these abilities his whole life. It’s gotta be strange for him to not have them anymore.”
“Yes but he’d rather have more time than have his abilities. Still, it’ll be an adjustment for him. You two should talk later.” Jack turned back toward the front of the van and continued working on the laptop.
Colin slipped his hand in mine and rested it on the seat. “How do you feel about this?”
“Okay. I only had my abilities for a few weeks. So I guess now I’ll just go back to being normal.”
“You were starting to like them, weren’t you?”
“Kind of. They made me feel a little safer. Like I might be able to protect myself.”
“I can tell you’re gonna miss the telepathy the most.”
“Why do you say that?”
Colin lowered his voice so Jack wouldn’t hear. “Because you can talk to Erik without people listening.”
It was true that the telepathy was my favorite ability. And it was because I could talk to Erik. But how did Colin know that? Was it that obvious?
“I really don’t talk to Erik that much. I mean, with my mind.”
“Yeah, you do. I can tell when you and Erik are doing the mind-talk thing. I knew you two were doing it today, before it stopped working.”
“Does it bother you?”
“Yeah, actually it does,” he admitted. “It’s like you guys have this secret language or something. And I don’t want Erik taking advantage of that. I mean, seriously, did you think I believed Erik when he said that crap about seeing you as his little sister? But I trust you, Sam. So I don’t make a big deal about it.”
The van was coming to a stop. Erik had pulled off the interstate and parked at a gas station.
I leaned up and tapped Jack on the shoulder. “Hey, Jack, I can drive. I’ve been sleeping for hours. I’m wide awake.”
“All right. But I need to get some gas before we take off again.”
Everyone piled out of the van. Erik and I stood outside while the rest of them went in the gas station to use the restroom.
“So what do you think?” I asked Erik.
“About our abilities? I’m kinda bumme
d to tell ya the truth.”
“Yeah. Me, too.”
“I’ve had them for so long that it’s weird to think they’re going away. I always thought having them made me some kind of freak. But then I met you and I started to think it was cool that I could do this stuff. Plus, I finally had someone to talk to, telepathically I mean.”
“Yeah, I’m gonna miss that,” I confessed.
“I know. I’m gonna miss that one the most.” He paused. “We could get them back someday.”
“How would that happen?”
“You know the part of our DNA that has the missing base codes? My dad was saying that if those were filled in, the timer would stop and our abilities would be restored.”
“But we’ll never get those base codes,” I reminded him. “You can’t exactly buy alien genes at your local drugstore.”
“Yeah, I know.” Erik’s voice trailed off and I immediately knew that I’d said the wrong thing.
I nudged Erik’s arm. “Hey, I don’t know why I said that. There’s always a chance that—”
“I should use the restroom before we go.”
“But wait—”
Erik left before I could say anything more.
We got back on the interstate. I was driving and Colin sat next to me. “Do you need me to keep you awake? Pick a topic. I can talk about anything.”
“That’s all right, Colin. I’m not tired. You can sleep if you want.”
“Okay, maybe just a couple hours. But wake me up if you want me to drive.”
Within an hour, everyone was asleep. There were hardly any cars on the road. Occasionally a semi would startle me as it roared past on its way downhill. The silent van gave me time to think. My thoughts kept going over all the sad things that had happened that day. Losing Paul. Losing my abilities. Losing my communication with Erik. It was a day of losses.
The past few months had been such a roller coaster of good and bad. The good was finding Brittany. And Erik. And seeing Colin again. But there were also so many bad things that had happened. My parents’ deaths being the worst. I found it ironic that some of the best moments in my life had occurred during the absolute worst time of my life.
I kept driving into the morning. As the sun began to rise everyone started to wake up. I heard Jack’s voice from the back of the van. “Sam, have you been driving all night? We need to stop. Get off at the next exit.”
The Golden Couple (The Samantha Project Series, # 2) Page 13