Sketches

by Teyla Branton

  “Can you describe them?” Reese asked, setting down her glass.

  “I don’t think so,” Lyssa said. “It’s been so long.”

  But a sketch of the men came to Reese from Lyssa’s mind. “You’d be surprised what you remember.” Reese jumped up to retrieve the sketchbook from her bag in the kitchen. “Tall? Skinny? Curly hair?” She sank back down on the couch, continuing to fire questions at both Lyssa and Lyra, leading them to describe the men. She lifted her eyes from the finished drawing to find Jaxon watching her with unconcealed amusement.

  She flipped the sketchbook around and showed it to Lyssa. “Is this them?”

  Lyssa blinked. “Yes. I think so. That’s amazing. Even those black headbands. You got all that from what we said?” She handed the sketchbook to Lyra, who nodded agreement before giving it to Eagle, who passed it to Hammer.

  By the time it reached Jaxon, Reese was focused on Eagle. “What about you?”

  Eagle chuckled, his long face showing amusement. “Much as I’d like to watch you do that again, I didn’t see anything strange where I was in New Delaware. Then again, I rarely left the office. I’ve been a little busy.”

  “You think those guys watching us had something to do with making Dani and half our classmates disappear?” This from Lyra, who stood and began pacing. “Maybe they killed them and erased them afterward.”

  “And what would be the motivation?” Reese countered. “This is the CORE we’re talking about. They’ve gone to a lot of trouble to sustain the colonies in the hopes that the children there will grow up to contribute to the overall society. They don’t make people disappear.”

  “They don’t give out receptors with enforcers’ images to abductors either,” Jaxon shot back. “Yet somehow those guys had one of you last night.”

  Hammer sighed and came to his feet. “All I know is that changing information shouldn’t be possible. Even hacking in, I could only see the information, not edit it.” A tiny data square fell from his hand, bouncing across the carpet to the couch. He went down on one knee to scoop it up before continuing. “Looking at this from a CSI perspective, I think you need to find out what it is that you guys have in common with each other and the other survivors. Or if you think you’re being targeted, you need to find out what you have in common with those who died or went missing.”

  “Isn’t it obvious?” Reese said. “Like Jaxon was saying earlier, the Coop is the common denominator. The other colonies weren’t affected.”

  “It does seem rather likely, but there might be other connections. I’m as puzzled as the rest of you that so many from Colony 6 seem to be unaccounted for.” Hammer’s gaze shifted to Jaxon. “If you think of anything else, I’d be interested in hearing about it.”

  Reese hadn’t begun to trust Hammer enough to tell him anything about their abilities, and she looked hard at Jaxon to make sure he didn’t decide to do just that. Like in the old days, Jaxon gave a slight shake of his head and a smile that made her relax.

  Hammer started across the carpet to the door. “I think you ought to talk to the captain.”

  “Not yet,” Jaxon said. “First we find out everything we can. If we’re being targeted because we grew up in the Coop, we still don’t know why that colony was singled out.”

  “Interesting question. I have to say, I’m feeling lucky I wasn’t born in Colony 6.” Hammer lifted a hand. “Well, I’ll let you all get back to your reunion. Let me know if you need any more help. I can see myself out.”

  Reese walked with him anyway, and Jaxon came with her. “Thank you for . . .” Jaxon began, but he trailed off, his eyes going past Hammer to the door, as if focusing on something Reese couldn’t see.

  “You’re welcome,” Hammer said.

  Reese nudged Jaxon, who pulled his attention back to Hammer and shook hands with him as if he didn’t see the other man every day at work. They watched in silence as the door shut behind the enforcer.

  “What was that?” Reese hissed at Jaxon, who still seemed distracted. He’d seen something, she was guessing.

  Slowly Jaxon turned back to the room. “I know why we’re being targeted,” he announced, loudly enough for everyone to hear.

  “You do?” Lyssa picked up her drink from the coffee table.

  “How?” Eagle added. “Was it something Hammer said?”

  “No.” Jaxon gave them a flat, mirthless grin. “Call it a hunch.”

  Chapter 10

  REESE’S EYES WIDENED, and Jaxon nodded at her. It was time to tell them about his premonitions. Mostly because he’d just had a glimpse of Dani. Even as he thought about it, the glimpse came again.

  Dani stands in front of a large holo feed like the ones on the conference walls at division, her arms folded across her chest. Reese and Eagle stand next to her. Dani unfolds her arm and points . . .

  Dani was alive!

  Before he could tell the others, Reese sat down on the couch abruptly, nearly causing Lyssa to dump her chotks in her lap. “Actually, I had a hunch too. I think we should visit the Coop. We need to find out what happened to Dani. Unless any of you know where Dani was heading after school. She finished, right?”

  Lyssa nodded. “She finished, but she didn’t want to go into any of the certificates available to us. When we left, she was still undecided. The last we heard, she was going to work for a private company. I don’t remember the name.”

  “Well, someone at the Coop has to know something. She lived with her grandmother. And a cousin, I think. He’d already left school so he would have been older, but maybe there was another cousin. If we find out what happened to Dani, maybe we’ll have more of an idea about the others who are missing from the database.”

  “That’s a great idea.” Eagle’s shuttered eyes turned in her direction. “I’d actually like to see that old place. Some of the best memories of my life came from there.” He grinned. “I mean, aside from not having enough food and almost getting beaten up every day. Anyway, we owe it to Dani.”

  Jaxon folded his arms across his chest, listening to Eagle but watching Reese. Was she serious about going back to the Coop, or just trying to prevent him from talking to the others?

  Lyra, now standing near the armchair, sank into its depths. “There’s something else you guys should know.”

  “Lyra, no,” Lyssa said, her voice low and urgent.

  Lyra met her sister’s eyes. “Maybe they can help.”

  “Think of Tamsin.”

  “They’re our crew. We can trust them.”

  Lyssa waved the words away. “That was a long time ago. Are you willing to risk Tamsin? Are you that sure?”

  “I’ve devoted my entire life to Tamsin,” Lyra growled. “You know what I’ve given up for my daughter.”

  Lyssa wilted. “I know. But this . . .”

  Eagle leaned back on his chair, crossing his legs and then tossing a pretzel up into the air and catching it with his mouth. “I don’t know about Jaxon and Reese, but I’m as curious as Breakdown about what you two are talking about. Care to enlighten us?”

  Lyra’s eyes didn’t leave her sister. “Besides, you told Jaxon ten years ago, and he’s kept the secret.”

  Jaxon smiled encouragingly, his curiosity growing. Lyssa hadn’t made much sense that night, and he was interested to learn what had really gone on with her.

  Lyssa finally nodded. “I’ll tell it.” Taking a deep breath, she straightened her shoulders and began to speak. “It first happened the night Tamsin was born. The labor had gone on for hours. I was worried—we were all worried. I was holding Lyra’s hand and then suddenly I was . . . floating. I wasn’t in my body. I panicked, of course, because I was there but I wasn’t there. I could see Lyra talking to the nurse and doctor, but I couldn’t feel my body.” She took a deep breath and glanced at Lyra, who picked up the story.

  “I looked up and saw her. Not really saw but felt, you know? I could hear her screaming, but no one else in the room did. And the baby was coming.”

 
“Then I was back in my body,” Lyssa said. “And Tamsin had arrived, and everything was fine. I thought it was just the pressure, you know, with the baby coming and the labor being so long. Worrying about . . . Tamsin and Lyra. But it happened again later. With both of us. It’s gotten so I can go to wherever Lyra is, and she can do the same. We call it traveling.”

  Silence filled the room as everyone stared at the sisters. Then, “That’s awesome,” Eagle said, his voice a little too loud and hearty. “Out-of-body experiences. A buddy of mine has a bunch of old ebook files, and I’ve read about people trying to leave their bodies. Think you can teach me how? There’s a few people I’d love to visit incorporeally.”

  Lyssa shook her head. “We have no idea how we do it. And it’s not like we can go cruising anywhere we like. We can only go to where the other is.”

  “What about Tamsin?” Reese asked.

  “She’s normal,” Lyssa and Lyra said together. “Look, you guys can’t tell anyone about this,” Lyssa added. “We could lose our jobs, and they might send us to enhancement.”

  “Not enhancement,” Eagle said. “But I know some doctors who would like to study you. Think of the spy capabilities.” Eagle scooted forward on his hard chair. “They could send one of you to infiltrate people they’re investigating and learn everything as it happens.”

  “Or to the fringers,” Jaxon added. Everyone’s attention shifted to him.

  “There is that,” Eagle said. “And out here, that might happen if Captain Brogan finds out. I admit, I kept my ability a secret once I realized not everyone sees things like I do.”

  This was promising. “You mean through your glasses?” Jaxon asked.

  “No, I mean I can look at something—schematics, whatever—and I see it in 3D. You wouldn’t believe how handy the ability comes in with design.”

  “You were always good at that.” Lyssa looked relieved that the attention had shifted from her and Lyra.

  “I can also judge distance, velocity, depth, volume, and weight with a glance.” Eagle’s voice was eager, but the blankness of the black glasses made him seem impassive. It took getting used to. “And with my glasses, I can see the full electromagnetic spectrum, as could anyone, but somehow I can interpret all of that data without a computer. Or mostly. I’m still working on it.”

  “When did it start?” Reese asked the question forming on Jaxon’s lips.

  “Ever since I remember. I’m better now than I was. I mean, now that I can actually see. But the 3D images in my head were what got me through the hallways at school. Turns out I was blinder than anyone knew. Not sure how I even passed, but it was from memory.” Eagle gave a laugh. “It’s not astral projection by a long shot, though. Just something I think I developed to make up for not having good eyes.”

  “I don’t know,” Jaxon said, deciding now was the time. Reese was shaking her head at him, but he pushed on. “I think you were born with it because I have an ability too. I have premonitions, glimpses of things that haven’t yet happened. It started out only as a feeling, a hunch I guess you would call it, but I began seeing images of things that would happen right before I left the Coop. I call those premonitions. It wasn’t often at first, but now it’s sometimes every day that I’m having either hunches or premonitions—or both. And they always come true. I knew each of you were coming. Just as I know Dani is still alive. I just saw her.”

  Eagle snapped his finger. “Yes! That explains a lot. Remember how you knew that teacher would be gone so we could borrow the laser cutter to get into the grate at the transfer station?” His gaze shifted to Reese. “And your drawings. Every question you asked Lyssa and Lyra—you already knew what to draw. I didn’t need my 3D brain to see that.”

  Reese scowled but didn’t protest. She did lean forward and pour herself another glass of chotks, her loose hair spilling over her shoulders in a way Jaxon found compelling.

  He pulled his eyes away. “So we all have an unusual ability.” He had been betting on this, but now that it was a reality, the idea was frightening. “The question is why? Is it just us? What about others who grew up in the Coop, kids we didn’t know or those from other levels? And who knows enough about it to bring our crew here to Amarillo City?”

  “We have to go back to the Coop,” Reese said. “The answers have to be there.”

  Jaxon dreaded the idea, but he admired her determination. “How about tomorrow?”

  “I’m in,” Eagle said.

  Lyssa and Lyra exchanged a private look before Lyssa shook her head, “I have to work a half shift this weekend, and Lyra needs to stay with Tamsin. We’re in for the rest, though. Whatever we can do.”

  A lump formed in Jaxon’s throat. It didn’t make sense how twenty years had passed, but they were still a crew, still family. “Okay then. Until we figure it out, let’s keep this to ourselves. And watch your backs. Lyra, does your husband still work for transport?”

  “Yeah, he’s been in Estlantic, visiting us only on the weekends, but his transfer finally went through last week. He arrived Wednesday.”

  “Good. Maybe he should pick you up or start sending shuttles, just in case.”

  “I’ll let him know,” Lyra said. She and Lyssa stood as one, though on opposite sides of the couch. “We have to get going, though. We need to pick Tamsin up at the sitter’s on the way home.”

  Jaxon nodded. “Thanks for coming. Oh, and Lyssa, about Ty . . .”

  Lyssa turned to him. “I got your message. Sure, he can ask me out. I’ll even go with him—for you.”

  Jaxon steeled himself for the vision of Ty lying on the slab, but it didn’t come. That didn’t mean he was out of danger, because his visions often took a break for days—he even looked forward to those times. “Maybe you should hold off until we figure out what’s going on. Anyone connected to us might be at risk.”

  “I can do that.” Lyssa sounded happy to wait, which told him she wasn’t all that excited about going out with the man anyway.

  “I’m off too,” Eagle said, standing. “What time do you guys want me here tomorrow morning?”

  “Five sharp. Even at full speed, it’s nearly four hours away. Don’t be late.” Jaxon slumped to the couch and watched Reese walk them all to the door. Her pale face was drawn in thought—or maybe her side was giving her pain.

  After shutting the door behind the others, she sat on the couch next to him. “What about Garrett? Are we going to tell him? About the missing people, I mean, not the rest.”

  Jaxon sighed. “I don’t know. He’s a good enforcer and a great friend, but subterfuge isn’t his thing. Still, I don’t see how we can keep it from him. And we could use his help.”

  Reese thought about that for a moment. “Look, Jaxon, I know we have to keep this quiet for now, but I want you to know that I’m loyal to the CORE. I know people talk about too much control, but you’ve been in the desolation zones. People did that. People like us. We can’t let it happen again.”

  Jaxon reached over and touched her hand. “This doesn’t have to be connected to CORE leaders. It could be someone working against them from the inside. Who knows? But we’ll find out.”

  She nodded and then began laughing as a yawn overtook him. “Sorry,” he mumbled. “Unlike a certain partner, I didn’t sleep in this morning.”

  “Aw, poor baby. Go home.”

  He hesitated before asking, “Would you mind if I just crashed here?”

  He watched emotions cross her face. Once, he might have been able to tell what they were, but now none of them were clear. She laid her head on his shoulder as she had in the old days. There was nothing sexual about it, so why did he want to turn and take her into his arms?

  “I’ll be fine,” she said. “You don’t have to stay to keep an eye on me.”

  “You’re still moving slow, if something did happen. And if I go home, I’ll get at least twenty minutes less sleep.”

  “Ah, if sleep is your real motivation, then you can stay. But only because we’re going s
o early. You can sleep on the couch. I might have an extra blanket in one of the boxes in the kitchen.”

  “Don’t need it. You have climate control, and this couch is better than my bed.”

  “Pillow?”

  “Never learned to sleep with one.”

  “If you’re hungry, I have food in the fridge.”

  “You use a fridge?” He faked shock.

  She lifted her head from his shoulder and laughed. “Theena sent some stuff.”

  “Ah, of course.” He was glad her laugh had removed some of her pinched expression. “No, thanks.” He leaned forward and grabbed several of Eagle’s twisted pretzels. “I have all I need right here.” He tossed her one, and they munched contentedly for a few minutes.

  “You sure about going tomorrow?” he asked.

  “I want to go.” Her words sounded more like “I need to go.” Jaxon wondered at that, because he’d rather walk across the North Desolation Zone than return to the Coop.

  Before he could say more, she arose. “I’d better let you get to bed if we’re getting up that early. I have a shower with real hot water, not just a sonic cleanser, if you want it.”

  The idea was tempting. “Maybe in the morning.” He stretched out on the couch. “You know, a guy in town died last year slipping on water in his shower.” He wasn’t sure why he said this except maybe to prolong the conversation.

  “I’ll keep that in mind.” She uttered a command that turned out the overhead light.

  Jaxon waited until he was alone to feel his way to the bathroom, then he crashed not on the couch but on the soft carpet. He would be somewhat comfortable but still alert enough to wake at the slightest sound. The building should be protected enough with the secure lobby and the doorman, but the revelations of the day worried him.