“So, how did you find out about your powers?” Mr. Easton changed the subject.
“We might never have if it wasn’t for Lexus.” Phoenix grinned at me. “But the sparks flew when we met her.”
John and Stacy raised an eyebrow at his comment. “So, what’s your specialty, Lexus?” John asked.
I stuck a finger to my lip and dropped my head.
“Lexus is pretty special,” Griffin said with a grin. “Anders called her a level 5.”
His parents glanced skeptically at each other then back at Griffin.
“It’s true,” Phoenix nodded. “She can do pretty much anything she wants, plus, she can control Conduits without their knowledge.”
“Or consent,” Griffin chimed in.
The Easton’s shared a concerned look between themselves then simultaneously turned it on me. Were they worried I was using my powers to manipulate their sons?
“That’s impressive, Lexus. You must’ve been training for a long time to develop such skill.”
Phoenix shook his head and piped up to brag on me again — he knew I wouldn’t do it myself. “Nope, she was as clueless as us till a few months ago when we met. She’s just a badass.” He smiled and play-punched me in the arm.
I tugged on the ruffles at the bottom of my shirt, feeling the opposite of that.
Griffin noticed my discomfort and took the spotlight off me. “Mom, Dad, I’d really like to know what happened that day, the day you disappeared. Can you remember it?”
Their faces grew pensive as they thought back on the day that changed their lives forever. After a moment, John began to speak. “Our ability to control minds was a very controversial one, and from the beginning, people had concerns when they found out what your mother and I could do. My parents were very involved in the Specials community, very conscientious about their standing. When they discovered that Stacy and I were able to use our powers to control minds, they wanted to exploit us to forward their own causes.” John glanced at his wife, and her expression encouraged him to continue.
“But your mother and I wanted no part of that. All we wanted was the chance to raise our family in peace. See, we had just found out that we were going to be parents.” A wide smile brightened his serious face but quickly disappeared again.
“We wanted our child — children, to have the freedom to live a normal life, and we knew that would never happen if we stayed in the Special community. We didn’t tell anyone that Stacy was pregnant, and we used our powers one last time, to persuade our families not to look for us. Then we disappeared.”
“We had six wonderful years with you boys.” Stacy grinned, her eyes misty with memories. “You were so special — so different from each other, yet each so perfect in your own way.”
Her face shone with pride. “Griffin, you were quiet and serious, but so gentle and compassionate. You loved to draw and have us read stories to you. Phoenix, you were so fun and energetic, always entertaining us. You loved to play games and sing.”
Her words made me smile. The boys hadn’t changed much over the years.
“We never told our families or other specials about you, and we didn’t tell you about your powers, hoping to insulate you from that world.”
John shook his head, his face pinched. “Somehow, Anders found us, though, on the day we were planning to move. He had Renee wipe our memories, and he kidnapped us. But, you said you just found out about your powers and came to this school recently, so he must not have known about you.”
Griffin shook his head. “No, I think he only just figured it out. He only found us because he was the Guardian Ad Litem for Lexus when our foster parents were trying to get custody of her. He recognized that we were all Specials and told us about Magna Virtus.”
“Do you… like it here?” Stacy asked tentatively.
Griffin nodded. “We’ve been at a disadvantage compared to the other students because we know so little, but it’s been good to learn more about our powers and our kind. I can see why you wanted to protect us from all of this, though. I’m not sure what will happen now that Anders is gone.”
Stacy looked at Phoenix, and he shrugged. “School sucks, but that’s all of them, not just this one. But I’m with Griffin.”
Stacy nodded and glanced at her husband. “Well, if you want to stay here I suppose I understand, but I’d really like to have a chance to be a family again. I’d like you to come home with us.”
Phoenix opened his mouth to speak, and Griffin slapped a hand on his arm and made eye movements towards me. “I think we need to talk about it.”
4
For once, Phoenix actually followed my advice and shut his mouth instead of blurting out an answer.
I knew what he was going to say — “Hell yeah,” or something to that effect. Our parents’ return was like a second chance for my brother. He’d spent the last ten years feeling like he’d driven our parents away and no one else could ever love us, either, mainly because of his behavior.
That wasn’t true, of course, and I think on a rational level he knew that, but he was still desperate for a chance to start over.
Not that I didn’t want to rekindle a relationship with our parents, but there was a lot more to consider that I’m sure Phoenix hadn’t even thought about. Number one being Lexus.
I could see it in her face already, the fear that we were going to abandon her, that this would mean the end of our relationship. I hated that she felt that way. Didn’t she know by now how important she was to us? To me? She was more important to me than anything. Whatever we did, I had to make sure that Lexus was factored into the equation.
“Hey, I’m sure you two are hungry. Why don’t we get something to eat in the cafeteria?” I suggested, changing the subject till I had a chance to talk to Lexus and Phoenix alone.
Our dad stood up, holding out a hand to our mother. “That would be great. The smells coming out of there were amazing.”
We headed down to the cafeteria where the scent of sage, cinnamon, and melted butter made the large, noisy space seem warm and cozy. We loaded our plates with pork chops, baked potatoes, and fried apples then found an empty table so we could have some privacy.
“I can’t remember the last time I had a meal that looked this wonderful.” My mom’s hands trembled as she set down a tray so loaded with food it probably weighed more than she did.
“What did he feed you?” Lexus asked, and I knew she sympathized with going hungry.
“We each had some basics in our cells — bread, peanut butter, dry cereal, a few pieces of fruit. He kept a freezer full of frozen dinners, and he would heat them up and give them to us once a day. Every once in a while he’d bring down something different, some leftovers from the kitchen that he didn’t think anyone would miss. We weren’t starving, but it’s so nice to have something hot, fresh, and homemade.” Mom took a big bite of her pork chop and rolled it around in her mouth, savoring the taste. My dad had half his food gone before my mom had even swallowed.
Mom stopped with her fork halfway to her mouth and looked at Phoenix and me. “I hope you didn’t ever go hungry.”
“Not really.” Some of our foster homes had been less than perfect, but I glossed over those memories. They weren’t worth rehashing. “But Lexus’ did, before we met her. Her stepmother wasn’t exactly an ideal parent.”
Lexus’ face flamed with embarrassment, and I felt bad about revealing her shame, but a plan was forming in my mind, and if it was going to work, I needed my parents to feel sympathy towards her.
My mom reached out a hand and patted Lexus. “I’m so sorry to hear that.”
Lexus gave a shy smile. “Thank you, Mrs. Easton, but once I met your sons, they made sure I had plenty.”
My mother sucked in her lips and put her hand to her chest, and my father glanced at us and nodded in approval. “I’m so glad to hear that my boys have turned out to be good people, even if I wasn’t there to teach them.”
“They’re the best, Mrs. Easto
n. I couldn’t imagine two better guys. I’m so glad I have them in my life.” Lexus reached out and squeezed both of our hands, and my mother looked curiously at her. I winced.
I knew we couldn’t hide our relationship status forever, but I had no idea how my parents would react to it, and I was afraid they might try to separate us if they didn’t approve. I hoped Lexus understood. She had just recently been willing to admit it and still got a lot of grief from our classmates about it.
“So, tell us about yourselves, boys. We want to know who you are now.”
“Well, Griff is still a brainiac who likes to read for fun and aces all his tests and sh—” Phoenix censored himself.
My father chuckled. “It’s okay, Son. I think you’ve earned the right to use a swear word or two.”
“Only two? Damn, I guess I’ll have to pick my favorites. Oh, shit, I guess I just did!” Phoenix’s response broke the tension that had been silently hovering between us.
“Griffin is an amazing artist, too. You’ll have to have him show you some of his sketches.” Lexus beamed at me, and that smile was the reason all my sketches lately were of her.
“Phoenix is a great athlete. He’s played just about every sport there is and excelled at it,” I said.
“And he can sing and play guitar, too. He writes his own songs.” Lexus turned her beam towards him, and I had a feeling all his songs were about her, too.
It was obvious to me that Lexus was into both of us. Could our parents see it? I hoped they just thought we were all good friends.
My mother wiped a tear from her cheek. “I’m so happy to hear that my boys turned out so well. I can’t wait to hear your music and look at your drawings, cheer at your sporting events. And look how handsome you both are! You look just like your father did when he was younger. I’m sure all the girls are crazy about you.” She grinned at us, and my face froze, expecting her to ask us if we had girlfriends.
Thank God, our dad changed the subject before she had a chance to. “What about your powers?” he asked, and I jumped all over that question. It was much easier to answer.
“Phoenix is good at telekinesis. He yanked a knife out of a guy’s hand who was threatening Lexus once.” I knew Phoenix didn’t think his powers were that impressive, but I still felt a rush of gratitude every time I pictured that horrific moment when Lexus’ mother’s boyfriend held a knife to her throat.
My parents glanced between the three of us with wide eyes. They probably hoped that we had been spared from too much supernatural drama, but we’d had enough in the last few months to make up for the previous 16 years. I just hoped they didn’t blame Lexus for that. Maybe I shouldn’t have mentioned it.
“And you can do mind control, right Griffin?” my father asked. “You freed Jaxson from Anders’ control.”
“He played a pretty big part in saving me from my mother’s boyfriend, too,” Lexus added.
“And the three of you together can… reverse time?” My father seemed impressed but still skeptical.
“That was freakin’ awesome, wasn’t it?!” Phoenix smacked the table, grinning.
“Yeah, that was something new for us. We’ve never worked together like that. Lexus did it with Jaxson once, but we could never make it happen.”
“That was a great idea to combine our powers like that, Lex.” Phoenix offered her a fist bump. “The only person I know who’s smarter than Griffin is Lexus. Sorry, bro.” He gave me a shrug.
I chuckled and shook my head. “That’s okay. You’re right.”
Lexus dipped her head, but I could see her grinning.
“So, what will you do now that you’re free, Mr. And Mrs. Easton?” Lexus asked, taking the spotlight off herself.
Our parents glanced at each other, and my father clenched his jaw. “I want to get as far away from the Special world as possible. These people have taken enough of our lives; I won’t let them ruin the rest of it. That means we need to disappear again before the council gets involved. We have money saved in a secret account, enough to start over somewhere far away where they can’t find us.”
5
“I want to go with our parents. I want a chance at a normal life for once.” Seeing them, feeling my mother’s arm around me, hearing the pride in my father’s voice — I didn’t realize how much I wanted those things till I actually had them.
Don’t get me wrong, Griff and I were doing just fine on our own, but who wouldn’t want a real family if they could have it? Anders took our parents away from us, and we’ve had to get by without them for all these years, but now, we can finally be together. School, the Special community, our powers — I’d give up anything for that.
Griffin sat down on his bed and put his face in his hands. “I know, Phoenix. I want that, too. But let’s just think about it for a minute before we start packing, okay? Let’s just weigh all the options.”
I threw my hands up in the air and started pacing. Griffin was such a tight ass, sometimes. “What’s there to think about?”
He stared at me, his expression telling me I was an idiot. “Lexus, for one.” Crap, I was an idiot.
I plopped on the bed next to her and took her hand, scrunching my face up in apology. “I’m sorry, Lex; Griffin’s right. I haven’t even asked you what you think about all this.”
Lexus stared at her knees and started chewing on a hang nail. “I don’t really know …”
Something about the way she said that made me nervous. “What do you mean? You’re coming with us, aren’t you? I’m sure our parents will be cool with that.”
Actually, I had no idea how they’d feel about it. Most parents probably wouldn’t be cool with that at all, but they had to see that our situation was different. Our relationship was different.
Griffin had been purposely keeping it on the down-low, but I thought it would be better just to be upfront about it, let ‘em know the score. They might not like it, but we weren’t little kids anymore, we were practically adults, and our relationship with Lexus was our business, nobody else’s.
Griffin winced and rubbed his hands down his face. “Phoenix, I’m not sure our parents are going to be willing to take in Lexus. They don’t even know her; I doubt they feel any obligation towards her.”
I slung my arm around her shoulder, and it seemed tight, like she was nervous. I wanted her to know I would take care of her. “Yeah, well, we just have to make them feel obligated. Like, let ‘em know we’re a package deal. If they want us, Lexus comes with. I don’t know why you’ve been trying to hide it; they’re gonna find out sooner or later.”
“It’s not just that, Phoenix. You heard them. They want to disappear. That means no more contact with any other Specials. No more developing our powers, even if they do let Lexus come with us. Is that really what you want, to spend the rest of our lives hiding?”
“It doesn’t have to be for the rest of our lives, Griffin.” I rolled my eyes at him. “We’re gonna be 18 in less than two years. Then we can decide what we want to do with the rest of our lives. But for now, I want to live with a real family. My own family. Don’t you?”
Griffin sighed. “Of course I do. I’m just not sure this is how I want to do it. I don’t see why they can’t just wait for the council to come and take their statement then leave on good terms. It’s not an all-or-nothing thing. Why can’t we live our lives the way we want to but still be part of the Special community? I just don’t like the idea of ostracizing ourselves from the rest of our kind.”
“Obviously, there’s some bad mojo going on that we don’t know anything about, bro. That’s why. We’re infants when it comes to all this stuff. Our parents grew up in it — and ran away rather than be a part of it. They had to have some pretty good reasons.”
“I don’t doubt that, I just don’t like the idea of going AWOL. But you’re right, it doesn’t have to be forever.” He glanced at Lexus, his face pinched like he was in pain. “Let’s talk to them about Lexus first and see what they say, and then we can decide
what we want to do.” Griffin got up and headed for the door, and I pulled Lexus up and followed him.
Lexus seemed awfully quiet, but she was probably just feeling overwhelmed by everything that had happened. I wrapped my arm around her waist and pulled her into me, giving her a peck on the cheek. She smiled up at me for a moment but then dropped her head again and stared at her feet. Her hand was squeezing the hell out of the hem of her shirt.
Griffin rapped on the door to the room our parents were staying in, and it swung open. Our dad gave us a big smile and opened the door wider so we could come in. He ogled my arm, which was still wrapped around Lexus, but didn’t say anything.
“Hello sons, Lexus. I hope you had a chance to talk. Your mom and I took advantage of the showers. I’d forgotten how amazing a shower feels.”
I hadn’t thought about that, but there weren’t any showers down in the basement, only sinks and toilets in the cells. Ten years with nothing but sponge baths. Yuck.
They looked better already. Their faces were scrubbed pink and shiny, and Mom’s long, grey-streaked hair didn’t look quite so dull and frazzled. Their clothes were still dated and worn, but maybe we could loan them some of ours. We were about the same size as our father now.
It was weird how he seemed so much smaller, less mythical now that I was with him again. Like just a regular guy and not some superhero. It made me a little sad, like the man from my memories never really existed.
“Mom, Dad, there’s something we need to talk about before we make any decisions.” Griffin sat down on the bed next to Mom.
She glanced at him then glanced at our father. “It’s about Lexus, isn’t it?”
Griffin’s mouth fell open, and he gulped and looked at me, but I was leaving this up to him. He was the one that always seemed to know the right words to say. I was the brawn, not the brains.
“She’s obviously important to you. We had a feeling you might not want to leave without her. Is that what you came to ask?”
Flying Free Page 2