I looked over at Charlie and I could tell she was thinking the same thing. She looked at Dozer. He stared back at her blankly, but after a moment, realization turned the light on over his head. He glanced to Cash, who then looked back at me. Cash's smile revealed his understanding. All of a sudden, we were all on the same page. All except Glitch.
“I got you. Since it’s not in his brain, that could work,” Cash said, and glanced over at Glitch. Unconsciously, we had formed a circle around him.
“Come on. What?” Glitch asked nervously, his mouth twisted in a frown.
“We wouldn’t have to leave,” Charlie murmured. “Headset would have stability,”
“We could keep our sweet pad.” Cash thought out loud, taking another bite of apple.
Glitch suddenly understood. “Oh, no. No, no, no, no! No!”
There was a split second to react before he would zip out of the kitchen and be gone.
Charlie yelled out, “get him, Liv!”
Before Glitch had time to even think about moving, I wrapped my mind around him, pinning him to where he stood. He floated only a few inches off the ground, wiggling fiercely.
“Come on, Glitch. It's just a little cut, no big deal,” Cash said.
“Screw you, man. You are not cutting into me!” He huffed, still trying like hell to get out of my grasp.
Charlie turned around and rummaged through one of the kitchen drawers, then ran upstairs. When she came back, she had a bottle of rubbing alcohol, super glue and a filet knife. There was a wicked gleam in her baby blues.
Glitch paled and looked at her imploringly. “What? You’re just gonna slice me open and glue me shut, Bubbles?”
“I saw it on YouTube,” Charlie shrugged. “Glitch, don't you want to stay in the Lair?” She pleaded with wide doe eyes.
Glitch gawked. “No! We'll find a better place. This one smells like betrayal!”
Glitch struggled against me, but I’d had plenty of practice with Mars, so catching him was easy. He never stood a chance.
“Don’t worry, man. Dozer will take good care of you,” Cash said, trying to sound reassuring.
Glitch paled a shade whiter, and his gaze slid to Dozer. He started to shake his head back and forth furiously in denial. “Nuh-uh! I’m not letting you put me to sleep while they cut into me. Dozer! Buddy! Come on. Don’t do this, guys!”
"I don't know if we should do this? I mean, won't they come for us if they realize we took it out?" Dozer asked.
"Yeah! Good point!" Glitch breathed heavily and searched our eyes.
"We'll just stick it in a tourist's backpack and they'll think we're on the move again. Once they figure it out, they won't know when or where we removed it," Cash argued.
"What about Cash? You've got one, too right?" Glitch shouted.
Cash shook his head. "Nope, my power isn't threatening. I was free to walk after my interview."
Dozer considered something for a while. We all watched and waited for him to decide. He looked at Charlie, then back at Glitch and shook his head. “Goodnight, Glitch.”
"Gah!" Glitch closed his eyes and plugged his ears. He sang and did whatever he could to keep preoccupied, but I didn't think Dozer's ability really worked that way. For a minute, Dozer just stared. As the seconds ticked by, Glitch began to yawn. He yawned once, twice, and then suddenly went limp. His head lolled on his neck and a loud snore erupted from his mouth.
I slowly lowered him onto the kitchen table, his head turned to the side.
“Is he really out?” Charlie asked in a hushed tone.
Dozer puffed internally with pride, basking in the glow of a job well done and the chance to impress Charlie. “Yeah, he's way under.”
Charlie leaned over Glitch and peered down at him and poked him in the face. I gasped and held my breath, but Glitch only snorted and went right on snoozing.
“Okay, we don’t exactly know how much time we’ve got to do this, or if he’s going to wake up in the middle. Dozer, I need you to keep a constant press on him, keep him under,” Cash said with authority. “So, Charlie? You’ve got the knife. You do the cut.”
Charlie whipped around to face Cash, eyes wide. “There is no way I’m cutting him,” she protested, slapping the knife down onto the counter next to Glitch. She crossed her arms over her chest and shook her head firmly. Her blonde ponytail swished defiantly.
Cash sighed and turned his gaze to me pleadingly, opening his mouth to say something, but I cut him off by holding my hand up.
“Nuh-uh. I already betrayed him. He’s gonna be mad enough when he wakes up, without finding out that I stabbed him too. We all have some blame to bear here, Cash. I stopped him from running. Dozer knocked him out. Charlie grabbed the cutlery, and she will most likely be the one to talk him down once he wakes up. You're going to need to play your part, Cash.”
“A valid point,” Dozer nodded sagely, and Cash shot him a dirty look.
Glitch snored loudly again and reached up to swat at his nose, bringing Dozer’s attention back to him. He set his hand on Glitch’s back and closed his eyes. Glitch’s breathing became deep and steady. His eyelids twitched rapidly behind their lids.
“Fine,” Cash finally conceded. “Liv, you have to show me where, and how, if you can. You’re the only person who has experienced this.” When I locked eyes with him, I felt his fear, trust, and irritation. Two of those things weren’t great to have in this situation, but I clung to the trust, and let it flow between us.
“You’ll do fine,” I assured him, and he sighed again. He believed me. His hands steadied.
We sterilized the blade and tweezers with the alcohol and I spent several minutes poking and prodding Glitch’s neck to get the chip in the right position. We scrubbed Glitch’s skin with rubbing alcohol and I guided Cash's index finger to the chip.
Show time.
A flashlight shined onto Glitch’s neck accounted for the best light we could procure at such short notice. Dozer kept Glitch steady and deep while Charlie acted as nurse, holding the flashlight and a towel. Cash was careful to clean his hands and splash them in alcohol. I acted as his second-in-command. The knife was poised, everyone was ready, and we went for it.
So…I feel like I should explain here that it didn’t go exactly as we’d planned. Without going into massive details, it turned out that Dozer was extremely affected by the sight of blood, and Glitch’s blood pressure was probably so high that even the paper-cut incision seemed to jettison like a geyser. Dozer passed out, and we lost our ability to keep Glitch under. Cash’s brave-face faltered under the pressure, and I ended up just yanking the damn thing out bare-fingered.
These are things that we didn’t tell Glitch. These are things we won’t ever tell Glitch. Does he need to know? Would it serve him any purpose to know that we bled him like a stuck pig during a completely bogus, unsafe surgery? Probably not. So we super glued the incision, bandaged Glitch’s neck, and vowed to take the secret of the botched surgery to our graves.
When Glitch woke up, he was cranky as hell.
“Hey, guy. Look at you, all chip-free and whatnot,” I said cautiously, feeling him out.
He sat up and swung his legs over the side of the counter, looking down to see Charlie cradling Dozer on the ground, fanning his face with her hands as he came to.
“You're all on my list.” Gltich hopped down, wobbled for a moment, and then left.
Dozer pulled himself unsteadily to his feet and leaned against the counter.
"You good?" Charlie asked Dozer.
"I'm good. Just going to grab some air." He held out his hand to stay her, and then slid his cell phone off the counter and stepped outside.
"Yeesh, poor guy," Charlie chided, then lowered her voice and said, "men are such babies."
"Tell me about it." I rolled my eyes and giggled with her as we cleaned up the mess.
That was it. No more tracking devices. The Nomads didn’t have to move. Glitch lived through the surgery with only minimal side effects t
o his normally buoyant personality. On the surface, things were pretty good. It was the monsters under the water I worried about. I kept them in the depths as best I could, but I knew they’d have to come up for air eventually.
Chapter Five
It turned out that removing the chip and unleashing Glitch's full speed was the best thing that ever happened to him. He flew around the Lair at breakneck speeds. The only time he wasn't a blur was when he was sleeping, playing video games, or on the ground after an inevitable fall. Charlie was starting to regret removing the chip because the process of Glitch getting his groove back involved an insane amount of trial and error. He’d broken two lamps, six picture frames and dented the refrigerator.
“Go outside!” Charlie would yell and chase him around the Lair. Glitch would tease her and run up behind her, then in front of her, then behind her again, until I got in on the game and grabbed hold of him.
Once we got him outside, he'd run full sprint up and down the coast during the day, building up so much speed that he’d be gone for a couple of hours and bring us back souvenirs from as far as San Diego. Dozer had a favorite seafood place down there, so he’d send Glitch for their special Baja fish tacos to get him out of Charlie’s hair, and get himself a little treat. Glitch was happy to do it. It expelled a ton of energy and helped to keep him calm when he was at home. Glitch was always a pretty happy guy, but having his ability back made his heart swell. He glowed with contentment.
Charlie and I grabbed blankets and a couple mugs of hot chocolate, and headed out to the beach. We sat under the stars and stared out at the ocean, appreciating the quiet. Charlie felt most at home when she was by the water. I’d never seen her actually breathe under water, but her whole body relaxed when she was by the ocean. It was like it was home. She was a real life mermaid, with long golden hair blowing in the breeze. She sipped her chocolate and pulled her knees into her body, resting her chin on them. Despite the tranquil effect the ocean normally had on her, I felt something uneasy twisting through her emotions.
“Whatcha thinkin’ about?” I asked, poking her shoulder.
She broke from her thoughts and gave me a smile. “Headset,” she said with a sigh.
“What’s wrong?”
“He did this thing earlier…” She sighed. “We were washing the Beast and spraying the hose in the air so we could see the rainbows. Then he reached out to touch one, and I laughed at him, but the bow…it bent toward him. The light gathered around him for a second. When I stopped the hose, he just went on scrubbing the tires, and playing in the bubbles like nothing had happened.”
“What do you think it means?”
“I think it means he’s developing another power, and it scares the hell out of me. I mean, when does it end? He’s a little boy. He can’t even control one power.”
“It’s going to be fine, Charlie. He is going to grow into them. From what I’ve heard, sometimes powers stick around and sometimes they fade away. No use worrying about something that hasn’t happened yet.”
“Have you ever heard of anything like this?”
“I have two powers,” I thought about Jason, too. “I know someone else that has two. It’s unusual, but it doesn’t mean he’s going to be messed up. He’s got you. If I had someone like you, maybe I would have been a little more grounded.”
“You turned out alright.” She smirked.
“Yeah, well, I had a few awkward years.”
Charlie rolled her eyes. “Sure you did.”
“Ask Glitch.” I warmed my hands on my mug.
“It’s not just the powers." She bit her thumbnail and stared into the horizon, but I could tell she wasn’t seeing a damn thing out there. “I’m worried about him growing up like this. We’ve got all the homeschool work books and stuff, but he’s already reading at a second grade level. I don’t know what I’m going to do when he realizes he’s smarter than me.”
“Charlie, stop.” I squeezed her arm to ground her. “You’re doing great with him. You think he’d be reading at that level if you weren’t? Whatever happens, I know you’re going to be fine.”
“You’re psychic too, huh?” A slow smile pulled at her lips.
“Maybe I am.”
My cell phone buzzed in my jeans. I pulled it from my pocket, but I didn’t need to look at it to know it was Jason.
Jason called every night. Most of the time I would let it go to voicemail. Other times I would just answer and let him talk. I wasn't ready to actually engage with him, but hearing his voice made me feel better.
At first, he would just keep saying he was sorry and that he loved me, but I'd hang up right away. Eventually, he just told me about his day. He'd steer clear of mentioning Stone or extractions or anything that he thought would set me off.
Charlie smiled warmly and stood up. "I'd better go help get Headset to bed."
I nodded, grateful for her understanding, and I picked up the phone and held it to my ear.
"Hey," Jason said quietly. "So, today we took the kids to the boardwalk. Bebe was finally tall enough to ride the Giant Dipper. She wants you to know that."
I smiled idly and pulled my blanket tighter around myself.
"I can hear the ocean," he murmured.
I didn't say anything, but I tensed up a little.
"It's nice to know that you and I are at least looking at the same thing, even if I can't be with you."
I relaxed.
"God, I miss you." I heard his voice crack and there was a long silence. When he spoke again, his voice was softer, desperate. "I just want to hear your voice. I just want to know you're alright."
I pulled in a deep breath and held it for a moment, debating. I tried to talk myself out of what I'd already decided to do.
"I'm fine, Jason," I said quietly.
I heard the air leave him in a relived sigh. His voice was shaking when he spoke again, and it broke my heart. "Thank you." He let out a quiet laugh. "I don't know what to say now."
I laughed too, tears brimming in my eyes. "Tell me more about Bebe."
"I've been waking up early with her and talking about her mom and brothers. I read stories before class and sit with her by the window, like you did. She insists I do the voices like you did. So, thanks for that."
"I'm sure you do a mean Pepper Piglet impersonation," I said quietly, giggling a little at the thought.
"The meanest." He laughed.
"And Lexa?"
"She's good. She's really good. She's been getting out a lot more, taking pictures. Mars too." Jason paused, and though I couldn't feel him, I could tell he was debating bringing up my sister.
"Mia?"
"Mia is still Mia."
I tensed at the thought of her, remembering the way I treated her before I left, and the fact that Jason could feel her emotions as clearly as he could feel mine. Guilt and jealousy swirled inside me, creating a bitter feeling in my chest.
"Liv..." I heard the longing in his voice.
"Don't ask me to come home again, Jason."
He didn't say anything.
"I've got to go."
"Okay. Goodnight, Liv."
"Goodnight, Jason." I wiped the tears from my eyes and breathed a sigh of relief.
When I went back inside, it appeared the plan to get Headset to bed was foiled by an impromptu dance competition.
“Liv!” Headset yelled, mid running man.
“What’s going on in here?” I grinned and tickled his sides.
“We’re playing shuffle,” he said through giggles.
“What’s shuffle?”
“We put the music on shuffle and change the song every thirty seconds, then change up the dance according to the song,” Charlie explained as the song turned to a slow ballad. She began twirling like she was in a ballroom, and then pulled Dozer up from the beanbag and into her waltz. Glitch and Headset started to improv the song, belting out the lyrics. The song changed to a high-energy rock song. Cash slid on his knees and started playing air guitar. The o
thers formed a tame mosh pit, running into one another and laughing out loud. Dozer grabbed Headset and flew him around the room on his shoulders. Then, the song from Dirty Dancing came on. I knew this one. I knew it well. My college roommate would play Dirty Dancing on a loop to unwind during finals. Cash looked up at me as he came to his feet.
“You better get in on this, Liv, or you're going to regret it.” Cash took my hand and pulled me onto the makeshift dance floor. We danced for thirty seconds, then the song shuffled again. It was Bohemian Rhapsody. The Nomads went wild.
Headset and Glitch sang the different voices. Headset didn’t know all the words, but he mumbled through pretty well. He got the feeling of it right. Charlie and Dozer sang to one another, laughing at the faces they made as they sang.
Cash twirled me around and sang along with the group. I felt his apprehension, but the excitement of the moment and the way the others were singing, made it impossible not to participate. Even though we were all yelling and screaming the words, and Cash was signing as quietly as he could, I heard his voice over it all. It was smooth and deep. It sent electricity sparking through my nerves and turned the world around me into a fog. He was all I could see, all I could hear. He was the only one I cared about.
I stared at his lips as they mouthed the words. My hands found his collar and gently pulled him closer. The music faded away. I felt his hands on mine.
Then the rest of the world came crashing back. I was in the Lair again. Cash had stopped singing. He pushed me gently away from him and uncurled my fingers from his shirt, taking a step back from me. I realized that Charlie was standing beside me, her eyes glazed over. As she broke free of the hold he had on us, the apples of her cheeks ripened and she wrapped her arms around herself. “I’m sorry, Cash,” she said, embarrassment filling her.
Cash backed away further. “My fault, Charlie,” Cash stammered and tried to put on a smile, but inside he was ashamed. “I’m going to call it a night.”
Without another word, Cash retreated back into his room. Headset was still dancing, oblivious of the change in the mood. Charlie turned and scooped him into her arms. “Come on, buddy. It’s bed time.” She took him up to the loft.
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