Echo Page 27

  Michael’s eyes opened, and he blinked rapidly. Sky stroked his stubbled cheek, and his head moved in her direction. He seemed sad at first, then he took Sky’s hand and sat up. Seeing Corin, he made the sign for ‘brother.’

  “Your brother’s not here,” Corin replied.

  “I think he means you,” Sky said. “We can ask Jack when she gets here. Run that DNA test.”

  “No, don’t you dare,” Amanda growled, twisting out of Danny’s arms and feeling in her boot for her knife. Then she checked her thigh and her arm, still coming up empty. Michael stood, too, and the two of them faced off in a battle of stares. Suddenly, Hero appeared in the bay. Tray shouted from upstairs, calling Hero’s name.

  “Hero, what are you doing down here?” Danny asked. Sky tried to move, but it felt like something was holding her in place.

  “Michael called him,” Amanda said. “Hero, watch out!”

  Amanda made a grab for Hero, and turned around, but then Michael jumped on top of them and all three disappeared.

  A chill filled Amanda’s lungs and she held tight to Hero. The teleport was instantaneous in the real world, but it felt like an eternity in the other realm. She’d been fighting with Michael, trying to escape him. As much as she liked being a free-roaming spirit, she didn’t want to stay with Michael forever, being constantly reminded of the life she’d left behind.

  They landed in a warm, cozy living room that smelled of roasted lamb and body odor. A blond-haired man jumped up from a dining table, ushered two pre-teens out of the house, then grabbed a wooden paddle. He hollered at them in Nolan, but Michael raised a hand, and he lowered the paddle to his side, glowering.

  “We’re sorry,” Amanda stammered, holding tight to Hero.

  Michael stepped forward and studied the frozen man, looking over his face, touching the light goatee on his chin. Save the hair, the two men looked almost identical.

  “Get Corin. Bring him here. Hurry,” she whispered to Hero, setting him on the ground. He had a splint on his leg, and he wobbled before he ported out.

  Amanda felt the overwhelming surge of powers echoing through the city. Michael’s energy was focused on keeping their unwilling host frozen. Amanda searched for a teleport power to get them out, but she couldn’t find one. She tried for telepathy next. Talking to Michael in the other realm had been easy, but he wasn’t letting her in now.

  “Michael, why are you here?” Amanda asked.

  Michael looked at her, and the man behind him raised the paddle again. He didn’t strike and his feet didn’t move. “To find my family,” Michael said, his lips not moving, his voice echoing sadly in her mind. “Tommy doesn’t want me. Mom wants wrong things for me. I don’t want to hurt Morrigan. Corin says I have family here.”

  The other man brought the paddle down on Michael’s shoulder, and Michael collapsed. The man grabbed him by the arm, pushed him onto his stomach, and braced his arm behind his back. Michael cried out in pain.

  “Careful! He’s injured!” Amanda cried. The man hollered at her in Nolan, and she felt her own feet moving. There was a box in the room with zip ties inside. Amanda shook her head. She wouldn’t let him control her. “He won’t hurt you,” she told the man, kneeling to get the zip ties at his command. “Do you speak Trade? Trade?”

  “Get out of my house,” the man growled in thickly accented Trade.

  Amanda felt a tug, like he was trying to compel her again. The man had the same power as Michael!

  Then Corin appeared, holding Hero in his arms. The blond man gasped but kept a knee on Michael’s back. Michael had gone limp.

  “Amar,” Corin said, rushing over and tugging Amar’s elbow to get him off Michael.

  Amar ranted in Nolan, but Corin calmed him down. Michael stayed on the floor, unconscious. As the two men talked, Amanda knelt on the ground, rolling Michael onto his side. This time, when she looked with spirit eyes, she saw him hiding in his sphere, just as before. He had clung to her because he couldn’t escape his physical body.

  “Amanda, Hero, this is my brother,” Corin said, switching to Trade. He pointed down to Michael. “Amar, this is the one I wrote to you about. He has a cursed power. I didn’t know that when I wrote.”

  “I see what he is,” Amar said through gritted teeth. “I didn’t expect you to drop him in my living room like this. And since when do you have teleport power?”

  “I hitched a ride,” Corin said, indicating Hero.

  “Oh.” Amar seemed disappointed.

  “You’re cursed, too,” Amanda said. Amar shot her a look, and Amanda’s throat tightened. A flood of fears invaded her mind, and she saw him using his power. Like Michael, he could make suggestions to minds, but he couldn’t read them. He tried never to reveal his power, and only used it to save his own life.

  “Power of suggestion. That’s what it is. He makes people do stuff,” Amanda said.

  Amar shook his head, and her jaw clamped shut, like he was holding it.

  “Your secret is safe,” Corin whispered, touching his brother’s arm. “I thought he might find a place here before I knew, but I will take him back to Oriana.”

  “Corin, don’t go,” Amar said, his anger switching to sadness and concern. “We want you to come home. Michael can stay, but only if you stay, too.”

  “Careful, Corin. His suggestions can override your will,” Amanda warned. But Corin looked from Michael to her, and she had a sense that his hesitance was genuine.

  “Go back to the ship,” he instructed, handing Hero to her. “I’m going to get Michael settled here. I’ll send a broadcast tonight. You’ll come back for me, right?”

  “I promise,” Amanda said. They were back on the ship before the words were out of her mouth. Hero wriggled down and hopped on one leg into his father’s arms.

  Amanda sank into a chair. They were in the ward room with Tray, and Tray called the others to update them. Hawk came first, wanting to know that Corin was okay, and Amanda told him Corin’s message.

  Morrigan squatted in front of her, checking her over. Amanda knew what happened now—she’d stabbed Morrigan because of Michael. The frustration came from him. He wanted to escape this life so badly, and he’d only meant to hurt himself. His pain had cut through the cloak of Cordova, and she’d echoed it.

  “I remember being in another place. It felt like months. Or more. I remember going to the city and seeing Michael there,” Amanda said, her voice shaking. “And then nothing. How much time did I lose?”

  “A few days to the coma,” Morrigan said. “A week, overall. The treatment didn’t work, so you shouldn’t remember anything that happened after your first baseline.”

  Amanda’s chin quivered. She felt guilty for failing. She wanted to get better. “Are you okay?” she asked Morrigan.

  “You’re the one that’s been in a coma the past two days,” Morrigan said with a soft smile.

  “Time doesn’t really have meaning there,” Amanda said. “A day is a lifetime. I could have stayed forever. But if I stayed, Michael was going to stay, and I didn’t really want to spend the rest of my life with him.”

  “Neither did I,” Morrigan said, her eyes welling with tears. “I’m worried what he’ll do in Nola. The people there…”

  “Aren’t powerless. I think Michael did find his brother after all. Someone who could handle him.” Amanda hugged Morrigan, grateful to have her doctor back. “I’m sorry I stabbed you.”

  37

  Sky wasn’t sure how many trips it would take to get all of Jack’s gear and supplies back to Oriana, and with her injured arm, she wouldn’t be much help if heavy lifting were required. When she landed outside the city, the only people outside were Jack and Ian Cooper. Their packs were light, as if they’d been preparing for a day walk.

  “Tell me there are more people cloaked on the deck,” Sky said, standing in the cockpit. Jack approached the Bobsled, but Ian held back.

  “Sky,” Jack said, climbing the ladder. “How is Michael? Is he okay? Is he still
alive?”

  “Yes, he’s alive,” Sky said, pressing a kiss to Jack’s cheek. “Even woke up. Good as new.” She held back the part about teleporting. It would only slow down this transfer.

  “Where’s the team?” Sky asked.

  “I could not secure any more volunteers,” Jack said, ashamed. “But Ian will come with us. She will be a great help to me.”

  Sky let out a low whistle. The crew had been antsy enough about Michael, but Ian offered nothing to redeem herself.

  “I told you this was a bad idea,” Ian muttered. “After what I did—”

  “This will be your penance,” Jack interrupted, wiping the tears from her face.

  “I’m surprised Lula didn’t volunteer,” Sky said. “Or did she and you told her no?”

  “Her mother has the pox,” Jack said. “Didn’t get the vaccine in time for it to be effective. Lula couldn’t leave her mother like that.”

  “Is Avery going to be okay?”

  Jack shrugged. “They deactivated our palm comms, so once we leave the clearing, we’ll lose…”

  Jack choked again, more tears coming.

  “Jack, if you want to stay here—if you need to—”

  “I’ll be terminated,” she whispered. “I couldn’t find Tommy. I searched and searched, but they had to close the gate.”

  Sky pressed her lips together. Hawk had already cried on her shoulder about Tommy’s last attempt to flee. She had an idea where Tommy would be, but didn’t want to tell Jack. The kid needed to run, and Sky meant to let him. “He left the city before we did. He got out.”

  Hawk held the Confluence ring because Hero was afraid to. He didn’t like forcing Hero to teleport him, but when Corin didn’t send a broadcast as planned that night, the crew feared the worst. The next morning, Hawk convinced the others to let him check on his prince. He half-expected Michael to have destroyed the city, but they landed in a comfortable bedroom with a neatly made, but empty, bed. Piano music leaked in from a neighboring room, but Corin sat on the floor in the dark, sobbing.

  The door opened and the light turned on. Amar Toulane entered, noticed Hawk, and bristled. “He’s fine,” Amar said, striding over to Corin and sitting next to him. He put an arm around his shaking little brother. “He’ll be fine here with us. We’re his family.”

  Amar did look strikingly similar to Michael, but Hawk saw bits of Corin in him, too. They had the same father.

  “I can’t stay,” Corin whimpered, forcing the words out in a rush. The last one got choked off.

  “You don’t have to,” Hawk said. He’d brought the bracelet, but he didn’t know how to use it, or if it would counter Amar’s power. The notion of permission had Corin leaping off the floor, running so quickly into a hug that he nearly knocked Hero out of Hawk’s arms.

  “Do you have telepaths, too?” Amar asked.

  “No,” Hawk said, wondering where the question came from. He shifted, bringing around a small satchel from his shoulder. “I brought you this… it’s a design for a communication system, so you can reach us when we cross the sea. We’re leaving this continent.”

  Amar glowered, so Hawk dropped the bag on the bed. It was a contrived excuse for coming, but one he hoped the people of Nola used. Hawk imagined his people would be happy to evacuate to Nola. The combined resources and mixing of genetic pools could be his people’s last chance at survival because he had little hope in Fisher’s promise.

  “Where’s Michael?” Hawk asked.

  “With our dad, getting healed,” Amar said, his expression darkening. “Are you taking him, too?”

  “Do you want us to?” Hawk asked. “We never meant to dump him here, and if you don’t want—”

  “I’ll care for my brother. It seems clear I’m the only one who can.”

  Hawk didn’t know what to say to that.

  “Did the Cordovans say anything about our mother?” Amar asked. “Why was she there? Did she only come here for Festival? Our father wants to know what happened to her. That she’s okay.”

  “I can ask. I’ll communicate any answers I find,” Hawk said, pointing to the bag on the bed. He didn’t want to repeat Lula’s rumors about the woman. “You’re sure you want him here?”

  “I want them both,” Amar said. Corin sobbed and Amar hugged him from behind. “Can you at least say goodbye to Mom and the girls?”

  Corin shook his head and Amar’s stern demeanor cracked in sadness.

  “Be safe out there,” Amar whispered. “Come back and visit when you’re ready.”

  He backed away on his own, then picked up the bag on the bed, hugging it to his chest. Hawk touched the Confluence ring to Hero’s hand, and like that, they were back on the ship.

  The rain started, and Sky had circled the Bobsled, pretending to look for Tommy, wanting the others to think she’d done a thorough search, even though she knew he wasn’t far. She finally landed between the trees where Tommy sat next to the mound of rocks marking George’s grave. He wore Amanda’s Virp and carried Hawk’s knife. There were a few shallow cuts on the back of his arm, and he tapped the knife against his skin, playing with the thought of making one deeper. When he heard Sky approach, he accidentally made a fresh slice. For a moment, his face scrunched in pain, but he made no effort to dress the wound. He just watched the blood drip down his arm, off his fingers and onto George’s grave. The rainwater diluted it, making a steady pink stream.

  “How long have you been cutting yourself?” Sky asked him.

  Tommy glanced up at her and kept moving his hand around, spelling out George’s name.

  “When did you start?” Sky asked. “When you were a test subject?”

  “No, of course not. You can’t damage a test subject,” Tommy snapped, then caught himself, ashamed he’d been tricked into speaking. Then he paled. In an instant, the shame spread through his body, and he tried to hide his bleeding arm from her. He picked up Hawk’s canteen and poured, but the canteen was empty. Tommy didn’t seem to notice.

  “Do you remember the first time?”

  Tommy nodded and rested his hand on his knee, tapping the knife against his palm. “At school. I didn’t do it. One of the girls cut me. Because I was a test subject, and she didn’t think I belonged there. I remember… And I remember…”

  Tommy clammed up again, his face going through shades of white, green, and red. “That’s when I met Libby. She saved me. Made school tolerable again. But none of that was real.”

  He shifted his meager belongings, setting her grav-gun in view. Sky didn’t know if he was offering to give it back, but she wanted it.

  “Your mom is worried about you. Should I tell her you’re all right?” Sky inched closer to him, seeing if she could get close enough to grab the gun without risking getting stabbed.

  Tommy shook his head. Sky wasn’t sure if he was saying he didn’t want his mother to know or if he wasn’t all right. Probably a little bit of both.

  “Give me the knife, Tommy,” she said, bending her knees slightly, but not wanting to squat.

  Tommy tapped the knife against his palm again, then he set it on the ground next to the grav-gun. “Can you cut my hair short like Hawk’s?”

  He was using his natural voice, finally. Hawk was his role model, and he was trying to embrace what it meant to be a man. Sky took the blade and wiped it against the leaves to clean it.

  “I can’t get it that short unless we go back to the ship,” Sky said, even though she was perfectly capable of using the knife as a razor. She gathered Tommy’s hair into a ponytail and, in one quick sweep of the blade, chopped it off. The hair that remained fell just to his chin, a little shorter than where Hawk’s used to fall. Sky handed Tommy the ponytail, and he lifted one of the rocks, tucking it into the grave. He touched his hair and frowned, then reached for the blade.

  “Do the front now. Please, Aunt Sky.”

  “I need a different blade,” she said, stalling. “It will be easier on Oriana.”

  “That’s a lie. You’r
e manipulating me. Like everyone else,” he grumbled, his face getting red. But rather than lash out against her, he brushed off his clothes. The rapid movement sent drops of blood spraying off his arm and widened the cut. He strode off but didn’t get more than a few paces before he stopped and checked the Virp in his hand.

  “I don’t want to go to Nola. It’s filled with… Michaels. Where else is there?”

  “Well, Michael went to Nola, so there is Oriana. He won’t be there,” Sky said.

  “Michael is dead. I can feel it,” Tommy said, tapping his heart.

  “No, he’s in Nola, with Corin’s family. Amanda assures me he’s with someone who isn’t as susceptible to his power,” Sky said. “You didn’t kill Michael, and you didn’t kill Amanda. You saved her. You did it.”

  Tommy inhaled sharply, then pressed his lips together. Sky couldn’t tell if he was angry or relieved, but he wasn’t swayed by the desire to see her again.

  “We mapped the area when we were searching for Cordova. It might help you navigate on foot,” Sky suggested. “Do you want to be a traveler?”

  “I can’t stay here,” Tommy shrugged. “Where is Oriana going next?”

  “Rocan. Your mother is traveling with us. She brought Ian,” Sky said. Tommy was considering his options, and he deserved to know.

  Tommy rubbed the scar on his chest. When the shirt pulled taut, Sky could see the outline—or, rather, the divot where the tissue had been removed.

  “I’m scared,” Tommy confessed.

  “Would you rather be scared and alone or scared with all the people on Oriana?”

  Tommy shrugged. “Alone, I think. I don’t want to be manipulated again.”

  “I don’t want that either,” Sky said. “Tommy, I’m getting back in the ‘sled now. If you get in, too, I’ll take you to Oriana. You can travel with them for as long as you want. But if you don’t get in the ‘sled, I’ll leave you here. I’ll tell the others I didn’t find you, and you can be on your own.”