Page 27

“Alright, try to relax. You know I want to help however I can, but you have to start by staying calm and rational. I don’t know what’s happening to you, but we’ll figure this out.”

“Stay calm?” I jump up from my seat. “I shouldn’t have come. You’re just as bad as they are.” Anna grabs my hand to pull me back, and I gasp at the scene in my head. “You too,” I whisper, hardly able to breathe. “What is this place? What are you doing to him?”

She lets go, clearly fighting for composure. “I’m sorry, I didn’t think about your visions. I’m sure what you saw isn’t what it looked like.”

I glare at her, shaking. “I should go.”

“Please tell me what you saw. We’ll sort it out. You’re upset, and we should work through it.”

“I don’t want to work through it! I just want to know what’s happening to me. You can tell me now, or I’ll find out on my own!”

Anna draws in a breath, and I wait as she considers her response. Finally, she nods with a stern look. “You’re right. You deserve to know what happened. Wait here while I get Director Clausen. He’ll explain it all to you.”

“Director Clausen? He has something to do with this?”

Anna squeezes my arm. “He’ll answer your questions.”

Clausen’s concerned expression brings some comfort when he enters the office.

“Rebecca, I’m so sorry it’s come to this,” he says, taking Anna’s chair across from me. “We hoped we wouldn’t have to be here. We did everything we could to shelter you from the truth.”

“What truth? What’s going on?”

He clears his throat and casts a quick look to Anna before focusing back on me. “Very few people know what I’m about to tell you. We need to keep it that way for our school to function. If people knew the truth about our first and most gifted student, we’d be shut down and he’d be taken away.”

“You’re talking about my suitemate, Daniel?”

The man nods and folds his hands on his lap.

“Daniel is special. Beyond gifted. Not only can he see everything inside you, he can control your thoughts. We’ve spent years conditioning him to prefer isolation and submit to our control.

We apologize for not intervening sooner in your situation.

We didn’t realize his interest in you had escalated to the level it had. ”

My heart races as I stare at them in horror.

“Daniel swept you into his world and convinced you of an enormous spectrum of lies. Even worse, he made you fall for him romantically.”

“What?” The vision flashes back with agonizing clarity.

“You were convinced you were in love with him. You were ready to sacrifice yourself to save him.”

“Save him from what?”

“From the elaborate conspiracies he concocted in his disturbed mind. Basically, from us, the very people trying to help him. It’s understandable that a mind as complex as his would also be plagued by severe dysfunction.”

I clench my eyes shut. “But the visions. I’ve seen other things. I’ve seen him with you. In a room.”

“And what is it that you saw? Do you truly know?”

I meet his compassionate gaze and draw in a breath. No. I don’t know anything. “He was strapped to a table and appeared to be in pain.”

Clausen doesn’t seem as concerned as he should.

His sad nod is just as strange. “Yes, an unfortunate reality when you’re dealing with such dangerous abilities.

But it’s only for everyone’s safety, including his, that we have to resort to such measures at times.

We have ways of helping him and some are more unpleasant than others. ”

“So these memories I’ve lost, the missing pieces?”

“We forced Daniel to release the hold he had on you. We thought the easiest way would be to have him remove all memory of himself from your head. That’s worked in the past with other individuals.”

“This has happened before?”

“Several times.”

“So why did he choose me?”

“We don’t know. For the most part he stays to himself, but every so often someone piques his interest. We try to prevent it as much as possible.

Perhaps something about your ability appealed to him.

You know things about other people, too.

Maybe he thought getting inside your head would be a shortcut and give him access to information he couldn’t get on his own. ”

I cover my face with my hands, struggling with his story.

I can’t remember my history with Daniel, so they could be right.

But what about the electric twinge that soaked every moment we were together in the classroom?

What about the vision? I don’t remember loving him, but my fierce reaction to the image of our kiss has to mean something.

It’s all so horrifying that I know my tenure at Madison Academy has ended. It’s time to go home.

“You failed me. How could you let this happen? Why isn’t he locked up somewhere?”

“He’s locked up a lot of the time, but it would be cruel to imprison him permanently.”

Cruel? Anger fires through me, and I cast an icy glare. “You don’t think what happened—what’s happening—to me is cruel? If he’s the monster you say, he shouldn’t be near the other students, period. How much have I lost? What if he’s stolen other memories as well?”

My stomach drops when his face falls.

“Actually, my dear, we’re afraid he did.”

“What? How do you know?”

“Do you remember your father, Rebecca?”

My desperate brain searches for any remnant of the man who raised me. Nothing. Panic floods through me. “What are you saying?” My hands shake; my heart pounds. “He stole that too?”

Clausen nods. “Your father is a very important senator. His name is Claude Albertson. Daniel probably wanted information on him, which is why he targeted you. I’m sorry for misleading you, but we hoped to preserve you from that part.”

“Senator Albertson?” The name sounds distantly familiar. “No.” I shake my head. “No! This is wrong. I want them back. I want it all back!”

Clausen touches my shoulder, and I shift away. “I’m sorry. I wish with all my heart there were something we could do, but the only person who can give your memories back is Daniel.”

“So, make him!”

His eyes soften with concern. “Are you sure that’s what you want? There may be other ways. We could try hypnosis, cognitive therapy, memory rest—”

“No! I don’t want to waste time with that. If they’re truly gone, none of that would work anyway. I want them back now.”

He leans into his chair. “Very well. You deserve an opportunity to confront him. We’ve drugged him enough that he can’t hurt you, but he’ll still try to manipulate you. Are you sure you want to do this? He’s good at what he does.”

I charge toward the door. “When this is over, you better come up with a plan to make sure it never happens again.”

“We’re already working on that. We only ask that you keep all of this between us. We will protect the other students, but who knows what would happen if people knew the truth.”

I glare at them. “Let’s see how this goes, and then we’ll talk about what I say to whom.”

Clausen leads me through a locked door and down a long flight of stairs.

The corridor at the bottom seems to emanate a chill that separates it from the rest of the mansion, but I stalk forward, eager for the confrontation with my abuser.

A bright light escapes through cracks in a door at the end of the hall, and I push through without hesitation.

“Rebecca?” a voice gasps when we enter, and I approach my roommate who’s been attached to a chair. “What are—”

I slap him as hard as I can, relishing his wince from the blow. My own hand stings, but I only want to smack him again for his manipulative display of pain and confusion.

“We told her everything,” Clausen says, and Daniel’s face sinks into a new horror.

“No,” he says, shaking his head. “No, don’t listen to them! They’re lying to you!” And I hit him again.

“Give me my memories back, you bastard! Give them back and maybe I won’t try to convince them to lock you up for the rest of your pathetic life.”

Tears fill his eyes as he stares at us. “What have they told you?”

A brief twinge of doubt stabs at me, and I look to Clausen.

“I told you he’d try to manipulate you. You have to fight it, Rebecca. Fight him this time.”

“Manipulate her?” Daniel cries, pulling against the restraints. “Don’t listen to him, Rebecca! He’s the liar, not me. Please, you know me. You know me!”

I shut my eyes and clench my fists. “No, I don’t. I don’t remember anything because of you.”

“Because of them. They made me do it. I didn’t have a choice.”

“So you admit it! You admit you erased my memories to control me.”

“Control you? I never controlled you. I did everything I could to protect you. They had you locked in here with me.”

But because of him I have no memory of his useless evidence.

“Don’t listen to him, Rebecca,” Clausen urges behind me. “Don’t let him win this time.”

A cold object slides into my hand, and I glance down. My heart skips at the knife.

“You have our permission to use whatever means necessary to learn about your father.”

I stare at Clausen in shock, then back at the weapon.

My hand shakes when I face Daniel and see the fear wash over his face.

I can’t let it affect me, and force away any instinctive emotion.

He’s a monster. Now, he’s a scared monster who will get his due.

But… that small screaming ember of conscience won’t leave me alone.

“Rebecca, please. They’re manipulating you,” he says, eyes pleading.

“Tell me what you know about my father. Give me my memories of Claude Albertson!”

The alarm on his face is a problem. Fear was easier. That made sense. But alarm? His gaze shoots to Clausen. “What is this? What have you done?”

“Tell her the truth,” Clausen says, and Daniel turns back to me, now desperate.

“They’re lying to you. I don’t know anything about your father, but it’s not Senator Albertson. He’s a politician they’ve been trying to blackmail for months. He’s not your father; he’s their target. They’re using you!”

“He’s lying, Rebecca.”

“I don’t believe you,” I say to Daniel. My arm quivers as I raise the knife. “Give me my memories back!”

He shakes his head, frantic. “I would never hurt you. Everything I’ve done was to protect you. Even this!”

“Clausen says the same thing. Give them back and let me decide which one of you is lying.”

“I can’t, Rebecca. I would if I could, but I can’t!”

“That’s convenient,” I seethe, stepping toward him. The blade points squarely at his chest. “I’ll give you one more chance!”

“You know me. Just look at me!”

Just look. I don’t want to look, because if I do… That. His expression tears into me as his eyes search mine. I shake my head and clench my eyes shut to block him out. He plays the game so well I only hate him more for it.

“Give me my memories back,” I repeat coldly, facing him again. I press the knife against his chest, gripping the handle. The blade nicks his shirt, and he flinches as blood seeps along the torn fabric. I stare at the macabre pattern with mute fascination.

“Rebecca, listen to me. I’m not deceiving you. I never played any games with you.”

“But you read minds,” I shoot back.

“Yes, and you knew that. I told you that.”

“Because of you I don’t remember any of it.”

“No, not because of me. They were going to hurt you if I didn’t make you forget me. You were ready to sacrifice everything, and I couldn’t allow that!”

His eyes speak volumes, beautiful and haunting in their intensity. The same force keeps me from plunging the knife, and I feel myself being sucked in. I stand immobile for what seems like hours.

“Please. Don’t do this. It will destroy you. When you remember, you’ll never forgive yourself.”

My god, he’s begging for me. Pleading for me.

The knife waits for my command. What if he’s right? What if that vision was real? What if there really was a girl who loved this boy?

I still can’t remember the past, but I believe in the present. Lowering my arm, I turn back to Clausen. “I’m angry, but I’m not a murderer.”

I toss the weapon on the floor and march toward the door. “Keep him away from me and make sure he doesn’t hurt anyone else. I’ll keep your secret.”

My stomach tightens as I sense his agony across the room.

I’m on your side. I don’t know who’s lying, but I choose to believe you.

I cast him a quick glance to make sure he got my message. He did, and I nearly choke at the look on his face. It takes all the strength I have left to leave him to his fate.

I retreat to my room for the rest of the day.

Haunted by what happened in the basement, my instinctive flight reflex makes for an easy decision. I have to go home. Forget this place. Forget him. But as I stare at my empty suitcase, I can’t dismiss the image of those electric eyes screaming a truth I want to understand.

Then there’s the vision. I may not remember Daniel, but there’s no denying the girl in that scene was desperately in love with him. And I envy her. Gosh, I’d do anything to feel that kind of passion. To hunger for another person the way we ravaged each other in those brief moments.

I could run. I could flee and preserve the apathetic shadow of a life I’ve lived up until now. Escape the unknown for safety in the isolation that brought me here in the first place.

After a long pause and a deep breath, I choose the fight reflex instead.