Ella? Can you hear me? I try again, just in case. The FBI is holding me, some agent named Purdy has me locked up and we’re in some kind of vehicle. Purdy says it isn’t far, wherever it is we’re going.
‘How did you get to the desert, Number Six?’ Purdy’s voice interrupts. ‘Weren’t you just in India, with your friends? Remember that? Just like all the other kids, reading schoolbooks and being kidnapped at the airport.’
How does he know that?
‘How did you know where the base was?’ His voice is losing a bit of its neutrality. I think I hear just a hint of impatience.
‘What base?’ I ask. I’m having a hard time thinking straight.
‘The one we found you dying outside of in the desert. How did you know where to find it?’
I try to turn invisible, but again, the moment I try testing my Legacy, my stomach erupts with a ferocious and immediate pain. I want so badly to curl up in a ball, but the straps hold me flat and the pain takes my breath away.
‘Drink your water,’ the agent advises again. His voice is back to its detached neutrality.
Just as I did the first time, I obey, take a sip and wait. The pain finally starts to dull, but then a powerful wave of dizziness washes over me. My mind feels like it’s a car careening out of control, swerving this way and that. The thoughts, too many of them to be coherent, come fast and furious. The events from the last few days flash by me. I see myself taking hold of Marina’s arm right before we teleported. I see Crayton lying motionless. I watch myself saying goodbye to John and Sam. I almost forget where I am. That is, until the voice forces me back to my present circumstances.
‘Where is Number Four?’ He is nothing if not consistent, this guy.
‘Who?’ I ask, forcing myself to focus on what he’s saying. If I don’t, I’m going to make another mistake like I did before.
All of a sudden, the calm voice is completely gone. He screams through the speaker, ‘Where is Number Four?’ I wince at the noise.
‘Go to hell,’ I spit. I’m not telling him anything.
Ella? Marina? Anyone? If anyone can hear me, you need to say something. I need help. I’m in some desert. All I know is I’m near a U.S. government base, and the FBI has me. We’re going somewhere, but I don’t know where. And there’s something wrong with me. I can’t use my Legacies.
‘Who was with you in India, Number Six? Who were the man and the two girls?’
I stay silent. I picture Ella’s face. The youngest Lorien left. I know how that must weigh on her. And now, she’s without Crayton. It was just a day ago I was jealous of what they had, and now he’s gone.
‘What numbers were they? Who were the girls?’ Agent Purdy sounds impatient, though his voice is calmer now.
‘That’s my band. I play the drums. They sing. I love Josie and the Pussycats, don’t you? I like to watch retro cartoons. All the kids are doing it.’ My lips crack and bleed again when I smile. I don’t mind. I taste my blood on my tongue and smile wider.
‘Six?’ the man asks in a gentler voice. I guess he’s going to try the Good Cop tactic. ‘Was that Number Five and Seven you were with at the airport in India? Who is the older man? Who are the girls?’
Suddenly it’s as if I can’t control what comes out of my mouth. My voice doesn’t even sound like mine when I say, ‘Marina and Ella. They’re sweet, sweet girls. I just wish they were a little stronger.’ What am I saying? Why am I saying anything?
‘Are Marina and Ella members of your race? Why do they need to be stronger? And what number is Marina?’
I catch myself this time before answering, shocked that I even opened my mouth to answer again. I concentrate all my energies to find my voice, to respond as I know I should. It’s like I’m battling a war within me. ‘I don’t know what you’re talking about. Why do you keep talking about numbers?’
Agent Purdy’s voice blasts into the box. ‘I know who you are! You’re from another planet! I know you kids go by numbers! We have your ship, for Christ’s sake!’
At the mention of our ship, my mind starts to spin. I flash back to the journey from Lorien. I see myself as just a kid, staring out the ship’s windows at the emptiness of space as we travel towards Earth. I eat at a long white table and look at the other eight kids, each with their Cêpans. There’s a boy with long black hair laughing and throwing food. A blonde girl sits next to him quietly eating a piece of fruit. The Cêpans at the end of the table watch the kids closely. I see a young Marina crying, her legs tucked up to her chest, sitting on the floor under a control panel. Her Cêpan is on her knees next to her, trying to coax her to stand up with her. I remember I got in trouble with a boy with short black hair.
The next face I see is a young Number Four. His blond hair is long and wavy. He’s kicking the wall with his bare foot, angry about something. He turns around and grabs a pillow, slamming it to the floor. Four looks up, sees me watching, and his face turns bright red. I hand him a toy, something I’ve stolen from him. The guilt I felt back then rushes over me all over again, just as strong as it was when it first happened. The other faces in the room grow fuzzy.
Then I see myself in Katarina’s arms when we landed on Earth. I remember the door of the ship opening.
Where have these memories come from? As hard as I tried before, I could never remember very much about our journey to Earth aside from a few small details. I’ve never had this vivid a flashback before.
‘Are you listening to me?’ Purdy yells. ‘We have talked to the Mogadorians,’ he says. That statement yanks me back to the present with a thud. ‘Did you know that?’
‘Oh, yeah? What’d they have to say?’ I ask, trying to sound like I’m just making conversation, but I regret it instantly. Why would I admit knowing who the Mogs are? Before I can dwell on my mistake too much, my mind drifts back to the ship, to its doors opening, to the human with brown hair and large thick glasses standing, waiting to greet us. In his hands are a briefcase and a white tablet, and behind him sits a big box of clothes. Somehow I know that’s Sam’s dad. Sam. Oh, how I want to see Sam again.
‘I want to see Sam,’ I slur. Even though I don’t want to say anything more, reveal anything else to the agent, I can’t help myself. I hear my voice, feel my brain thick and sluggish, and instantly I realize there must have been drugs in the water. That’s why I can’t hold a thought in my head, why I keep drifting into my past, and why I feel such pain when I try to use my Legacies.
I kissed Sam. I should have kissed him for real but I was too worried what John would think.
John. I kissed John, too. I would really like to kiss John again. My stomach gets kind of squirmy when I play back the moment when John grabbed me by the shoulders and turned me towards him. He lowered his face to mine, but just before our lips touched, the house exploded. I can feel my chin tilt upward as I replay the moment again and again. Except this time, when the house explodes, we kiss. The kiss is perfect.
‘Sam?’ Agent Purdy asks, interrupting my thoughts. I was really enjoying remembering that kiss. ‘I’m guessing you mean Sam Goode, right?’
Sam’s face is now all I can see and my head is spinning out of control. ‘Yeah. Sure. I want to see Sam Goode.’ I can hear my voice drifting off.