away, but my powers felt weakened. I realized then that it’s because Nycto had one of those resistance bars around me. An electromagnetic band from the tower. He had me, defenseless.
“That’s it,” he said. “Much better. I prefer it when you aren’t being such a drama queen.”
“Let me go!”
“Now’s not the time to let you go,” Nycto said, walking around the right side of me. “Not when we’ve got so much to discuss.”
“There’s nothing to discuss. I want my family back. I want my friends back. I want Ellicia back.”
“And if you play your cards right, you might get them back.”
Nycto’s words threw me. I wasn’t expecting him to say something like that. “What do… what do you mean?”
He crouched down beside me. I didn’t see Nycto anymore. I just saw the skinny face of Daniel Septer. The kid who’d been bullied at school. “You really don’t know. Do you?”
I frowned. I realized I’d stopped fighting back. I was just too weak. “Know what?”
A smile stretched across Daniel’s face. He held out a hand. “Hello, Kyle. Let me formally introduce myself.”
“I know exactly what you are.”
Daniel chuckled. He shook his head. “No. No, you don’t.”
He put a hand in my left hand.
I felt something strange take over me. Like déjà vu.
I’d felt that hand before.
I’d felt those fingers in my hand when…
Nausea welled up inside as a horrifying understanding struck me.
“Get the party balloons out,” Daniel said. “It’s time we had a family reunion. Brother.”
25
S ixteen years ago …
J onathan Hartsmith walked down the corridor and questioned whether he really wanted to do what he was planning to do.
It was the middle of December. The streets outside were covered in ice. The weather warnings were ordering people to stay at home. Christmas was just around the corner, and nobody wanted to see anyone die in the cold at this time of year.
Jonathan didn’t feel cold, though. He’d never felt cold all his life.
Because Jonathan Hartsmith was different.
The dim lights of the clinic flickered as he walked past them. He was used to the lights flickering by now. He’d had to deal with it all his life, after all.
He first knew he was different when he was playing in a paddling pool in his garden. He’d got mad at another kid, Ellen Halshaw. She’d kept on splashing him and it just made him so mad that he lifted the entire pool of water with his hands, into the air, and covered her in it.
His parents tried denying there was something different at first. But as more and more little moments of weirdness cropped up in his life, Jonathan soon adapted to his reality, as did his mom and dad: he was different. Very different. That was his secret.
It was a secret he’d kept from his loving wife, Eleanor. He didn’t want her to see him as a freak. He’d spent his whole childhood convincing himself and the people around him that he was just a normal guy—and failing. As much as he knew Eleanor loved him for who he was, Jonathan still felt like he was holding a major part of himself back from her to protect her.
He walked further down the corridor. Checked the doors. Dr. Woods. Dr. Burza. Dr. Kelvin.
Life between Eleanor and him seemed good. They’d been married eight years back. They had a little girl soon after they first married—Sophie, who was now five. Last year, they’d had a little boy, Michael. And they’d had another little boy this year, too. Anthony. Having three kids wasn’t easy, sure. It was even harder than you might imagine. But really, Jonathan loved it. He got a real kick from it.
That was until Sophie was diagnosed with terminal leukemia just months back.
He tasted sick in his mouth as he approached the last door on the right. He didn’t like to think of Sophie’s pain too much. It just made him feel weak and defenseless. He and Eleanor tried everything to help take her pain away, but it wasn’t easy. She was a fighter, but she was
“That’s it,” he said. “Much better. I prefer it when you aren’t being such a drama queen.”
“Let me go!”
“Now’s not the time to let you go,” Nycto said, walking around the right side of me. “Not when we’ve got so much to discuss.”
“There’s nothing to discuss. I want my family back. I want my friends back. I want Ellicia back.”
“And if you play your cards right, you might get them back.”
Nycto’s words threw me. I wasn’t expecting him to say something like that. “What do… what do you mean?”
He crouched down beside me. I didn’t see Nycto anymore. I just saw the skinny face of Daniel Septer. The kid who’d been bullied at school. “You really don’t know. Do you?”
I frowned. I realized I’d stopped fighting back. I was just too weak. “Know what?”
A smile stretched across Daniel’s face. He held out a hand. “Hello, Kyle. Let me formally introduce myself.”
“I know exactly what you are.”
Daniel chuckled. He shook his head. “No. No, you don’t.”
He put a hand in my left hand.
I felt something strange take over me. Like déjà vu.
I’d felt that hand before.
I’d felt those fingers in my hand when…
Nausea welled up inside as a horrifying understanding struck me.
“Get the party balloons out,” Daniel said. “It’s time we had a family reunion. Brother.”
25
S ixteen years ago …
J onathan Hartsmith walked down the corridor and questioned whether he really wanted to do what he was planning to do.
It was the middle of December. The streets outside were covered in ice. The weather warnings were ordering people to stay at home. Christmas was just around the corner, and nobody wanted to see anyone die in the cold at this time of year.
Jonathan didn’t feel cold, though. He’d never felt cold all his life.
Because Jonathan Hartsmith was different.
The dim lights of the clinic flickered as he walked past them. He was used to the lights flickering by now. He’d had to deal with it all his life, after all.
He first knew he was different when he was playing in a paddling pool in his garden. He’d got mad at another kid, Ellen Halshaw. She’d kept on splashing him and it just made him so mad that he lifted the entire pool of water with his hands, into the air, and covered her in it.
His parents tried denying there was something different at first. But as more and more little moments of weirdness cropped up in his life, Jonathan soon adapted to his reality, as did his mom and dad: he was different. Very different. That was his secret.
It was a secret he’d kept from his loving wife, Eleanor. He didn’t want her to see him as a freak. He’d spent his whole childhood convincing himself and the people around him that he was just a normal guy—and failing. As much as he knew Eleanor loved him for who he was, Jonathan still felt like he was holding a major part of himself back from her to protect her.
He walked further down the corridor. Checked the doors. Dr. Woods. Dr. Burza. Dr. Kelvin.
Life between Eleanor and him seemed good. They’d been married eight years back. They had a little girl soon after they first married—Sophie, who was now five. Last year, they’d had a little boy, Michael. And they’d had another little boy this year, too. Anthony. Having three kids wasn’t easy, sure. It was even harder than you might imagine. But really, Jonathan loved it. He got a real kick from it.
That was until Sophie was diagnosed with terminal leukemia just months back.
He tasted sick in his mouth as he approached the last door on the right. He didn’t like to think of Sophie’s pain too much. It just made him feel weak and defenseless. He and Eleanor tried everything to help take her pain away, but it wasn’t easy. She was a fighter, but she was
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