The True One

Chapter 18

Alek

I couldn't blame her for running. It's what I would have done if someone had suddenly been able to read my mind. The shocking reveals just kept coming for both of us today. Each one left me nauseated and shaky, like an earthquake was about to open a gaping hole under me. I didn't know what to make of this telepathy revelation, but I couldn't let Verity become lost to the night because of it. Whatever was happening, we needed to sort it out. Together.

I jogged behind her, tracking her route in the dying light. It was a pursuit quickly ended: she fled as far as the parking lot, where she collapsed, heaving, against the hood of my car.

Afraid she would go stray cat on me and dart off if I got to close, I approached carefully. "Whatever happened back there, I wasn't trying to invade your thoughts, Verity. I don't know how in the hell I could hear what you were thinking."

Her breath evened out. She unfolded herself, and ran her fingers through her hair, then tucked her hands in the pockets of her shorts. Verity was not someone who liked to lose her composure, no matter the circumstances. "Is this the first time you've been able to read my thoughts?" She narrowed her eyes. "Don't lie to me."

"It's the first time." Half step forward. "I swear to you, I'm not lying."

Her face remained tense. "I never know with you."

"Are you sure?" Another half step. "You seem to read me pretty well."

"Stop being such a transparent liar if you don't like it."

I brought out my trusty dimpled smile. "Who says I don't like it?"

Something midway between a gurgle and a laugh escaped her. "That almost seemed like an attempt at flirtation, but here you are." She waved her hand in an arch over my head. "Your aura is all red and angry."

"I'm not angry."

"Not at me, maybe. At someone, though. I don't suppose you'll tell me who."

By now, I was close enough to feel her own angry heat as it radiated outward. I pictured myself closing the gap between us, our bodies crashing together like waves against the beach. We were both fired up. Both upset, both ready to comfort ourselves by comforting the other.

I hesitated. This wasn't the time. Not when her question weighed on me. Not when my own questions threatened to break me. Not when I knew what her mother had done to my parents, and she still had no clue.

I couldn't give her all my attention. If the moment ever did arise, I wasn't going to give her less than everything.

I swayed in place a moment. "I'm mad at several people." My aura, if such a thing was real, would be burning deep crimson as soon as I thought about Norvin and all that he'd withheld from me. But he wasn't the only person in my life churning up negative emotions.

The intake form. The laboratory. Me as a test subject. At six years old, I'd have had no say. No ability to stop whatever was done to me. No agency. I reached in and tried to pull out memories of that time, but there was nothing to grasp at. I didn't remember being a patient or having experiments performed on me.

The tiniest of doubts crept in. Maybe the form was wrong. Maybe it didn't mean what Verity thought it meant.

Maybe Verity was lying.

"I'm not lying."

My shoulders tensed. "What the fuck, Verity."

"In my extremely limited experience, I've come to find that mind reading works both ways. Now that you opened a channel between us, I'm hearing you in bits and pieces." She leaned against the hood of the car and gave me a sad smile. "I can block you, if you'd like."