The Fate of Fractured Lives

07 Against Time

Donna and I had quite a few adventures in those years. Every time, we risked revealing ourselves to the world. We could have chosen to remain completely hidden, but I don't think Donna or I could have lived with ourselves knowing that we could have helped people and did nothing. All those good deeds also helped us prepare for the coming storm. Donna wanted me to have as much experience as possible dealing with different kinds of people in different kinds of situations. During that time I also learned more about Donna. More than she was probably comfortable with. Her biggest secret was that publicly she put on a strong face but she was also constantly at war with herself.

A self-described social hermit, she needed interaction with other people as much as anyone but it was too easy for her to be alone. If no one went out of their way to contact her, she tended to let relationships, familial and otherwise, sort of fade into the background. It wasn't a conscious decision. It also had nothing to do with her power. She was just too good at being self-reliant. Another issue she faced was the nagging feeling that she never quite fit in anywhere. Which was weird because she could fit in anywhere considering her power set and all the skills and knowledge she'd accumulated. I wonder if being able to fit into so many places in some weird way made her feel like she could never completely fit into any of them. I wish I could tell you. There was a weight to her spirit that had been with her since she was a child and then the burden of our destiny didn't help. I could see her depression when times were quiet. Sometimes I found her crying. In one of her dark moments, Donna told me that part of her just wanted to vanish. "Just find a dark hole somewhere and disappear into it forever."

I didn't know how to help her so I was just there for her like she was there for me. But it wasn't easy. After I knew how her power worked—that she was blocked from seeing some things and that she could not tell me everything—it became harder for me to just blindly trust Donna. Not impossible, but increasingly difficult. And I wasn't brave enough to press her on it. Sometimes I wanted to run away and disappear myself but I could never bring myself to do it. I didn't know if it was because, at my core, I did trust her or that I just really needed to trust her because I had no one else. Her actions did consistently show that she cared for me. So I stayed at her side. Though I did occasionally show a little resentment in my typical teenage moments. Okay, maybe it was more than just a little. It took some time for me to understand how trapped she felt by this path of ours and how scared she was trying to keep me safe. It was a fear I got to know firsthand.

Two years after Seoul, we began what would be our final mission. I was staying at a motel just outside of Chicago, waiting for Donna when I got a series of texts. I was given instructions which included time, place, name, and a person's description. Donna was efficient with her language when on the clock. This time she added something new. Donna ended the messages with, "It's time." I felt a chill wash over me that went all the way down to my bones. My body tensed and I unconsciously held my breath as I weighed the implication of those two words. The end of our road was near and now everything we did would directly affect the outcome.

I only let the feeling linger for a few seconds before I grabbed my things and left. I needed to focus. I was operating alone. Donna's message also said that she would be elsewhere finding someone else. This wasn't my first time running solo. When I turned eighteen, she began sending me on missions alone. I'd never gotten completely comfortable running solo, but I was more used to it. I became more confident in using my abilities without waking up my other. Even though I had helped people on my own, this was the first time I'd try to recruit someone. This was the first time someone would be my sole responsibility. Before I walked out the door, Donna texted me some more details.

At twelve years old, Leah Fisher was the youngest of us. You could easily mistake her for being younger. She was short for her age. Leah was a timid and quiet girl who could scare easily. Donna cautioned me to do what I could to keep Leah calm when I found her. I wasn't told why. What she did say was that the girl was from a strict background and would be in a bad place, mentally. It wasn't a lot to go on. I imagine Donna just wanted me to see Leah as a scarred little girl. If I had known more... I don't know what I would have done. At that time I was not ready for the other side of Leah. Traffic and other everyday delays meant that the timing was going to be close. It could have gone better.