Shards

chapter 31

Chapter 31:

Everything was so confusing; it was hard to make sense of it all. Everything seemed so big. Around every corner, there was another. Behind every question there were ten more. It was all I could do to cling to Mommy. There was so much in the world; too much. When it all got too bright, too loud, I'd let the emotion pour out through my mouth. It had the desired effect every time.

Even so, there was one thing my mommy could not protect me from. The wondering. Where did she go when she wasn't with me? Why was there night? Why wasn't milk enough for me anymore? And words made it so easy to express the things that built up inside me. I didn't understand how they had escaped me before.

“But why, Mommy?” The words passed my tiny lips; my favourite words.

“Because,” she said, in a voice that was raspy and hard to hear. “Your school messed up the first blood test. I know needles aren't pleasant, but you have to.”

It was okay really. I didn't cry like some of the other children, when things got to be too much. That was what babies did. Mommy never cried. She also wasn't afraid of anything. She did the things even the other adults were afraid to do. I smiled at the thought.

School wasn't hard. Every year was the same thing. Although, I never really remembered the previous grade, so the repetition did not get to me. Now—re-watching it—I couldn't help but feel like a goldfish swimming round and round in its bowl.

If there was one thing my mother never did, it was lie to me. She always gave me the truth straight, preparing me for what she thought the world held in store for me. Maybe she prepared me too well.

They took me from somewhere Sophia never would have expected; a place where she let down her guard. I sat at her desk in the New York FBI field office, staring at the spot on the ceiling I sometimes saw in my sleep. Around me, suit wearing adults went about their business. None of them payed me any attention. They were used to me. Mom had nowhere else to take me, and they understood.

I'd never forget the man's face, although I never saw it again; not once. It had a dark tan to it, almost the same colour of his eyes that had looked so deceivingly kind.

“Excuse me.” He touched me on the shoulder, and I jumped.

He'd approached so silently I hadn't even been pulled out of my daydream. My feet had been propped up on the desk, and I'd almost been asleep. Automatically, I felt embarrassed. He was so well dressed, in his pristine suit and reflective sunglasses; a norm in the FBI field office.

“Are you Jaylee?”

I nodded mutely, shocked by his presence.

“I was told to come fetch you. Your mother was called away, and I'm supposed to take you to her.”

I was already on my feet when my mother's lessons came back to me.

“Wait.” I crossed my arms across my chest, letting my lower lip jut out. “I'm not supposed to go anywhere with strangers. Why didn't she call me?”

My eyes flickered over to the corded phone resting on the desk.

“Well...” He took the sunglasses from where they hung, placing them over his eyes. “Let's just say she's a little busy. “Here...” He reached into the pocket of his pants, accidentally revealing the black pistol stuck through his belt.

He extended his hand. In it, was the standard FBI identification card, the same as my mothers. I heaved a mental sigh of relief. He'd already put it back in his pocket when I realized I hadn't taken time to note the name. However, my young mind was far too preoccupied with where I was going. Would I finally get to see my mom in action? Maybe they needed me to go undercover.