Haphephobia

Chapter 36

"Ben, before we decide what to do next, let's just... take a few deep breaths... And stay calm. Okay?" Stevie said, looking at me with worry in her eyes. 

"Wh- Did we just watch the same thing?" I spluttered. Stevie started chewing on the inside of her cheek, still watching me nervously.

"A crazy man with mega-powers and the government fully on his side is trying to kidnap some girl, someone's twin, and Ava. How the hell am I supposed to stay calm? He wants Ava!" 

Stevie paused a few seconds before answering. She watched me until I'd visibly relaxed enough that she detected it was safe enough to continue speaking.

"I know, Ben, I know. This is very, very bad. Which is why we need to come up with a plan. Alright? We can't do anything if your focus is narrowly directed only on Ava. This is bigger than you and her, it's about keeping everyone safe." She said.

"But she's all that I have." I returned, weakly. 

"And all Folkvar has is Anna. And all I have is Stevie. And all everyone else in this goddamn place has is someone else who's very important to them. Your view of who needs protection first is incredibly myopic. You think we don't all worry about losing the people we love?" William spoke up, glaring at me challengingly. I backed down, looking away from his gaze.

"Who's this twin?" I asked, quietly. 

"Lisa Purdue. I believe you've met. She ran that coffee shop you and Ava frequented in Plainsboro. Her twin brother is Alex; we believe he's the second man in the video Aaron sent. He needs both of them." Jensen chimed in, looking relieved to be on a topic that was less emotionally charged and more factual.

"Why?" I asked.

"From what Ava recounted about your conversation with Aaron a few nights ago, it seems he explained Lisa and Alex's powers. The government is trying to help Aaron essentially create a human weapon to... well, to try to essentially... wipe us out.

"Alex and Lisa were sort of raised by Aaron, and Alex came around to agree with Aaron's opinion that you all should be kept a secret, to 'protect' us. Lisa didn't; and she came with us to this base just last night. Aaron needs both of them to create a weapon, and Lisa could see that she'd be in danger if she was near her brother, so she's here. You may have seen her, she was one of the doctors helping Folkvar." Jensen spoke. I thought back to the woman I'd seen earlier. Now I knew why I recognized her; it was Lisa.

"So how does Stevie fit into this? You said she had memories with Aaron." I asked.

"Aaron kept her. He kept a lot of kids. He just didn't tell Jensen about them; they were his secret. He had his own little place where he kept Alex and Lisa... and Stevie, but instead of treating them like people he raised them as experiments and weapons. Stevie was lucky to escape when she did. She was... She was just 13. She lived out in the woods. She was strong enough to build a little place, and good enough at hiding to take just what she needed. I didn't find her until she was 17." William spoke up, his eyes dark and his tone bitter.

"How did you find her?" I asked. Pieces were starting to come together. That explained why Stevie was so adept at living in the wilderness.

"It was... luck, really. I lived in my car. My parents, they were... very wealthy, and when I turned eighteen they discovered my powers and what they'd caused. One day the FBI came to my home asking my parents about me... whether to arrest me, or recruit me, or... maybe even kill me, I couldn't tell you. I wasn't home that day. My parents told them I was gone, that I'd ran away. As soon as I got home, they handed me fifty thousand dollars and told me to leave.

"So I got a cheap old car off someone living in my city and I split town. I sort of just... drove around, from place to place, for a couple weeks. I don't really know what I was looking for. One day I was driving by a forest-- big surprise-- it was practically the millionth forest I'd seen that week. Nothing remarkable about it. Until something remarkable happened. I saw something out of the corner of my eye; I knew it was a girl, until she disappeared. But I could still hear her, in her head. Just random, buzzing thoughts. I stopped my car and found her, hiding in a tree." William finished.