The REM Trials

Epilogue

Morgan's laughter fills the room as she curls up next to me on the couch. There's a movie playing on the tv, but neither of us pay it much attention with the tickle war going on. The sound of her giggles make the aching in my chest ease up a little just like it usually does with this little ball of sunshine around.

She finally manages to push my hands away and catch her breath. "Can I have a juice pop?"

"I don't know, Maguna." I tease, pretending to think about it. "Only if you get me one too and you promise not to tell Mum."

"Pinky promise." She smiles and wraps her pinky around mine.

I watch her go and pretend it doesn't hurt. Usually, when Morgan wants a juice pop, it's because she's missing Dad. I still do too, but it obviously takes more than a month to handle everything that's happened.

My fingers fidget with the edge of the blanket as I think over it all. Between dying and being brought back five years later, to losing Nat and Dad, and now learning how to deal with the fact that Claire's in jail—for murder no less.

Gosh, that's still hard to process.

I remember sitting down at the kitchen table, the phone broken on the floor when it slipped through my fingers in shock as Mum explained everything to me. It felt like some strange dream. How else is it supposed to feel when you're told that your birth mother killed your step-father? Much less because—in her own words—he was too close to breaking and telling them everything.

From what Claire told me, the snap only made the people behind REM Trials more determined to find what they believed to be the key to everything they've worked toward. Unfortunately, that key happens to be me, who they only know as Phantom.

Morgan's feet smack against the floor, and can hear her giggling with delight as she grabs her treat. It makes me suddenly grateful that I'm not gone. I never knew having a little sibling could make things so different. Of course, not everything was for the better.

The story goes that they knew Jim was the one who worked with me in the original round of trials. So, they applied pressure—and a lot of it. Claire said he was fine for about a year before he started to fall apart. Jim broke down and spilled everything—the details about what he did to me, what caused the accident, the aftermath, and how he was going to tell them who I really was as a trade to protect Claire from the same experimentation.

After all, everyone thought I was dead.

Well, that's not entirely true. Claire didn't, or at least, she was certain that Dad would find a way to get us all back. I mean, it's what a parent does, right? They'd do anything for their kids.

She claims it's why she killed him—she killed her own husband.

I have a hard time believing it was all because of me. After all, she kicked me out for trying to tell her the truth and has always been notorious for taking extreme measures to ignore or brush aside her problems. Claire and Jim had plenty of problems, and I think the tipping point was her own guilt for not believing me when I told her the truth. Everyone has a snapping point. That night was hers.

Dad's picture seems to stare at me from the mantle, and I'm overwhelmingly thankful that I always had him. Even when things got bad with Claire, he made sure I could turn to him. I got lucky to have my dad be one of my best friends. It only makes me miss him more. I'm essentially an orphan now—seeing how Claire is in jail and Dad's gone. All I have is Pepper, who legally adopted me before everything got so messy.

That's not even the worst of it though.

Some executive lawyers from OSCORPS apparently approached Claire before the trial. They offered her their services, which supposedly would get her off with little to no repercussions. All she had to do? Give up the information Jim had. When she refused, they buried her and have made her life a hell ever since. Each month they stop by to press a little harder and see if she's changed her mind.

I really hope she doesn't.

Even though it's been just a month since the blip and losing Dad, I'm starting to think that maybe things can be okay. Maybe I can have a normal and superhero life.

I'd give anything to have it. I want to live up to the legacy Dad left, to be able to go to Senior Prom with Peter, and be here for Morgan as she grows up. For once in my life, I want to have things go right.

"Lia," Mum calls from her office upstairs, "do you mind starting the oven for dinner? I need to finish reading this report."

"Sure thing, Mum." I reply and head into the kitchen where Morgan is all ready halfway finished with her juice pop. "Hey, what happened to getting your big sister one?"

Her cheeks tinge pink as she shyly holds up a popsicle still in the wrapper. "Sowwy."

"It's okay, Maguna. Just make sure you eat plenty of supper, or Mum will get upset. Okay?" I ask as I lift her up to sit not he counter as I start the oven and prep for dinner. The wrapper crinkles as Morgan opens the popsicle for me. It's her small way of trying to take care of me too.

"Is Peter coming back soon?" She questions as I eat my popsicle.

"He's coming over this weekend. Remember? He was over on Tuesday and promised—"

"That—that he'd be back on Fwiday."

"Exactly. I think he might even stay over again." I smile as I think about him. From the day we came back, he's the one that's kept me going this whole time. Everyday he checks in, does what he can to cheer me up, and just makes sure I keep going. I swear, if it wasn't for him, I don't think I'd be even remotely okay.

We keep each other strong, and it makes me fall in love with him even more.

It's quiet for a long minute except for the sounds of me cutting the veggies. Morgan watches intently, her brow furrowed in the same way Dad and I do when we're trying to figure something out. "Are you and Peter in love?"

"I—yeah, we are."

"Like Mommy and Daddy?"

"I like to think so."

"Are you gonna get married?"

"I don't know, Morg. Hopefully some day, we will, but that's pretty far away." I tell her and watch her smile. "You really like Pete, huh?"

"Mhm. He—he tells me funny stories, comes to my tea parties, and he's a superhero like you!"

I laugh and throw both of our finished popsicle sticks in the trash. "Yeah, he's pretty gr—" My thoughts are cut off when the landline rings, and I pick it up knowing Mum's busy. "Hello?"

"You have a collect call from Lincoln Detention Facility. Do you accept the charges?"

Everything comes to a screeching halt. Claire only calls after the lawyers visit to tell me if they're any closer. She's not supposed to call for another two weeks. What—why now?

I snap back into reality. "Um—yes, I accept them."

The line clicks, and I want to throw up as I wait for her to say something anything. All she says are two words. Two words that bring everything crashing down. "They know."

A/N: Book 2 is up! The prologue for it will be coming very soon. So I highly recommend adding Light & Shadow to your library!