Echoes of Us (21 page)

I filled her in as gently as I could. She remembered being locked up in our cell. She remembered the pierce of the needle. The delirious dreams.

Only for her, the dreams had never ended. Not until now.

I told her about our escape. Bridget’s help. The harrowing journey down the mountain. And, of course, how I’d met up again with Jackson.

Addie was still dazed. I could feel it. After so many days of being subjected only to my own emotions—my own presence—it was at once disconcerting and comforting to feel the edges of hers.

She paused.

I hesitated.

I had no way of knowing what Addie was thinking. What she’d had with Jackson had always been separate from the life she shared with me. She’d wanted to keep it that way, even after he’d been arrested.

I’d felt utterly betrayed that day in the photography-store attic, when Sabine and the others revealed they’d all known about the plan to murder the visiting officials at Powatt. When they—initiated by a rageful Christoph—knocked us to the ground and tied us up. But it had been worse for Addie.

They’d been my friends. Jackson had been more than that, to her. And even if he’d come back to help us save the officials in the end, he and Addie had never spoken since then.

It was the last thing I wanted right now, but I’d do it, if she needed me to.

Addie said fiercely.

I didn’t know what she was talking about, and my silence was answer enough.

It was a dizzying concept. I’d been born the recessive soul—it was something unchangeable that I’d learned to accept, even if I refused to let it signal my death.

But for the first time in our lives, I was stronger than Addie.

I told her.

she said. But she wasn’t convinced, and I knew it.

“Eva?” Lissa approached hesitantly in the hotel hallway, her brow furrowed. “Are you all right? Did something happen?”

I managed a smile and a shake of our head. She seemed like she was going to say something. But instead, she just threw her arms around us. The strength of it squeezed the air from our lungs.

“It’s going to be all right, you know,” she said quietly.

I’d told her about Addie’s disappearance, but no one else. It was a carefully kept secret, shared only between her, Ryan, Jackson, and us. Not even Dr. Lyanne knew.

I asked Addie, because it hurt to see Lissa hurt for me.

But Lissa spoke first, her face uneasy. “Jenson’s found out about the Hahns footage. How it came from you.”

The news report was almost over by the time Lissa and I reached the hotel room, but we saw enough. Our picture was up on the television screen again. It was the one Addie had taken for our driver’s learning permit, only a few months before we went to Nornand. The woman at the office had told us not to smile, so the flash had caught us frozen in a serious look. It had washed us out, too, so we looked unnaturally pale.

We’d never liked that picture. Addie had reasoned we’d get a new one once we tested for our real license. But here we were, almost a year later. The idea of getting a driver’s license was laughable. And that hated picture was being broadcasted to every corner of the Americas.

So was our name. Both our names.
Addie and Eva Tamsyn.

All my life, I’d yearned for recognition. But not like this.

Sharing the screen with our picture, of course, was Jenson. Impeccably dressed, as usual. We’d never seen him in anything less than a suit jacket. He always carried with him an air of cold formality. And a will that crushed any that dared oppose it.

Addie and I were dangerous, he said.
Dangerous, violent, and disturbed.
During our escape from an institution, we’d brutally attacked a man. During our time in Anchoit, we’d caused chaos at Lankster Square, and suffering at Powatt—the destruction of tens of thousands of dollars in government property, not to mention the endangerment of lives. And now we were trying to tear the country apart with these illegal broadcasts. These lies and accusations.

He acknowledged that we were young.

That perhaps we were being manipulated.

He said, even, that part of him pitied us, struggling with the insanity and instability of two souls crammed into one body. But it didn’t negate the fact that we were dangerous. And it was all proof of the necessity of the cure. The cure that would not only bring peace back to our country, but save other hybrid children from themselves.

I said bitterly. I’d just survived two weeks alone in our body. I never wanted to do it again. There were downfalls to being hybrid—I couldn’t deny that. But there were so many joys in it, too.

Jenson’s cold eyes told me he didn’t pity us for our supposedly unstable hybrid brain. He pitied us for what he’d do to us, once he had us in custody.

He paused. And then, quietly—as if he knew that somewhere, Addie and I were listening—he said, “The Tamsyn family is under government protection and is fully cooperating with our efforts. They understand, as do all of us, that Addie and Eva need to be caught before they do any more harm.”

The report ended. The image flickered back to the anchor, who went on about a phone number to call if anyone had information or leads.

I said. Our legs had weakened.

Addie said softly.

“Why is
he
covering this?” Marion said. Her question was a sharp reminder that we weren’t the only ones who’d watched the broadcast. I’d forgotten about the other people in the room. Dimly, I realized Devon and Lissa were both staring at us, the latter with a face full of open worry.

Vince frowned at Marion. “It’s hybrid affairs, isn’t it? And he’s director. What does it matter?”

“Yes, but he’s only director for Sector Two,” Marion protested. “I thought it was strange he was the one to announce the heightened security this summer, and not the president himself. But it made sense because it was connected directly to the cure. Now . . . this seems like it should have grown beyond his jurisdiction—they’re talking about security concerns.”

“Hybrids have always been considered a security concern.” Dr. Lyanne put the television on mute and turned to us. “What’s important now is that we need to leave the city.”

This wrenched me from my haze.

“What?” Marion said. For once, I agreed with her completely. “We can’t leave just because—”

“What about Kitty?” I demanded.

“I’d only need a few more days.” Marion was the picture of frustration. “I’ve a good idea where Tyler might be. I know the other addresses haven’t worked out, but I’m so much more sure about this new one. When have my contacts not pulled through in the end, given enough time?”

I realized I’d never heard Marion raise her voice before—or Dr. Lyanne, either. Both seemed close to it now. I’d been so focused on Ryan’s antagonism toward Marion, I’d overlooked the strength of Dr. Lyanne’s.

“You can have your time,” she said now. Her voice was modulated, her expression controlled. But I caught the tension in her jaw. “
You
can stay and keep looking for him. But Brindt is already on the edge of becoming another Anchoit, and I wouldn’t be surprised if Jenson already has his eyes on this city. I want us somewhere more remote.”

“How am I supposed to contact Tyler, if none of you are here?” Marion demanded. “The boy is deep in hiding. He won’t trust me—”

Even if she could find them on her own, I didn’t trust Marion enough to let her. She didn’t care about Kitty and Nina like we did.

“You’ll figure it out,” Dr. Lyanne said. The look she gave Marion was pointed, sharp. “You managed to get us to trust you when you showed up at our door.”

Addie’s exhaustion bled into me, made it hard to think clearly. This was all too much for her. And why wouldn’t it be? In her mind, we’d just been at Hahns. She’d gone from fighting to escape from an eighty-square-foot room to dealing with this. I struggled to keep myself calm, to shield my anxiety from her.

“We’re leaving tomorrow,” Dr. Lyanne said. “There’s a safe house in Diale. We can stay there until we figure out where to go next.”

I said wearily. I was tired, too. Tired of being on the run. Sick of being Jenson’s prey.

And I was sick of losing people I loved. Of leaving people behind.

I said.

Addie’s trust was a balm on the day’s wounds. I had Addie’s confidence in me. It was enough.

I looked around the room, seeking Devon’s eyes. I shoved away my fear for our family, to be dealt with later. I couldn’t afford to fall apart now.

I said.