The Mind Keepers (The Mind Readers) (3 page)

“I think you do.”

I spun around to face him.
“Remember Cameron? My sister you tried to make out with?”

“I didn’t try.” He grinned. “I
did…in a hot spring. How is she?”

A hot spring? Was he kidding? It
was like a bad music video. “She’s fine, and guess what? She told me you’re
probably going to die soon, and guess what else? I don’t care. In fact, I told
her to let you rot. So see, there’s nothing unresolved here.”

God, I sounded like a child
throwing a tantrum.

His grin fell. He was silent,
too silent. I actually started to feel guilty. But no, that sadness and
resignation I saw in his eyes wasn’t real. He was a dream. A freaking figment
of my imagination. I was so not going to feel sorry for him.

“What?” I dared to ask, crossing
my arms over my chest. “Why the puppy-dog eyes?”

He shrugged. “I was just
thinking about the time we dated. How innocent you were.”

“Innocent?” I snorted. “Please,
I was using you. It was all a set up so I could learn more about S.P.I.”

“Maybe at first.”

His response hit too close to
home. “Don’t flatter yourself into thinking I cared.”

He was silent for a long moment.
“If I am going to die, I want you to know…”
 

“No!” I was terrified of what
he’d say and how it would make me feel. I couldn’t let my guard down; I’d
learned that long ago. “Don’t get serious on me Maddox.”

But the jerk ignored me,
stepping closer, so close. “I never used you, Nora. I did care.”

Just as the last words left his
mouth, the locker room faded as quickly as it had arrived. I jerked awake with
a start. The warmth of my comforter, the softness of my bed and familiarity of the
house didn’t make me feel any better. One moment I’d been in that room, the
next in my bed, gasping for breath.

“No, no, no!”

Maddox’s words echoed around me.

I did care.

“Bull.” I raked my hair back
with trembling fingers. I knew for sure it had been a dream because Maddox only
cared about himself. Hadn’t he proven that again and again? A soft spring breeze
billowed my curtains, whispering words of relief. It was dawn, the sun barely
above the horizon. A new day. He’d been right about one thing: I had been
innocent then. I thought I’d found a knight in shining armor in Maddox. I knew
better now.

A dream. I shoved my blanket
aside, the weight of my down comforter like a freaking boulder. I could barely catch
my breath. I stumbled from the bed and to the open windows, breathing in the crisp
scent of morning, salt water and damp grass. It had been a dream. Just a dream.
I pressed my hand to my chest. My heart pounded so hard it actually hurt.

Apparently my body didn’t care
if it had been a dream. Being that close to Maddox again had sent my mind
spinning, totally throwing me off balance. Those years ago I’d practically lost
myself within him, and I swore I’d never do it again. I’d never give up my
independence, my own mind, my freedom for a man. Yet all it took was a freaking
dream to send me careening off balance.

But then I’d barely slept last
night. How could I? Thoughts of my mother warred with thoughts of Maddox thanks
to my sighting at the grocery store and to Cameron’s mind travel. It wasn’t
surprising that I’d dreamt about him.

Determined to ignore my
emotions, I glanced outside. The sun was just beginning to rise, the sky
turning from black to gray. The kids would be awake soon. The little brats
never slept in; they were actually excited to get up. I started to turn back
toward the bed, intent on shoving thoughts of Maddox from my mind when I heard
the mumble of voices from below. Bemused, I shoved the curtains aside to get a
better view. Lewis and Cameron stood below next to their car. An early morning
drive wasn’t so unusual; they went to the mainland for college classes all the
time. But the fact that they had a suitcase gave me pause.

Where the hell were they going?

An inkling of worry traveled
over my skin. “Oh no, she wouldn’t.”

But even as I said the words, I
knew she would. I tore across my room and out into the hall, nearly barreling
over Caroline in the process. She stumbled back just in time. The long, white
nightgown she wore flowed innocently around her, reminding me once again of her
vulnerability.

“Sorry.”

I jumped around her and raced
down the hall. In the past the children had been kept in a room in the
basement. Aaron, Cameron’s father, had treated them like they were at a
military school. We weren’t as strict. In fact, we were a family. Maybe it was
wrong, but no way could I lock a bunch of kids in a basement. And if Cameron
was doing what I thought, she just might ruin our cozy little nest
forever.
 

I raced down the stairs, wanting
to catch them before they left. Deborah stood in the foyer. I’d never liked
her. She was cold, unemotional and reminded me a little too much of myself. It
was like looking into a mirror and seeing the future, the bitterness in her
gaze…it was me in ten years. But she had protected the children when they’d
been imprisoned at the compound, and I knew she genuinely cared about them.

“Where are they going?” I
demanded.

“Best to ask them,” was her
vague reply.

I tore open the front door and leaped
down the steps. “What the hell are you doing?”
 

Startled, Cameron jerked her
gaze toward me. “Hey.”

“Where are you going?”

I could tell by the flush of
guilt staining her cheeks that my suspicion was right on. “To rescue Maddox.”

I wasn’t sure if I should be
annoyed or amused. Hoping to find an ally, I glanced at Lewis. “You’re letting
her rescue the guy who was trying to get in her pants in some sort of hot
spring?”

His jaw clenched. Okay, maybe I
shouldn’t have been quite so blunt. “She was going with or without me.”

Totally whipped. I shook my head,
disgusted with the both of them. “He tried to kill me!”

“Wait,” Cameron muttered,
stepping between us. I didn’t exactly care for that gleam in her eyes. “I never
mentioned the hot spring.”

“What do you mean?”

“When I told you he tried to
kiss me, I never mentioned the hot spring.”

It was my turn to flush.

“Nora, you just said that he and
I kissed…” She glanced at Lewis, whose jaw was clenched as he tried desperately
not to react to her past indiscretions. Too late, he knew all of her dirty
little secrets now. I wanted to mock the little lover’s spat that I knew was to
come but couldn’t because Cameron returned her gaze to me. “So how’d you know?”

I shrugged, confused. She’d told
me, hadn’t she? “You had to have mentioned it.”

She shook her head. “No, I
didn’t.”

What the hell was she implying? I
stepped back and slumped onto the front steps, looking out onto the ocean in
the distance. I liked it here. It was peaceful. And for some reason, surrounded
by water, I felt safe. Yeah, it was an illusion, but I still enjoyed the
feeling. She wanted to ruin it all by going after Maddox.

“Nora,” Cameron pleaded. “Think.
How do you know?”

I kicked at a pebble, confused,
anxious. “This morning I had a dream about him. I wouldn’t have dreamt that he
said it, unless—”

Cameron sat next to me. “He told
you this in a dream?”

I nodded, uneasy.

“Maybe it wasn’t a dream.”

“Then
what
?” I demanded, annoyed because deep down I knew where she was
going with this. And I didn’t want to go there because it made no sense.

“You mind traveled.”

I shook my head, more than
uneasy. “I…I can’t. I’m not the source, I don’t have that kind of power. Besides,
I’ve never done it before. Why would the ability show up now?”

“I have more than one power,”
Lewis said, “and I’m not the source either. Maybe it’s just her powers coming
into being. Who knows?”

Cameron rested her hand on my
knee, drawing my attention back to her. “What did Maddox look like?”

I shrugged. “Same.”

“Come on, Nora,” she sighed,
growing annoyed with my half-answers. “The truth.”

I surged to my feet and paced
the brick path. That was the bad thing about family: they knew you too well. “Thin,
okay? Tired. Haggard.”

I didn’t miss the knowing glance
Cameron shot Lewis. “So, then he was different from the last time we saw him?”

I didn’t respond, just stared at
that large oak, the only big tree on the windswept property. Realization was
slowly weaving its icy fingers through my body. My heart pounded fiercely,
denying what my head knew was true.

“If it had been a dream, he
wouldn’t have looked like the Maddox I’d seen. Somehow you traveled with your
mind,” Cameron said the words I’d been dreading.

It hadn’t been a dream. I
pressed my hands to my stomach. Maddox really was limping, injured, hurt. Oh
God. Which meant the words he had said actually might have been true?

He cared.

“Not only traveled,” Lewis added,
“but you brought Maddox, or at least his energy, with you.”

“That’s it.” Cameron headed
toward the car, more determined than ever. So much for talking her out of
going. “We are leaving, and we are going to try and save Maddox.” She paused at
the passenger side and looked my way. “Are you coming along or staying behind?”

Chapter 3

“You sure we’re expected?” Lewis
asked as we drove up the long driveway to the ancient farmhouse where I’d spent
many a childhood summers.

There was only one light shining
from the living room. I leaned forward between the front seats and glanced at
the clock on the dashboard. Ten. Late, but not that bad considering mind
readers tended to be night owls. We could concentrate better when most of the country
was asleep. But not even the stables were lit. Nothing.
 
A shiver of apprehension whispered a warning.

“Yeah, I called ahead.” This
morning Helen had answered. Her usual cheerful self, she had been thrilled we’d
be stopping by. I’d had to listen to her talk for a good ten minutes about my
mother and how sorry she was about her death, when I’d wanted to do nothing
more than to forget. But I’d gritted my teeth and beared it.
 

“I think my grandma and I
actually came here years ago,” Cameron said, gazing out the window onto the dark
rolling fields of Gettysburg, Pennsylvania.

“Not surprising. It’s been a
base camp since before the Civil War.” I hadn’t been here in at least three
years. The homecoming was bittersweet. But mostly just bitter. Mom and I had
visited here some three years ago. I’d always liked the warm and inviting old
farm house. I could see the horses in the pasture, their large eyes glistening
under the moonlight.

“Just relax, Nora. Horses can sense your nervousness.”
Mom’s voice
whispered through my memory. The day I’d learned to ride. So many days spent
here.
 

“Looks like they’re still up,”
Lewis said, stopping in front of the stone house.

For a brief moment we just sat
there, unwilling to leave the safety of the car. Finally Cameron glanced at
Lewis, and even though it was too dark to see her face, I could sense her
unease. I felt the same odd sensation they both felt. Something was wrong.

Lewis shoved open the car door
and stood. Cameron and I followed. The night was silent, the house too far from
Gettysburg to attract the noise from tourists, although we could see the glow of
the town in the distance. It was dark here. So dark the only light was from the
stars above and the lamplight from the living room through the curtains.

I shut my door and started
toward the front stoop, Lewis and Cameron following. My pulse pounded under my
skin, pleading with me to be careful. But I couldn’t run. If something was
truly wrong, I needed to help. These people were friends—more like family—and I’d
already lost so many.
 

“Wait,” Lewis whispered.

We paused, the horses beyond the
fence neighing softly. We weren’t the only ones uneasy. Somehow I could sense
the animals’ anxiety, a tingling sensation that raised the fine hairs on my
arms. “Something’s wrong,” I admitted.

Lewis nodded. “I’m going around
back.”

“Be careful, Captain America, I
have a feeling we’re walking into a trap,” I whispered.
 

I could tell Cameron wasn’t
happy about him playing hero, but she kept her mouth shut and followed me up
the shallow stone steps to the front door. We were all walking into danger. We
knew it, but we had no choice. I waited until Lewis’ soft footsteps faded as he
headed around back.

“Ready?” I didn’t wait for
Cameron’s response, afraid she’d talk me out of it, but knocked once…twice.

Moments later we heard
footsteps. Cameron and I stood stiffly by, waiting. When the door swung open,
it took me a moment to recognize the guy. Cameron was quicker.

“Jake?” She laughed and threw
herself forward, wrapping her arms around his neck and hugging him tightly. “Oh
my God, I never thought I’d see you again. I thought you were dead!”

I stepped inside and closed the
door behind us. A quick glance around the foyer said we were alone. I reached
out with my senses and could feel no one. Odd. I could have sworn…

“Yeah, me neither,” he muttered.

And then I noticed the way his
gaze shifted, looking everywhere but at us. Yep, definitely something wrong. I moved
slowly into the foyer, my shoes tapping against the wooden floorboards, and glanced
into the living room. Same place but it was empty. No one but Jake. Warning
bells rang.

Suddenly I knew the flush on
Jake’s face wasn’t embarrassment, but guilt. “Hey, Nora, right?” He lifted his
lips into a forced smile. “I think we met years ago.”