Mania (7 page)

Nine
Jack

Now that Parker knew I was going to Cypress Crest, it was impossible to convince him not to come this time. Especially when he threatened to jump in his car and drive there without me. And because I still felt guilty for not answering his questions about our dad, I didn't exactly fight him very hard. Of course, once I'd agreed to allow Parker to tag along, Finn decided to join us. And Chloe was waiting beside the van when we walked out to it the next morning. I was relieved Addie and Mia weren't around to turn this into an even bigger circus.

“I really think it needs a name.” Finn turned to look at us like somehow we were all supposed to understand exactly what he was referring to.

“What do you want to name now?” Parker asked with a laugh.

“Anything and everything,” Chloe muttered as she opened the van door and climbed into the far backseat. But I saw her hide a small smile behind her hand.

Finn pretended she hadn't spoken as he climbed into the middle seat. “The new drug we're working on. Eclipse had a name … maybe we should name this one something similar, about the sky or stars or something, you know?”

I looked at the others. I didn't know Finn well enough to tell if he was kidding, but either way, he had a point. “Like what?”

“Maybe … Sunstorm, or Aurora, or … ”

“If I remember right, Aurora is the name of a Disney princess.” Parker looked back at him over top of the front passenger seat, his face more than skeptical. “And Sunstorm sounds like some kind of superhero.”

“Exactly! Who doesn't want a name that sounds super?” Finn pointed his finger at Parker's chest for added emphasis.

“Drive now, name things later,” I suggested as I climbed into the driver's seat.

Parker turned his attention to his ringing phone as soon as his seat belt was on. He put it on speakerphone so he and Finn could tell Addie, together, about our plan. By the time I got to the corner, Finn was lecturing his sister on what to do with his car, which she was using. “Okay, so don't leave Brewster anywhere weird.”

“I still refuse to call your car Brewster, but just for kicks, where exactly would you consider a weird place to park?” she asked, her tone warm with laughter.

“I don't know … in the middle of the street … or in a farmyard … a government facility … or in a no parking zone.” Finn's frown deepened and he looked out the window for any other possibilities worthy of his disapproval.

Addie gave an exasperated sigh. “But I was going to head out to a farmyard right now, pick up a few chickens and a rooster, throw them all in the backseat with some straw … ”

Finn didn't respond and when I glanced in my rearview mirror, he didn't look amused.

“I'm kidding,” Addie said. “The car is a piece of crap anyway. I don't know why you're being so protective.”

“Because Brewster is MY piece of crap!” Finn acted like this was the most logical argument in the world.

“Next time, just borrow my car, Addie,” Parker advised with a grin.

“I might, thanks.” I heard Addie sigh. “Finn, I promise I'll drive
Brewster
straight home and be very nice to him.”

Finn didn't look entirely convinced, but he said. “Very well.”

“Thank you,” she said. She sounded like she might say more but didn't get a chance.

“Remember, you can't turn on his windshield wipers and blinker at the same time or his engine will start on fire!” The corner of Finn's mouth jerked up in a wry smile.

Addie groaned and said, “Can I talk to just Parker now?”

Chuckling, Parker took the phone and turned off the speakerphone before saying hello. I focused my attention on the road ahead of me. He and his friends were kind of a mystery to me. I could see how much they meant to each other, but I'd never been close to anyone quite like that.

Actually, maybe that wasn't true. My relationship with Libby was probably close, although I always thought of her more like a sister than anything else. My mouth curved up at just the idea of seeing her again. I needed her kind of optimism right now.

Parker hung up the phone and then turned to face me. “So, who is this Randall, and why is it so important we go to this trailer park?

“Cypress Crest isn't just a trailer park. It's a rebel camp full of Night Walkers who are fighting against the Takers.” I turned on my blinker and headed toward the highway. “Randall is the Builder currently leading them. He's an old friend of Dad's. Hopefully he'll be able to provide us with some answers about this formula.”

Cypress Crest looked pretty run down from the outside, but it still felt more like home to me than anywhere else. The front half was a normal trailer park; no Night Walkers, just average people—Dreamers like Finn, Mia, and Mrs. Chipp. The back half was filled with Night Walker rebels. Some of the group meetings and security we'd organized had made the Dreamers in the park start to believe we were some kind of cult. They quickly learned to keep out of our business and look the other way whenever possible. That suited the rebels just fine.

I'd lived here for years before Dad came back for me. Even after we'd left, and during our years on the run, Dad and I visited the camp often. It was where my mom had lived and where she'd died. It was where Dad had first found out that I existed.

I drove the big van carefully down the narrow, winding road between the trailers, being careful not to run over anything or anyone. It was just before noon and a beautiful day. People were out chatting and working in their tiny patches of garden. I parked all the way in the back near a big field of tall grass. Parker, Finn, and I opened our doors. Even as I climbed out of the van, I could feel eyes on me.

I smiled to myself. Good. They'd finally taken my advice and tightened up security around here. Before this they'd been too vulnerable, as evidenced by the times people had disappeared in the middle of the night, or worse, when the whole camp had been attacked.

I stopped just short of shutting my door when I realized Chloe was frozen in place, ducked low in the back of the van.

“Are you staying here?”

“I think getting out and walking around here would be a
very
bad idea for me.” She peered over the seat and gave me a hard look. “Don't you agree?”

I nodded, glad she'd been the one to bring it up instead of me insisting on it. Even if she truly was on our side now and trying to help us, ours wasn't an easy situation to explain.

“Agreed.” I gave her a grim nod. “I'll try to hurry.”

I joined Parker and Finn in front of the van.

“Everything okay?” Parker tilted his head toward Chloe.

“Yeah.” I didn't elaborate, just started walking. Parker and Finn kept pace with me immediately.

“I'm still thinking … what about Wormhole?” Finn rubbed his hands together, seeming determined to solve the only problem he might actually be able to help with.

Parker nearly choked. “You want to name the drug Wormhole?”

“Too simple?” Finn frowned and then suggested, “Wormhole 3000!”

“Nothing with the word hole in it … or worm, actually,” I said as I sped up a bit. A group of rebels, led by a smiling Randall, had just turned a corner thirty feet ahead and were walking out to greet us.

“So the Takers had a massive base … and the rebels have a trailer park?” Parker asked quietly. When I didn't respond, he said, “No wonder our side has been losing.”

My spine stiffened and I stopped. I took a slow breath before responding so he wouldn't hear my anger. “It's more complicated than that. Our side was being hunted. Our side was trying not to abuse the power we have. Our side wasn't out to destroy every Taker on the planet.”

“Right.” Parker swallowed, giving a sad shake of his head. “I'm sorry. I didn't mean it like that.”

“I know.” My eyes searched the group approaching us for Libby, but she wasn't there. “This is part of why I agreed to let you come. You need to see what the rest of the Night Walkers have been dealing with. You need to know that Dad really was doing what was best
for you
.”

Parker seemed surprised, but I saw something different behind his eyes now, something closer to sadness than disdain. Good. That was what he needed to feel. He needed that feeling to understand why Dad's new formula was so important, why all this had to change.

Randall walked up, his grin even wider than before. He was in his fifties and had been close to my mom, keeping an eye on me when I was younger. He had black hair that was balding on top behind a rather severe forehead, but his face was softened by the smile lines around his eyes. When he got close I moved to shake his hand, but instead he pulled me into a tight hug.

“I'm so sorry to hear what happened to Danny, son. He was a good man, and we all miss him.”

Randall's embrace shook loose a piece of my shell, leaving me feeling vulnerable and exposed. It was difficult for me to get a grip on my emotions again.

“Thank you,” was all I could say, knowing even one more word could break me.

After a moment Randall released me, staring into my eyes as he backed away. Intentional eye contact meant something here. It was the true symbol of trust in a rebel camp.

“This is Danny's son Parker.” I gestured over my shoulder. “And his friend, Finn.”

Randall nodded and reached past me to shake Parker's and Finn's hands. I watched as he looked at the air just above their heads. They hadn't earned that trust yet. “It's nice to finally meet you, Parker. I've heard all about you, of course, from your father. I'm very sorry for your loss.”

Parker shook Randall's hand, murmured a thank you, and nodded, but I could feel his gaze on me. None of these people knew that Danny was my dad. They thought he was my mentor, and they knew we were close … but they didn't know the depth of our relationship. My mom had told them my dad rode a Harley and died in a crash before I was born. As Dad had instructed, I never corrected her story.

Most of the time, truth was an inconvenient nuisance. At times it could set you free, but more often it would ensnare you in a web with no hope for release. When you lied and it hurt people, you could always make amends with the truth. When it was the truth that caused pain, there was no escape. After all these years, now wasn't the time to confess all the lies my parents had told these people in order to protect each other … and me.

Marisol walked out from behind a nearby trailer. She smiled wide and a chuckle escaped my chest. She was a Watcher and had been my mom's best friend. Though I lost my mom young, Libby had been even younger; she was only five when her mother was killed fighting the Takers. Marisol had taken care of the two of us like we were her own. It was just who she was. She'd been unable to have kids, so she became the mom of the whole camp.

Randall smiled too and gestured to the rest of the group to go back to a large common area they'd set up in the middle of the trailers. Turning back to Marisol and me, he said, “We'll let you two catch up, but come find me again before you leave.”

I patted him on the shoulder. “Count on it. I have a question for you, anyway. I'll see you in a minute.”

Marisol wrapped her arms around me, led me a few steps to one side of the path, and whispered in my ear.

“I've always kept your parents' secret, but I know you mourn for more than a mentor right now, child.” Her dark eyes wrinkled around the edges and her slight Jamaican accent was so serene that her words caught me off-guard. She pulled back just enough to look me in the eyes with her piercing gaze. “The question is, does he know?” She inclined her head toward Parker and raised her eyebrows.

My back stiffened and I couldn't keep my eyes from widening. Marisol had known that Danny was my dad all this time? I had no idea, and I'm not sure if Dad even knew. Still, if my parents were going to trust someone, Marisol was without question the best choice. She'd certainly been trustworthy, and she'd always tried to watch out for me. She kept me safe.

I nodded slowly. “He does.”

She smiled and then hugged me again. “Good. This is the perfect time to cling to family.”

“Marisol … ” I gave her one last hug and then pulled away. “This is Parker and his friend Finn.”

“So nice to meet you, boys.” She smiled wide, again looking at the air over their heads. This time Parker glanced at me with a slightly amused expression. I gave him a small smile, not at all surprised that he'd noticed the custom. He was more perceptive than he gave himself credit for.

Marisol gestured toward me. “You know, Jack's mum and I go way back to when we were small. Just like Jack and Libby.”

“Speaking of … ” I was tall enough to see over almost everyone, but I still hadn't seen Libby's dark curls in the group. “Where is she?”

Marisol smiled at something over my shoulder, then gave a little wave and turned to follow Randall. In the next instant, someone jumped on my back and I heard Libby's laughter in my ear. “At least you still come looking for me occasionally.”

I chuckled and reached behind me for her waist, tugging her around to stand in front of me. “You've got better things to do than worry about where I've gone off to anyway.”

She stopped laughing, but her brown eyes sparkled the way they had in her dreams when we were kids. “You know I always worry.”

Then her eyes shifted to Finn and Parker and she smiled again, staring them straight in the eyes without hesitation. Same old Libby, always too trusting … she'd never been as cautious as she should've been. “You found other friends? Finally. I've been wondering when someone else would be able to put up with you.”

I put my hand over her mouth and said with the straightest face I could manage, “Parker and Finn, this is Libby.”