Page 109 of Gifted

“No, you’re brilliant. You’re just stubborn.”

“I’m cautious.”

“You can be an ass.”

His grin shoots through me in a wonderful ache.

“I can’t argue with that.”

I nestle against him, and slide my fingers along his arm. “What’s it like?”

“I told you I don’t want to talk about it.”

“I’m not asking about them, I’m asking about you.”

“You saw. You were there.”

“I’m not asking about all that, I’m asking about you.”

He clenches his jaw. “Has Clausen approached you yet?”

“You’re changing the subject. Why were you shaking earlier?” His glare speaks volumes, but I’m different now too. “Please, I came back for you. Let me be here for you.”

He sighs and leans his head against the wall. “They’re tampering with my nervous system. You can imagine there’d be side effects.”

“But why you? What if they do permanent damage?”

He turns on me. “Who else but me?” His gaze drops to the floor. “Just concentrate on your plan. Let me deal with the rest.” I bite my lip, and he squeezes my arm. “I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have snapped like that. I know how hard this must be for you.” He quiets, eyes narrowing as he reads my thoughts. “Don’t you think I would have tried that already?”

I bristle at the intrusion. “I can’t stop you from going into my head, but you can’t judge me for thinking. Of course I’m going to brainstorm every possibility I can. It’s not fair that I don’t get to choose which ones to suggest. And anyway, why won’t that work? You’ve erased my memories twice. If you erased Clausen’s, we’d have a window for escape.”

“I erased a few months from you and that pushed me to my limits. I would never be able to erase over a decade. Besides, he’s found a way to block me. Sometimes I can break through, but most of the time I can barely read his thoughts, let alone erase them.”

“How does he block you?”

“I don’t know. I can only guess it has something to do with his research on Laura.”

I let out a breath. “I don’t get it. Why all this for some stupid experiment. There has to be an easier way for him to make a name for himself.”

His startled gaze meets mine. “This isn’t about his reputation. Don’t you know who he is?”

“But I thought… The monitors and research and speech about—”

“Clausen isn’t obsessed with notoriety. His fame is what allowed him to fuel his real obsession.”

“You?”

“Knowledge. Control.”

“What do you mean?”

He turns to me, tense and focused. “What do you think Madison Academy is, Rebecca?”

“It’s a progressive school affiliated with Olde York University.”

He shakes his head. “That’s the propaganda they feed. The name Olde York lures the masses. Lends credibility. Who wouldn’t want to be linked to one of the most prestigious Ivy League schools in the country? Particularly, when it’s run by Olde York’s very own Walter Clausen.”

“Director Clausen?”

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