Page 35 of Gifted

“Maybe.” At the very least, I like the idea of less group sessions. After another pause, I glance up. “Anna, would I be able to leave here if I wanted to?”

She flinches at my question, hesitating. “I suppose,” she says finally. “But I hope you won’t. I’d strongly urge you to give it more time. Please talk to me about your concerns. I’m here to help.”

I smile weakly, wondering if that’s true. Does she even know if it’s true?

By the time we finish dinner, I dream only of my bed. Even Daniel’s dark, vacant room barely registers on my consciousness as I shuffle past it. I’m visualizing the plunge into soft silky sheets when I push through my door and freeze.

My heart jumps at the figure reclined in my chair.

“Daniel?”

His lips quirk up in a smile that brings a rush of heat and relief at the same time.

“You’re okay. I was afraid they’d come after you for what happened in group today.”

I don’t miss the way his fist tightens on the armrest. “They will. Why don’t you ever participate in the evening activities?”

“Why don’t you?”

He gives me a wry look and leans forward. “Look, I didn’t come to chat. I don’t have much time. You have to leave here, Rebecca.”

“You know I’m not going to leave you to whatever it is I’m leaving you to.”

He shakes his head, clearly frustrated. “I already told you, there’s nothing you can do to help me, but it’s not too late for you. They’re going to use you. That’s why you’re here. That’s why all of us are here. They print these fancy brochures and furnish this Stepford mansion, but it’s only to disguise the prison that it is.”

I let out my breath. “Your experience here is hell, I know that. And yeah, I’m starting to believe you are a prisoner here. But I’m not. I just spoke to Anna about that and—”

“You spoke to your counselor about it?” His alarm makes me stiffen in defense.

“Relax. All I asked is if I could go home if I wanted to.”

He curses and pushes to his feet. Maybe I’m concerned when he starts pacing. “How much do they know about you?”

“What do you mean? They know my gift.”

“Obviously, but how much do they really know about you?” He stops and runs his hand over his head. “Okay, let me start over. They want something from you. The girl you replaced had similar abilities, but hers weren’t as controlled as yours and she couldn’t see the future. You’re an upgrade for them.”

My stomach twists. “What are you saying?”

“Do you have any idea how valuable I am to them?”

I bite my lip. “I imagine so. If you could know everything about everyone.”

“Exactly, and that’s only the beginning. I’m never leaving here, Rebecca. I fight them every step of the way, but I know I’ll never win. They’ll find a way to break me. They have in the past, and they’ll do the same to you. They’ll do whatever they can to find your trigger, and then they fire until there’s nothing left.”

“My trigger?”

His haunted eyes meet mine. “Yes. The one thing they can exploit to control you.”

I gasp at the vision that comes flooding back. “Is that the reason I saw your mother in that room with you?”

Nausea sweeps through me when a muscle tightens in his jaw. He doesn’t look up.

“You can’t let them discover your trigger,” he says quietly, his voice strained. “I was hers. She was mine.”

“Was?” I close my eyes and steady myself against the bedpost. Fear knots in my chest as I consider his words, everything I’ve seen so far. Can he read my terror? What about the rest of my confession?

“They already know my trigger,” I force out quietly.

---