Oblivion Read Free

get him
out. Soon. “Soon, Jason. We’ll get out of here and figure out a way to stop
these people.”
    Before I appeared
in all my scarred glory, Jason was the one person I thought would recognize my
true face. I thought about keeping the persona of Scott Nickels so he would
wake to a friendly face. It had taken nearly two years, but Scott managed to
break through at least some of Jason’s walls. He was becoming a friend.
    I thought about
it, but decided against it.
    Maybe I hoped he
could view me as a friend too. But he thought I was dead. Everybody thinks I’m
dead. Death is a great way to gain freedom. But it also prevented me from
proving myself to Jason. If I had remained alive, the Tracker would have hunted
me down. The Earthshaker was afraid of me, and—as the one person in the world
who could sense when I was near him—he would likely have killed me. Now, Jason
has the potential to be a friend.
    It took a few
minutes for the kidnappers to show. Jason may not remember anything, but
apparently his tracking ability is alive and well. The man who entered wore a
medical mask and a cap, along with surgical scrubs. His identity was unknown,
but he appeared to be the man in charge of taking care of Jason as he recovered
from his fight with the Hunter, and the car crash.
    Jason tensed,
obviously uncomfortable with the silent scrutiny, and the inability to tell the
man’s identity. “Who are you?” he asked. “Where am I?”
    He didn’t ask the
obvious: Who am I? Perhaps he didn’t want these people to know just how
vulnerable he truly is. Always a master at protecting himself. “ It’s okay, Jason,” I said. “He can’t hear me or see me, but
I will protect you if he tries anything.”
    Even not knowing
anything about what was happening, Jason was incredibly good at pretending I
wasn’t there. “What do you want?” he asked again, his tone more demanding this
time.
    “We already have
it.” The man spoke for the first time. Even while helping Jason the last couple
days, he never spoke a word.
    Jason’s eyes
narrowed and I could practically feel his destructive power straining to let
loose. “What do you mean by that?” His voice was as tight as his fist, and I
knew he was close to losing his temper.
    “Settle, Jason,” I
cautioned. “Now is not the time. I need to scout an escape, and you’re in no
condition to run.”
    His captor glanced
at a chart, and Jason sent a glare in my general direction. I could read the
“and why should I trust you?” in that glare, and raised my shoulders slightly
even though he couldn’t see it.
    “You want out, and
I want to get you out. These people don’t know you.”
    The one-sided
conversation served only one purpose: to stop Jason from causing this place to
crumble to the ground. Once we were out, fine. Until then, I couldn’t allow him
to lose his temper. With his memory, his power was—at least mostly—under
control. Without it, I had no such assurance. Chances are that he has no idea
what he is capable of, and has no idea how to prevent his power from setting
off an earthquake under us.
    “You’re almost
ready,” the man said. “Eat your meal tonight and get some rest,” he almost
sounded… concerned. “You will need it tomorrow.”
    “Why?” Jason drew
his gaze off mine, and warily eyed the scrub-clad man. “What’s tomorrow?”

 

FOUR
    Sam

 
 
    “Jason is alive!”
I interrupted the others as they searched through every scrap of information
about Hunter they were able to find. The same thing we’d been doing since Jason
disappeared three days ago. I’d finally felt him a few minutes after I
attempted to connect to Nickels. This was the first I felt from him since
before Hunter knocked him unconscious at his cabin. “He’s terrified, but he’s
alive!”
    Alice, Mark, and
Hannah looked up at me in shock. “You’re sure?” Hannah asked, her eyes welling
with tears.
    Nodding, I said,
“Positive. I know my brother’s emotions