So, while we drove down that freeway alongside all those cars of completely ordinary people going about their normal days, Paige told me everything she knew about Anthony. She started very simply, talking about what he looked like, showing me what his voice sounded like by modulating her own to match his as a child, and even what he smelled like. Apparently asking someone with a computer memory to describe someone ended up getting you a lot of details. Not that I minded at all. I just put my seat back and closed my eyes as she described the boy who had once been my very best friend in the world, before his life was taken away by my grandfather, and his memories by my parents.
She told me about his favorite foods, the toys he liked, what shows we watched together. She talked about some of the silly arguments she'd heard us have, what games we played with one another, even little things like the fact that Anthony liked to use military time/twenty-four-hour clock instead of the standard twelve hour version. Apparently he'd heard people use it in a movie or something when he was barely old enough to understand time at all, and had thought it was a fun secret code. And speaking of secret codes, he also had a watch that doubled as a voice recorder. He used to hold down the button and talk into it like he was a secret agent, then use the other button to play back the message later. He played the roles of both the field agent like James Bond, and his own boss, passing messages back-and-forth under each different persona through the watch. Which apparently included arguing with himself as each person. But again, only through the watch messages. He would entirely switch characters to record the messages, go somewhere else, then switch again to listen and react.
Of course Paige and I both had our own secret agent characters as well, so we could help him in the field. According to the other girl, the three of us had once spent an entire afternoon pretending to be convinced that a catering company that was setting up for some party in his parents’ yard were actually Russian spies, whom we had to identify and send pictures of back to headquarters, then ‘eliminate’ by touching the center of their backs without being seen before managing to do so.
Was it dumb that it was the description of that silly spy game that finally made the tears start? I still couldn’t actually remember the boy, or any of that stuff myself. But the way she described it was enough for me to see it in my head. I also developed a headache that wouldn't go away, very quickly into her description. Paige noticed and tried to stop, but I insisted she keep going, that I could handle it. I wanted to handle it. My parents had tried to take away my pain by erasing my memory, but all that did was bury it. I needed this pain.
So, she continued describing everything she knew about Anthony and my relationship with him. As much as it hurt, as much as it made that pounding in my head worse, it also felt good. I needed it. I needed to hear the words and picture the boy I had lost years earlier. I had to feel all of it, everything I should have felt before.
All of this actually hurt even more than it would have, considering the situation my parents were in. I could very easily lose them as w-- no, no, I couldn’t think about that. I couldn’t--yes. I had to. I had to allow the thought to enter my mind, no matter how much it practically destroyed me. I loved my parents. Thinking about either of them dying felt like a betrayal of the worst kind, a bigger betrayal than anything else I had done against the Ministry, honestly. This wasn’t about their crimes or choices, it was about their lives. No matter what they had done, they were still my parents, and the very thought that they could die…
But they could. They might actually die before this was over. And if they did, I had no idea how--or if I would ever recover. How could I ever even start to come back from that?
Thinking about that possibility, while also doing my best to remember anything about my best friend who had been tragically murdered, probably wasn't doing great things for my emotional health. Or maybe it was, in the long run. I needed to go through this. I needed to process what I had lost with Anthony, as well as the possibility of what could happen if one or both of my parents didn't make it. Not that I really accepted the latter as an actual possibility beyond my darkest thoughts. But still, I needed to at least think about it, no matter how hard it was.
Honestly, maybe this was weird, but I thought it was good for Paige too. She had been the one who remembered everything about our history, and Anthony. She had been grieving not only for him, but our entire relationship for the past five plus years. Worse, she had been forced to not only ignore our friendship, but actually had to treat me badly for all that time. I had to think about that for a minute, trying to understand what it would have felt like if one of my best friends died and then my other best friend’s entire memory of our relationship was erased and I had to spend half a decade treating her like shit just so people would believe I would actually try to kill her later.
Yeah, I was pretty sure I still had absolutely no real concept of what that had been like for her. It was an impossible set of shoes to put myself in. But at the very least, I understood that she had suffered too. The past few years had been far from a picnic for the other girl. That was something I had to keep reminding myself of. Nothing that happened between us through all those years had been her choice. She had spent all that time coming up with the best solution she could for how to avoid killing me. In the end, she’d had to actually do it, but she also brought me back to life. When it really came down to it, she had been willing to kill herself to make sure her father was finally stopped. Her plan had been to end her own life just to protect me, even after suffering for years under her own father’s programming.
Sometimes I couldn’t help but obsess over that whole thing, especially when I was thinking about Anthony. What would all three of our lives have been like if none of that happened? What if I had grown up with Anthony right there the whole time, and the two of us had to figure out how to help Paige? What if--
No, now wasn’t the time to dwell on that. We had important real things to focus on. Finally, I stopped Paige from talking about Anthony, and turned the subject toward how we were going to handle scouting out the house we were heading for to disable all the traps her father had definitely had his people set up around the place. She had plans for that, of course, but it would be up to me to carry most of it out since it was too dangerous for her to get close until we were absolutely certain there was nothing there that might fuck with her programming. I had the feeling she didn't like the idea of me getting close to that house and all those potential problems without any backup, especially from her. But it was the best choice we had.
The other thing I did through all that was keep texting Izzy, Sierra, Wren, and everyone else. I wanted updates about what was going on while I was gone, especially in my own house. Part of me was convinced our little trick would be instantly figured out and exposed. But according to Sierra and Izzy, no one was paying that much attention. They’d gone back to the house together after dropping us off, got up early in the morning, and went to school like it was a completely ordinary day. My ‘twin’ pretended to be me through breakfast, the ride with Jefferson, and those first couple classes. Some part of me was almost offended that it was so easy for her to fake being me without anyone noticing. But honestly, that was beyond stupid. Of course people didn’t immediately realize I had a secret twin who was now taking my place. Why would they even start to think that? Besides, I wanted her to pull off the switch. Things would be a lot worse if she didn’t. So I pushed those dumb, instinctive thoughts aside and simply sent another message telling her to ask me if she needed any specific answers to anything. If someone asked something she didn’t know the answer to, she should say something about an emergency and run to the restroom. Yeah, it might come off as weird, but that was still better than the alternative.
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With Amber right there in several of her classes, and sticking by her side in the hallways, this might just work. At least for a few days. I had to hope she wouldn't need to pose as me for any longer than that. Paige and I were just going straight to that house, where we would grab the machine and bring it back.
God, I really hoped it would be that simple.
Eventually, we had been driving for hours and hours. It was just past ten-thirty in the morning, and I hadn't had anything to eat since the night before. Even then, I hadn't been able to force myself to take that much, considering how nervous I’d been about this whole thing. Not that those nerves went away, but I was finally so hungry they were completely outweighed. So, we stopped just off the freeway at a fast food place and ate in the van together. I wolfed down two burgers, fries, and a milkshake like my life depended on it, finishing in record time before slumping back in the seat with a groan. “That was one of the best meals I've ever had.”
With a snort, Paige poked me. “Maybe you shouldn't wait so long between them next time. That can’t be healthy. Not that anything about this meal is healthy anyway.” She added that bit while critically examining her own burger before finishing it in a couple bites. Then she brushed her hands off. “You ready to get back on the road before it gets any later?”
I nodded before sitting up. “Yeah, just let me hit the restroom first. Gotta stretch my legs. I’ve never gone this long in a car before. We always take one of the planes when we go on vacation. Or a helicopter. Or a yacht.”
Rubbing two fingers together to demonstrate the world's smallest violin, Paige rolled her eyes teasingly. “Well, see, that's what you get for not booking a flight down there ahead of time. We could've been done with this already if you'd thought to do that.”
“Yup, totally my fault,” I shot back. “But hey, now at least I get to pay for my mistake by suffering through a whole day of driving with you. I think that’s repayment enough.” Sticking my tongue out, I laughed despite everything and moved to jog into the restaurant. Yeah, this whole situation was awful. The dark reason we had to be out here like this wouldn’t leave the back of my head. But honestly, I could think of much worse ways to spend this time. And much worse people to spend it with. Which would have seriously blown my mind a few months earlier.
Shaking off those thoughts, I made it to the restrooms, checked the signs, then headed in and did my business. Only when I came out of the stall did I notice the urinals lining the far wall. Wait… why were there urinals in that--
This was the mens room. I had stopped in that hallway, looked at the signs, and walked into the mens room. Was I that accustomed to pretending to be a boy? But I wasn’t even doing that right now, so what--why was--why had I…
That was when I heard the first gunshot. Yeah, gunshot, even though I wasn’t sure what it was at first. Or maybe I just didn’t want to admit it. The terrifyingly loud bang wasn’t muffled at all, making me jump as it came from out in the main lobby. It was followed by an assortment of screams that told me it wasn’t a car backfiring or anything innocent like that. No, this was absolutely something bad. Of course. I couldn’t get through a simple meal and continue an important road trip without something like this happening. There just had to be a robbery, or whatever this was, right now.
Even as those thoughts were running through my head, I heard a man shouting for everyone to get down. Then there were footsteps rapidly approaching this room. I heard the other restroom door slam open, just before the steps continued this way. I was about to have company. Thinking quickly (or possibly not thinking at all), I shot red paint up toward the ceiling above the door and launched myself that way. An instant later, as soon as I was safely out of sight, the door was kicked open and a man wearing a ski mask stepped in. He was directly under me, crouching to look under the stalls for any feet. Praying he wouldn't look up, which would be incredibly bad considering I wasn't wearing a mask or anything, I held myself there against the ceiling, staring down at the guy. Should I hit him with something? Take him out right now while he was out of sight from whoever he had come with? I didn’t have my mask or special cuffs or anything. Well, I did technically have my costume with me, since I had Wren’s special bag folded up in my pocket. But I didn’t have time to change into it. I couldn’t even move right now without drawing his attention. I had to stay as still and silent as possible, or he was going to look up and see me.
And what was Paige doing out there right now? I had absolutely no doubt that she knew what was going on. Especially since I felt vibration in my pocket as my phone buzzed for a text that had to be from the girl herself. Thankfully, it was completely silent. Or at least quiet enough that the man didn't hear it over the sound of his own shoes squeaking on the floor as he straightened up, apparently satisfied that the restroom was empty. But if I was going to do something about him before he went back out to the main room, it was now or never. The restroom door was shut. I wouldn’t get a chance like this again. These guys, whoever they were, had come into this place firing off guns and traumatizing everyone in here. No matter how inconvenient it was, I had to do something about it. Who knew just how far the assholes would go if their opening move was using a gun?
With that thought running through my head, along with the sound of the man out in the lobby shouting for people to hand over all their valuables, I made my decision. I couldn't sit this out. Though I was going to have to be extra careful right now. The last thing I needed was for this guy to see my face. I had the feeling he wouldn't politely forget it, considering what I was about to do.
Covering the inside of my shirt with purple paint, and my legs under the jeans with green, I activated both before dropping down behind the guy. On the way, I used black paint on my shoes to silence my landing. All of which meant he had no idea what was about to hit him, as I caught hold of his left arm with my own hand and the back of his neck with the other. In the process, I put black paint on him as well to silence his reaction. Then, keeping my grip on him as he tried to struggle, I used blue paint under my feet to launch myself forward, through the length of the restroom before slamming the man’s face into the far wall. Just before impact, I managed to use one finger to hit the tile with another shot of black so the people outside wouldn’t hear anything.
The man hit the wall hard, stunning him a bit. Which I took advantage of by pulling his shirt up over his head and tying it into a makeshift blindfold. Yeah, it wasn’t much, but at least it meant he couldn’t easily see me. I was doing the best I could with what I had.
While he was still stunned, I managed to dig into my pocket for the special bag. There wasn’t time to change right now, but I did get a set of zip ties out. They weren’t staydown cuffs, but hopefully this guy wasn’t strong enough for it to matter. Through all that, the man was struggling violently, clearly doing his best to scream and curse. But I reared back and kicked him hard enough to drive the air out of his lungs, then shoved him onto his stomach and secured his wrists behind his back with one of the zipties, before getting his ankles with another. In the process, I hit him with another shot of black paint to keep the man quiet. Not that that would last forever. I needed a better way of silencing him.
Thinking quickly on that front, I yanked the man’s shoes off, then took one of his socks and balled it up. Carefully, I pulled his shirt up to expose his mouth, and while he was silently screaming at me, shoved that sock inside. Then I used the other to tie around his head in order to keep it in place, before shoving the shirt back down. Okay. Right now he was still blinded enough that he couldn’t see me, and secured so he couldn’t get away. One down, who knew how many left to go?
Oh right, someone else probably did. Still listening intently just in case anyone came to check on this guy, I took out my phone and looked for the message. Sure enough, Paige wanted to know if I was okay. Subsequent messages informed me that there were three bad guys in the main dining room, and that they were all armed with handguns. If I didn’t respond, she was going to assume I was in trouble and come in.
Quickly, I sent a message updating her. Then I stared down at the guy I had secured, before adding, ‘We need to deal with these guys, without exposing who we are.’ Paintball and Poise were supposed to be locked down in quarantine. I couldn’t even imagine how the nearby authorities would react if they knew we were out here.
But something told me it would be a lot worse than dealing with a few random thugs robbing a fast food joint.