The Mind Keepers (The Mind Readers)
The Mind Keepers
By Lori Brighton
Copyright 2013 Lori Brighton
www.LoriBrighton.com
All rights reserved. Without limiting the rights under copyright reserved above , no part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in or introduced into a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form, or by any means (electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise) without the prior written permission of both the copyright owner and the above publisher of this book.
This book is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, brands, media, and incidents are either the product of the author’s imagination or used fictitiously. The author acknowledges the trademark status and trademark owners of various products referenced in this work of fiction, which have been used without permission. The publication/use of these trademarks is not authorized, associated with, or sponsored by the trademark owners.
This ebook is licensed for your personal enjoyment only. This ebook may not be re-sold or given away to other people. If you would like to share this book with another person, please purchase an additional copy for each recipient. Thank you for respecting the hard work of this author.
Cover art and design by Ronnell D. Porter.
The Mind Readers Series in Order:
The Mind Readers, book 1 (Ebook version is free!)
The Mind Thieves, book 2
The Mind Games, book 3
The Mind Keepers, a novella
The Mind Keepers
Lori Brighton
For all the fans of the Mind Readers series.
One more story for you, just one more…
Chapter 1
Nora
I saw my mom in the grocery store.
I know what you’re thinking…so freaking what? Big deal. And for normal people, it wouldn’t have been such a momentous occasion. After all, most girls saw their moms regularly; in the grocery store, at home, pretty much everywhere. But I wasn’t most girls.
And oh yeah, I forgot to mention my mom died nine months ago.
Yet, as I stood there in the frozen food section of Miller’s Mart, the only grocery store on Haddock Island in Maine, I swore I saw her. With the door to the freezer open, through the cloud of frost that rose around me obscuring my view, I tried desperately to decipher that lithe form and that dark hair before she turned the corner.
The intercom crackled, jerking me back into reality. “Clean up in aisle four.”
Desperate for answers, I slammed the freezer shut, not bothering to grab the popsicles I’d been stocking up on. I left the cart behind and moved purposefully down the aisle. Each squeak of my tennis shoes over the linoleum sent my pulse thumping even harder. It wasn’t her. It wasn’t. So why then did my heart give out a frantic, hopeful beat?
At the end of the aisle I paused and took in a deep breath, attempting to calm my nerves. It wasn’t her. I stepped around a mountain of toilet paper. Mr. Cramer was searching the meat section, looking for that perfect steak. No one else.
Sensing me, he glanced up and smiled. “Oh, hello Nora.”
Like me, he was a local, and all the locals knew each other here.
She doesn’t look well, he thought. Hope she’s not into drugs. Kids and drugs these days…
His thoughts floated to me so naturally that hearing his words didn’t even make me flinch. But then when you grew up being able to read people’s minds, their very thoughts, not much surprised you. Except for parents returning from their watery grave.
“Hey,” I replied, peeking around the next aisle.
No one.
Just great. I rubbed my hands over my face and moved back to my cart in utter humiliation. I was nuts. Don’t get me wrong, I knew I had been on the brink of going crazy only months ago, but then losing your parents would do that to a person. I’d say I had a pretty good excuse.
In the past, when the house was so quiet I could hear the waves crashing mournfully against the shore, the night so dark it weighed on me like a thick wool blanket in the middle of summer, I could barely move, let alone breathe. Nights when all I could do was go over the events in my mind again and again, wondering if there was anything I could have done to prevent what happened. Yeah, I’d been a bit obsessive.
But now I had the school and the students to keep me occupied. Now, I actually had a life…sort of. I’d even gotten to the point where I could go five minutes without thinking about Mom’s death. I thought I was moving on. Apparently, I was wrong.
“Nora.” Caroline appeared next to me, juggling four boxes of cereal in her scrawny arms. “You okay?”
The kid was way too astute as she peered up at me with those soulful blue eyes. I recognized that look of wariness. They thought I’d been cured of my insanity, and I didn’t want them thinking any other way. I forced my lips to curl.
“Yeah.” I ruffled her blonde hair. “Fine. You ready?”
“Sure.” She dumped the cereal in the cart, then grabbed two boxes of popsicles.
I took the moment to quickly scan the store one more time. Still, I couldn’t shake the eerie sensation that I was being watched. But there was no one, of course, which didn’t bode well for my sanity. When I returned my attention to Caroline it was with some annoyance that I realized she was warily watching me again. Way too astute.
“Come on.” I made my way to the cashier, hoping to outrun the kid’s intense gaze, and any questions that might be forming in that little brain of hers. Thank God the girl didn’t blab much. Hopefully she’d keep my little lapse of sanity to herself.
I was barely aware of the cashier as she chatted with Caroline. Barely aware of the woman’s worrisome thoughts as she wondered if her son had gotten his homework done. I just wanted to get out of there and return home where I could lock myself away and figure out what the heck had just happened.
“Have a good day,” the cashier murmured with an overly bright smile that didn’t quite reach her tired brown eyes.
Worried the woman might want to continue our lame attempt at a polite conversation, I shoved my shopping cart out the door, nearly running down some elderly tourist in the process.
“Sorry,” I called back as I dodged left and headed toward the sidewalk, the wheels of the cart whizzing like a cat trying to cough up a hair ball. The air was warm, spring having arrived early. It wasn’t exactly humid, but sweat peppered my forehead. Just one block over, tourists crowded Main Street, eating ice cream and fudge while watching the boats pass by. An idyllic picture of New England, if one didn’t have to worry about lurking ghosts.
Caroline hummed, thinking about the warm weather and playing tag this evening with the other kids. Her memories seeped onto the wind toward me. She hadn’t quite yet learned how to mask her thoughts, and there was an innocence about her mind that made me acutely aware of how vulnerable she was, how vulnerable so many of the people I cared about were.
I hadn’t seen my mom. It had been a mirage. So why did the fine hairs on the back of my neck still stand on end? Why did my pulse still pound and my gaze flicker from yard to yard as if expecting to see her? I’d been trained from an early age to be aware of my surroundings, to know when I was being followed. Why couldn’t I shake the feeling that I was being trailed now?
We paused beside the car, and I started loading groceries into the vehicle with what I hoped was a casual ease while surreptitiously scanning my surroundings. No one but tourists strolled the sidewalks. None of the Victorian cottages that lined the streets looked suspicious. Where was the sensation coming from?
“Caroline.”
“Yeah?” She lifted a box of popsicles and peeked inside, dreaming of the treat she’d have back home.
She paused, frowning, and I cursed myself for making her uneasy once more. “Not really. Why?”
I forced a smile. “Nothing. Just…nothing. Go on, get in.”
Appeased, Caroline jumped into the back and pulled the seatbelt across her chest, still humming. I glanced around once more, and that’s when I saw her…
The woman’s back was to me as she strolled down the alley that ran between the grocery and the hardware store. I froze. The entire world disappeared, and only she and I remained. She was slim, her footsteps sure, her long dark hair fluttering on the same breeze that whispered across my neck.
No. It couldn’t be. But even as my rational mind denied the possibility, my heart told me it had to be true. “Mom?” I whispered.
She paused at the end of the alley as if sensing my attention. Slowly, she glanced back. I couldn’t see her features from where I stood… I needed to see her features. She turned left, disappearing behind the hardware store.
Desperation spurred me forward. Without thought I bolted toward her, leaping over a potted fern and jumping onto the sidewalk. I was not crazy. I would uncover the truth no matter what it took. My feet echoed between the two buildings as I raced down the alley. At the wall, I froze, breathless, and glanced left.
Empty. Nothing but a few pieces of garbage rustling along the asphalt. She was gone, yet there was no way out. Brick walls formed a narrow rectangle. Too high to climb, not even a window interrupted the walls. I looked up at the sky. My blood went cold. No way out, yet she was gone.
“Nora?” Caroline stood beside me, that wariness back in her gaze. “Are you okay?”
I should have smiled reassuringly at her. I should have demanded to know if she’d seen anything weird. I did neither. I couldn’t.
“Yeah, I’m fine. Let’s go.” I rested a hand on her shoulder and gently led her toward the car, not daring to look back, afraid of what I’d see and what it would imply about my sanity.
But I wasn’t fine. Far from it. My heart had dropped to my feet and my hands were trembling. The world was once again harsh and confusing. God, I was going to be sick.
Either I had gone totally, completely insane…or my mom was still alive.
****
I was still shaking as I carried the bags through the front door. Shaking as I paused in the massive foyer to calm my racing heart. It wasn’t her. Taking in a deep breath, I focused on the crystal chandelier hanging above, glistening from the early morning sun. Why had I trusted that anything could be normal? I wasn’t made for normal.
Vaguely I could hear Lewis and Cameron in the library, their soft laughter, their whispered words of love interrupting the silence of the estate. Gag. At least my nausea superseded the chill that had coated my body since I’d supposedly spotted my mom. For a brief moment, I envied the fact that they could trust each other so completely, that they had each other to rely upon.
If Cameron had seen our mother, she would have undoubtedly told Lewis and he would have done something sickeningly supportive, like dredge the river, find Mom’s body, take some of her cells and clone her just so Cameron wouldn’t think she was insane. Hell, he was probably working on it for his genetics class even now. But me, I had no one to back me up. No one who would believe my crazy story. Sensing me, they surged from the couch where they’d been cuddling.
“Need help?” Lewis was there before I could respond.
Cameron flushed, looking guilty. I quirked a brow, wondering what, exactly, they’d been doing.
“There are plenty more outside.” The perfect boyfriend. Seriously, there was nothing the guy couldn’t do. It sort of made me ill. Then again, considering my only serious boyfriend had betrayed me more than once, anyone would look good in comparison.
“I’ll get the rest.” He left the house, Caroline trailing after him. All the kids had a crush on Lewis, and why wouldn’t they? Not only was he ridiculously kind, but he sort of looked like Zac Efron.
“Your shirt is unbuttoned.”
Her face went brilliant red, her hands going to the buttons of her white shirt. “What?”
“Just kidding.”
“Very funny,” Cameron muttered as she started toward me.
But her annoyance was quickly replaced with something I didn’t like. Concern. Either I still looked like I’d just seen a ghost, or somehow Caroline had sent her a mental message that I’d gone off the deep end. Either way, I was so not in the mood to discuss my sanity.
Hoping to avoid her, I quickly headed through the foyer and toward the back of the house. Although it had been a weird, tumultuous relationship, I was finally starting to feel like Cameron was actually my sister instead of some mythical mind reader who I only vaguely recalled knowing as a child.
Although we hadn’t seen each other in years, she was the only family I had left. I’d do whatever it took to protect her, and I knew she’d do the same for me. I also knew that if I started showing signs of crazy, she’d place me in the nearest mental ward ASAP, not only for the children’s safety but for my own. I knew because months ago when life seemed completely dark and depressing, I’d made her promise to put me away if I didn’t get better. The truth was, people with our abilities could be dangerous, and I didn’t want to hurt anyone. I’d hurt enough people already.
“You okay?” She’d caught up and watched me through those hazel eyes that had always reminded me of my dad, until I’d found out he wasn’t actually her dad. Now I realized they were a different shade and more like her Uncle Owen’s eyes.
I was a good two inches taller, and we looked nothing alike, which I supposed wasn’t surprising since we had different fathers, both losers who had abandoned us. At least hers was still alive somewhere. Not that I wanted my dad alive. No, he was better off at the bottom of the ocean, where he couldn’t hurt anyone. Where he couldn’t hurt me. And for the past nine months I’d thought my mom there with him. Now I wasn’t so sure.
“Yeah, fine.” I lied. But what could I say? I think Mom might still be alive? Either that or it was time to break out the straight jackets. I started down the back hall, knowing she followed but wishing she’d leave me alone.
“Okay.” I could read the hesitation in her voice. I didn’t need to be a mind reader to know she was wondering about my odd behavior. “There’s something I want to tell you.”
I headed into the kitchen, attempting to avoid the inevitable. We’d slowly been redecorating the house that had belonged to Aaron, Cameron’s real father. The cold steel kitchen had been replaced with warm cherry cabinets and granite countertops. He might have been a loser dad, but at least he was a rich loser who didn’t mind sharing his wealth. Sometimes guilt was a great thing.
“Just listen, alright?” Cameron said. “Don’t interrupt. Don’t curse or go all crazy.”
Too late for that. I placed the bag onto the countertop and eyed her suspiciously. Time to face the truth. “What do you know?”
Her dark brows drew together. “Huh?”
This couldn’t be good. “What did Caroline tell you?”
“Uh, nothing.” She paused for one long moment; the only sound was the soft hum of our stainless steel refrigerator. “What did she tell you?”
Obviously we were talking about two different things here. To say I was relieved would be an understatement. But if she didn’t know about my lapse at the grocery store, what was her deal? By the hesitant way she was acting I had a feeling that whatever she had to say, I wasn’t going to like. “Okay, just get it over with.”
She took in a deep breath and stuffed her hands into the back pockets of her jeans. “I had a dream about Maddox last night.”
Of everything I’d expected her to say, that had never even crossed my mind. Stunned, I stumbled, my lower back hitting the edge of the countertop. It had been years since Maddox and I had dated. Years since he’d betrayed me, so why the heck did my heart still beat wildly at just the thought of him? Why did I feel like he wa
s going to stroll through the door with that cocky grin in place? I took in a deep breath and faced her without flinching. Yes, it had been years, and I’d had plenty of practice hiding my true feelings.
“Wow, dreaming about other guys and you’ve only been with Lewis less than a year?” I opened the first bag, ignoring the way my hands trembled. “What will he say?”
She settled on a stool near the island, frowning. “You know it’s not like that.”
Late one night, while it was too freaking cold to do anything but huddle under blankets near the fireplace, Cameron had blurted out, rather amusingly, that she and Maddox had kissed.
She had been tired of the lies and of the secrets and wanted to start anew. I’d wished she’d kept her thoughts to herself. I didn’t want to know about her love life with my ex. It was the last time we’d spoken of Maddox, but for some reason the guy always managed to reemerge in my life, no matter how deep I tried to bury him.
“It wasn’t a dream, but more like…” She rubbed her forehead, grimacing. “More like a mind travel.”
I froze, a can of peas in hand, surprised yet again. “You traveled?”
She hadn’t traveled with her mind since Mom had died. I’d thought maybe that particular power had died with our mother, but apparently not. Or maybe her emotional connection with Maddox was stronger than I’d realized. I ignored my irrational flare of jealousy and stacked the cans of vegetables in the pantry.
“I was in a prison, his prison.” She raked her hair from her face, and from the corner of my eye I could see her hands were trembling as badly as mine. “They’re going to transfer him.”
I pulled a box of cereal from the bag and shoved it into the pantry, anger, annoyance and confusion combining in a heavy mixture that made me feel ill. We’d discussed Maddox months ago, but with no word as to his whereabouts, we’d assumed he’d gone into hiding. “So.”