Gifted Connections 1

“June sixteenth,” Will stated. “I read the story in the papers and knew it had gifted written all over it, and I knew it was Horatio. So, I sent a team.”

“I found you in the shed behind the house,” Remy stated.

Rachel gasped. “You remembered. Why did you act like you didn’t know me?”

Remy shrugged and stared down at his feet. “I remember everyone I bring in and it’s easier…for me to keep my distance.”

“So,” Noah said clearly trying to steer the conversation back to our original dilemma. “If there is someone out there that can turn back time, how can they erase our knowledge of Blake. Since meeting her we all have felt her pull. We all know she belongs to us and we belong to her.”

“How,” Rachel blurted. “You still have a relationship with Stacey and Ella said in the future you would still be with her?”

Noah had the audacity to blush and duck his head.

“Once Blake came into my life, I couldn’t be with Tamara anymore, especially after the way she treated her at my party.” Jax added. “We’ve been talking to each other for years,” he looked at me. “That would never change. The moment she found us again, I’m sure we would be able to fall back to the way things are now.”

“If,” Drake said quietly. “Blake would have never caught Rose red handed, I would have never found out about her. I would have remained blissfully ignorant, and ignored the way Remy acted around her, as I always had.”

“We would still have our marks too,” Remy added. “So, if this were to happen then all she would have to do is show us her mark and we would know.”

“Not if someone were to mess with your memories and make a block so you couldn’t feel her…presence anymore,” Will rubbed his eyes wearily. “Someone like your sister,” he stated looking at me.

“Ella is a precog and she would never mess with my memories,” I stared at him in confusion.

“Not Ella, your cousin technically, but Ashlynn, your older sister.” Will said quietly.

“My what?!” I stood up angrily. “I have another sister out there and you never told me!”

“It was another rumor. The rumor was your mother had another daughter before she had you. When your mother came into her gift she was living on the streets with your uncle. Your uncle worked hard to take care of them. She took advantage of the situation and started running around with the wrong crowd. She fell into drugs, stripping, and prostitution. She ran away from your uncle and she gave birth to Ashlynn at sixteen. She was a kid and put her daughter up for adoption.” Will was pacing at this point. “She was seventeen when she had you. When we found out about her, she had put you up for adoption as well and we went searching for you both. We found you and put

you in the institute. A few years ago, I heard rumors Horatio may have found Ashlynn and groomed her for his cause. Supposedly, she could change people’s memories, tamper with their minds. She could make a man forget his wife of thirty years if she wanted to.”

“Why did he want me then?” I asked, my head exploding at the idea I had another sister out there and she was using her gifts for evil.

Will sighed. “Your gift is as strong if not stronger than hers. She has the ability to make people forget, but it’s only temporary. She would have to touch a person constantly to make those memories stay gone. The person with memory loss would think it was all just a dream. You can make people do things and forget they did them just by thinking them or speaking them. No touch is required.”

“What about that illusion thing,” Rachel said perplexed. “That’s Jax’s gift.”

“My original gift is compulsion,” I finally spoke up, and everyone turned their eyes to me. “Every time I make my connections, I seem to pick up one of theirs as well.”

“No way,” Rachel gaped. “So, what else can you do? Who have you hooked up with? Because if Jax and you have been hooking up back at school, I’ve never heard you guys.”

Jax and I looked at each other and blushed.

“At school?” Will asked sternly.

Rachel flushed, knowing she had said too much.

“It’s not what you think,” Jax stated quickly. “Yes, I’ve been sneaking into her dorm room at night, but she’s been having nightmares and they wake me up, so I go to her. Just to sleep and,” he looked pointedly at Rachel, “we technically haven’t hooked up at all.”

“I haven’t technically hooked up with anyone,” I blushed, ducking my head. “And I don’t get the gifts of the person I connected with either. It’s all been random.”

“No one!” Jemmy exclaimed. “You have six hot guys and you haven’t-” Jemmy stammered at Will’s pointed look.

“Come on, Pops,” Noah laughed. “You’re old, but not that old. You know kids have been sneaking into other kid’s dorms for years. There’s no way any healthy, virile teen wouldn’t hook up.” I pointedly cleared my throat. “Well, I mean.”

“Time to backpedal,” Jax looked between Jemmy and Rachel. “Awkward!” He drew the word out.

The girls laughed.