Track 3

“Under Pressure”

Two Weeks Ago

Hayden paced the basement like a caged animal. The ceiling was mere centimeters above his head, and the beige carpet and walls felt suffocating. But this was the McGraws’ safe place in the new house. Soundproof, earthquake-proof, flood-proof. Whether it was sinkhole-proof was not among his concerns.

He rarely called family unit meetings. It was most often his mother who scheduled them. He sensed his parents’ surprise when he made the urgent request within an hour of starting his first day, but they humored him. Lindsay, Sam, and Trudy watched him apprehensively now, each with identical frowns on their faces.

“Life’s short, Hayden. Why don’t you just blurt it out?” his little sister said as she played tug-of-war with her new pet dog.

“Fine.” Hayden stopped pacing. He gazed at Trudy, then their parents. “I’ve detected a former captive.”

“You’re certain this time?” Lindsay’s hands clenched the sofa. “It’s not like you can do a retinal scan to be sure.”

He bristled at the “this time.” He was absolutely certain this time. There would be no repeat of what happened in Maine, when he almost revealed his true self to the wrong person.

“And it’s not like you know I need Aguan equipment to do that,” Hayden replied.

“Yes!” Trudy exclaimed. “Try my light test. I’ve been experimenting with different spectrums—”

Sam cleared his throat. “We’ve talked about this ad nauseam. We’re Observers. No experiments. No in-depth studies. No development of equipment. Leave those things to the Grays.”

Hayden’s stomach twisted. He’d been thinking how much he would like to study Cassidy. His fascination with her went beyond knowing she was one of the few marked captives on Earth, someone who’d previously given to the cause. The DNA of captives changed irrevocably. When he looked at Cassidy, that transmutation was like a siren call. It reverberated through every cell of his body.

“Does this captive seem…affected?” Lindsay asked.

Is she haunted-looking? Is she jumping at every little noise? Is she tweeting her experiences in all caps to the entire world? Hayden shook his head. “If she remembers, she’s good at hiding it. She’s amiable, if a little distracted. However, I suspect she remains clouded.”

He sensed within Cassidy an innate sense of duty that aligned with his. It made him want to reach out to her. But he knew he had to be careful. Watch her from afar.

Sam turned to Lindsay. “So what protocol should we follow? We obviously can’t move again. Not for at least six months.”

“Yes, we need to stay put.” Firming her jaw, Lindsay mulled over the options.

“What if she becomes unclouded?” he said.

“I doubt that will happen. There would have to be an extraordinary chain of events.”

“There’s another thing.” Hayden said. He drew a deep breath. “She reminds me of Kalexy. Not in looks so much, but the way she holds herself.”

Sam cleared his throat. “That must be difficult for you, son.”

“Kind of.” His shoulders drooped.

News of Kalexy’s untimely passing last Earth year had hit him hard. Intellectually, he understood that although Cassidy and Kalexy shared some physical similarities—shimmering dark hair, lean legs that went on for days—they were not the same beings. Comparing them against each other was unfair. He couldn’t help but wonder if fate had put Cassidy in his path as a way of helping him adapt to Earth. Either that or it was a test courtesy of the superiors, to see if the McGraws really were suited to their mission.

“You have to put that out of your mind,” Lindsay said firmly. To Trudy, she added, “Tune down your light experiments. We don’t know what could trigger this girl or any other captives we might come across.”

Sam nodded. “You don’t answer to just your mother and me. The bottom line is don’t interfere. No matter what. Our lives here depend on it.”