Para struggled as she felt herself being tugged down to the seabed. When she felt the sand against her side she rolled onto her back and tried to see through the disturbed and darkening waves of water. Two strong arms descended on either side of her shoulders.
Asher was hovering above her, holding her fast underwater, and staring at her intently. There was a strange lusty look in his eyes which worried Para. She still hadn’t turned off the simulator, but she imagined that the effect of its stimulating waves and any released pheromones would be dulled underwater. This was the issue with using a piece of technology that hadn’t been beta-tested in all kinds of environments—but Amara had always enjoyed doing her own beta-testing.
Medea, can you hear me? He spoke telepathically.
She didn’t want to respond with her mind to reveal that she knew how, so she merely nodded, looking at him with surprise. Asher ran his finger along her cheek, as though memorizing her features.
I’m so sorry for rushing you. I didn’t mean to cause you discomfort or anxiety. You know, men and women are really different when it comes to these things.
Para looked at her watch and saw that there were less than two minutes remaining. She put her hand over her mouth as though she were in need of air. Asher gently removed her hand and lowered his face down to kiss her, giving her the air from his own lungs. He then continued to kiss her for several seconds until she broke free and ducked under his arms, swimming for the surface.
She ran toward her discarded clothing on the beach, and he followed her.
“Medea, please give me a chance to make it up to you. I don’t know what came over me, but I really have never felt such a lack of control!”
“You are not a gentleman, Asher Burnson!” As she said this, she silently congratulated herself on technology well-built. Now that’s a stimulating simulator. She picked up her white dress and tugged it down over her body as she turned to run away from the beach. Her body would split apart in only a few seconds, and she needed to get away before Asher learned he had been intimate with his niece and ex-girlfriend.
He blurred in front of her placing his hands on her arms almost obsessively. She glared at him, wondering why he was being so careless with their family secrets and powers.
“Tell me you didn’t feel that! You didn’t feel more connected and deeply attracted to me than you've ever felt to anyone?” Asher asked, dripping wet and looking absolutely wretched. I lost Amara forever. I even drove Paxie away! Please let me keep a small portion of this woman’s respect. I can't lose Medea too, before I’ve even had her. What’s wrong with me? Why do I have to be such a moron?
He’s trying to use me to replace us, thought Para sadly. Her heart went out to Asher—Pax felt regret for being cold to her uncle, and Amara yearned for her love. Don't worry, Ash. Things will be right again soon. Oh, great. Wasn’t the whole point of all this to make him suffer? Now that he is suffering I can’t bear it! I suppose he has been suffering all along. I just didn’t know. And I suppose there’s no way to make someone you love suffer without hurting yourself in the process.
The watch began beeping frantically. One minute remaining.
“I have to go now, Ash.” She fished in her purse to find her device and end the emission of stimulating waves. That would help to clear the raging hormones.
“You can't deny that there’s a powerful connection between us. I’ve never felt this way about someone that I’ve just met. I think there’s something far greater at work here… like destiny.”
Para resisted the urge to make a gagging sound or to laugh hysterically, and she simply smiled and nodded. That's the oxytocin and vasopressin talking. There is something greater at work here: Science and Revenge. Also, that connection you feel might be the fact that I’m two of the people closest to you, with whom you have pre-established connections. Para felt the strong urge to grin and punch Asher hard in the shoulder, a classic gesture of affection from his niece, but she restrained herself and remembered the ploy.
“I agree, Ash,” she said, sighing deeply. “This is a powerful connection. I’m just… scared. Things are moving too fast for me. Physical intimacy isn’t something I take lightly. I need to be assured that our connection is a lasting one first. I don’t want to give myself to you and then find that it didn’t mean anything to you, and have you just… walk away from me." Again. You asshole.
"I would never do something like that," said Asher, swallowing at the lie and painful memory of Amara’s hysteria when he’d done exactly that to her.
“I’m sure you wouldn’t. I knew you were a noble guy. Just like your father who you mentioned earlier, I'm sure,” said Para, giving Asher a gentle hug and a small sarcastic peck on the cheek. If a peck on the cheek could be sarcastic. . Her watch beeped thirty seconds. “I need to go.”
“Just promise me I'll see you again!” he said, putting his arms around her and hugging her tightly.
“I…” Para was frozen with the need to bolt, and the need to deepen into the hug. Asher always had given the very best hugs. This was something that every part of Para agreed on. How could she pull away from a comfy hug like this in thirty seconds?
Asher spoke stubbornly. “I won't let you go unless you promise this isn’t the last time I’ll see you.”
My guy. My dorky, lovable guy. “Of course you’ll see me again!” she said with a laugh. She ripped herself from him and began jogging away. I can't be detained any longer. I may have to teleport… and the technique might fail. I might teleport to Thorn and divide in front of him. That would be stupid. Very stupid.
Para increased the speed of her run, nervously looking at her watch. Ten seconds. Her heartbeat raced as she glanced back and saw Asher waving at her. Nine. She waved back to be polite, when all she really wanted to do was allow her body to burst into flame and blast away at a supersonic speed. Eight. She ran as believably quickly as she could. Seven. Six. Please let him not follow me. Finally, she was able to duck behind a hot dog stand and out of Asher’s sight. Five. Four. Para moved so quickly that she was imperceptible to the naked eye, and was several blocks away and standing beside her car in less than a second. Three. She dove into the vehicle and immediately started driving away, before she’d even had a chance to put her shoes back on. One.
This time, she was driving when her body tore itself apart. The car swerved uncontrollably into oncoming traffic, and Pax had to quickly correct the steering before they crashed. Taking a deep breath, Pax reached up to adjust the rearview mirror which had been knocked out of place by Amara’s shoulder. She paused with her hand poised halfway to the glass when she saw a flash of sharp white teeth.
Jerking her head back over her shoulder to look in the backseat, she saw a shadowy figure lurking there, and staring at her with ravenous red eyes. She recognized the blood and saliva dripping from its teeth, and over its chin. She knew she should use her powers to defend herself, but she was too frozen with fear.
“Pax, pay attention to the road!”
At the sound of Amara’s shrill voice, the creature disappeared. The dark-haired woman turned around dutifully to correct the steering once again. “Mara, did you see…” Pax glanced into the rearview mirror furtively. There was nothing there. The hallucination had probably been some sort of symptom of her mind and body splitting apart. She swallowed the saliva which had been gathering in her own mouth. “Never mind.”
Amara groaned and lowered her chin to her chest shamefully. “I have no self-control when it comes to that man!”
“No kidding,” said Pax, fanning herself with one hand and driving with the other. “That wasn't part of the plan. I really had to struggle to get control over Para a few times. You even nearly told him our identities!”
“I couldn't help myself, Paxie!” Amara’s voice was a mournful whine. “I love him so much, and he’s so sad. I miss the way things were between us.” The blonde woman ran her fingers through her hair, which caused a small shower of sand and water to fall onto the seat of the car. “But in my defense, some of that desire was artificially awakened.”
“Sure. It’s either that or you’re the horniest woman alive, and making me suffer the same feelings while merged with you!”
“Sorry,” said Amara blushing, “maybe it’s a bit of both. If I ever send that product for mass production, I’ll tone it down significantly. I’ll make it give off only trace amounts of stimulants instead of overdosing the user with high-powered aphrodisiacs.”
They stopped at a red light and Pax suddenly grinned and looked over at her friend.
“Isn’t it disturbing to know how much Ash thinks about food during sexual activity?” Pax put on her best Asher-voice and imitated her uncle. “Rice pudding, almond ice-cream, crème brûlée. Yum, yum!”
Amara giggled. “I didn’t know he did that before today.”
“What else don’t we know?” Pax wondered, thinking about Thornton. She thought about her mother. She glanced into the rearview mirror again, but there was nothing in the backseat.
“Asher doesn't just think about food. He also thinks about me,” Amara said with a little smile. “I won’t lie—I get a kick out of hearing him think about me when he’s with ‘another girl.’”
“It’s only fun because the other girl is you.”
“Just you wait. I bet my brother thinks about paperwork.”
“Ha! I never gave him time to think during moments like those. I kept him too occupied,” said Pax, winking and accelerating hard with her still-bare foot as the light turned green.
“Well, you wouldn’t know because you can’t read minds,” said Amara, placing her arms behind her head in a cocky manner. She gazed smugly at the oceanfront scenery they were passing. “I love this technique. It’s so very useful. You have to help me develop it!”
“Alright. What am I thinking now?” asked Pax as she made a right turn.
“You’re thinking…” Amara examined her closely for a minute, and was unable to get any reading whatsoever. She concentrated and closed her eyes and still heard nothing. She frowned—why was it so easy to do it as Para? She then observed her friend’s body language, noticing how tensely the dark-haired woman was staring forward and how rigidly she sat. Amara began to giggle profusely. “You’re thinking how embarrassed you are that you got so turned on by your uncle!”
“I am not!” said Pax, blushing fiercely. She hadn’t been thinking about that; she had been thinking about her hallucinations, but she was still greatly embarrassed by the thought. “That wasn’t me. That was Para, and it was completely your fault! I was just feeling your thoughts and your emotions. You should thank me for being such a good friend and going along with this instead of accusing me of such depraved thoughts!”
“Maaaaybe,” Amara said teasingly. “But then why is it still affecting you now? I can't read your thoughts, but I can see that you're still just as hot and bothered about the whole thing as I am. I bet you can't wait to get home and get into the shower!”
“Your fault,” mumbled Pax, her cheeks flushing even darker. Even though she and Amara had made a pact not to ever blame each other for Para’s behavior, she couldn’t help it in this instance.
“Not totally my fault, Miss Burnson. Remember when Ash put Para’s hand on his sausage? Well, I remember feeling a very small amount of curiosity. Now tell me Pax, why would I feel curious about something I already know so well?”
Pax slammed on the brakes. She grabbed a bottle of water and uncorked it before leaning back and proceeding to pour the contents of the bottle onto her face.
“I blame your damned invention for this, Amara!” she shouted.
“Yes!” squealed Amara, pumping her fist victoriously.
“This whole Para situation is messing with my brain. I swear, each time we break apart, there’s something of you left inside me! It’s changing my physical makeup and the way I think. I’m not the same as I was before.” Pax began to grumble in a low voice. “Just wait and see how I get you back for this! Wait until our date with Thorn! You’ll see.”
“Aw. Paxie's embarrassed for wanting to take a closer look at the family jewels?” said Amara, grinning. “You know, in some cultures it might be considered acceptable to… ouch! Ow, ow, ow! Pax, stop, stop! Don't hurt me! Calm down. I'm just teasing you because I love you.”
A bright yellow aura had formed around Pax as she growled at Amara. "I did this to help you!”
“Paaaaaxie!” whined Amara, tugging on her friend's sleeve. “This is what friends do. They tease. I was just kidding around.”
“And now you're manipulating me with the cute routine the same way you manipulate your father! And your brother! And my uncle! Do you think I’ll fall for your manipulation?”
“Fine, fine! I’ll stop.”
They drove on in silence for a few minutes before Pax began to chuckle, and then launched into a fit of laughter that resembled a seizure. Amara looked over at her and was about to enquire what was behind the laughter when she understood. She couldn’t read thoughts in this state, but she could read Pax. Seeing the serious woman in such throes of humor was contagious, and Amara also began to giggle.
Lesbians! They really thought we were lesbians? Pax couldn’t speak over body-rocking spasms of laughter. She clutched her sides and the car swerved out of the lane again. She corrected the steering clumsily with her mind.
Well, at least they have no clue what our real activities are, thought Amara smugly. When we’re through with them they're going to wish that we were lesbians.