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Ayden turns around and squints but can’t see them anymore. “Are you sure?”
Yes, I’m pretty sure it was them. But why would they meet in the middle of the night? And why didn’t they say anything to me? That’s not like Kate or Noah. Was it maybe not them after all?
“I’ll just message them and ask,” I say to Ayden, taking out my phone. As I type, an uneasy feeling overcomes me. What was going on back there?
I don’t get a reply. Neither Noah nor Kate writes me back, but I don’t hold it against them – it’s pretty late. Still, the uncertainty doesn’t help my sleeplessness. It’s going to be a long and restless night.
“You could have told me,” I say to Kate. “I keep offering to help you with your search.”
“I know,” she admits with a sigh. “But you have so much going on right now. You shouldn’t have to deal with my problems too. And I figured maybe Noah had access to different sources. I found nothing in our libraries about whether there have been key carriers with gifts who had problems like mine.”
We have history next period, and we’re on our way to the classroom. But we’re in no hurry to get there.
Kate sighs heavily. “Anyway, he didn’t find anything useful. And now he’s worried about me too. He thinks things might improve if I learn to control my visions. That could explain why my mom’s memory loss progressed so slowly. But unfortunately, nobody can tell me how to do that. It seems that the visions just burst out of me on their own accord when they need to get out. If I could bring them on deliberately, maybe I wouldn’t lose chunks of my memory each time. But that’s all just theory.” Kate gazes into the distance and bites her lip. “There are rituals that people have used to try triggering a vision.”
I frown. “You mean with drugs?” I stop in my tracks and look at her. “You’re not considering that, right? You’re no ordinary person. You’re a key carrier with a gift. Who knows what effect that could have on you?!”
Kate grins and shakes her head. “I know that. And no, that’s not what I’m talking about. I just meant that there are a number of different ways of teasing out a vision. I just have to keep searching and not give up hope.”
She turns and continues walking toward the classroom. I watch her pensively and think about how I might be able to help her.
At that moment, a man rushes around the corner, and Kate walks straight into him. Mr. Brian looks surprised and grabs her arm just before the force of the collision makes her fall. For a moment, time seems to stand still. I see Kate’s eyes widen and all the color drain out of her face. She starts shaking. Mr. Brian seems to notice that something’s wrong with her, and he frowns. He opens his mouth to say something, but it’s too late.
Kate screams. It’s an awful, piercing sound that makes the blood freeze in my veins. For a moment, I’m paralyzed with shock, then I pull myself together and hurry to Kate, who’s still staring at Mr. Brian. There’s nothing but fear and horror in her eyes. I don’t even look at our teacher, but I notice that she’s still staring at him and that his hands are still grasping her, as if he’s afraid she might collapse.
When I get to them, he gives me a horrified look and lets go of Kate. I catch her and pull her toward me. The moment I do that, her screaming stops, and she faints. I lower myself to the floor with her, holding her in my arms and stroking her face.
“Kate, can you hear me? Open your eyes. Please.”
“I… I’ll call someone from the infirmary,” Mr. Brian mutters, taking his phone out of his pocket.
After what seems like an eternity, two men appear, examine Kate briefly, and then carry her away. I don’t let my friend out of my sight. I’m so scared for her, and I don’t leave her side.
Chapter 30
How is she?” Ayden asks me.
By now, I guess half the school knows about Kate’s collapse, and that’s how Ayden heard about it. I’ve just stepped out of Kate’s room in the infirmary. Ayden’s sitting in one of the visitor chairs, looking at me expectantly.
“The doctors couldn’t find anything wrong with her,” I explain. “Her blood pressure’s a bit low, so they assume it was just a fainting fit. And Kate played the whole thing down. I mean, I understand why. But this is the third or fourth time it’s happened. Maybe it would be better if she confided in a doctor. But she absolutely refuses to.”
I sigh and sit down in the chair beside Ayden.
“She needs time to recover,” he says. “Maybe she’ll reconsider once she’s calmed down a little.”
I’m not so hopeful. “She has so much to deal with right now. The visions, the memory loss, and now this. I can’t help wondering if the pain attacks are somehow related to the memory loss.” That’s what we need to find out. But how?
Ayden drapes his arm around my shoulders and kisses the top of my head. I’m so glad to have him here with me. I’m about to say something when the door opens, and Mr. Collins enters the infirmary in a hurry. He notices us and looks surprised. I assume he’s here because of Kate.
“Ayden,” he says. “Shouldn’t you be in the meeting?”
“Kate’s unwell, as I’m sure you heard. I just wanted to check up on her and Teresa.”
It feels weird the way Mr. Collins totally ignores me and makes no attempt to include me in the conversation.
“Well, make it quick. It’s important that you’re there today,” he says before continuing on his way.
To my surprise, Ayden stands up and says, “Dad, wait. Do you have time later? I need to talk to you. It’s really important.”
