Split Second

By now I could tell Trevor thought I was weird, so better to stop talking and just return his memories. I took a breath. I hoped this would work. I was getting better. Connor had been ten feet away in the room. I didn’t even need to touch him—just think of kissing him. Stupid Connor, why did I have to think of stupid Connor to make this work? But it did. I felt the energy and opened Trevor’s paths. He drew a breath of air.

“Relax,” I whispered. “Don’t draw attention to yourself. After the game. At the box.” Even I didn’t know what the box was, but he seemed to, because he nodded. Good. My work here was done. I made my way back to my seat, unable to contain the smile on my face. I’d done it without Connor. Well, without Connor’s presence.

“Did it work?” Addie asked the second I sat down.

“Do you doubt me?”

“No.”

Addie spent the remainder of the game the same way she’d spent the first half—looking over her shoulder every other minute. Only this time, Trevor was returning the glances.

As we hurried through the parking lot, Addie looked nervous. I was starting to get nervous. Maybe the Compound was tailing her. I looked over my shoulder and screamed when I saw a shadowy figure.

“It’s just me,” Duke said, stepping closer.

“Duke. You’re an idiot. You scared me half to death.”

“I was just going to tell you that a bunch of us are going out right now to grab some food. You ladies want to join us?” He was looking at Addie when he asked, but I answered for us.

“No. We don’t. We’re in a hurry.” I shouldn’t have used those words, because they seemed to pique his interest.

“Why? What’s the rush? Does this have to do with that Norm guy I saw you talking to? Trevor?”

“It’s none of your business.” I hooked my arm through Addie’s, and we continued our walk to the car.

“So the CC doesn’t need to hear about it, then?”

We stopped, and Addie took a sharp breath next to me.

“Listen, just tell me what’s going on and I’ll leave you alone.”

“Why do you care, Duke?”

“Because I don’t want to see you get into trouble.”

“Why would talking with a Norm get us in trouble?”

“Because . . .” He grunted. “Because that particular Norm has been talking and got me and the whole football team questioned last week.”

Addie turned to face him, venom in her voice. “And you didn’t get into trouble for the things you’ve done to him and other players?”

“It’s football, Addie. What Trevor is doing is exposure.”

“And what you did wasn’t?”

“Wherever you’re going right now, I’m coming with you, or I can call the CC. They gave me their phone number in case I thought of anything else I needed to tell them.”

Addie took one angry step forward and practically spit out her sentence. “I kept your stupid secret, Duke. I didn’t tell the coach about your real ability. And now you’re trying to blackmail me?”

“I’m trying to protect you.”

“Go. Away.”

He held up his hands and backed away. “Fine. I’m leaving.”

“He’s going to follow us,” I told her as we got into the car.

“I know,” she growled.

The hall was deserted when we made it to her grandfather’s floor on the third level of the apartment building. We stopped in front of his door, and I toed the peeling edge of the carpet with my shoe. She knocked, but nobody answered. The next to arrive was Trevor. When Addie saw him, she let out a relieved breath but then looked nervously over his shoulder.

“Did anyone follow you?” she asked.

“I don’t think so.”

But then a mocking voice from down the hall said, “You’re not very observant, dude,” and Duke stepped around the corner. I thought about punching him again, like I had at the hospital after the Bobby incident, but remembered how bad my hand hurt afterward and decided against it.

“Well, I guess it’s a party then,” I said.

Footsteps drew my attention down the hall again, and a woman too old to be wearing such a short skirt walked into view. She stopped at the apartment next door to where we stood and inserted her key in the lock.

“Have you seen the man who lives here recently?” Addie asked. “He has white hair, kind of tall.”

She furrowed her brow. “The only person I ever see coming out of that apartment has dark hair. He’s in his forties maybe.”

“My dad,” Addie whispered to me. “Okay, thanks. We’ll keep trying.” She knocked again while the lady opened and shut her door.

“I don’t think he’s there, Addison,” Trevor said.

“Why do you call her that?” Duke asked. “She goes by Addie.”

“He can call me whatever he wants,” Addie said.

“Really? He can call you whatever he wants? What if he wants to call you Amber or Lori or Stephanie or the names of all the other girls he’s been with?”

I took one step back because I saw it coming. Trevor’s fist clenched for one brief second before he let it connect with Duke’s jaw with a sickening smack. It was very satisfying. Not so satisfying was Duke’s answering blow or Addie’s horrified expression. She stepped between them before another fist could connect.

“You are a jerk,” she said to Duke.

“Are you sure you want to do this right now?” I asked.

“Yes. I have to make sure he’s okay.” She walked to the neighbor’s door and knocked. The lady in the short skirt answered.

“Hi. I don’t mean to bother you, but can we use your phone? My grandfather was supposed to be here tonight, and he’s not.”

“And none of you teenagers have cell phones?”

I wasn’t sure what Addie’s plan was, but I stepped forward to help her lie her way out of this one. I could tell she wasn’t going to answer right. I pointed to all of us in turn, starting with Addie. “She got grounded from hers.” Then to Duke. “His fell in the toilet yesterday.” Then to Trevor. “His got stolen at a football game.” And then pulled mine out. “And mine is out of batteries.”

“Wow, that’s an awful lot of bad cell phone luck.” She nodded. Duke must’ve been helping her with feelings of trust, because she held the door open and led us to the kitchen, where she handed Addie a phone. She took it, then nodded to me. The words back door came into my mind, and I realized she’d used Thought Placement on me. Wow, my little Addie was turning into a hardened criminal.

“Distract her, Duke,” I whispered.

While Duke started asking Short-Skirt questions, I took Trevor’s arm and pulled him to the back door.

“What’s going on?” he asked.

“You think you can boost me from this balcony to that one?” I pointed over to the balcony that was attached to Addie’s grandfather’s apartment. He looked over and then at the gap between them and the three-story drop.

“I don’t think it’s the smartest idea.”

I started to climb up. He grabbed my arm and pulled me back. “If anyone is going to go, it will be me.”

I didn’t argue and made way.

He climbed onto the railing and assessed his surroundings. There was the smallest ledge against the building, and I could practically see his brain working.

“I would just jump if I were you,” I told him.

“It’s too far,” he said. “I’ll miss by about half a foot.” Only an athlete would know exactly how far he would miss a jump by.

With one hand holding the ceiling above, he stretched his foot to about the halfway mark between the two balconies. Only the side of his foot fit on the ledge, and my heart began beating in my throat. “Don’t die or Addie will kill me.”

He grunted and, with one push off that precariously balanced foot, shoved himself toward the other balcony. My breath caught because he was going to miss. I could see that his body wasn’t quite long enough to reach the top of the railing. A squeal escaped my lips as his fingertips just missed it. But they caught on the bottom rail, and I closed my eyes and breathed a sigh of relief. He wasn’t out of the woods, but he wasn’t splattered on the pavement.

I looked around for a stick or broom handle or something I could extend out to him. There was only a table and chairs. I didn’t think a plastic patio chair would go very far. When I looked back up, he was pulling himself over the railing. Oh. I had forgotten he was strong. He glanced back at me, and if I didn’t feel as much relief as I saw on his face, I might’ve laughed at his expression. I decided right then, with that unguarded expression on his face, that he was the perfect match for Addie.

He walked to the slider and held up crossed fingers. The door slid open. Addie must’ve Searched this and knew the back door would be open. She could’ve told me Trevor’s brains weren’t going to splatter on the sidewalk.

I headed back into the apartment and met Trevor at the front door.

“Thank you so much for the phone,” Addie said.

Short-Skirt was giving Duke dreamy eyes, and he was blasting her with his perfect smile.

“Let’s go.”

Even though Trevor had just walked through the apartment to unlock the door, we all entered at a snail’s pace, like something was going to jump out at us. After we were inside, Addie walked to the back rooms.

A stack of newspapers sat in the corner by a computer. I expected them to be dusty with age, but they were clean and crisp. That’s right, people actually read newspapers here. A few articles were pinned to the wall as well. “Man Swims 150 Miles Solo”; “Woman Wins Eating Contest”; “Teen Survives Shooting.” Did he think they were Paranormals? And why was he so interested in them?

“He’s not here,” Addie said when she returned.

Duke studied a picture on the wall. “Why are we here?”

Addie shot him a look.

“He probably just went out. I’m sure he’s fine,” I said. “Is that the box of secrets?”

“That’s it. Do you think it’s possible that it really does have some sort of soundproof material or maybe a scrambling device in it?”

Between the oversize box and the large pots, the back patio could not hold all four of us comfortably, and yet we all went back there to check out the box. Duke made his declaration first. “It doesn’t even have a roof. I’m guessing it’s just a box.”

Addie sighed. “He claims the box keeps conversations private. And the CC didn’t seem to know what my grandfather and I talked about in the box, only what Trevor and I talked about in the living room. And that locator device seemed to work as well. I’m guessing all this stuff might actually work.” She pointed to the table inside, where I saw a sad attempt at electronics.

“Well.” I held open the door to the cardboard box. “Then perhaps you two should give it a whirl.”