Children of Evolution (The Gateway Series Book 2) by Toby Minton Page B
Authors: Toby Minton
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she climbed on behind him and wrapped her arms around his waist. Then he released the brake and guided the skimmer out over the water.
The change with Sam had occurred about the time everything else in her life went down the crapper. It all came back to Michael, to when he…
You can say it, Nikki . When I died , Michael’s soft voice said in her head. He was barely louder than the quiet engine of the skimmer as it hummed over the waves of the Sound, but she heard every word as his voice faded. You could also talk to Padre—Sam, I mean. You could ask him what changed. It wouldn’t hurt to talk to somebody besides me .
Nikki wasn’t so sure. First off, she was terrible at talking to people about her feelings, or their feelings, or feelings in general. Empathizing wasn’t really in her bag of tricks. Second, she wasn’t sure Sam was the one who was different these days. Maybe it was all her. Her biggest reason for keeping to herself, after all, was her nagging fear that she was just flat-out crazy.
Nikki rested her head against Sam’s back and closed her eyes. The steady hum of the skimmer and the sound of the water below were working hard to lure her away from consciousness. As she drifted off, she imagined what Sam would say if she told him she’d been talking to Michael. She snorted a laugh and shifted to find a more comfortable spot on Sam’s back.
She knew what her reaction would be in his place. She’d get out the padded jacket and the rubber cutlery. That’s why she couldn’t talk to Sam, Elias, or anyone else about what was going on. She couldn’t ask anybody else to believe Michael was really inside her head when she wasn’t sure herself.
Gideon
When Gideon awoke, he knew he was back in his body. He also knew, even before he opened his eyes, that he was not where he'd fallen asleep.
He was in a shanty, by the looks of it. The slanted metal roof and thin walls let in slivers of morning light that did more to confuse his eyes than illuminate. The furnishings, what little he could make out of them, were strewn at random about the room with no sense of order, some clearly broken if the extreme angles of the shadowy outlines were any indication. And the smell…
Despite the thick odor, Gideon took a long breath to steel himself. The metallic tang underlying the room's general stench was unmistakable.
He stood and fumbled at the wall behind him, running his hands over the boards covering the window from the inside. He knew what he would see when he let in the light, but as much as he wanted to run from it, he didn't let that stop him from ripping away the half-rotted boards.
He turned away from the painful daylight and lifted his gaze to the carnage. Whatever he'd expected, this was worse.
Gideon spent several moments just breathing slowly, forcing a rational detachment his body didn't want to feel. The emotional barrier he'd gained when the Event fused him with the creature was there waiting for him. He could slip behind it, separate himself from his emotions the way he had so many times over the years. But he refused to do so.
He was afraid to do so.
He couldn't risk giving up control again. If his alien side was growing stronger, he couldn't give in to any part of it. He would protect his emotions himself, build his own walls. He started to do so slowly, brick by brick as he forced himself to look at what was left of the people in the small room.
When he dropped his gaze to his hands, to the blood covering them, his wall crumbled.
Worlds Apart
Chapter 5
Elias
The afternoon sun on his back did little to warm Elias as he stared out over the wind-whipped waves below and the solitary grave on the bluff before him.
He hadn't come out here to visit the grave, not at first. But as usual, his feet had ended up bringing him here anyway.
He'd come outside to check the grounds, specifically the new sensor emplacements Gram and Padre had installed to enhance perimeter security.
The change with Sam had occurred about the time everything else in her life went down the crapper. It all came back to Michael, to when he…
You can say it, Nikki . When I died , Michael’s soft voice said in her head. He was barely louder than the quiet engine of the skimmer as it hummed over the waves of the Sound, but she heard every word as his voice faded. You could also talk to Padre—Sam, I mean. You could ask him what changed. It wouldn’t hurt to talk to somebody besides me .
Nikki wasn’t so sure. First off, she was terrible at talking to people about her feelings, or their feelings, or feelings in general. Empathizing wasn’t really in her bag of tricks. Second, she wasn’t sure Sam was the one who was different these days. Maybe it was all her. Her biggest reason for keeping to herself, after all, was her nagging fear that she was just flat-out crazy.
Nikki rested her head against Sam’s back and closed her eyes. The steady hum of the skimmer and the sound of the water below were working hard to lure her away from consciousness. As she drifted off, she imagined what Sam would say if she told him she’d been talking to Michael. She snorted a laugh and shifted to find a more comfortable spot on Sam’s back.
She knew what her reaction would be in his place. She’d get out the padded jacket and the rubber cutlery. That’s why she couldn’t talk to Sam, Elias, or anyone else about what was going on. She couldn’t ask anybody else to believe Michael was really inside her head when she wasn’t sure herself.
Gideon
When Gideon awoke, he knew he was back in his body. He also knew, even before he opened his eyes, that he was not where he'd fallen asleep.
He was in a shanty, by the looks of it. The slanted metal roof and thin walls let in slivers of morning light that did more to confuse his eyes than illuminate. The furnishings, what little he could make out of them, were strewn at random about the room with no sense of order, some clearly broken if the extreme angles of the shadowy outlines were any indication. And the smell…
Despite the thick odor, Gideon took a long breath to steel himself. The metallic tang underlying the room's general stench was unmistakable.
He stood and fumbled at the wall behind him, running his hands over the boards covering the window from the inside. He knew what he would see when he let in the light, but as much as he wanted to run from it, he didn't let that stop him from ripping away the half-rotted boards.
He turned away from the painful daylight and lifted his gaze to the carnage. Whatever he'd expected, this was worse.
Gideon spent several moments just breathing slowly, forcing a rational detachment his body didn't want to feel. The emotional barrier he'd gained when the Event fused him with the creature was there waiting for him. He could slip behind it, separate himself from his emotions the way he had so many times over the years. But he refused to do so.
He was afraid to do so.
He couldn't risk giving up control again. If his alien side was growing stronger, he couldn't give in to any part of it. He would protect his emotions himself, build his own walls. He started to do so slowly, brick by brick as he forced himself to look at what was left of the people in the small room.
When he dropped his gaze to his hands, to the blood covering them, his wall crumbled.
Worlds Apart
Chapter 5
Elias
The afternoon sun on his back did little to warm Elias as he stared out over the wind-whipped waves below and the solitary grave on the bluff before him.
He hadn't come out here to visit the grave, not at first. But as usual, his feet had ended up bringing him here anyway.
He'd come outside to check the grounds, specifically the new sensor emplacements Gram and Padre had installed to enhance perimeter security.
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