The Hunt - Megan Shepherd Page 0,26
like the ones we use to control the doors. They make telekinesis easier, especially during training. And this way, if anyone happens to observe us, it will appear we are simply playing tabletop games.”
He set the dice on a table just inside the veranda doors, next to a basket of old-fashioned metal jacks and dominoes.
“And why do you care?” she asked more quietly. “This is our battle, not yours.” She realized, as she spoke the words, she was actually curious.
He pressed a hand against her back again, drawing her once more into the charade of dancing. He whispered, “Was there nothing you cared about outside of yourself, on Earth? No greater cause?”
She pulled back far enough to level a stare at him. “I was busy enough keeping myself alive in juvie.”
“Then let us look at your brother, Charlie, for example. I’ve read from your memories of him that ever since he was five years old he donated half his allowance to save polar bears in the Arctic. Why? It makes no logical sense. He never met a polar bear. If he had, it probably would have killed him. He did it because he did not want to live in a world without a diversity of life. He did it because, even at that young age, he knew it was the right thing to do.” He led her farther from the lodge, out toward the edge of the veranda where the wind off the savanna ruffled her hair.
“So humanity is your polar bear?”
“It goes far beyond that. Unlike Charlie with his bears, I have met humans. I have seen exactly what the universe would lose without your species. And I know what it feels like, personally, to be powerless. To have others judge you based on false perceptions. I was in a low weight and height percentile when I was a youth. I was constantly overlooked. No one predicted my potential, not even the algorithm. That is why I first started to work with humans, when I was the age for a work assignment.”
She couldn’t help but slide a hand to the muscles beneath his shirt. “I have a hard time believing you were ever small.”
He gave the trace of a smile. “I grew bigger.” He drew her an inch closer. “And now I do have power. I am not overlooked any longer. And soon, you will not be either.” His eyes searched hers. She still wasn’t used to seeing him like this—with eyes that were cloudy, but had irises flecked with color.
She stepped faster and faster in the dance, lies mixing with truths until she wasn’t sure which was which. “I trusted you,” she confessed. “I cared about you. You stood in that ocean and told me you’d help us escape, when all the while you had guards stationed to capture us. I’d have to be a fool to trust you again.”
Were they really spinning as fast as it seemed? His face remained placid, his steps so calm and easy.
“Do not let my mistakes stop you from achieving something important. I believe in you—in all humans. Your species has the capacity for such rich emotions; selfishness and greed, yes, but also truth and forgiveness and sacrifice. When you believe in a cause, nothing can stop you. If anyone deserves to be the fifth intelligent species, it is you.”
She looked away. His words were making her feel things she didn’t want to. She was here to lie, after all. Eventually, to betray him.
He drew her closer still. “I felt you inside my head, Cora. You read my thoughts. And you liked the power that came with that. You think you’re unnatural, but you aren’t. You’re exceptional.”
The sun felt as though it was burning even brighter. The veranda seemed to be swimming. She let go of him abruptly and clamped a hand on the nearest table to steady herself.
His shadow was cast next to her. “It killed me to betray you,” he whispered. “The last thing I wanted was to push you away. I wanted to hold you close, like we were dancing just now, feeling your arms around me—”
“Stop,” she whispered.
His breath brushed her cheek. “I don’t have to be your enemy.”
She gripped the edge of the table hard. Somehow this had all gotten out of control. The sun seemed to grow brighter until it was blinding.
“I understand you,” he continued. “And I want you to understand me. I want you to stay awake at night thinking about me again, like