what I feel and hear and smell, I just keep seeing the expression on Fiaâs face from the vision.
She wasnât happy.
Nothing about her was happy. I remember my parentsâ faces, I remember what happy looks like, of course I do. The dozen other girls shout and laugh around us; I hear a few running through the shallow waves even though itâs far too cold to get in.
We spent the afternoon at the aquarium. Eden could tell I was distracted and kept telling me the names of the weirdest fish, but I couldnât stop wondering about whatâs going on with Fia. Still canât. Fia pushes my hair aside where itâs blown into my face and I try to smile at her.
âItâs beautiful, isnât it?â I ask, hopeful.
âYeah.â
âEden?â Clarice asks. âCould you take Annabelleâs hand? I need to borrow Sofia for a minute.â
I relax a little. I talked to Clarice yesterday and she was horrified. She said some of the trainers they brought on were new and overzealous, and what they were doing with Fia was completely inappropriate. She said sheâd fix it immediately. I smile and let go of my sisterâs hand. Clarice is going to tell her that sheâll never have to do that insane class again.
Thereâs so much noise here, so many different sounds to filter through. The water, constant, under and over everything. Birds. I didnât notice the birds in my visionâIâll have to pay closer attention next time. Traffic. We must still be near a road. Conversations around me. I can pick out Clarice and Fia.
âWhy?â Fia asks.
âWe want to see if you can do it. Think of it as a game.â
âItâs stupid. I wonât do it.â
âYou want out of Ms. Roberstonâs sessions?â
Pause. âYes.â
âThen show me you can do this. Focus. Go on instinct. All you need to do is figure out a way to get this into that womanâs bag without anyone around her noticing.â
Pause. âThatâs all?â
âThatâs all.â
âIt doesnât feel right.â
â Make it feel right then. You can focus it. I know you can.â
âFine. Whatever.â
Then the conversation is over and Iâm confused. That wasnât what Clarice was going to talk to her about. Maybe Ms. Robertson is in charge of the self-defense classes. But what was that about a woman and a bag?
I let go of Edenâs hand and sit where I am, sifting sand between my fingers, wondering if this is the part where Fia turns back with that look on her face.
âIâm gonna go down to the water; wanna come?â Eden asks, but I shake my head, lost in what I saw. She puts her hand on top of my hair. âYou worry too much. Shout if you want me.â
A few minutes later someone flops to the sand next to me, and I can tell from the scent and feel of her nearby that itâs Fia.
âWhat did Clarice want?â
âNothing. Just a stupid game.â
âBut youâre out of the classes, right?â
âRight.â
âGood.â I smile and lean my head onto her shoulder. âI like how it smells out here.â
âIt smells like rotten things. Youâre crazy.â
âIt smells like it looks. And I know how it looks, too.â I smile like the crazy person Fia said I was, and she lets out a small laugh, even though I can feel from the tension in her shoulder she still isnât happy. Iâll make her happy. I can fix things. I can be the big sister. âOh! They said the doctor should have some of the test results back soon, but they want some samples of your DNA to compare andââ
A crack louder than thunder rips through the air, and a flash of heat whooshes past, carrying stinging bits of sand. Fia knocks us to the ground, throwing herself on top of me, and everyone is screaming and I didnât see this, what happened, what happened?
âWhat happened?â I
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