Read Online The Unseen Trilogy by Stephanie Erickson - Free Book Online

it was surprisingly unsettling now that I had it. Deafening, even. Maybe I’ve gone deaf.
    “You’re not deaf,” the gorgeous guy said.
    “I… what?”
    “Or maybe you are. You’ve been saying ‘what’ a lot lately.”
    A few people chuckled, and I looked at them as if they were aliens. What was happening here? Why couldn’t I hear anyone? And what was the deal with this guy? Was he really reading my mind? Was it too much to hope there was someone else in this world like me?
    “Oh, for God’s sake. Put her out of her misery already, O. I can’t listen to all these questions anymore,” a blonde girl sitting Indian style on the floor called out.
    She can’t listen to all these questions…
    “If she doesn’t have a panic attack soon, I might have one just from listening to her,” someone on the couch said.
    “Mackenzie, maybe you should sit down.” The gorgeous guy—O, apparently—gestured toward an open seat.
    “I’m fine, thank you.” My eyes darted from person to person, and then landed on Mitchell, silently pleading for answers, reassurance, anything. He looked away, obviously uncomfortable.
    “Suit yourself,” O said as he found himself a seat, leaving me the only one standing, in a room full of people staring silently at me.
    “Welcome, Mackenzie. We are the Unseen.”

9.
     
    “Unseen? More like unheard! Would someone please tell me what’s going on? Mitchell? Come on, man.” The panic was starting to eke into my voice. Mitchell shrugged his shoulders and shifted uncomfortably.
    O didn’t acknowledge my comment to Mitchell. “I’m trying, but you keep interrupting me.”
    “Pretty sure I interjected just the once.”
    “Do you want answers to your questions or not?”
    I decided to push him. “What questions?”
    He was unmoved. “Who we are, why you can’t hear us, and if we’re reading your mind.” I blinked at him, so he continued. “Like I said, we are the Unseen. You can’t hear us because we’ve learned to protect ourselves against other readers, and yes, we are reading your mind.”
    I put out a hand to steady myself, but I wasn’t close to a chair or anything to grab onto, and I ended up sort of flouncing to the floor.
    “Bet you wish you’d taken the chair now,” O said. He met my glare with a smile.
    Here I was, in a room full of people just like me. All this time, I had thought I was alone. A freak. But now I knew there were others who shared my ability.
    Picking up on my thoughts, O bristled. “You are not a freak. None of us are.”
    “Stop.” I put my head down on my knees and covered my ears, like that would keep my thoughts from escaping. “I can’t think with all of you in my head.” With each word, my voice raised another decibel.
    “Okay, you’re right. This is a lot to handle. Let’s start over.” He stuck out his hand. “Hi. My name is Owen, but everyone calls me O. I’ll take you downstairs to meet the boss. He’s the one with the authority to give you some answers. On our way, maybe you’d like to see the joint?”
    I eyed him, completely unsure of what to do. I felt caught between two worlds, the one where I had direction and purpose, but no sense of belonging, and this new and scary one. I took a deep breath. You came here to find out who this guy was. Now you know. And it’s more than—
    “I’m gonna stop you right there. Let’s leave a few things to the imagination, shall we?”
    A crushing thought occurred to me. He’s heard everything. All my stupid, girlish thoughts. My stomach rolled at the thought.
    He chuckled. “You’re not the first girl to fall for my devastatingly good looks.”
    “Your arrogance takes off a few points,” I said aloud.
    He laughed. It was a deep, rolling sound, but there was obvious joy in it too. He was someone who took great pleasure in laughing. “Indeed. Should we take that tour?”
    “Why not?” I said, liking him a little more in spite of myself.
    “Great.” He didn’t waste any time.