Alex stands in front of Marianne without uttering a single word. He just stares at her.

  “You could’ve called, Alexander, letting me know you’d be here. I would’ve ordered dinner for you, too. Are you hungry? I can still order more.”

  “One of the most expensive rooms in the most expensive hotel. You must be thriving, my dear.”

  “Mmm, can’t compin, really. Do you mind if I eat? I haven’t in several hours and I’m starving, really.”

  Alex nods and she slowly cuts the salmon, taking a bite into her mouth while looking at the boy.

  “Your daughters are back with us. I’m sure you know it already.”

  “Suspected such, yes.”

  “Megan has her powers back, all but the death one.”

  “Mmm” she takes another bite and fills the gss with water. “Good for her.”

  “You never suspected that Sophie would betray you? Betray the people you work for?”

  “No,” she smiles. “That was… a surprise.”

  “I don’t understand how, to be quite honest, my dearest. Their bond is unbreakable. They have a world of their one.”

  “Well, Alexander. My daughters are my blind spot, so to say. I never thought Megan would kill the Aristons, and I never thought Sofie knew that I lied to her and would betray us. Many parents probably face the same with their children. You see, they have their own personalities and sometimes we don’t see them for who they are but who we expected them to be.”

  “Do you expect Sophie to be… human?”

  Marianne ughs and wipes her lips with the cloth. “No, Alexander, I know my daughter is a deviant.”

  Alex shakes his head.

  “Surprised? Really? I don’t believe in miracles. When she miraculously recovered from an incurable disease… I tested her. She tested positive. She hadn’t when she was born, but the testing has its fws.”

  Marianne puts the pte away and fills the gss once more.

  “She didn’t have an ability, so it was easier to mask who she was. Life here in 2007 for deviants wasn’t what it is today. She wouldn’t have access to school then, she wouldn’t have access to university even now… and look at her, on a PhD.”

  “Not on a PhD now, is she?” Alex ughs.

  Marianne smirks back.

  “You are wrong about the power. She has one.”

  Marianne takes another sip from her cup. “Does she?”

  “Yes, she blocks other powers. I can’t read her mind. I think that if Megan or Rachel tried to use their powers against her, it wouldn’t work. She always has it activated, so her side effects are either nonexistent, like her sister, or she has accepted them as her personality.”

  “Mmm, I didn’t know that and Alexander, I have no interest in the others knowing it. The others want Emily Roberts, Abigail Parker, Rachel Moore and Megan. I want Sofie.”

  “You don’t care what they’ll do to Megan as long as Sofie is back? You don’t prefer them to be where they are now?”

  “Megan is unique, Alexander. As a person of science, it’s perfection and she needs to be studied. As her mother, I believe that she’ll be better off and safer around me. They killed the Parkers… Alexander, these people will find you, eventually. When that happens, you don’t stand a stand. You, ánh, Diego, Sofie, Megan, Rachel, you don’t stand a chance. If you try to resist it, they’ll kill you. I want to spare Megan that violence. They’ll make a big spectacle of Rachel Moore facing justice and they’ll study Megan, leave her be. Maybe I’ll convince them to bring her home. Any of those scenarios is better for her than staying there. Better for everyone involved.”

  “What about ánh? She can’t go back to Vietnam.”

  “Will anyone recognize ánh in the street, Alexander? No one cares about her. Ask for any number and share a part of it with her, so she’ll be financially safe.”

  Alex looks at the door when he hears someone knock at it.

  “Who is it?” Alexander asks.

  “Aymee Ortiz. One second.” Marianne stands up.

  Marianne gets up and heads to the door. She opens it. Alex is out of sight.

  “Dr. Olsen,” Aymee avoids looking her in the eye, “here are the documents you asked for. Good evening.”

  Marianne holds her wrist.

  “What?” Aymee gently takes her hand away.

  Marianne comes closer, pushes her hair away from her ear and puts her lips right next to it, “Alexander Williams is here. Come in.”

  Aymee shuts the door behind her, comes nearer, and sees him standing.

  “What is this?” Alexander faces Marianne.

  “Rex, Alexander, Aymee can be trusted.”

  Aymee prevents the smile to form in the corner of her lips.

  “Also, she knows all about abroad bank accounts and fake identities. How many do you have, Aymee?”

  “Three different passports, five accounts.”

  “Exactly. When the time arrives, Alexander, to negotiate with the others, you can trust that Aymee will help you ask exactly for what you want, that no one will trick you. Think about the number. We’ll meet in one week, here again, at the same time. Do your math. How much you’d need.”

  “Until then, my dear.” Alexander smiles and disappears.

  “Is this why you asked me here?” Aymee faces Marianne.

  “No, I called you before he showed up. He wants a new identity, money, to start new away from here. In exchange, he’ll bring me Sofie, Megan, Rachel Moore, Emily Roberts and Abigail Parker.”

  “Can you trust him? How did he find you?”

  “I told him my identity and where to find me when he was in the b. Proposed to him that he’d give them to me. I don’t need to trust him, Aymee, I just need to do business with him. His freedom in exchange for them.”

  “What about Diego álvarez and the Asian girl?”

  “He didn’t mention Diego. The girl… she’ll have enough money to disappear safely. He told me something about Sofie that I didn’t know.”

  Aymee sits on the chair that Alex sat before. She faces Marianne, waiting for her to continue.

  “Sofie is a deviant. That I knew. I thought she didn’t have an ability. He says she does.”

  “What is her ability?”

  “He says that he can’t read her mind.”

  “No. He can’t.”

  “You knew that. You tried to read her mind.”

  “Never. I just read the mind of the others on the first day she came to work. I changed their memories of it, so they’d leave her alone. A lot of work.”

  “Alexander believes that she can block others’ abilities from working on her. If Megan fired against her, she wouldn’t be hurt. Apparently, her ability is always activated. She either doesn’t have side effects or she always has them.”

  “But you didn’t know about her ability?”

  “No, I tested her when she was seven, when she recovered from her disease. She never showed any ability, so I thought she didn’t have it. Apparently, she does.”

  “That’s one hypothesis.”

  “Dr. Ortiz, which other hypothesis is there?”

  Aymee gets up and lowers herself in front of Marianne. They are face to face. Marianne looks at her eyes, avoiding staring at the girl’s lips instead.

  “You have inaccessible parts in your brain, Dr. Olsen. Have you tested yourself?”

  “I was tested in the 80s and I tested myself when Sofie tested positive. Both times, negative.”

  “Exactly. Megan is a deviant. You tested her, but she doesn’t have side effects. All the other deviants have. All but her. Your daughter is a deviant. The boy says she blocks abilities because he can’t read her mind. He can’t read Megan’s mind either.”

  “What’s your point, Dr.?”

  “My point, Dr.” Aymee smiles, “is my brain is accessible to everyone. I have side effects. But then again, I’m Mexican, born to Mexican parents. You are all Eurasian.”

  “You think Eurasian genes are evolving?”

  “No, Dr. Olsen, I think they were modified. Probably during their war, to eradicate deviants and decades ter, we are seeing the effects of that engineering. The war’s battlefield was Asia. Europe sent their armies over, but their territory remained rather peaceful. Peaceful enough to run tests on their citizens. Or… Sofie has an ability. She can block abilities. That doesn’t expin Megan, doesn’t expin you. Both you and Sofie, if I am right, need to stay hidden. Hall, Ahktar, no one can find out about you. If my hypothesis is right, they’ll want to study Sofie’s body. They’ll kill her in the process and worse, they’ll have you do it.”

  Aymee gets up. “I’ll help the boy get the best deal out of them and I’ll help you get Sofie back. Safely. After that, I’m leaving. I’m done with the university, done with all this.”

  “What about your parents?”

  “My parents dug a hole and they are pulling me to the inside of it. It’s either Hall or the gang, and I’m tired of cleaning up their mess. Exhausted, more like it. I rarely see them and when I do, it’s always tiring. Since my grandparents died, that family doesn’t mean anything anymore.”

  “Where will you go?”

  “I haven’t decided.”

  “We probably won’t see each other after that.”

  “No, we won’t.”

  Marianne gets up and stands in front of her.

  “Understood. Thank you for bringing me the papers, helping with Alexander Williams and for your warning.” Marianne extends her hand to her.

  Aymee stares deeply into Marianne’s eyes before walking away and closing the door behind her.

  ***

  On the next day, the council gathers in the same hotel. Two floors below Marianne’s room. Edward Hall orders several bottles of champagne, the luxurious that most in the room are used to.

  He asks the worker to pour on each gss and distribute throughout the room.

  “Everyone!” Edward Hall raises his gss and so does everyone else. “Thomas has spoken with Zachary Lewis Parker and the funding is once again guaranteed! By this time next month, we’ll have the buildings ready. We can focus on ending the terrorist group once and for all! We’ll focus on having the bracelet pass on the Congress!”

  That’s fairly optimistic, Edward. Marianne looks at Aymee, who looks away as soon as their eyes meet.

  “I think this new year that’s upon us will bring us so many victories! We deserve them! We have worked so hard. Nothing will stand in our way.”

  They all cheer and drink.

  ***

  It’s early in the morning. Rachel enters the gym and starts warming up on the floor. The door opens again. She raises her eyes and sees Abigail. Rachel gets up immediately. The girl closes the door behind her.

  “I thought you were dead or something,” Abigail scoffs.

  “What do you mean?”

  “You never went to see me. Not once.” Abigail shakes her head.

  “Abigail, I thought it was better to give you space. ánh and Emily were-”

  “I need you all to stop tiptoeing around me. You decided, by yourself, that I needed space. Emily decided that I needed ánh to stay with me instead of her. I can make my own choices.”

  “Of course you can.”

  “I’m not finished, Rachel! Damn it! Let me say what I have to say!”

  Rachel nods.

  “If I had trusted my parents, I wouldn’t have come here. They wouldn’t have hired anyone and found out that Mary and Thomas had been pying them. We would’ve visited Vero in Brussels, we would’ve visited Zach. I would’ve gone with them to their stupid fundraisers, compined about it the all time. I would’ve been miserable because I wanted to go away. But they’d still be alive. My siblings would still have their parents. They’re gone because one day, you, ánh, Alex and Megan walked into my life. My choices led to this. I should’ve chosen to be ignorant. My siblings are back here, back in our home. How will I face them? Knowing that my choices got us to this point? So, Rachel, I wish you weren’t such a coward, that you showed up instead in my room, so I’d tell you this before. I wish we never met.”

  Rachel goes nearer. Abigail doesn’t take any step back and keeps facing her.

  “I’m sorry for your loss, Abigail.”

  “That’s all you have to say?”

  “It’s my responsibility. Their death. Not yours. I maniputed you into moving here. I should’ve assured you that your parents had nothing to do with it. Their blood is on my hands, not yours. It’s not your fault.”

  Abigail goes nearer. They are within arm's reach from one another.

  “Are you trying to make me hate you, Rachel?”

  “I prefer you to hate me than to hate yourself. So, hate me. I’m the one responsible for your parents’ death. You were right when you first met me. I’m maniputive, just like my father.”

  “Stop.”

  “I wanted you to come here because I knew that you’d bring Emily along. That’s the only reason.”

  “You’re a terrible liar.”

  “Hate me, Abigail. Put all that bme on me. I’ll take it.”