Immune (The Rho Agenda #2)(46)

44


Heather’s scream brought Anna McFarland out of bed and down the hall three steps ahead of her husband. Pushing open the door to Heather’s room, Anna’s hand flicked the wall switch to the on position, momentarily blinded by the brilliance of the illumination.

“What’s wrong?” Gil McFarland’s breathless question echoed the one that had been about to roll from her own lips.

Across the room, sitting upright in the middle of her bed, Heather’s open eyes had rolled back in her head, the look of horror on her young face so intense that both parents whirled to look back down the hallway. It was as empty as it had been a second ago, surreally illuminated in sharp shadows by the light shining out from Heather’s open doorway.

“Baby?” Anna McFarland moved to the bed.

As she reached out to touch her daughter’s face, something made her stop. Heather’s eyes were moving as if she were seeing things move before her, things that only she could see. The way emotions played across Heather’s face as those white eyes moved brought a chill to Anna’s neck, a ripple that ran up over her scalp and down along both arms. Heather didn’t even know she and Gil were there, her daughter’s open-eyed dream-state undisturbed even by the sudden bright light in her bedroom.

Anna reached out, gently cradling Heather’s cheeks between her shaking hands, turning Heather’s head so that she could see into those eyes. At first, there was no reaction, and then, ever so slowly, Heather’s eyes rolled forward, refocusing on Anna’s.

“Mom?”

“I’m right here, baby.”

Anna wrapped her daughter in her arms, letting Heather’s body collapse against her own. Almost immediately, Anna felt Gil’s strong arms wrap around them both.

Searching for anything to lift the dread that filled her, Anna glanced up. But instead of reassurance, what she saw in Gil’s face was a fear as great as her own.





45


Jennifer opened the door to let Heather in.

“You look tired.”

Heather shrugged as she settled down on the couch across from Mark. “I’m exhausted. Mom and Dad found me sitting up in bed about two a.m. Apparently, I was having some sort of nightmare, dreaming with my eyes open. It really freaked them out.”

Mark paused between bites into his cream cheese bagel. “Christ. That would freak me out too.”

Jennifer scowled at her brother.

“It’s okay, Jen,” Heather said, a sad look settling on her face. “That’s exactly what I thought.”

Mark looked like he’d been kicked in the stomach. “I’m sorry. I was trying to make you feel better, not worse.”

Heather’s smile was weak. “It’s not your fault. I’ve been feeling terrible since it happened.”

Jennifer moved onto the couch beside her friend, wrapping an arm around Heather’s shoulder. “So what happened next?”

“Nothing, at least not right away. But, this morning, I heard Mom and Dad talking quietly about setting up an appointment with a doctor.” Heather’s face tensed. “I’m afraid he’s going to order an electroencephalogram or a CT scan.”

Mark gasped. “But if they do that…”

“Exactly,” said Heather. “They’ll spot the difference in my brain activity. They’ll discover our secret.”

For several seconds complete silence reigned. Just then, Mrs. Smythe walked into the room. “What are you kids up to? I can’t believe Heather is over and you didn’t even tell me.”

“Sorry, Mom,” Mark and Jennifer’s voices merged into a single apology, something far from uncommon for the twins.

Linda Smythe laughed. “As if it was the first time. Can I get you kids something to eat?”

“No thanks.” This time the three voices merged as one.

For the barest instant, Linda Smythe looked hurt. Then a broad smile spread across her face. “Peanut butter sandwiches?”

Mark, Jen, and Heather exchanged glances.

“I guess we could go for that,” Mark said.

“Good.”

Mrs. Smythe disappeared into the kitchen. In what seemed like an incredibly short period of time she was back with a platter of peanut butter and jelly sandwiches.

“Thanks, Mom,” said Mark.”

“Yeah, Mrs. Smythe,” said Heather.

“My pleasure.” Seeing them all staring back at her, Mrs. Smythe straightened and turned away. “Okay, okay. I’ll leave you to your private discussions.”

Heather watched Mrs. Smythe depart before turning back to her two friends. “Sorry to bring you guys down with me. I just couldn’t deal with this on my own.”

Mark stood up. “Are you kidding me? Why wouldn’t you come to us? Haven’t we always been there for each other?”

“Of course we wanted to know,” Jennifer said. “My God, Heather. We’re all in this together.”

Heather smiled. “Thanks guys. You’re the greatest. But I’m really scared. It’s not just the doctor thing either. Last night’s dream wasn’t the first. I’ve been having them pretty often, usually when I’m awake.”

“What do you mean, when you’re awake?” Mark asked.