Endless (10 page)

When Marly, Michael and I returned to the
dining room, it was as though nothing had ever happened. The glass
was gone, no stain remained on the wall, and my parents were deep
in earnest conversation with the Landowers and Mr. Watson.

“Oh, Tas, I’m glad you’re back,” beamed my
mother. “It’s been so nice to visit with Theresa. You know, I’ve
never talked with someone else who has an extraordinary child.”

“They actually have support groups through
the Institute,” put in Mrs. Landower. “It’s been such a help to so
many of us.”

I pulled out a chair near the doorway and
sank into it. Michael remained standing behind me, his hands on my
shoulders.

“I’m still not clear on how your daughter
uses her gifts to help others, John,” my father, ever vigilant in
his protection of me, remarked. At least one of my parents seemed
to be maintaining some sort of neutrality.

“Well, we wondered about that, too, Rob,” Mr.
Landower answered, slapping a hand on the table. “We’d worked hard
all our lives to try to stop Melissa from using what she could do.
And it wasn’t easy. But here with Carruthers, Melissa works with
people who might make some bad choices, and she helps them to see
thing more clearly. And it’s made her life so much better.”

My parents both looked impressed. I tried to
keep from rolling my eyes.

Mr. Watson caught my eye. “Tasmyn, we’ve been
answering your mom and dad’s questions, but of course, we want to
find out what we can do to help you make the decision for
Carruthers. So go ahead, ask away.”

I reached up and clutched at Michael’s hand.
“I guess I want to know what kind of good work I can do through the
Institute. Cathryn has hinted at a few things, but I haven’t heard
anything concrete. How can my abilities help people? What will you
do to connect me with those who need my help?”

Mr. Watson nodded. “Excellent. Well, of
course, until you’ve committed to work with us, we can’t share all
of our information. But I can tell you that we have people working
discreetly in various companies, organizations. . .you name it. And
they discern where help is needed, and then we can step in, offer
our services. Sometimes that help is declined. I’m sorry to say
that there is still a good deal of prejudice and misconception
about extraordinary gifts. But of course, you’d understand.”

I forced a smile as Reverend Pryce’s face
flashed in my mind. “Yes, I know a little about that.”

“Now that I’ve answered some of your
questions, I hope you’ll indulge me. We’ve been following you for a
little while, since Cathryn learned about your talents last year.”
He paused to bestow a huge smile on Cathryn, who managed to look
both smug and self-deprecating at the same time. I really did want
to slug her.

“We had always planned to speak with you once
you were up here at Perriman. We don’t work with anyone under
college age. But we were surprised to find out that you had. .
.broadened your repertoire of gifts, as Cathryn reported, and as
we’ve seen first-hand this morning.” Mr. Watson gestured to the
wall where the goblet had shattered. “Fascinating. Has telekinesis
always been one of your powers?”

I squirmed a little, and Michael rubbed my
shoulder. “No,” I answered softly. “That’s been fairly recent.”

“Ah.” Harley cast a glance at my parents, who
I saw were looking unhappy at this turn of conversation. “And I
imagine those powers are still a tad volatile, a little out of
control, as new gifts often are.”

“Yes, they are,” my mother answered for me.
“And you haven’t even seen the half of it. She can--”

“Mom!” I interrupted, aghast. “Please.”

She stopped, her hand still in the air
mid-gesture. My father patted her leg. “Tasmyn’s right, Nora. She
can fill Harley in on everything when she starts working with
them.”

“Of course,” Mr. Watson agreed. “You don’t
have to go into details right now, but you should be aware that we
can help you learn to control your new abilities. We can offer you
a safe place to explore them and channel those energies into a
positive use.”

I suddenly felt smothered, as though the
walls were closing in on me. I turned in my chair to cast a
pleading glance to Michael. “Can we go now?”

He nodded without hesitation. “Yes.” Turning
to my parents, he said, “Tas is ready to leave. She’s not feeling
very well, and it’s been a long morning. I think we should take her
home.”

Mr. Watson rose at once. “Certainly. I
understand completely. This can be a lot to take in, particularly
when you’ve been as—as private, shall we say, with your abilities
as you have been. We appreciate your time.” He stepped around the
table to offer me his hand. “Tasmyn, you have our contact
information, and of course, you know Cathryn. We’ll give you some
time to think about all of this. We only ask that you keep our
discussion within the people who were here today. Our success is
dependant on the discretion of those who work with us.”

I nodded. “I will.”

I stood awkwardly in the doorway to the
dining room as my parents said good-bye to the Landowers and Mr.
Watson. Cathryn waited to lead us out, but she avoided looking at
both Michael and me. Marly remained to the side, taking in
everything.

I felt the same claustrophobic sensation as
before and glanced toward to hallway. As I did, I caught the eye of
the server, still standing at the sideboard. She was gazing at me
with a mixture of intensity and empathy, and suddenly I caught a
few stray thoughts from her.

. . .careful. . .be careful. . .

The ride back to Perriman was very quiet.
Michael kept his arm around me, and I lay my head against his
chest, listening to the reassuring steadiness of his heartbeat. On
my other side, Marly kept one hand on my knee as she mentally
broadcast her support.

I had eighteen years of practice in blocking
my parents’ thoughts, and it was easy to do it now. That was one
positive lesson Marica had taught me; I was more efficient at
tuning into specific minds and shutting out the ones I didn’t want
to hear. But I could tell even without delving too deeply that my
mom and dad had been pleasantly surprised by Carruthers, by Harley
Watson and even by Cathryn. The idea that there were people who
could help me to control my newer powers was very appealing to
them. They’d grown used to the mind hearing over the years, but
moving objects around, casting fire, moving the wind and
water—those abilities scared the heck out of them.

When we pulled onto campus, my father spoke
at last. “Marly, Michael, would you mind if we dropped you off at
Michael’s dorm and had a little time with Tasmyn on our own? I’d
like to discuss this opportunity with her, just the three of
us.”

“Daddy, no,” I protested. “I don’t have any
secrets from Michael, and he’s part of this decision. I want
Marly’s input, too.”

Michael held me a little tighter, comforting,
but I heard him clearly thinking.
If they want to talk to you on
their own, you should do it. It’ll make them feel better, and we
can talk later.

At the same time, my mother said, “Tas, we’re
not trying to hide anything, but we’re still your parents, and we
want this time. Please. We’re not cutting out Marly or
Michael.”

I heaved a weary sigh. “Okay. Fine.”

Michael pulled me close when the car stopped
in front of his building. He dropped a tender kiss on my forehead
and then climbed out with a quick squeeze of my hand. Marly kissed
my cheek and whispered in my ear, “Hang in there, kiddo. I’ll see
you in a few.”

As we drove in the direction of Rollins Hall,
I spoke up. “We can’t go up to my room. Sophie will be there
studying, and unless you want an audience. . .”

“Where do you suggest?” my father asked. We
finally settled on the green, where there was always some empty
bench or nook.

The early afternoon sun was very strong, and
I sought out a shady spot, leaving my parents trailing in my wake.
I dropped to ground, carefully pulling my skirt around my legs and
hugging my knees to my chest.

My mother sat down on the bench behind me,
and after a moment of hesitation, my father joined her.

We all sat without speaking as the minutes
ticked by. I rested my chin on the top of my knees, looking out at
all the activity on the green. Two boys were tossing a football
back and forth, and under another tree, a group was gathered with
books open. Curious, I focused on their minds. . .ah. It was some
kind of Bible study. I tuned them out as my dad began talking.

“Tas, your mom and I were prepared to protest
against you being involved with this Carruthers in any way. The
idea of it goes against everything we’ve done to protect you. We
only agreed to come up this weekend because we didn’t want any
chance of you getting in over you head—again.”

I winced. I had been waiting for that.

“But then we met Cathryn and Harley and the
Landowers. . .and frankly, we were very pleasantly surprised. We
asked some very pointed questions, and they answered without
hesitating.”

“Tas, it’s basically your dream come true,”
my mother put in. “Isn’t this what you’ve said since we moved to
King? That you wanted to use your gifts for good? And here it is,
this chance dropped in your lap. It’s pretty amazing, I think.”

“I don’t know that I trust them.” I said, my
voice slightly muffled behind my hands. “I can tell you for sure
that I don’t trust Cathryn. Not one bit.”

My mom shook her head. “Tas, I think she’s a
nice girl. She could be a role model for you, how well she’s
adapted to her ability. I’m surprised you don’t like her.”

“I said I don’t
trust
her,” I
corrected. “She wants Michael. That’s what her little comment at
breakfast was about. She was baiting me, trying to get me to
react--”

“And so you did,” my dad said wryly. “It’s
just that kind of reaction that the people at Carruthers can help
you control. It’s a win-win situation, Tasmyn. They’re going to
help you, you’ll get to use your mind-hearing, you’ll be able to
help people—and you’re going to make money doing it, all while
still going to college. Pretty sweet, I think.”

I realized then that I wasn’t going to change
their minds. Fleetingly I thought of Rafe and his ability to change
minds and memories. It would have come in handy right about then, I
mused. But then the breeze that had been intermittent suddenly
turned into gusting wind, and I was reminded that favors from Rafe
were no longer an option for me.

“Just try it, Tasmyn,” my father urged me.
“If you don’t like it, if it doesn’t work out, you can always quit.
But give it a chance. What harm can that be?”

I could think of lots and lots of potential
for harm and unhappiness. But then I remembered everything I had
put my parents through over the last few years, and I realized I
had the chance here to do something that would make them happy,
that would let me ease up on the worry. So I took a deep breath and
nodded.

“Okay. I’ll do it.”