Isla

 

Heat flooded my body from head to curling toes and a little gasp escaped me. “What?”

“Your-your trust, I mean.” Kai stumbled over the words, the intensity in his face fading into a goofy and sheepish look that pulled on every last string in my heart and knotted them together. His hands were locked onto me and the sensation was deliciously distracting. And suddenly not nearly enough. I found myself moving closer and watched the muscles in his neck strain as he spoke. “I’m a patient guy is what I mean,” he said, sounding distracted and slightly despondent.

I had nothing to say to that. I searched his face, the tension building up between us and making it hard to maintain eye contact.

You’re upset that I don’t trust you. And that you don’t know how to fix it.

Kai glanced to the side then as though he heard something and his mouth twisted. “Piper’s coming,” he said and abruptly stepped away, letting go of me.

Cold air seemed to wrap around me in a rush and I hugged myself again. It was a childish habit I’d never been able to break. A reminder that I only had myself in this world.

But as Kai paced away and into his room, an image I’d seen once came into my head.

It was a sculpture of two rib-cages and hearts facing each other. At first, it was disconcerting. Then you realized how the hearts were oriented and all became clear.

It was meant to show the viewer what happened when two people embraced. What we failed to see even though it was right in front of our eyes.

How an embrace was when two hearts met.

It vanished into the back of my mind as the door opened and Piper appeared. She was wearing a wetsuit top and bikini bottoms, her hair down and untamed for once. A strong smell of suntan lotion and the sea followed her, making me yearn to go surfing. With Kai.

I glanced over my shoulder. He’d come back out of his room and was leaning on the counter. Or sprawling, rather, half his body spread over it and his cheek pressing against it. He was watching me and a spark shot through my veins.

Quickly I looked away and at Piper, who was busy squeezing her hair out with a towel. Faint relief went through me. I wasn’t letting my thoughts go anywhere when it came to Kai, but I knew if Piper thought she saw something, she’d say something.

Not that there is anything to say anything about, I thought, shifting from foot to foot.

“Um, good morning?” Piper glanced up and frowned. “About time you two woke up, although neither of you seems very awake."

“I need proof,” I blurted out, forcing myself to stop thinking about Kai. My elbows were tingling still. “I want to trust you, but I’m not going to believe blindly. I should have asked yesterday, but it was a lot to take in. I hope that’s okay.”

To my surprise, Piper perked up, looking gratified. “Atta girl. And of course. I thought you asked a surprisingly few number of questions yesterday.” She moved past me and towards the kitchen. “You want a granola bar?”

I nodded, not sure how I felt about Piper so easily giving in.

She grabbed the bars, ignoring Kai, and then went over to a tapestry hanging against the far wall of the living room. It was a gorgeous reproduction of a Chinese watercolor scroll of a tiger, its body curving down it. To my surprise, Piper lifted it and gestured with her head.

My jaw dropped and I ran forward. “There’s a door there?!” I immediately flashed to the outside of the house and realized the second floor must only be over the back half of the house.

“I was surprised you didn’t find it,” Kai said, his tone light.

“It was also locked. But you can come up now,” Piper said. “Kai?”

We both looked at him and he shook his head, yawning. “I’m gonna go surfing. Or take a nap.”

“Make sure you eat something,” I said without thinking and he gave me a surprised look. “What, I know you just woke up. Can’t go into the ocean on an empty stomach.”

“Alright, bossy,” he said cheerfully, all his earlier moodiness and intensity gone. The grin on his face almost made me think I’d imagined the whole thing. “See ya.”

Following Piper up the stairs, I gasped as I looked around. Up here, it was outfitted in luxury. Sleek shelving units filled with sculptures of panthers and tigers adorned the walls, with scrolls hanging in between. A huge desk took up the back of the room.

Yet it was dark, the windows facing the ocean hemmed in by swaying branches and uncertain light. You could barely glimpse the sea through it. It almost felt like a different space compared to the airiness and light of downstairs.

“This is kind of my area of the house,” Piper explained as she sat at the desk. It had a fancy computer with two screens and haphazard stacks of papers. She pointed at a bedroom door. "That's the master bedroom. I refurbished it a few years ago and Kai threw a fit. Not like he ever comes up here. That boy would live in a cave with those cats and his surfboard if I let him.”

“Oh, this is where you slept,” I murmured. I’d noticed the disused room downstairs seemed untouched. It was weird – it was such a nice room with a nice big bed.

“That’s my room, yeah,” Piper said. “As you can tell Kai and I bump heads. Keeping us on separate floors was a good idea when we were kids. Downstairs, that other room, that’s where our parents used to sleep.” She made a face. “It should have been my room. What a spoiled brat I was, getting the master bedroom. Honestly, I thought Kai would want it when he moved here, but he set up in his old room just fine.”

Piper seemed a little lost in her memories as she gazed around. I did too, noticing there was a bunch of frames crowded onto one of the shelves. One was facing towards us, a haughty teenage Piper and gap-toothed Kai beaming from it. I realized that Kai must have hidden them up here.

“How come you didn’t have Kai just tell me who he was?” I asked.

Waving at the other desk chair for me to sit down, I did so and Piper cocked her head at me. “Honestly?” She sighed. “I didn’t want you stewing in anger at me for a week.”

I gaped at her. “That’s a little selfish,” I said before I could help it.

“It is,” Piper agreed and a serious look came over her face. “I’ve been pretty selfish lately. Too used to getting my own way, I guess. Kai is the selfless one between the Weslark siblings. Don’t tell him I said that, though.”

“That’s it?” I pressed. “That’s the only reason?”

She winced. “I also wanted you to meet Kai without any prejudices from me.”

“What?” I asked, then I began to recall the times Piper had complained about her little brother. “Oh, well I always took that with a grain of salt. I always felt like there was some deeper reason to you venting about him – all of that seemed like surface stuff.”

Piper gave me a small smile. “And it seemed like a good idea at the time, while I figured out how to explain this all to you. I knew Kai would not only keep you safe, but calm and comfortable.” Her voice became affectionate. “He’s good at that. Everyone loves him. It’s impossible not to.”

“You never mentioned he lived in Maui,” I said slowly, still thinking back over the things Piper had said about Kai. “Or his name.”

She’d complained about him not calling enough, not having his priorities straight and being lazy. But most of the time it’d seemed like she’d wanted to talk about him because she’d missed him.

Piper’s face became sad. “That’s because it’s a secret.” Her blue eyes were full of sadness as she looked at me. “This is how much I trust you, Isla. No one but Balt, my father and I know Kai lives here. Everyone else thinks he’s bouncing around the world for work.”

Uneasiness blossomed in my chest. “Why? Because of the TLO?”

“Yes,” she said, her fist clenching. “They took everything from him.”

I stared at Piper, the uneasiness growing. The look in her eyes sent a shiver through me. It was not one I acquainted with her, uncertainty and sorrow.

“He didn’t really mention that,” I murmured.

But I’d known he’d asked those questions and said those things in a way that spoke of an intimacy with the TLO. He knew what questions to ask because he’d seen it.

Hell, maybe he’d been through it.

Still, Kai hadn’t actually come out and said that, although the matching scars on our wrists suggested we had more in common with TLO than I wanted to think about.

Reaching over, Piper picked up a folder and handed it to me. “This has proof of what you’ve already seen and what I’m telling you. Testimonials. Pictures.” She hesitated. “Some of it’s been redacted, but still it’s not…” Her face twisted in a grimace. “Pretty.”

Opening it up slowly, the tips of my fingers prickling with pins and needles, I thumbed through the pages. Piper had leaned back and was staring up at the ceiling – sticking close by if I needed her – but also giving me space.

First, there were pictures of Crane and Hunter. Talking on the street in LA, leaving buildings together and then one on what looked like a tropical island. Those were followed by missing person reports – tallied up with their activities with the TLO.

Taking a steadying breath, I dug deeper and now found pictures of the wrists with the hollow ring scar. Pictures of the actual tracker, an almost invisible metal ring with a series of minuscule needles around the edge and information about it.

Nauseated, I hesitated and then kept going. Here were the statements of people – initiates – who had been rescued. Snippets jumped out at me.

Dr. Crane convinced me I could have the world and I believed him. I was willing to do anything.

He had me taking vitamins and working out more, then one day I woke up in a hospital and being prodded at. Said I had an episode – never explained what. A few days later, they let me go. But something was off about it – I went to my doctor and he found traces of all kinds of stuff in my system. Referred me to you guys. What the hell did they do to me?

I knew Dr. Crane was a doctor, but he’d never cared about medical stuff with me – only music. All of a sudden, though, I’m in a room strapped to chair and there’s a needle in my arm.

Painful, mind-numbing stuff. I was hallucinating – thought I was on an island in a cage.

I overheard one of them say I was a lucky one – I lived. There were other people there, did they live? I had a friend in the TLO, I haven’t heard from him. Could you find out if he’s okay?

I put down the papers and resisted the urge to slam the folder shut. “How are they getting away with this?” I asked in a low voice.

Piper sat up and sighed. “There’s a specific market they cater to. And the money comes from that – from pharmaceuticals compensating them for research. They have a base off-shore where they work on patients – international waters, out of sight and mind of the law. Some of it could be considered legal, I suppose. They are doing work that helps these drug companies, but all of it is through coerced or manipulated participation.”

I studied her. “Drug money?” Piper nodded. “What kind of drugs?”

She gave me a tight smile. “Classified.”

“And what is this gene they want to trigger?” I asked. “Is it at least for something good? Cancer? ALS?” I swallowed, thinking of my grandmother. “Diabetes?”

“Classified, too,” she said and I scowled. “Sorry, Isla. I’m already probably telling you more than I should. I mean, I can tell you this much…” Piper hesitated and I leaned in a little. “Even when dormant, the gene is significant, especially in terms of overall health and immune system strength.”

Nodding, my stomach clenching and twisting, I flipped through the rest of the folder. It became more generic, pictures of buildings and addresses, including the one in LA I had been in. Then a smaller, black folder was stuffed in the back and I opened it.

I sucked in a sharp breath. “What is this?”

It was a series of pictures of what looked like a meat cooler. Inside, the walls were scratched over with claw marks and there was a dark stain on the floor. My skin crawled as I gazed in horror.

Piper reached over and plucked it from my hands. “Something that shouldn’t have been in there.” She gave me a ghost of a smile. “It’s not related, don’t worry.”

But I could tell by the twitch in her lip that she was lying.

“I think I need some air,” I said, standing up and taking a deep breath. The floor felt unsteady, as though I were back on the surfboard. “I’m gonna go for a walk.”

Giving me a knowing look, Piper nodded. “I understand. I’m here if you need anything.”

Now I’m starting to feel sorry I asked, I thought to myself, blindly flying downstairs and outside. Part of me knew I was still in pajamas, a skimpy tank, and shorts, but I began to walk, striding south along the beach and keeping my head down. I hoped Kai and Balt wouldn’t see me.

I needed to be alone.

The sun beat down on me and the air was listless today. There was barely a breeze off the ocean, making everything stagnant and hot.

Finally, my stomach cramping painfully, I rounded a corner that hid the far-off bungalow from view and sat down. For a moment, I thought I was going to heave, but I didn’t.

Then the picture of the meat locker hit me and I scrambled back up. I had to keep moving.

Walking faster now, I began to enter a wilder and even remoter part of the beach. It almost felt prehistoric, it was so lonely and devoid of life.

Finally, I found a spot that was comfortable and cool. There was a breeze humming from down the valley somewhere and the trees threw deep shadows across the sand. Curling up with my back against a rock, I stared out across the sand and let the picture blur and warp.

Alone, and only alone, would I let myself cry.

I wasn’t even sure what I was crying about, except that it felt like flushing out a wound. With so many words, pictures and things spinning in my head, I was overwhelmed. And frustrated I couldn’t do more. It wasn’t fair!

During my life, I’d always relied on myself. Yes, I had wanted support and a safety net, I could admit that to myself. But without it, I had become strong.

The TLO had in a way, carefully and precisely led me to bury that part of myself.

And I wanted it back. I had to get it back.

Sucking in a deep breath, I wiped at my face and the storm inside of me settled. By habit, one instilled in me by my grandmother, I went through all of the things to be grateful for.

Count your blessings, baby girl. I heard her say and I put a hand on my hip.

Maui, of course. As I gazed around, the sweet, fresh island air along with the mountains and ocean seemed to put a salve over my wounded soul. Piper and Balt, and whatever secret organization they worked for, taking care of me. The cats. Learning to surf.

My toes dug into the sand at the next and best one.

Kai.

But I can’t rely on him too much, I thought. I already crossed a line with that hug and then whatever this morning was. Cheeks burning, I wiggled my feet free and stood up. He needs to be able to focus on protecting and whatever, not my hysterics.

Resolute, I nodded and put my hands on my hips. I would get through this.

Turning, I began to walk back, following the tracks I’d made to get here. And I sensed I was taking the first steps to accepting and moving on from all of this.

The sun was blazing low on the horizon. I went down and walked along the water, letting the wet sand suck at my feet and watching the waves. As I walked, I was surprised at how far I’d gone. But finally, I was almost at the corner, around which lay the bungalow, when I saw him.

It was Kai, strolling towards me and trying to act nonchalant. My heart seemed to beat double with each step that closed the distance between us and I stopped walking. Calm down.

“Hey, you’ve been gone for a while,” Kai said, his voice teasing but his eyes worried. “You okay?”

“Of course,” I said, nodding and giving him a brilliant smile.

“Good,” he said, falling in next to me as we began to walk again. “Not surprising, though. Badass woman.”

I thought about how I’d cried earlier. I’m working on it, I thought.

“You’re quiet,” Kai said a few minutes later. “Quieter. You really okay?”

Without thinking, I reached out and squeezed his arm. “You asked that. Yes.” When I saw the smile spreading across his face, I quickly dropped my hand and folded my arms.

“I was a little worried, I have to admit,” he replied.

“You don’t have to be,” I rushed to say. “Please. I know that’s asking a lot on top of everything else.” I paused, then blurted out. “I know we should keep it all business.”

Kai stopped and a look of hilarity spread across his face. “Isla,” he said and gestured at himself. He was barefoot and bare-chested, wearing shorts and an unbuttoned Hawaiian shirt. His long shaggy curls were still damp from the ocean and I could see a trace of sunblock on his nose. “That’s the last thing you should be worrying about. Don’t let Piper get to you.”

“But this is still your job, isn’t it?” I’d stopped too, unable to help myself. Right now I was fighting the urge to tug on his shirt. "I’m going to respect that from here on out. I get it.”

We shouldn’t be too friendly, Kai, I thought. You’ve been too kind to me. It was unnecessary.

“Oh,” Kai said, as a strange look flitted across his face. “I get it. She didn’t–” Now his face twisted into one of dark amusement. “Well, I guess that’s for the best.”

“Piper didn’t what?” I asked, but Kai had started walking again and didn’t reply. He seemed to suddenly be wrapped up in some memory or thought, one I didn’t know how to approach. Even the gentlest touch or question seemed like it would be akin to touching a raw wound.

Whatever secrets I’d thought I’d learned today, I’d a feeling I’d only scratched the surface.