Otherwise, I had to do this alone. And not just because of my massive trust issues. I wasn’t sure I was physically capable of trusting anybody anymore, but with Temple, I’d have liked totry.
Too bad that wasn’t an option here.
The others had it simpler. Their families rushed to come collect them, then came the crying and tears, some even reuniting with families they hadn’t had in their life when they were taken. But none of the others belonged to an ultra-secretive magical community who even kept themselves hidden from other supernatural beings.
Presumably. See, I didn’t even knowexactlywhere I was going.
My memories startedafterbeing captured, not before. I didn’t remember anything from my life before the Brokers. I didn’t know what I was, where I came from, or even who I used to be.
All I had was a location. And the awareness that certain magical people were able to conceal themselves from detection. Not just blending in when among humans, their magical properties were concealed even when people tried to reveal their true natures.
I knew this since my captors tried. With more and more intensity. They couldn’t sell me until they knew what I was and had my supernatural side safely collared and giftwrapped.
Naturally, shit went wrong.
I lost all my memories. Only one thing remained, a picture in my head. I didn’t even know the address or anything I could share if I wanted to. Only the sense of this place and that I needed to get there remained. It was all I had left of who I used to be, but it was enough. I just knew my answers were there.
If there were some secret or private race of magical beings I protected at great personal cost, then I couldn’t just bring somebody back to our location. The last thing I wanted was something bad happening to them, someone wanting to steal their powers like people had with mine. So there wasn’t much I could tell the DSA. Just in case.
So I didn’t care about the time I spent trapped. Nor could I let myself rely on the well-intentioned people who wished to help me recover. If I could walk, then I could get to where I was going. I didn’t even need to walkwell.This was the only clue to my past, so the second I was able, I had to find out more. I had to get there, I couldn’t wait. I needed to know who I was and where I belonged.
The hope of finding out was the only thing keeping me going these days. Once I reached my destination, everything would be alright. Once I found my people, they’d help me remember. They’d help me access my powers and nobody would be able to take advantage of me again.
If possible, I’d return to where I left Temple and tell him I was okay. I wouldn’t tell him the rest, but he was pretty preceptive when it came to me. He’d read between the lines. He’d know that I was safe. He’d know that I found where I belonged.
~
John
A parking lot. I found myself in a parking lot for a closed down seafood restaurant.
Nothing in particular stood out. I walked through the empty lot carefully, waiting for… something.
Nothing happened. Nobody came to meet me. The interior of the restaurant looked dark and empty.
I walked around the whole property once, then twice. Even if I couldn’t say what exactly was supposed to be here, I figured I’d know when I saw it and… I didn’t see anything important.
The wall on one side by a space for a dumpster was covered with graffiti. Somebody painted an ‘X’ on the pavement andU R here,somebody’s idea of a joke. Standing just shy of the marking, I stared at the red spray-painted X. Parts of the asphalt had weakened and crumbled, giving way to the earth below. A tiny white flower poked out of the crack, alive and thriving in the small patch of dirt.
An unknown amount of time passed. I dropped my cane somewhere along the way. I fell to my knees when my legs gave out, though I wasn’t totally sure if that happened due to exhaustion or grief. Tears fell and then dried on my face, then fell again. My answers were supposed to be here. This was everything and it didn’t look like much of anything at all.
Temple found me on my knees.
"Are you okay?"
I choked out a laugh that started as a sob. No, I was not okay.
"What happened, John?"
"The Brokers took everything from me," I whispered. “My freedom, my future, my family. They stole my life. But what if I didn’t have much of one to begin with? Can they really steal what doesn’t exist?"
"I don’t know.” He walked closer to me. I saw his shiny professional brown shoes. “Maybe it’s a just a different kind of crime. They robbed you of countless opportunities to find whatever you lacked."
“No matter how much they tried to rip the secrets from me, the answers stayed hidden. They said it was being concealed, they said my secret was so valuable that every precaution was taken to hide it.” My fists clenched where they rested on my knees. “Those fucking bastards threw me in a cage. Why the fuck did I believe anything they said?”
"Who’s supposed to be here? I know you’ve been hesitant to reveal more details, but we have resources, we can search for them. There’s housing records, vehicle records, it’s really no trouble to find out whoever owned this building last.”
"No."
