Chapter 8

I had no idea how long I was out, but I didn't think it was very long. When I woke up Elizabeth had just woken up herself. She slid across next to me, pulled me into her arms, and snuggled close, kissing me gently in an effort to wake me up. At that moment, the room exploded into activity as everyone rushed in.

Megan was the first one in the room. I saw her eyes widen briefly when she saw Elizabeth was still alive, then she nodded to herself and her eyes went back to normal. She sat on the bed and started to check us out.

It was obvious who was coming in next by the tears and hysteria.

"Mommy!" Cindi screamed hysterically as she ran into the room. She was a smart girl; she knew what Megan's headshake to me had meant. As she skidded to a stop, she was almost knocked over by Amy behind her.

"Mommy!" Cindi squealed, happy this time, incredulous at seeing her mother lying on the bed, obviously alive. Megan caught her in mid air, just before she landed on Elizabeth and me. Smiling politely, she set Cindi down on her feet.

"Just give me a moment, young lady. I need to check them out and make sure they're ok.

"I said one moment!" Megan said sharply as Cindi started to protest. "They're not going anywhere... at least I hope not," she whispered to herself as Cindi gave her a 'what planet are you from?' look.

"Planet # 3," Megan whispered absentmindedly as she checked us over.

Once Megan was sure we were alive and well, she released Cindi, who crawled to a now seated Elizabeth and snuggled into her lap. The two of them hugged, whispering to each other as mother and daughter bonded.

I had my own little girl to pay attention to, as Amy snuggled up to me.

"What happened?" asked Amy quietly as she did her own share of kissing and cuddling. "I know a dead person when I see one!"

"I don't know. I laid Elizabeth on the bed, and a young girl, about your age, appeared, sitting on the dresser over there." I ignored Amy's nasty look about being called a girl. "She talked to me for a few moments, waved her hand, and Elizabeth was alive. Then she kissed me and I passed out."

"You passed out? Must have been some kiss!" she commented, looking at me suspiciously. I'm sure I turned red.

"It was ok. I've had better," I said feebly. Amy lifted her eyebrow in inquiry, then snuggled up close and gave me a passionate kiss.

"Didn't faint!" she declared. I ignored her.

"So, who was she?" Amy asked.

"I don't know, but I know who does and I'm going to find out!" I saw the worried look on Lisa's face as she passed me, and I almost laughed as she spun around and headed out the door. I caught her by the arm just before she slipped past me again and pulled her up on my lap next to Amy.

"You and I are going to have a long, serious talk after Elizabeth leaves, Little Missy! I want to know who that girl is!" I told her. I said it jokingly, but her eyes told me she knew I wasn't kidding. Then she got a stubborn look on her face.

"Talk all you want, Dad, you're not getting anything out of me!" she proclaimed. I knew she wasn't kidding either.

"Oh? Don't bet on it!" I countered.

"I won't tell you. Not the name, who she is, what happened, why, where, when, what I know about her, how it relates to you or me, nothing. I won't even acknowledge whether or not they exist. You can disown me, spank me, dip me in boiling oil, even threaten not to ever make love to me when I'm old enough to activate my powers, and I still won't tell you. Of course, if you do the last one, I'll never talk to you again anyway, so it will be a moot point! I will not tell you!"

I hate arguing with smart-assed Historians. They don't even have to come up with new arguments; they just quote the old ones, word for word! I set her down on her feet and swatted her butt. She squealed and ran out of the room before I changed my mind.

After everyone calmed down and Elizabeth managed to convince the still twittering Cindi that she wasn't planning to die again today, we all split up. I went into the living room and sat in my favorite recliner to think. I had so many things to do; I didn't know which one to start on first.

I had to finish my talk with Sammi. That was critical. I also needed to review the 'tape' of Crystal's mind with Becky, to get information and start on finding the other girls. That was critical too. I needed to tie Lisa to a chair and ask her about the girl, and the other stuff I knew she was hiding from me. That would be long, involved, and probably end in a fight, so I wanted to wait until Elizabeth was gone and not mess up her last days. Besides, she would probably side with Lisa; she liked to keep things secret too. I wanted my Dad here for that anyway. However, he would probably come over today to spend time with Elizabeth.

I had to spend some time with both Megan's before their merging. I also needed to start on my magnificent plan for Eric's 'deflowering' (what do you call it with boys?).

We needed to figure a way to find Amy and Katie's mysterious boy from their dreams. The President's daughter's needed to come for a visit, and I needed to see him anyway to clear the air between us. I also had some unfinished business with Victoria and Robert that I'm sure she had not forgotten.

Just thinking about it all made me tired, so I decided to take a nap.

When I awoke, Lisa was sitting in my lap, snuggling close as she gently tried to wake me up. I think it was the sloppy little girl kisses on my cheek that did it.

"Wake up, sleepyhead. You gonna sleep all day?" she giggled, trying to tickle me. She knew I wasn't ticklish, but she always tried anyway. Now, Lisa, on the other hand...

After she was done shrieking and squealing, and after the obligatory 'Stop or I'm going to pee my panties!', she told me why she really woke me up.

"You need to finish your talk with Sammi," she told me. "She didn't tell you everything, and she needs to. She's getting worse."

A dad's work is never done. I lifted Lisa off my lap and set her on her feet, then got up and went looking for Sammi. I finally found her sitting on the back porch, staring off into the distance. I sat next to her, while Lisa waited inside. Sammi looked up as I sat down.

"Go away! I don't want to talk to you. Leave me alone," she whispered, tears running down her cheeks. I pulled her head down on my shoulder and put my arm around her. She didn't try to pull away.

"Is that anyway to talk to the person you love more than anyone in the world?" I asked teasingly. She smiled faintly.

"I love Eric more than I love you," she teased back.

"I know, but second place isn't bad either," I responded.

"Please, Daddy, leave me alone. I don't want to talk about it," she pleaded.

"Tough, little girl. There are all kinds of things everyday that I don't want to do, but have to. Welcome to life in the real world. Spill your guts, sweetie, or I'll spank your little ass."

She looked at me with flame in her eyes.

"You think I don't know about real life? Where the fuck have you been? You lost your memory? My life sucks. The only thing that's ever been worth living for was you and Eric, and now..." The sob was quiet, but there. I saw Lisa quietly sit down near us.

"And now what?" I prodded. She put her head down and didn't say anything.

"Tell him, Sammi. You have to tell him," Lisa told her gently.

"You tell him!" Sammi wailed. "You know so goddamned much about it, you tell him! I'm sure the all-knowing Historian already knows all about it!"

I saw Lisa's eyes register hurt for a minute, then soften as she realized Sammi was just upset.

"I know enough about it to know that it isn't what you think. It isn't nearly as bad as you think, at least the part you know about. I also know that he needs to know about it, and you need to tell him. I know your life is in great danger if you don't tell him. I know you love him," Lisa said calmly.

"Of course I love him, you idiot! That's why I don't want to tell him!"

"Sammi... why do you think Eric won't love you anymore?" I asked.

"Oh God, Daddy, I fucked up so badly!" Sammi sobbed as she clung to me. I held her and tried to calm her down.

"What did you do, Sammi?" I asked, once the sobbing eased. Lisa reached over and held her hand.

"I... I was walking through the streets at night and ran across some remnants of Bandor's band. I got into a fight with them. There was this boy there that helped me... although I didn't really need it," she hastened to add.

"Afterwards, as I was leaving, I kissed him, ever so briefly, on the lips, to thank him. He was really good looking and nice and everything." Sammi stopped and gave me a desperate look, begging to let her stop there. I just looked at her, waiting.

She sighed.

"As soon as my lips touched his, it was like... I don't know... like I was his. I couldn't stop kissing him. I was so excited, so horny and wet. He had some kind of power over me. He kissed me again and I was ready to lie down in the street and fuck him. I tried to stop, I really did, but I just couldn't!" she sobbed.

"What happened?" I asked.

"I... begged him to stop, that I was in love with someone else, that I would die if he took me, that he would destroy me!" she stopped again.

"Did he?" I asked.

"Yes! He stopped! He apologized. He took away the desire. Then I went home. Oh God, Daddy, Eric is going to hate me! I'm supposed to love him and be his, and I was ready to become a slut for someone I had never met before! I don't know what I'm going to do without Eric when he leaves me!" she sobbed.

Lisa reached over and touched her arm.

"Tell him the rest, Sammi. Tell him what else you did," she said quietly.

Sammi looked at her in shock.

"I... I don't know what you m... mean," she whispered.

"Tell him, Sammi! You must! It's important!" Lisa urged.

Sammi looked at me, her eyes scared.

"You tell him, Lisa. I can't!" Sammi sobbed.

"You can, Sammi. Tell him!" Lisa commanded.

Sammi looked at me, eyes wide as saucers. I could read the fear, the pain and desperation in them.

"After I left him, I... all I could think of was how much I had... betrayed Eric. I... I just couldn't take it anymore. I took my knife and I... I tried to... kill myself!" she whispered, her voice flat and dead.

"And what happened then?" I asked in a whisper. I was scared now too.

"He had followed me. He kicked the knife out of my hand just before it went in. God, I've never seen anyone move as fast as he could. He was so mad he could have spit nails. I found out he was really scared, too. He was afraid he would have been responsible for my death. I had the feeling he'd been through this before, with someone he really loved. He sat with me for awhile, talking to me, and then walked with me till I was almost home." Sammi looked up, desperation in her eyes, begging me for... something. It was a test, I think. I failed.

"Sammi... don't you remember anything we talked about when you tried that last time? You can't keep trying that. I don't know what I have to do to get you to understand that!" I was furious. Well, I was more scared than furious, but that's how it came out.

Sammi's face crumbled.

"I remember exactly what you told me last time," she whispered quietly, sobbing. "You said that you loved me, and that trying to kill myself again was the only thing that would make you stop loving me, and now I've done it and you don't love me anymore and Eric is going to hate me because I'm a slut and I betrayed him and I don't even know why I did any of it and now I have to live without him and you and... Oh, God, why did he stop me?" She jumped up and started to run back into the house.

In a flash, I remembered my conversation with Lisa.

"Just don't get too mad at her. Remember, Sammi is really just a little girl at heart. She's really only a few months old. Have patience with her."

"Lisa! I wouldn't get mad at Sammi or yell at her!"

"Yes you will! Just don't forget to show her you love her too. She couldn't stand it if she thought she lost you."

"I would never let her think she would lose me, even for a second."

"Too late. She already knows she's lost you, that you don't love her anymore. She's as wrong as she can be, but she's sure of it. Try to be nice to her. It'll be hard for a minute or so, but you can do it. She loves you too, you know."

I grabbed Sammi's hand as she tried to run by me, and pulled her down on my lap. She tried to get away for a moment, then just lay her head against my chest and cried. I waited until she cried herself out.

"Sammi," I whispered in her ear. "I didn't say I would stop loving you if you tried it again. I said that was the only thing that could make me stop loving you. Sammi, even that couldn't. I was just trying that age old, stupid thing that parents have tried for hundreds of years; trying to scare their kids into behaving. I would never stop loving you, Sammi, for any reason."

Sammi looked at me with a spark of hope in her eyes.

"You... you still love me?" she asked.

"Sammi, I will always love you. I bet Eric will still love you too. I'm much more concerned about the effect that boy had on you than how Eric is going to react. Can you help me with a little experiment, Sammi?" I asked.

"Sure," she responded enthusiastically. I almost laughed aloud. Anything to keep from talking to Eric.

"I know this will be hard, but pretend you don't know me. In fact, pretend that you're not attracted to me at all. Think of someone that you really aren't attracted to in the least, and pretend I'm him. Ok?" Sammi gave me a strange look but closed her eyes and tried to get it set in her mind. Then she opened her eyes and nodded.

"Now, kiss me just as you did the boy in question," I told her. She reached over and kissed me on the lips.

I kissed her back, activating a power I had not used in so long I couldn't remember the last time I used it. I saw her eyes open wide, startled, and she tried to pull away. I felt her knees get weak and she clung to me desperately as she passionately kissed me back. I felt her quivering helplessly in my arms. She broke away from me, her eyes open wide in confusion.

"What are you doing to me?" she whispered. I pulled her into me again and kissed her again. I felt all resistance melt away. I started to slip my hand down her stomach and I felt her spread her legs for me. Then she suddenly pushed away from me and backed up a few steps, a look of... alarm in her eyes.

"Was that how it felt when he did it to you?" I asked before she could say anything.

"Yes! That was exactly it! How did you do that? What did you do to me?" she whispered fearfully.

"Relax, Sammi. You know I would never hurt you. I just wanted to see if I guessed right about what he did to you. It's ok, honey," I assured her as I drew her into me and hugged her. She relaxed against me.

"Are you going to remove it like he did?" she asked. I wasn't sure if her tone of voice was hope or disappointment.

"No need, honey. Mine is not permanent like he thought his was. It will be gone in a few minutes."

"What did you do?" she asked again.

Lisa looked at me with understanding in her eyes.

"He's one of us, isn't he? He's one of your children, isn't he?" Lisa asked softly. I nodded.

"I think so. He has the same ability I do. That would tend to indicate we are related. He's probably not full blooded, though, or we would sense him. Either that, or someone has learned to instill that power in others," I answered her.

Sammi looked at me strangely.

"So, is that how you got us all to fall in love with you? I thought I just loved you." She sounded truly disappointed.

"No, Sammi, I never use that power. I learned when I was a teenager that it was a bad idea. Love that is forced like that is not very rewarding. I truly had forgotten I could even do that until you mentioned what that boy did to you. I would never do that to anyone," I assured her.

I decided it was time to switch subjects.

"Sammi... what were you doing walking the streets that late at night?" I asked. She looked at me, startled.

"I don't know. I couldn't sleep, and just decided to get some air," she murmured. I looked at her questioningly, but she refused to say anything more on the subject, so I switched to another of her most favorite subjects.

"Why don't we call Eric in here and talk to him?" I asked. I saw the panic in her eyes.

Before I could say anything more, Lisa interrupted.

"Wait. There are some important things Sammi needs to know. Let me go over them first," Lisa said. She turned to Sammi.

"Sammi... what do you think happens when you kill yourself?" she asked.

Sammi shrugged her shoulders.

"I don't know... I never thought about it. I don't even know why I tried. I suppose someone would bring me back, or I would be reborn again, or something, since we don't die."

"Actually, that's not right," Lisa said. "There are two ways we know of that we die permanently. Being killed by Grampa's gray energy is one. The other is by killing yourself." She reached over to grab Sammi's hand, and held it tight as Sammi's face turned white. I held her other hand.

"I didn't know that," Sammi whispered. I hadn't known it, either.

"How does that work?" I asked. Maybe if she understood the concept, she wouldn't try it again.

"Part of the process of killing yourself, whether you realize it or not, is that you decide to give up control of your energy, your color. You determine that you will never need it again, as the only reason you would kill yourself is if you didn't want to live anymore, ever again. When you die under those conditions, your color is returned to the energy pool as unassigned energy. Your color ceases to exist. You can never come back again because your color is no more," Lisa explained.

"Oh dear!" Sammi whispered. She was shaken.

"There is more," Lisa said. "Sammi, you must never try it again. There's not been a lot of experience through the years with this, but enough to make certain that what I am about to tell you is correct. No one, in the entire history of our race, has ever survived three attempts to kill themselves. It seems that three is the magic number; no matter how feeble the third attempt, it always succeeds. You must not try again, Sammi. You will not survive!"

I held a thoroughly shaken Sammi in my arms. She was as scared as she had ever been, realizing how close she had come to dying permanently.

"But... but I don't even know why I do it!" she cried.

"Lisa, maybe we should get Becky in here to see if we can find out why. Maybe there's something we've missed," I suggested.

"Let me look first. I have some experience with this that Becky doesn't have," Lisa offered.

Lisa held Sammi's hands and tilted her head to one side. I felt her link with my mind, in case she found something we might not want Sammi to know. I felt her probe softly, then I suddenly felt her go cold with fear, almost panic.

'Oh shit! Breaking contact! Now! Now! Now! Get Becky in here, now!' Lisa said in my mind, her voice shaking.

'Becky! Back porch! Now!' I sent to her only, hoping to keep from attracting the other girls. Yeah, right.

'Everyone else stay in there!' Lisa added as she detected the others heading our way.

There followed several minutes of technical mumbo jumbo as Lisa showed Becky what she saw. Once Becky realized what she was pointing to and observed it closely, I felt her concern and, yes, fear also. Both of them took special care to keep the others from detecting what they were thinking, and to keep their faces calm in front of Sammi. Sammi was alarmed, though. So was I. I saw the shields, almost invisible, that they had posted around Sammi and themselves. Shields designed to keep something in, not out.