The Mind Games by Lori Brighton Read Free Book Online

I thought was best.”
    The condescending tone, the blasé attitude…it drove me to the brink of insanity. My entire body trembled. Vaguely I was aware of my mom coming toward me, as if she sensed my anger, sensed I was about to erupt.
    “I hope,” he continued, “that we can move on from here, and…”
    And just like that I lost control. Energy burst from me, burning through my body on a heated wave of lava. It hit him full force. I saw his eyes widen, his knees buckle but instead of being afraid of my own strength, I felt amazing. He cried out and stumbled, as if I’d punched him when I hadn’t even lifted my hand.
    “Cameron,” my mother snapped out. “Stop!”
    I was vaguely aware of Nora’s mouth hanging open. Vaguely aware of Father Myron rushing to Aaron’s side. I didn’t care. I didn’t care that they were looking at me like I was the very devil. I didn’t care that blood trailed from Aaron’s mouth.
    My mother latched onto my shoulders and shook me. Her touch jerked me back into reality. I’d lost control. The energy had surged through me in a way that left me overwhelmed, as if it would have drowned me, had I not released it. Confused and frustrated, I spun away and rushed to the front door.
    “Are you okay?” I heard my mom ask Aaron.
    She wasn’t worried about me. Nope, just him. I was the outsider here. An outsider who had attacked them. I opened the front door and stepped outside. The morning air was cool, but did little to ease my aching chest. I pressed my hand to my collarbones; it felt tight, my lungs constricted. I needed to leave, to escape. I stumbled down the steps, unsure where I was going.
    When I was ten, I remembered finding a squirrel trapped in our garage. I felt like that animal now, wild and confused, nowhere to go, but looking for somewhere, anywhere. I had to leave. I couldn’t stay. But the moment I stepped into the middle of the square, I paused.
    Where would I go? How would I get there? I sank onto a cold, marble bench and stared at the pigeons, their head bobbing as if to some music only they could hear. I had nowhere to go.
    “Mind if I sit?” Father Myron stood in front of me, looking as serene as always. Did anything rile him? Apparently not.
    I didn’t respond. I couldn’t seem to find the words. But he sat anyway.
    “I like to sit in the squares, and imagine the past,” he said with a smile. “The carriages that might have traveled these very roads. The men in their suits and women in their fancy dresses.”
    It was on the tip of my tongue to ask him if he had a point. Could he not see I was on the cusp of freaking out here? I’d lost control of my powers. I’d never lost control. At the time it had felt awesome, now that I’d had time to cool down it made me nervous.
    “We’ve been here for a couple hundred years, you know. Those like us. We’ve used those tunnels for centuries.”
    Surprised, I slid him a glance. I suppose I’d never really thought about it, but now I wondered… where did our powers come from? How long had they been in existence? “Why can we read minds?”
    He shrugged. “Some say we were an alien race.”
    I released a wry laugh, hoping he was joking. “Aliens? Are you kidding?”
    He smiled, a little mysteriously, as if he knew he had me hooked. “Some say we descended from an ancient Celtic religion. Some say Greek. And some believe we’re descended from Angels sent to earth.”
    I rolled my eyes. I could only imagine which he believed. “Great, so we’re all special. Why me, then?”
    His white brows drew together. “What do you mean?”
    I stood and paced the area in front of the bench. “Why was it so important that I leave my mother when I was five? Why does everyone want my powers so badly? I mean, yeah, I seem to be able to do a little more than other mind readers; is that why?”
    “What more?” Father Myron folded his hands in front of him, looking as calm as always, but I didn’t miss the interest in his