She couldn't imagine what it would be like to be left behind like this, to have to live this way forever. "I understand, but you need to know that there are more lives on the line than just ours—kids and babies who need saving. We can't stay." She caressed his bark cheek and wondered if tree people could cry.
"I know. I've been the worst kind of selfish. You must go, and I'm so proud of you for figuring it out on your own."
"You know, Mr. K, you're the one who taught me that none of us is ever really alone. We're all connected."
He closed his eyes. "And so the student has become the teacher." When he opened them again, they seemed brighter than before. "Will you tell Sam that I miss her, and that I'm sorry about what Rent-A-Kid did to her? Tell her I would have done anything to protect and help her."
Lucy didn't want to think about having to tell Sam what had happened to Mr. K. Then an idea occurred to her. Sam could pick up on thoughts, and Lucy had learned to focus her energy to connect with other beings. What if...?
Chapter 104 – Sam
Drake sat beside me, and Darren sat in the next row up. Both kept trying to engage me in conversation, and neither could take the hint that their efforts to claim me—like a prize won at a fair—didn't interest me.
I rested my forehead against the window and regretted picking the inside seat. The flight to Oahu, Hawaii, had so far been a miserable experience, and I gave serious consideration to locking myself in the bathroom.
"Guys, I'm—"
Before I finished my sentence, my mind filled with another consciousness. It felt similar to the way the Seeker had hijacked me before, but more familiar and gentler.
Darren reached over the seat to touch my hand. "Sam, are you okay?"
Drake had my other hand. "What's wrong, Babe?"
I pulled my hands free and listened to the voice in my head.
'Sam, can you hear me?'
"Oh, my God, it's Lucy. Be quiet."
"Yes, I can hear you. Are you okay? How are you doing this? Where are you?"
Lucy laughed inside my head. 'One question at a time. "How" is a long story, so I'll tell you later, as I'm not sure how long I can hold this." Where" is also a long story, but I'm okay, and so is Luke. We're going to be back on track to saving the kids soon.'
"Lucy, listen. Steele—that's my father's name—he took Ana. I think she's there with the other kids. We're on our way to you and will be there to help. Luce, he has my baby!"
'Oh God, Sam, I'm so sorry. Don't worry, we'll save her. She'll be okay. I've grown close to an IPI Agent who will do everything he can to help us, and he has some serious skills. But listen, there's someone here who wants to talk to you before we lose this connection.'
Another awareness filled me, this one more expansive and wild, and tinged with familiarity, but I couldn't place it—until he spoke.
'Sam, it's me: Mr. K. I'm so sorry I couldn't protect you. I heard about the pregnancy and your baby being taken. I'm sorry.'
Tears filled my eyes. "What are you doing with Lucy? What's happened to you?"
'No time for that now. She'll explain it all after this mess is done. But Sam, I need you to know something. You're the best of the best. I've never met anyone in all my life with your talent for art. You see into the soul of the world and capture it on canvas. Don't ever stop. You have much to give with your art. And don't become so hard inside that you lose that view of the world, no matter what they did to you. Stay open to life. Stay bendable, like a reed in the wind. Otherwise, they win. Don't let them mold you into themselves. Stay true to you in all you do. I also wanted to say goodbye and tell you I never left you there on purpose. I never would have done that to you.'
Recent events had hardened me, but I needed to be hard to rescue my daughter. Nothing else mattered until I had her back. But how I longed to embrace his wisdom and find a normal life to settle into.
"Oh, Mr. K, what happened to you? I missed you. I thought you were dead. And, I was focusing on my art, but now, all that matters is my daughter. I have to save her. I don't know who I'll be when this is over, but I promise not to give up."
Lucy and Mr. K pulled away, the connection weakening. "Goodbye, Mr. K," I said. "Lucy, we'll be there soon."
Tears streamed from my eyes as the connection closed. I ignored both Drake and Darren as Mr. K's words rolled through my mind. Could I ever open myself to the world the way I had before, or had that part of me died when Rent-A-Kid took my innocence?
Chapter 105 – Lucy
Lucy swiped at the tears on her face and knew that Mr. K would be crying too, if he could. "I'm sorry I couldn't hold onto the connection longer. I'm surprised I was able to do it at all."
"There's much we can do when we stop believing things are impossible."
She wrapped her arms around Mr. K's trunk and hugged him. "I'm going to miss you. When this is over, maybe we can find a way to dig you up and transport you to our property in Washington."