The Sensorians: Awakening
in.”Eliza had decided. Clearly with ulterior motives, but that didn't matter for now.
And that was that. Markus and Alice worked though the paper work, procedures and signatures whilst I took Eliza to her room to pack her stuff. There was no turning back now.
Eliza looked up at me lost, looking around for the things she needed to pack, her face an open book. Something was bothering her majorly. She needed to work on hiding her feelings I thought, before asking if she was okay.
“I need to see Kas and Bella before I go.”
She was struggling with her emotions when she uttered their names. They meant a lot to her and she wasn't going to like my answer. Remembering Markus's disapproval of my previous bluntness I tried to be more gentle when I answered. Something that didn't come naturally to me at all.
“Eliza, I know these people are very important to you...”
“I love them, Zack!"
She nearly choked on her words.
“I know Eliza" I said as gently as I could muster.
“Your mum will talk to them. She'll tell them your dad has made contact and is ill and wanted to see you as soon as possible. You took a plane this evening to see him. You can't see them now, but they'll understand and they will be there for you when you come back.”
Eliza shook her head violently.
“No, no, you don't understand! I need to see Kas! I need to say goodbye! What if something happens! It will destroy him!" she pleaded desperately.
I sighed before answering, losing my gentle tone already.
“He'll be fine, and Bella too. Nothing is going to happen to you, remember, I'll protect you. You just can't see them now."
She looked distraught so I softened the blow a little.
“But I'll ask Markus if you can have permission to FaceTime them later.”
She carried on packing but couldn't hide her feelings, silent tears rolling down her face. I wanted to give her a big hug, she looked so vulnerable. I didn't of course. I had to tune out somewhat (or shield as we call it) as her intense emotions were physically hurting me.
“Don't even think about it!" I glared at her.
She'd spotted her phone on her desk, and her guilty scent spoke volumes. I picked it up and slotted it in my pocket. Eliza was furious.
The sooner we'd be on our way, the better. But by the time Eliza had packed all her belongings and Markus had gone through all the paperwork with Alice, it was late in the afternoon already. Alice had provided us with a lovely lunch earlier and did invite us to stay for dinner too, but we had to leave eventually. Seeing Eliza say goodbye to her mum was heartbreaking. It surprised me how sad I felt for her. Markus on the other hand looked stoically on and decided to break up their everlasting hug. He had booked a hotel for us to stay in for the night, and he wanted to get a move on. I knew he was right. Eliza needed to get off those drugs and start her training. That would give her something to focus on and help her deal with her feelings. I couldn't wait to start working on her. Maybe a little too eager, I wondered.
CHAPTER 9
Saying goodbye to my mum was the hardest thing I'd ever done in my life. I couldn't think about her without bursting into tears. Both Zack and Markus had done their best to distract me but as soon as there was a quiet moment I fell back into my dark hole, and eventually they had given up and left me to wallow.
After a very awkward journey and night in the hotel, where I had to share a room with Zack, we arrived at the compound. Zack took me to the room I would be staying in. I looked at my surroundings with awe. My room looked like something straight out of the Good Homes magazine. Everything beautifully modern with a perfectly made bed and furniture arranged in such a way it looked like no one had ever even touched it. Still, it felt more homely then a hotel room. Another opening led to a little room which housed another bed and a kitchenette hid in the corner.
The whole journey here felt like a dream. I could still not quite fathom how this all happened. The whole thing had gone so fast. Everything had started to feel real when I'd seen Markus, a tall imposing man in his late forties whose age was only given away by his slightly greying side burns, talking to mum in our house. Up to that point the whole thing could've just been the ramblings of a slightly deranged guy, but that was undisputedly not the case. Now I found myself here, in this place, far away from the comforts of home and my mum. My calm exterior completely belied the inner turmoil I was feeling.
I clocked Zack sitting nonchalantly in one of the chairs, leafing through some magazine or the other. I think he really meant it when he said he would be there 24/7. He'd been at my side nonstop. The dude didn't seem to need the toilet, ever! Or anything else.
His promise to talk to Markus about a FaceTime call with Kas and Bella hadn't materialised yet, so I decided to ask. I really wanted to speak to them, mostly to make sure they wouldn't worry. Zack looked at me, but I couldn't work out his expression at all. That was unusual for me, so he must be hiding it from me. That wasn't good. It made me think he wasn't planning on asking Markus at all.
“You are going to ask him, aren't you?" I stared at him hard.
He was fidgeting now.
“It's very important to me and I won't be able to focus if this call wasn't to happen..." I laid it on thick.
“I don't think Markus will let you, but let's