Nessa’s projection, Enya, and Jamison peeked in unison from the kitchen. Trevon had disconnected the call, and he rested a moment before standing and wandering into the hall.
“Mama,” Jamison whispered.
“Yes, J?” Enya mumbled as she shifted her attention to where Trevon had gone.
“Can I go visit Nessa?”
“The alien?” Enya asked.
“Uh-huh.”
“Go ahead. I don’t care. Just be careful. Don’t stay gone too long.”
Jamison scampered away from the kitchen, but he stopped long enough to wave goodbye to his mother. She winked at him and waved back.
Nessa watched the whole scene from her holding unit. Jamison would tell her everything when he arrived; she was positive. Enya was up to something. That much was obvious.
Jamison materialized and disabled the security cams, as usual. Nessa deactivated the energy shield, as usual.
“It’s been done,” he said.
“I can leave?” Nessa questioned; adrenaline surged through her body.
“No inpatient. Not yet, at least. You saw what happened. I have to talk to a psychologist.”
He gagged at the word psychologist.
“Your mom believed you when she saw the Akronian tech in your room,” Nessa recalled. “Can’t you just show your dad?”
Jamison wagged his head.
“He’ll just say it’s stuff I made at engineering camp,” he reminded her. “To be honest, he’s in denial, and maybe jealous.”
Nessa chewed on her thumbnail. Denial, yes. No doubt.
“Jealous?” She repeated.
Jamison’s eyes misted when he blurted out a response:
“I’ve gotten closer to you in a few days than to him in five years. I wish you could be my sister.”
“I wish you were my brother,” she confessed. “I’ve never had brothers or sisters. Most of my friends did, but not me.”
“Same here.”
Nessa touched his hand, and she said:
“I’ll find a way to get you home.”
“To Akron?”
She nodded with confidence.
“To Akron.”