November 1983

017. The numbers in black ink flashed in and out of shadows as the bus passed beneath bridges. Running a finger over the tattoo, she could remember when she got it done: bright room, Martin Brenner standing with his arms crossed in the doorway before he strode over and held her down. She'd learned his name; demanded it after she woke up back in that room again. He'd said the number was a way to identify her and she couldn't help but wonder if she would be killed soon.

Brenner spent more time with her upon her return, but there was no comfort in his company – not at first. The injections, the tests, the training. It was like she was his favorite experiment.

A chill ran down Julie's spine. The coat she'd stolen wasn't enough to warm her when the chills came from within. At least she was warmer than she'd been when she wandered through the woods.

The events of the last six hours had shaken her. Where she found the strength to do what she'd done, she hadn't known. It was like she didn't know who she was anymore. That young naïve girl had been twisted into someone she couldn't even stand to look at.

Flirting with a man to buy her a bus ticket was easy enough, but she'd have to keep doing it each stop until she made it to Mississippi.

Home.

Her sister, Toni, was killed by these men; by this project. She had so many unanswered questions, but she'd rest easy in her own bed. It blew her mind that she'd escaped for the third time. What did people always say? Third time's the charm? But this time was different. This time it was mental manipulation; a long stretch of a plan that she felt guilty over now. Maybe the guilt would keep her up at night, but maybe time would heal those wounds too. She should have taken the car; dragged his body out of the driver's seat, took off. But instead she ran through the woods in the middle of the night once again, fearing the car would be traceable.

This time she had a plan: get normal looking clothes. Blend in. Avoid the police. Get a bus ticket. Get home. Let her destiny be in her own hands for once.

The bus wasn't helping her nerves; with every stranger that passed she worried they worked for Brenner – for whoever they were. But there was a gun in the pocket of her stolen jacket, she had on sexy stolen undergarments, and if she needed to seduce someone to get home – God damn it – she'd do it. Wouldn't be the first time…

•••

The seduction idea wasn't necessary this time, as it turned out. She'd run into some very kind people and hadn't had to use the gun once. Yet.

Upon stepping foot into Mississippi, she knew to thumb for a ride. A gentle woman in her 40s picked her up, asked her story. Julie spouted some lie about how she was a college student and her car died.

Only having a 'thank you' and a warm smile to give the woman, she got out of the car and planted her feet on her family's street for the first time in a year and ten months.

Julie didn't want to knock. It just wasn't normal not having a key to her own home. She did it anyway, holding her breath until someone opened up. Lightheaded, she grabbed onto the doorframe and stared eye-to-eye with her aunt Kathy.

"Julie?" the tears that followed were not expected, but Julie held her aunt in her arms and let her cry. "I'm so sorry."

Sorry?

So that was it then. Her parents were dead. She just knew in her gut, knew by her aunt's reaction, felt it under her skin.

"They're gone?" she asked as she closed her eyes, tears already falling.

She focused on the way Brenner worked with her to tap into the power she had and the memories flooded to her. She felt the energy transfer from Kathy through her fingertips and into her veins. Her mother and father – bloody – in the car, front end smashed, small fire starting. Sirens were heard, but she could tell they were already gone.

Gasping, she felt tearstains rushing down her cheeks. Aunt Kathy still clung to her but soon ushered her inside and locked the door.

"The accident was fifteen months ago," Kathy had apparently been counting. "Just an unfortunate thing, same as Toni."

She knew that couldn't be the truth. There were no coincidences in her life anymore. Fifteen months was how long she'd been in the lab since her last escape. The timelines between Toni's death and her parents matched up all too closely and Julie couldn't shake the feeling that this was no accident. There was no doubt in her mind; these people had killed her parents.

•••

The bad news kept coming and she felt like she was drowning in grief.

Aunt Kathy had bone cancer.

Grief stayed longer than she'd expected. Most days she didn't even get out of bed; just lay there, staring at the stucco ceiling, feeling how heavy everything felt. She'd break down every few hours – long sobs clawing their way out of her mouth, screaming into the pillow, gasping for breath.

Maybe she should get some help, she thought.

But there was still beauty in being free. On her best days, she sat on the front porch for every meal, enjoying whatever weather Mississippi had to offer that day. The breeze in her hair, the sunlight through the leaves of the tree in the front yard; it all felt surreal. How many weeks had she spent wishing for a sunset again? That windowless room was psychological torture. Julie never enjoyed nature as much as she did now.

And as the grief passed and returned in waves, she found ways to distract herself. Her childhood home was a mess because Aunt Kathy had inherited it and was in too much pain to clean.

For weeks she tidied up the house and went through old stuff. When she was feeling her best, she started cooking meals again, taking care of her aunt. But she was always moving – she had to keep her hands busy or she'd lose her nerve to steady the anger that the grief left over.

She could kill for her parents. It was a thought. Instead, she'd gotten a job at the nearest coffee shop because she was terrified of time with her thoughts; terrified of the things she could do.

•••

Time seemed to go so quick when she was busy every day. The days at the facility were so slow with her in that room or being worked on and trained. The first few months Julie was home, she went straight to and from work and only changed path to grocery shop.

Call it fear, maybe. But she couldn't bring herself to meet anyone new or talk to old friends. Who knew if they were spies. Who knew who worked for Brenner. Nothing at home felt safe anymore.

It was six months and three weeks before she took a seat on that barstool again. That bartender she was interested in a lifetime ago didn't work there anymore she figured and instead a beautiful blonde woman took his place.

It didn't matter. She wasn't interested in dating anymore. Her life had become mundane but she wasn't driven to change anything. The less that changed, the less she had to worry about anyone shady coming in to harm her. In a way, she found comfort in the expected.

And then Aunt Kathy's health worsened; her cancer had spread once again - this time to her lungs. The doctor didn't give her very long, what with the chemotherapy being too expensive.

"I can find a way to pay for it," Julie had demanded. She'd lost count of how many times they'd had that conversation.

And every time, her Aunt would calmly shake her head. "I've done my time here. You're all I've got to live for. Keep your money. Get out of this place."

•••

Six months was more than the doctors had expected Aunt Kathy to push through, but she'd insisted on sticking around as long as she could to make sure Julie was set up with money – she was stubborn, as were all women in her family. She'd set up selling the house to a family friend upon her death.

Those six months weren't the hardest part of Julie's life, but it still hurt to see her Aunt in so much pain. The day she came home from the coffee shop to find her unresponsive in her bed, she felt like the world was caving in once again. A similar feeling had washed over her sitting in the passenger seat next to that cop while her sister's car was smashed.

She had no one and the man who was willing to buy her family's home would be calling within the week.

•••

Jude Kalhan, 45, white, divorced, residing in Chicago now. The police report mentioned out-of-state plates in the car "accident" that had killed her parents.

With the house sold, Julie was out a home so a road trip to Chicago wasn't out of the question. Sure, hopping from hotel room to hotel room wasn't her ideal situation but with the uncertainty of her safety, she knew it was something she had to do. With her Aunt gone, she had nothing.

Brenner was pronounced dead she'd found out after calling around in Indiana a few weeks previously. With nothing to occupy her time, she suddenly got curious again – wanted to dig a little – give her life a purpose again.

The secretary in Hawkins Police Department had been very helpful and she was going to call back again more than likely. If Julie remembered correctly, her name was Flo and she'd seemed happy to speak to someone; said that before recently things had been slow.

However, now she had a mission and so she was Chicago-bound.

•••

Driving in Chicago was pretty crazy. Her goal was to get in, get information, and get out. Finding Jude's address was easy but that gun felt heavy in her pocket as she climbed stairs to his apartment. She wore a low-cut top, her goal to get him to let her in before killing him. Don't touch anything. Move quick.

When she got there, she used her shoe to kick the door and draw Jude's attention to her. It worked. She was staring at the face of her parent's killer.

"Hi," she squeaked out. "Could I use your phone?"

He paused, looking her over, but finally agreeing to let her in. The door closed behind her and he pointed to his phone on the wall. The television was on and he was drinking a beer, unaware that Julie had pulled a gun out of her jacket pocket.

"Were you paid to kill my parents?" she asked, unafraid.

Jude slowly stood, turning to her, smirking. "Thought you looked familiar. You look like your mother, Julie."

She pushed down the memories. "Did Brenner hire you?"

He laughed, nodding. "I knew this day would come. Just wait till Brenner finds out you're here."

"Brenner's dead."

Jude shrugged. "If you think so."

The room suddenly felt cold as that sentence sunk in.

The door opened and Julie stood still, breath caught in her throat. Was it an ambush? Was it Brenner?

The people that entered wore masks. The leader stepped forward at the sight of Julie with a gun aimed at Jude's head. She aimed her gun at Jude too and Julie stilled. She raised her mask; she was a teenager.

"And what do we have here?" she had an accent. The others went to raid Jude's apartment, digging around for his wallet, grabbing him around the neck and pulling him to his knees.

"Look, I'm only here for him," Julie stated.

"Well, so are we," the girl stepped closer and Julie moved her aim toward the girl. A flash of memories rushed through her and her eyes fell to the girl's wrist. In an instant she saw the numbers 008 tattooed there.

"Wait," she lowered her gun, revealed the tattoo on her wrist as well.

"Seventeen," the girl, Eight, said. "You're…part of all of this?"

"He killed my parents," Julie informed her. "And he says Brenner is still alive."

The girl was quiet for a minute, nodding slowly. "Then here," she motioned her group to bring the man closer. "Your turn."

Julie flinched even though she hadn't expected to. She wanted to be brave, ignore the fear in her gut, kill him without a second glance as he likely did when he crashed his car into her parents. But it took a few too many seconds and she almost lost her nerve. Then a flash of his memory – him walking away from that car wreck – filled her mind and she pulled that trigger, hearing a thud as his body hit the floor.

She glanced around the room before lowering the gun.

Eight told her that her name was Kali, explained that her powers allowed her to make people see things. Her mission had been to find everyone involved in the lab, the project, and 'give them what was coming to them.' Her team took care of the body and probably stole from him while they left the scene.

"And you were taken when you were 24?" Kali asked to which Julie nodded. "You said Brenner spent time with you often." Her fingers moved and Julie was distracted for a moment. "What did he do, I wonder?"

Glancing up, Julie saw him – Martin – standing a few feet away from her, walking slowly forward, hands in pockets.

"There's my little bird," he cooed, smile coming to his lips, bloodied mark on his forehead. "I have been looking for you. Why have you left me? I need you."

He was inches from her in a moment, pressing his mouth to hers without permission. Julie struggled against him, screaming as she pulled away, but his hands were on her again and it felt so real.

Just as soon as he appeared, he was gone and Kali was staring curiously. Julie bit her tongue, remembering the powers she said she had.

"So it's like that then," Kali hummed, nodding.

"It's not like I asked for it," Julie defended. "After they dragged me back, I was determined to get out for good. They killed my sister. So I complied when I could, made him think I was attracted to him; seduced him," a chill ran through her, admitting it aloud for the first time. She wanted to vomit. She bit her tongue.

"I met another one of us recently," Kali mumbled. "She and Brenner were closer than he and I. Not in the same way as you." She looked her up and down.

"Another…experiment?" Julie still didn't know what to call all this.

Kali nodded. "She chickened out of joining us. Couldn't kill. Took a bus home when things got tough," she rolled her eyes and Julie was reminded of her age.

"Any idea where she lived?'

Kali shrugged. "Didn't ask. She left in the middle of a shit storm. Said she was going home to her police officer."

Julie grabbed her keys, walking toward her car with her bags of clothes and possessions in the trunk. Kali followed behind, jogging closer.

"Well, it's been great. Thanks for distracting him I guess."

"You said you can give and get memories," Kali said. "You could be useful here. You could help us."

"Pass," Julie shook her head, getting in her car.

"Where are you going?"

"To find that lab. See that it's actually closed for good."

Kali sighed, crossing her arms. "You have no clue where it is, do you?"

"A vague idea," Julie snapped. "But it's in the paper and I'm sure I'll find someone who knows something."

Kali nodded. "Good luck." Julie closed the door, started the car, rolled down the window. "Hawkins," Kali informed her. "The lab was in Indiana."