Max was so confused that she looked back and forth from Logan to Allan and Emily (whatever their names were...) and back again. "Ok, that explains everything..."
Logan laughed and turned to the other two. "Let me explain..."
Taking a sip of his coffee, he plunged in. "Greg probably doesn't remember this but I once took a class of his at the University.
Greg laughed, "No, I didn't know that."
Logan smiled. "Probably better that you didn't. Even in the Pre-Pulse days, Latin 101 was not exactly a priority. You see, Dr. Cosgrove here is a bit of a language expert. I many not have done well in the class but I did appreciate his gift. How many languages are you up to now, Greg...last count it was 9."
"I believe it's 11...been a little slow."
"When Eye's Only began, I contacted him, anonymously of course, to help me. Him and his wife were two of my best informants and research sources. Suddenly, I lost contact with them and then I heard that their restaurant had been bombed and I could find no record of them anywhere. I thought they were dead." He turned to Greg. "It was Rodriquez, wasn't it?"
Greg nodded. "I believe so. We had been getting more and more information on him and he found out somehow. One afternoon, we were both at the restaurant when a strange man came in. Amaliya took one look at him and knew we were in danger. So, we ran out the back and tried our best to disappear. If it hadn't been for her, we would have been in there."
"I'm sorry that I put your family in danger." Logan said to Allan.
"We knew what we were getting into when we joined the informant-net. It was of our own free will. It was a cause that we believed in...a cause we still believe in.'
Max decided to interrupt. She looked at Amaliya, "How did you know the man was dangerous?"
Amaliya looked at Logan, "What do you think?"
"She will understand."
Amaliya nodded. "That's what I thought." She turned to Max, "Like my daughter, I have some "different" abilities. Ever since I was a little girl, I've had this sense about people. If I was in the room with someone, I would begin to get feeling about them."
Max shifted nervously. Amaliya noticed and put her hand on Max's arm. "Don't worry. I just get a general sense. I don't read minds." She looked at Max knowingly. "You are not dangerous, at least not to us..."
Max settled back in her chair. What Amaliya said was true...so far. "So, how do you know these things?"
Logan let Amaliya drink her coffee. "That's where I came in. Amaliya didn't know much about her family history so they asked me to look into it for I found a few things...
"Like most "civilized" countries, Russia decided to experiment with different human studies. Their specialty was those on twins. They had a program called Bliznetzy Yableniye or the Phenomenon Twins in which they would recruit twins from highly intellectual families with promises of security, money, and family recognition. Lee and Nina Semoneva were enrolled in this program. Unfortunately, the studies were not as benign as they were presented. (Were they ever? Max thought.) It looked great to the parents...the children were well taken care of and all of their needs and the needs of the family were provided.
"What the parents didn't know was that the "doctors" were using different drugs and electronic stimuli in attempts to stimulate the frontal lobe in the hope of increasing intelligence and creating telepathic abilities."
"That's how Lee died," Amaliya said softly. "Nina never told me about any of this. She never spoke of her childhood much but she did mention Lee from time to time. He was her hero...her superman..." She trailed off and let Logan continue.
"It must have been too much for him. He had an aneurism and died. When that happened, the parents were outraged. They realized what the true intentions were of the program. The facility was mysteriously destroyed and non one knows what happened to the children."
"I know," Amaliya said, "because Nina was my mother."
****************
"I'm sorry. I know how terrible things like that can be people." Max said. She could almost picture the innocent children being led in to see the "doctors" who were supposed to be helping society.
Amaliya studied her face. "You do understand, don't you?"
"Yes I do." Max said. "So you're mother had abilities and passed them onto you?" She didn't want to discuss her past right now.
"No," Amaliya shook her head. "Apparently, whatever they were doing did not work as they had hoped. They kept increasing the dosage hoping it work out but it didn't appear to have any effect. I assume that's what cause Lee's aneurism and death." She paused for a minute and then continued. "It seems that some abilities laid dormant until passed on. When she had me, some of that was passed to me and I had my sixth sense."
Things were beginning to fall in place for Max. "Did Miranda have this sense?"
Amaliya smiled thinking about her daughter. "No, that's when I really started being curious. I had always thought that I was strange. My husband Frank was a brilliant musician and poet. We started noticing that Miranda could sing at a very early age. She had a clear and beautiful voice."
Max remembered the voice she had heard when Cassi sang herself to sleep...it must have been Miranda's. Her thoughts were interrupted by Amaliya, "She had the ability to pick up a song in seconds. What we didn't know about at first were the dreams. Randa had some as a child but I just assumed that they were stories. It was the one about Frank that made me realize..."
Greg reached for his wife as she choked up. "It's still hard for her to talk about it. She loved them both very much."
Max could almost feel that pain that Emily must have felt. She had suffered so much...
Emily cleared her throat and continued, "Randa woke up crying from her nap. When I tried to comfort her, she kept sobbing, "Daddy...Daddy..." She wouldn't tell me what she saw." Amaliya paused. "It was that afternoon that I found out Frank had been killed in a car accident. I didn't have to tell Randa. She already knew." Amaliya paused for what she had said to sink in before she continued. "As she grew older, she learned to work with the dreams. They would often foreshadow the future."
"She didn't have any dreams before the hospital incident?" Logan asked.
Allan shook his head. "Not that we know of. In fact, Cassi and I had visited her at the hospital that morning. She had joked that her dreams had been very mellow recently...a tall handsome stranger in one...but nothing that had seemed to foreshadow things to come."
"So, does Cassi have dreams too?" Max asked. "Is that why she woke up suddenly?"
"No." Amaliya said. "We still don't understand how Nina's with the program worked but whatever it was, it wasn't predictable. Instead of working with the test subjects, it manifested in the children of them but the characteristics have not been stable. Through birth it is passed on but it changes. Frank was creative and musical so Randa was musical and had "sensing" dreams and Cassi..." Amaliya looked at her daughter who had been sitting quietly, eating toast, and watching. "Well, she really took us by surprise. She has my ability to sense people but..."
"She also has my ability with language," Greg carried on her thought, "except she carries it even further. She is able to correctly mimic people's speech..."
"...and feel their secrets..." said Logan.
"...and copy their actions." Added Max.
Greg and Amaliya looked at each other, surprised. "We never thought that she would do it with anyone else." Allan said. "She has never spoken to anyone but Amaliya, myself, and Randa.
Logan looked at Cassi, "See you."
"Do not attempt to adjust your set. This is a streaming freedom bulletin. The cable hack will last exactly 60 seconds. It cannot be stopped and it is the only free voice left in the city..."
Amaliya looked at Logan. "I now understand why you wanted to have breakfast with us but," she said, turning to Max, "I don't understand why Cassi brought you home."
"Still don't understand how little sister's mind works." She looked at her watch. "We'll have to continue this chat some other time. If I'm not at work on time, I'll be hearing from Normal all day." With that, she grabbed her jacket and flew out the door leaving Amaliya and Greg staring at Logan.
"Give her time," he said. "Best to leave her story for another day..."
Out in the hall, Max leaned up against a wall. She was still trying to digest all that she had heard. Allan and Emily were not Allan and Emily but Greg and Amaliya. They had known Logan (or Eyes Only) longer than she did. More secret projects, people with special abilities, and a girl who wouldn't leave her alone. She didn't know if she dared tell these people about herself or not. It was better to leave than be tempted...
Logan laughed and turned to the other two. "Let me explain..."
Taking a sip of his coffee, he plunged in. "Greg probably doesn't remember this but I once took a class of his at the University.
Greg laughed, "No, I didn't know that."
Logan smiled. "Probably better that you didn't. Even in the Pre-Pulse days, Latin 101 was not exactly a priority. You see, Dr. Cosgrove here is a bit of a language expert. I many not have done well in the class but I did appreciate his gift. How many languages are you up to now, Greg...last count it was 9."
"I believe it's 11...been a little slow."
"When Eye's Only began, I contacted him, anonymously of course, to help me. Him and his wife were two of my best informants and research sources. Suddenly, I lost contact with them and then I heard that their restaurant had been bombed and I could find no record of them anywhere. I thought they were dead." He turned to Greg. "It was Rodriquez, wasn't it?"
Greg nodded. "I believe so. We had been getting more and more information on him and he found out somehow. One afternoon, we were both at the restaurant when a strange man came in. Amaliya took one look at him and knew we were in danger. So, we ran out the back and tried our best to disappear. If it hadn't been for her, we would have been in there."
"I'm sorry that I put your family in danger." Logan said to Allan.
"We knew what we were getting into when we joined the informant-net. It was of our own free will. It was a cause that we believed in...a cause we still believe in.'
Max decided to interrupt. She looked at Amaliya, "How did you know the man was dangerous?"
Amaliya looked at Logan, "What do you think?"
"She will understand."
Amaliya nodded. "That's what I thought." She turned to Max, "Like my daughter, I have some "different" abilities. Ever since I was a little girl, I've had this sense about people. If I was in the room with someone, I would begin to get feeling about them."
Max shifted nervously. Amaliya noticed and put her hand on Max's arm. "Don't worry. I just get a general sense. I don't read minds." She looked at Max knowingly. "You are not dangerous, at least not to us..."
Max settled back in her chair. What Amaliya said was true...so far. "So, how do you know these things?"
Logan let Amaliya drink her coffee. "That's where I came in. Amaliya didn't know much about her family history so they asked me to look into it for I found a few things...
"Like most "civilized" countries, Russia decided to experiment with different human studies. Their specialty was those on twins. They had a program called Bliznetzy Yableniye or the Phenomenon Twins in which they would recruit twins from highly intellectual families with promises of security, money, and family recognition. Lee and Nina Semoneva were enrolled in this program. Unfortunately, the studies were not as benign as they were presented. (Were they ever? Max thought.) It looked great to the parents...the children were well taken care of and all of their needs and the needs of the family were provided.
"What the parents didn't know was that the "doctors" were using different drugs and electronic stimuli in attempts to stimulate the frontal lobe in the hope of increasing intelligence and creating telepathic abilities."
"That's how Lee died," Amaliya said softly. "Nina never told me about any of this. She never spoke of her childhood much but she did mention Lee from time to time. He was her hero...her superman..." She trailed off and let Logan continue.
"It must have been too much for him. He had an aneurism and died. When that happened, the parents were outraged. They realized what the true intentions were of the program. The facility was mysteriously destroyed and non one knows what happened to the children."
"I know," Amaliya said, "because Nina was my mother."
****************
"I'm sorry. I know how terrible things like that can be people." Max said. She could almost picture the innocent children being led in to see the "doctors" who were supposed to be helping society.
Amaliya studied her face. "You do understand, don't you?"
"Yes I do." Max said. "So you're mother had abilities and passed them onto you?" She didn't want to discuss her past right now.
"No," Amaliya shook her head. "Apparently, whatever they were doing did not work as they had hoped. They kept increasing the dosage hoping it work out but it didn't appear to have any effect. I assume that's what cause Lee's aneurism and death." She paused for a minute and then continued. "It seems that some abilities laid dormant until passed on. When she had me, some of that was passed to me and I had my sixth sense."
Things were beginning to fall in place for Max. "Did Miranda have this sense?"
Amaliya smiled thinking about her daughter. "No, that's when I really started being curious. I had always thought that I was strange. My husband Frank was a brilliant musician and poet. We started noticing that Miranda could sing at a very early age. She had a clear and beautiful voice."
Max remembered the voice she had heard when Cassi sang herself to sleep...it must have been Miranda's. Her thoughts were interrupted by Amaliya, "She had the ability to pick up a song in seconds. What we didn't know about at first were the dreams. Randa had some as a child but I just assumed that they were stories. It was the one about Frank that made me realize..."
Greg reached for his wife as she choked up. "It's still hard for her to talk about it. She loved them both very much."
Max could almost feel that pain that Emily must have felt. She had suffered so much...
Emily cleared her throat and continued, "Randa woke up crying from her nap. When I tried to comfort her, she kept sobbing, "Daddy...Daddy..." She wouldn't tell me what she saw." Amaliya paused. "It was that afternoon that I found out Frank had been killed in a car accident. I didn't have to tell Randa. She already knew." Amaliya paused for what she had said to sink in before she continued. "As she grew older, she learned to work with the dreams. They would often foreshadow the future."
"She didn't have any dreams before the hospital incident?" Logan asked.
Allan shook his head. "Not that we know of. In fact, Cassi and I had visited her at the hospital that morning. She had joked that her dreams had been very mellow recently...a tall handsome stranger in one...but nothing that had seemed to foreshadow things to come."
"So, does Cassi have dreams too?" Max asked. "Is that why she woke up suddenly?"
"No." Amaliya said. "We still don't understand how Nina's with the program worked but whatever it was, it wasn't predictable. Instead of working with the test subjects, it manifested in the children of them but the characteristics have not been stable. Through birth it is passed on but it changes. Frank was creative and musical so Randa was musical and had "sensing" dreams and Cassi..." Amaliya looked at her daughter who had been sitting quietly, eating toast, and watching. "Well, she really took us by surprise. She has my ability to sense people but..."
"She also has my ability with language," Greg carried on her thought, "except she carries it even further. She is able to correctly mimic people's speech..."
"...and feel their secrets..." said Logan.
"...and copy their actions." Added Max.
Greg and Amaliya looked at each other, surprised. "We never thought that she would do it with anyone else." Allan said. "She has never spoken to anyone but Amaliya, myself, and Randa.
Logan looked at Cassi, "See you."
"Do not attempt to adjust your set. This is a streaming freedom bulletin. The cable hack will last exactly 60 seconds. It cannot be stopped and it is the only free voice left in the city..."
Amaliya looked at Logan. "I now understand why you wanted to have breakfast with us but," she said, turning to Max, "I don't understand why Cassi brought you home."
"Still don't understand how little sister's mind works." She looked at her watch. "We'll have to continue this chat some other time. If I'm not at work on time, I'll be hearing from Normal all day." With that, she grabbed her jacket and flew out the door leaving Amaliya and Greg staring at Logan.
"Give her time," he said. "Best to leave her story for another day..."
Out in the hall, Max leaned up against a wall. She was still trying to digest all that she had heard. Allan and Emily were not Allan and Emily but Greg and Amaliya. They had known Logan (or Eyes Only) longer than she did. More secret projects, people with special abilities, and a girl who wouldn't leave her alone. She didn't know if she dared tell these people about herself or not. It was better to leave than be tempted...
