11 YEARS LATER - HONG KONG, CHINA

italics = thoughts Mercy is reading

The muggy morning air woke me up first; then the loudness of the city district struck my ears like it does every morning. It's odd that I could seem so relaxed in the situation I've been placed in, but I have been on the run for more than 10 years. Never having a steady home became regular for me and I never stayed in one place for too long; a couple months at the most. I worked odd jobs to get money to travel and never thought ahead of time so a watcher couldn't track my movements.

After a couple minutes of doing nothing, I got out of bed and started getting ready for the day like I would do. I took a quick cold shower, my building never having hot water, and then got dressed. I was pulling on my red sweatshirt when I caught a glimpse of something shining on my dresser. It was Scooter's collar with his license catching the sun that had sneaked in through the drapes.

Scooter died while we were on the run from Texas to Arizona when I was 16; he was getting old and all the moving around had finally gotten to him. I buried him under a big oak tree on the edge of New Mexico where I thought he would be happy, he always liked running around big trees cause he thought he was following another dog when he was just following himself. I smiled at that before grabbing the collar and stuffing it in my sweatshirt pocket and then heading out for the day.

Hong Kong was like any bustling city; loud and full of people. I locked the door to my apartment and then headed out; walking down the steps to the first floor. When walking down, I passed by a mother who was struggling with her groceries and her two kids who needed her attention right at that moment.

Gāisǐ de, wǒ kěyǐ mǎshàng yòng lìng yī tào wǔqì.
(Dammit, I could use another set of arms right now.)

"Nǐ xūyào bāngzhù ma?"I asked, walking up to the woman's side. She swung her head in my direction and sighed in relief before nodding her head. (Do you need any help?)

"Shì de. Xièxiè." She thanked, giving me her groceries to hold before picking up one of her kids and then finally getting her front door opened. Her other child ran into the apartment, and as soon as the first was put back on the ground he bolted into the home as well. I gave the woman her groceries back and gave a small wave before going on my way and pulling up my hood.

The city was awake and lively as I walked down the street, street venders selling fish and exotic fruits yelled at anyone who passed by and there were the couple of disputes that would be heard over the children crying. I had just turned a corner when I was rammed into and fell flat on my butt, the concrete scrapping my lower back and hitting my head. I felt a heavy weight on me, and opened my eyes to see a set of deep blue eyes looking back at me. This guy with short brown hair and scruff on his face was breathing heavy and trying to sit up from practically laying on me. "Ow." I said, finally speaking up.

"Sorry." He got up from his position and then helped me up, looking over his shoulder as I came up on my feet.

"Running from something?" I asked.

"More like someones." He mumbled before he looked back at me and then down to our hands that were still holding each other from when he pulled me up. I looked down too and quickly pulled back my hand, my face getting a bit warm.

"Sorry, I-I didn't-"

"No, it's alright." There were a bunch of male voices yelling something in Chinese, something about foreigner and money which made the guy standing before me go rigid. Damn. "I gotta go."

He booked it out of there like his life depended on it, a minute later 3 mean looking guys came bustling near me before looking around. One caught my eye and came up to me; his angry expression locking with my face. "Nín. Nǐ jiànguò yīgè báirén nánzǐ jīngguò zhèlǐ pǎo?"
(You. Have you seen a white man run through here?)
Deciding to play the role of the tourist, I pretended to not be able to know what he was saying.

"I'm so sorry. What did you say? I-I don't really speak Chinese." I said, scratching my head in fake confusion. The man and his friends looked more aggravated to talk any more to me, but continued to talk in English.

"Have you seen a man run this way? He's white and owes our boss a lot of money." He explained. I nodded my head that I understood, but then shook my head.

"No, sorry. I haven't seen him." I shrugged. One of the guys let out a shout of anger before going straight instead of turning the corner that blue eyes did. I sighed and was gonna go back to what I was doing when another voice spoke up, making me turn around.

"Thanks for saving his ass, Mercy."

Standing with a look of confidence and looking like a miniature Avril Levine was a small blonde girl. She had pink strips in her long hair and was dressed as a punk from the early 90's. "How do you know my name?" I asked, something not right creeping up my spine.

"Come on," She said, grabbing my hand and tugging me the way I just came and ignoring my question, "We have to go get Nick."

"Look, little girl. I think you're confused with someone else. I don't know anyone named Nick and I most certainly don't know you." I pulled away from her hold and turned back around.

"We don't have time for this." The girl said before running after me and stopping in front of me, blocking my way.

"Get out of the way."

"No, not until you come with me."

"I don't even know who you are!"

"Then read my mind." I froze up and locked eyes with this teenage girl, "Yeah, I know you're a Thinker. Well, since there is really only one of you, you're the Thinker."

"Who are you? Division?" I asked, my voice low and menacing. The girl rolled her eyes and gave me a stare that said, "Do I look like Division?"

"My name is Cassie, Cassie Holmes and I'm a Watcher." She said. I looked her up and down before asking.

"You're a Watcher? Kinda young, don't you think?"

"I'm 13 thank you very much. And I've been getting a lot of visions featuring you."

"Me?"

Cassie nodded her head and pulled out a notebook out of her bag with a crappy drawing on it, "I'm not the best artist, but... That's you, me, Nick, and $6 million dollars."

"What's that green thing?" I asked, pointing to the green stick she drew.

"Toothbrush. Now will you come with me? We have to get Nick." She asked, tucking her notebook away. I looked at her for a couple more seconds; she would have to be a watcher to know who I was and what I was. And she seemed pretty persistent on me going with her to find this Nick; whoever the hell that is. I guess it won't hurt just to pass her on to this guy before going back to my apartment.

"Fine. Fine, fine fine. I'll go with you."

"Great, follow me."