Ismet Encounter

And, finally, it's here. This is a direct continuation of where I left off with Kismet Ch. 02. I apologize for the wait and you may need a little refresher on the characters because I took so long to submit this one. I hope it doesn't disappoint! Thanks for the patience.

And a big thanks to

E

for editing, although, I did add some things so any errors are totally my own.

**********

The biting scent of sautéing garlic rose, meeting Jude's nose and she smiled to herself.

I never thought I'd meet a woman I'd want to cook for,

she chuckled and dropped the raw egg into the pan,

even if it is just eggs.

She'd hoped Bruce would keep Natalie wandering around the park long enough to have breakfast cooked and a fresh pot of coffee brewed, although it was entering brunch territory rather than breakfast. Her time ran out when the front door opened and Bruce bounded into the kitchen. Jude flipped the omelets and turned, meeting Natalie's eyes. Her hair was disheveled, her face flushed and her eyes fearful as she shut the door and entered the living room, letting Bruce off his leash.

"What's wrong?" Natalie was in her arms before Jude finished her sentence. She trembled in Jude's embrace, and instead of furthering her line of questioning, Jude pressed her to her chest, a hand running up and down her back.

Natalie lifted her gaze to Jude, her eyes wide. "Jude. I don't know how to explain this, but there was this little boy. He ran into the road and a truck almost hit him. If I hadn't gone after him...," Natalie's voice cracked.

It only took Jude a moment to realize what she was saying, allowing herself to reach into Natalie's mind. The image was distorted, the truck pummeling toward her, a child's scream. She tightened her hold of Natalie, her own breath shaky as she imagined if her lover hadn't used her telekinesis to stop the truck.

She kissed the crown of Natalie's head. "Did anyone see it?"

Natalie nodded. What did this mean? If people witnessed what she'd done, what were the repercussions of her actions? Jude pulled back slightly, one of her arms turning the stove off and removing the pan from the hot burner.

"Let's sit," she offered, leading Natalie to the couch in the living room. When they both were seated, Jude took Natalie's hand and turned to her.

Natalie's eyes were still brimming with uncertainty. "There were so many people watching. I don't know what to do. Am I going to be arrested?"

"Arrested for what?"

"For being a freak," Natalie whispered.

Jude chuckled and wrapped her arms around her again. "Baby, you can't be arrested for being different," she kissed Natalie's head and hoped her words proved true. Jude sat up and met Natalie's eyes again. "Has anyone ever taken an interest in your abilities?"

Natalie's brows scrunched together. "No, not that I know of. Why?"

She sighed, wondering if it was the right time to tell her about the clinic and the experiments the twins underwent. When would it be a good time to delve into that? "When Roland and I were kids, we were sent to this clinic but I can't even call it that because the term insinuates it was for treatment."

"I'm guessing it wasn't." Natalie scooted closer and Jude chuckled at her words.

"No, it wasn't. When our dad figured out what we could do, he freaked and put us in this study. We were tested on for a couple years. They did brain mapping with EEGs and CAT scans but I couldn't tell you what they found out. It was scary, all of the equipment and the random tests. We weren't the only kids, either." Jude paused, chewing her lower lip at the onslaught of unpleasant memories. "After it was all over, whenever Roland and I would ask him, he'd completely ignore us."

Natalie clutches her hand. "Oh, Jude. That sounds horrible. I'm so sorry that happened to you." She kissed Jude's hand, her expression tender.

Jude shrugged as she shook off the images of the past. "I've had my time to heal. But, my point in telling you is there are people out there who deliberately search for people like us. I just don't want anything to happen to you." Jude held her gaze on Natalie, who in turn nodded at her words.

"Nothing will happen to me," Natalie refuted.

Jude smiled but her mind still burdened. "You're right, baby, because I won't let anything happen to you."

Natalie snuggled into Jude's side, resting her head on Jude's chest. "Let's watch something mindless on TV," Natalie digressed.

Jude held her tightly, fear welling inside of her mind as questions bounced around. "Okay." Leaning forward, Jude plucked the remote off the coffee table and pressed a button, the screen flickering to life. "What do you want to watch?" While she awaited Natalie's choice, her mind reeled with unanswered questions.

Who saw Natalie use her ability? Could she be in danger? What could happen to her?

Jude chewed the inside of her cheek, determined not to worry her lover.

"I don't care. How about some cartoons?" Natalie said with a sleepy giggle.

She found a cartoon and tossed the remote onto the arm of the couch. Glancing down at Natalie, Jude watched Natalie close her eyes, a long sigh escaping her parted lips. "Are you tired?"

Natalie nodded, eyes still closed as she hummed her response, "Mhm."

"Why don't you lay down?" Jude leaned against the back of the couch, indicating for Natalie to lay her head in her lap. Natalie obliged, shifting herself down the couch and easing her head down. Jude ran her fingers through Natalie's silky hair and felt a surge of unbridled affection course through her. God, she loved Natalie and couldn't allow anything to happen to her. But, she was afraid for her. Afraid of what her using her ability in front of people meant. Slowly as to not disturb her lover, she retrieved her phone from her pocket and sent a text to her twin, hoping Roland's apathetic outlook could hinder her own fear.

We need to talk. Can I come over?

Before she had a chance to put her phone down, Roland replied.

Fuck no. Bad time.

Jude wasn't surprised by the response but was taken aback by the lack of curiosity on Roland's part. The thought of simply showing up to Roland's place crossed her mind, as it had worked in the past. Jude slipped her arm out from behind Natalie, easing her down on the couch as she stood.

The slumbering woman curled her arms around a pillow and sighed once more, Jude's heart seizing with love at the image before her. During the testing at the clinic, Jude recalled the awful fatigue that enveloped her after being forced to use her telepathy repeatedly, each task harder than the last. Mindful of this, Jude wasn't sure how long Natalie would sleep and what variances there were between them due to the differences of their abilities.

She grabbed a throw blanket and gently covered her love before heading to the kitchen, downing a cup of coffee and throwing the omelets in a Rubbermaid container. The wonderful morning she had planned for Natalie was ruined by the fear that tightened her chest. The love she felt for Natalie amazed her every day, the thought of anything harming her too painful to consider. She hoped her sister would help her shake the ominous sensation crawling through her skin and sent her another text.

I'm coming over.

*****

Roland paced her living room, the scent of fresh coffee wafting from the kitchen. Camille had conveyed the true reason she sought Roland out in the club the night before, sparing no details with her explanation. Project Caydence, her imprisonment within the research lab, the planned resistance, and Dr. Thorn.

Fucking Dr. Thorn,

she thought vehemently. The woman who had her and her twin tormented as children continued performing her sick studies on other people. The very thought of being in that clinic again sent a chill over Roland's shoulders and she paused to look at Camille.

The other woman was seated on the edge of the couch, watching Roland with unmasked anticipation. Roland could sense she was waiting for an answer but wouldn't voice it. It was a lot to digest under initially false pretense, finding out their chance encounter was in fact staged with the helpful guidance of research and social media stalking. It was also unsettling to learn she and Jude were still on Dr. Thorn's radar. The resistance needed her help and Roland was reluctant to give any aid to them, especially given the magnitude of deceit.

She should be infuriated with Camille but found herself oddly endeared as she sat forward, her curvaceous body visible beneath the baggy tee and shorts Roland let her borrow in lieu of her dress. Given that the woman had been held against her will for an upwards of five weeks, Roland couldn't be mad at her. She turned away from Camille, pacing around the large, open space of the living room. It rattled her to the core to meet another person with abilities as those occurrences were few and far between. At least she'd known the last time she came across someone there was something extraordinary about them. The cute traveling nurse with the ugly green sweater who thought she could save everyone with her healing. Although they'd only spent two nights together, Roland recalled the image of her with nostalgia, her dirty blonde hair and warm smile. Roland crossed the room and peered out the window.

The sun was well above the skyline, the city below bustling in the mid morning rush of traffic. Roland took a pause to soak in the scenic display. Seldom did Roland take the time to admire the beauty of the view her home held, the glow of the sun cresting over the skyscrapers, light reflecting off the glass windows of the Space Needle and causing them to shimmer like gold. She sighed, closing her eyes and running her hand through her hair, feeling just as disoriented as her sister presumably felt when she delved into the school teacher's mind. Roland hadn't purposely searched Camille's mind since they were lying in bed together, the discovery of the true intent of her meeting Roland halting her from doing it again. She didn't want to know more, not after that revelation.

Roland was cognizant of the woman's honesty, but she perpetuated her feigned distrust. Without turning her back, Roland snapped, "So, now what? Am I supposed to just go along? You expect me to believe this bull shit?" She paused, looking at Camille. Her head was hung low, her gaze searching Roland with a silent plea.

"I'm sorry I wasn't truthful from the beginning, but you would've run from me. I didn't mean for things to go the way they did last night."

"You know what? Just get out." She turned from Camille, stepping away from the window and entering her kitchen, craving the caffeine. The chime of her phone in her pocket alerted her of a message. It was from Jude:

We need to talk. Can I come over?

Roland huffed and quickly typed her reply.

Fuck no. Bad time.

The last thing she needed was her sister getting involved in her business. She looked up to see Camille in the doorway of her kitchen. "I thought I told you to leave," Roland reiterated, snatching a coffee cup from the cabinet, the ceramic hitting the granite loudly. Roland didn't truly want her to leave. But, if she accepted the things Camille told her, she would have to acknowledge that what happened to her and Jude as children was still happening to other people. Dumping the coffee into her cup, Roland turned from Camille, shoving the carafe back and heading toward the living room.

"Roland, please. This is serious. If I could show you—,"

"Even if I did believe you, why should I get involved? What's my benefit if I let myself get all tangled up in this cluster fuck?" Roland's stare was icy and her question genuine.

Camille took a breath and steadied herself. "Because we need your help and your benefit would be that you're helping people like you, people whose lives are at stake because of their differences," she emphasized. Roland took a sip from her coffee, grimacing when she noted she's forgotten to put creamer in her cup in her haste to move away from Camille.

She slammed it down on the countertop, droplets of black liquid splattering the beige surface. "I'm not putting myself in danger to help a bunch of strangers. I'm sorry you think we're connected in some invisible camaraderie knit together with our fucked-up genome, but, none of that means shit to me," Roland shouted. She felt the impulse to pry, to see how her words affected Camille, but there was no need to. The pain was visible on Camille's face.

Camille crossed the kitchen, placing a tentative hand on Roland's arm. "Last night was beautiful, wasn't it? Our connection was authentic." She paused, picking at the loose seam on the tee shirt she wore. "I'm sorry for being dishonest about my intentions. I got caught up in, well, you," Camille murmured, searching Roland's face with her big hazel orbs.

Roland almost let her resolve slip, the softness in Camille's eyes cracking her façade. "Get out." She pointed to the front door. Camille opened her mouth, her lower lip trembling slightly before she conceded with a nod. Roland found it physically painful to watch Camille gather her dress and shoes on her way to the front door, clad in the shorts and shirt she lent her.

Why am I doing this? Why can't I just let myself help them?

Camille looked back at Roland as she stood by the front door. "The address where you can find me is on your counter if you change your mind. I really hope you do, Roland," she admitted, pulling the door open and closing it behind her as she slipped out. Roland's phone chimed again and she growled in frustration when she read another text from her twin.

*****

"Joseph, you're sure you want to do this?" his lawyer stressed. Joseph Costello looked up from his desk to stare at her. Her platinum hair was pulled back in a precise bun, the steel blue of her eyes softened by the solemnity of the meeting. Joseph nodded slowly.

His lawyer pinched the bridge of her nose, closing her eyes in evident frustration. "You realize there is essentially nothing I can do to help you with this case? I may be your 'big guns', but, even I can't protect you from such a self-incriminating declaration." Her usual steady, practiced voice was faltering and she opened her eyes to stare at him with concern.

He met her gaze and smiled warily. "Linda, I'm sure." Sighing, he stretched his long legs in front of him and let his head loll back momentarily. The decision had solidified itself in his head since his disconcerting meeting with Dr. Miranda Thorn and each day it cemented into a true plan. If he released the documents she wanted to the public, it could be incriminating enough to halt the project. But it came with a price, a heavy price on the participants who were employed by the project.

Linda shook her head, picking up the thick stack of papers once more. "There's no statute of limitations on things such as this. You'll be arrested, and you'll be in prison for quite some time. Do you understand?"

Joseph dipped his head in her direction to convey his comprehension and watched the lawyer shake her own before shifting through the papers again. The atrocities performed during the two-year duration of the project couldn't be undone but, he had done what was necessary to prevent further trauma from proceeding.

Linda cleared her throat, capturing Joseph's attention once more. "The three casualties. The parents didn't seek justice?"

Joseph shrugged and shook his head. "They signed non-disclosure agreements prior to their children being accepted within the project. They couldn't seek legal advice nor press charges. There was no fault addressed in their deaths."

He remembered the parents and guardians of the three children in question. The deaths occurred over the course of the study and his ignominy was still evident years later. The mother of the one deceased child had ended her life, drowned in her own guilt for subjecting her child to such human rights travesties. One of the children, hardly six years old with the uncanny ability to move objects with a thought, had died during a hazardous procedure. Miranda believed she could force the young girl to use her abilities with a synthetic serum. The serum was Miranda's ultimate goal; a serum that would enable an average individual to have such incredible power.

The hypothesis was reportedly ignited by the serum they developed to increase the strength of the abilities, their hope of allowing non-born individuals achieve aberration or genetic mutation. The serum caused the child to go into full cardiac arrest and they were unable to revive her. Miranda had taken on a sense of defeat after the death of the child, not so much due to the end result, but because of the implications of losing such a valuable subject.

"Do any of the others know what you're planning?" The lawyer shifted in her seat, watching Joseph. He hadn't told anyone for fear of retaliation. Miranda may have wanted the documents but she'd silence an admission by any means necessary. Unless it was already too late.

"No, I haven't, and I don't plan any such disclosure," he insisted. The parents weren't given any disclosure as to what might happen to their children when they subjected them to the project, he wouldn't give the rest of the team any warning before he advanced. And his own children. He could hardly speak to them without becoming overwhelmed by the iniquity of his actions. A father allowing his children to be tested as if they were common laboratory rats, disposable creatures. Although he wanted to blindside his past colleagues, he planned on disclosing the information to Miranda after he released the documents to the major media and the FBI. He cleared his throat. "The sooner this is over, the better."

*****

Jude burst through Roland's door without knocking, finding her twin sitting on the kitchen counter. Immediately, she knew something wasn't right. Roland's face was one of deep contemplation and her presence held an eerie foreboding. "What the hell are you doing here, Jude? I told you not now," she snapped without bringing her attention to her twin. She was staring at a small slip of paper in her hands.

Jude took a deep breath, determined not to allow her sister's usual callous attitude distract her. "I told you Natalie's like us, right? Only, it's different."

Roland scoffed. "I remember. Why do I care if your girlfriend is 'special?'"

Her tone of voice when she said the word special was not lost on Jude. "Could you drop the bull shit for one minute, Roland? This is fucking serious."

Roland lifted her gaze to Jude, her brows drawn together. "What happened?"

Jude ran her fingers through her hair, steadying herself on the edge of the counter with her other hand. "She was taking her dog for a walk this morning. Apparently, this little kid ran into the road like an idiot and she saved the kid," Jude explained, trying to recall in detail what Natalie had told her, but found she couldn't concentrate.

Roland's eyebrow lifted in skepticism. "Okay. She saved some kid. How does that make her special?"

"A semi was coming toward them, and the brakes locked. She stopped it with her mind, in broad daylight, with people all around her." Jude watched the effect of her words on Roland's face.

Her twin's eyes widened, and she jumped down from the counter, rounding the island. "Shit," she spat, and she began to pace. Jude was glad her sister was finally understanding but was perplexed by her reaction. Roland walked out of the kitchen, wandering around the living room, still staring at the piece of paper in her hands. She was muttering something Jude couldn't discern, shaking her head and cursing.