Free Payback by Melinda Metz - Fingerprints - 7

on. He was doing a decent job of pretending that she hadn’t just rocked his world.
    “My mom left town when she was pregnant,” Yana continued. “After I was born, she handed me off to a friend.” Like some stu pid letter she wanted mailed, Yana thought. She cringed inside. It hadn’t been her mother’s fault-Erika had only been trying to protect her. “Long story short. The friend died, and I got reunited with dear old dad. Who didn’t even know he had a kid. We mo ved around a lot and ended up back in Atlanta, where the beautiful love story of Erika Keaton and David Savari had begun.”
    And I started trying to figure out how to get revenge, she thought. Her mother had left a letter for her, a letter Yana had gotten ahold of years before she was meant to see it. She’d learned everything-about the group her mom had been in, about how Eri ka worried her life was in danger and that’s why she needed Yana to have this letter just in case. Yana’d even read about the po wer she could possibly develop when she was older, the power she had developed. Once she’d read the letter, she devoured everything she could find about Erika Keaton. Unfortunately, she ended up being fed just what “they” would have wanted her to see if they’d known she was out there-al the clippings about Erika’s murder by Melissa Voight.
    Yana kicked the ottoman away and sat up straight. Her brain had gone there so many times since what almost happened with Rae in the cabin, and she couldn’t do it anymore.
    “When I was about twelve, I started getting my power,” she said. “I was an early bloomer.” Time to switch to lie. She hoped al the truth she’d blurted would make them swal ow the next part. “I’ve figured out a lot of what I can do. But I bet there’s more. I want to learn. And you’re the only ones who can teach me. That’s why I’m here.”
    If he buys it, I’m safe - for now, Yana thought. If he doesn’t, I could end up with a bullet in my brain. She locked eyes with Eg gar. What was it going to be?
    Rae stabbed a spinach leaf with her fork. It was humongous. There was no way she’d get it past her lips without a bunch of unat tractive lip gymnastics. But she couldn’t pul it off the fork and choose a smal er piece. That’d be so tacky. And Mandy and her fa mily seemed to take dinner seriously. They had candles and place mats-stuff Rae and her dad never bothered with. She glanced around the table from Mandy to Emma to Mr. Reese. None of them was looking at her. She risked it, jamming the leaf far into her mouth and then using her tongue to wrangle it al the way in. She gave a few hard chews, then tuned back in to the conversation.
    “Have you been either place, Rae?” Mr. Reese asked.
    “Um,” Rae mumbled, trying to finish chewing.
    “Italy or Alaska,” Mandy said, helping her out. “We’re trying to figure out which one we should go to over summer vacation.”
    “You two are trying to figure it out,” Emma said. “I’m not going.”
    “It’s a family vacation, Emma,” Mr. Reese told her.
    “I know that,” Emma answered. “But I’m eighteen. I’m past the age where I want to spend the summer with dad and little sis.”
    Great. She’s in a pissy mood already, and Mandy and I haven’t even gotten a chance to get her alone and talk to her about Zeke, Rae thought. She real y hadn’t thought that sitting Emma down for a chitchat was a good idea, anyway. But Mandy wanted to give it a shot so badly, and she was convinced having Rae there could help somehow. So how could Rae say no?
    “I’ve been to England,” Rae said, leaping into the conversation. “My dad loves England. He teaches medieval literature at the university. His big thing is Arthurian legends, so England is like heaven for him.” You can stop now, Rae told herself.
    “Your father’s a professor?” Mr. Reese asked.
    “Uh-huh,” Rae told him, not letting herself start to spew again.
    Mr. Reese looked over at Emma.