39 | Immune
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• Amir •
As one?
Amir's eyebrows furrowed to learn about this. How did Luna know tethered pairs can come together if they've seen each other before?
"I know what you're wondering, Amir. I don't have to read your mind to understand the questions you're asking."
"I was wondering how you knew that about pairs and being immune."
Luna took a minute to respond. "Before being thrown onto this floor, Cami opened up to me about certain paired partners."
Holding her hand, Amir connected to her mind and reflected on a memory of hers with Cami.
"Some people who are tethered together are immune to the effects that happen between us," Cami explained as she and Luna sat on a bench outside, away from the cameras. "Some pairs may hold each other and never get sick."
"How do the pairs know if it works for them?"
"If two people who are paired meet physically and nothing happens for two minutes or ten minutes tops, then they'll be immune to our conflict. Maybe you and Amir will be immune."
"Maybe. How do you know about the exceptional ones?" Luna asked, shifting one leg over the other.
Cami glanced at the door, then met Luna's gaze. "Because my parents are Tethered Souls and were paired."
"So, Cami's parents are paired?" Amir asked, flabbergasted by this news. Luna nodded but then narrowed her eyes. "What is it?"
"A consequence happened for the couple by staying together."
"What was it?" Amir asked and proceeded to connect to Luna's memories.
"They made it, then," Luna said to Cami. She shook her head as a tear started rolling down her cheek. "What?"
"My parents lost their ability to keep their powers. They slowly lost their memories of being a Tethered Soul and having telepathy."
"That's so sad," Luna sympathized as she pulled Cami into a soft hug. "They have no idea they are different from everyone else?"
Cami shook her head and Luna sighed, gulping. Her parents were paired and didn't even know it.
Amir's eyes widen as he looked toward the ceiling, shock riding over his face. "The people who came to see her were her parents, right?" Luna nodded, pinching her lips into a thin line. He continued, "They don't know that she has the gene, nor did they see Faisal and me inside the visitor's lounge that day."
Luna shook her head. "They have no idea who she really is. Or who they used to be. Her mother was sixteen when she first met Cami's father. She was on a school trip to Africa, and they met on a safari. He is from Nigeria and her mother is from Iceland. For years, they stayed in touch and maintained a good friendship. They share the same birthday and the same birth year."
Amir let out a deep breath as Luna continued.
"On the couple's twenty-fifth birthday, Cami's mother, Carol, made contact with Cami's father, Naeem, while she was driving to her job in Reykjavík. He was in the middle of cooking something for his family in Lagos, and they talked that whole evening, wondering what was going on. They were shocked to be in two different places telepathically. He was the first to come into contact with someone else in his country who was a Tethered Soul, and the two slowly understood the nature of our abilities."
"How long was it before Cami was born their ability faltered?" Amir asked, moving over a little to give Luna more room.
"Two years after their ability became active, they were married and had Cami late that year. When she was four weeks old, their memories drifted away, as if they were in a traumatic situation. Cami's uncle, on her father's side, helped with her upbringing and changed the family's surname. That way, no one would become suspicious of why the parents started showing signs of dementia at a young age. It was also to keep our species hidden."
"Wow. I don't know what to say." Amir looked down and ran his fingers around the top of Luna's head. "So, if Cyrus and Gabi were together now, then their abilities and memories of being a Tethered Soul would fade, too?"
Luna nodded. "Yes. Neither of them would remember their life if they stayed in one environment together. They are immune, though. They met before their powers became active, like us."
"Like us," Amir repeated. "I'm still shocked that we met before and forgot it."
"It was those narcotics Chase passed to me."
"But Luna, I don't see how I wouldn't remember that moment. I know I wouldn't forget meeting a beautiful woman and a sweet baby girl like you two."
"You wouldn't if you were a regular man, but you are paired with me, Amir." Luna adjusted herself on the other side of him and looped an arm through his. "Consequences happen with paired souls, even if their powers don't activate. Chase helped me lose that special memory of our first meeting, unknowingly erasing yours in the process."
"Maybe it happened for a reason. I mean, would you want to remember someone approaching you and subtly trying to get to know you?"
Luna made a face.
"Wasn't that weird to you?"
"Nope, because you helped me warm up to you rather quickly, A. You're quite the charmer."
Amir smiled lovingly toward her face, then inched closer to her. "I'm glad you took my advice on keeping Sarah safe."
"I tried. Right after that day, I flew home to Texas with my parents. Neither of them spoke much about our trip to your country, probably because they knew I'd fall into a deep slumber again after losing Sam. I don't remember much in Pakistan, but I do remember the warm hospitality we received. That's something I'll never forget."
"I can't wait to bring you and Sarah back. We'll find somewhere to hide and stay low. How's that sound, Moon?"
"That sounds wonderful, Prince."
Amir chuckled. "I'm Prince now? How many nicknames are you going to have for me? Mr. Bronze? Should I be expecting you to call me that since Mr. Gray is taken?"
Luna brought her fingers around his waist and tickled him for a second, causing him to burst out laughing. "I'll call you Mr. Cocky if you don't stop, Mister."
"Okay. You win."
"Oh. 'A' is giving up, huh?"
"Not a chance. Come here," Amir whispered, bringing his lips to hers. "I love you, Moon."
"And I love you, Prince."
"Oh, now I gotta get used to my new name. You're such a bad girl."
"You haven't seen my naughty side yet. You won't until we marry."
Amir's eyebrows shot up. "Is that your way of hinting around that you want me to propose to you? Cause you know—"
"Don't even think about proposing to me in this facility. Unless it's under a beautiful moonlight and I can finally touch the ground."
Amir chuckled. "Don't worry. I'll get you and Cami out of here. That's why Faisal is in our motel room forty yards away. I've studied the blueprints and know all the exits. You'll be with Sarah, safe and sound, in no time."
"Wow," Luna uttered. "You do have it planned out."
"Of course, baby. I have to play volunteer longer than I want to and finish checking this place out. Then, we can make our move. I have a mission, and I plan to succeed."
When a beep from the door sounded, they jerked and Amir flung himself up quickly, straightening his clothes.
As he stood idly beside the counter, Nurse Smith strode in and took a glance at both of them, raising an eyebrow.
"Mr. Khan. Sergeant Decker is right outside the door, ready to take you downstairs. I will stay in here and finish monitoring Luna," she said, keeping her eye on him.
He walked away slowly, gazing back at Luna, with a soft smile playing on his lips. He couldn't wait until the next day when he could see her again.
It was eight in the evening when the sun descended and Amir drove quickly to his room at Crescent Motel.
As he parked his car near the snack machines, he smiled in his seat, reflecting on what it felt like to finally have his first kiss, and for that first kiss to be with the one woman he wanted to spend the rest of his life with.
But his reflection was short-lived when he hopped out of his rental car and locked it. A fiery rage struck his chest as he overheard a voice he was familiar with.
Chase.
He was nearby.
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