Chapter 20
“Get away from me!” Jemmy screamed. “I don’t belong here! You can’t use me anymore.”
Pops had called us back to base because Jemmy had been demanding Drake’s presence.
Apparently, she had woken up from one of her frequent naps she had been taking and immediately went berserk when she realized she was alone.
Pops had been called in to calm her down, but it hadn’t worked.
With every second that passed she had grown increasingly agitated.
Eventually, she got so worked up that she had used her gift and “hooked” up to the buildings electrical system. We arrived back at the base in a complete blackout. The generators were running so only the emergency lighting was illuminating the majority of the common spaces.
“Jemmy, where do these thoughts of being used come from?” Dr. Wong asked in a calming tone.
Pops had tried to get Megan, Dawn, and Rachel to calm her down to no avail. Before hanging up he informed us that he was calling Dr. Wong to see if he could talk her off the ledge she had been standing on. He hoped that Dr. Wong could help her as he had done in the past.
Jemmy hesitated before replying. “I know I was being used.”
“By whom?” Dr. Wong asked.
Drake, Jace, Remy, Noah, and I decided to see if we could be of any help while Lincoln was watching the girls.
Troy had promised Kade and a few of the older teen boys to referee their sparring matches tonight.
It was an outlet where the boys and a few girls showed a vested interest in and he was more than willing to encourage them in their endeavors.
We walked into the room where our entrance was unnoticed.
I know I wasn’t the only one taking in our surroundings.
Jemmy was sitting in the corner with her knees drawn up to her chest and her arms wrapped protectively around them.
She appeared as if she had been crying her eyes were red-rimmed and her nose was red on the tip.
Dr. Wong was sitting in an armchair approximately ten feet away from her in a relaxed position.
Pops was standing by the door his arms crossed over his chest as he leaned back against the wall.
Jemmy sniffled and wiped her nose against her pants. “Everyone was lying to me.”
“Who is everyone and what were they lying about?” Dr. Wong inquired.
She looked really confused by the question. She opened and closed her mouth several times. Then she shook her head violently as if she was dispelling any unpleasant thoughts. She stuck her lip out petulantly before placing her head back on her knees.
Dr. Wong repeated his question, and she suddenly clamped her mouth shut and closed her eyes as if she could shut him out.
Jemmy was silent for several moments and I realized then that she had fallen asleep.
Alex surprised us by popping up off the ground.
From our angle from the doorway, I hadn’t even seen him sitting with his back against the bed facing Jemmy.
He looked sad and he had dark circles under his eyes as if he hadn’t been getting enough sleep.
The conversation we had earlier replayed in my head.
My brother had gotten good at learning how to block people’s thoughts.
It was only extreme emotions and turmoil that seemed to bypass his blocks. It had to get burdensome after a while.
His eyes widened when he saw us, and he was like a little ball of energy as he launched himself toward us.
Jace quickly intercepted and picked him up.
He patted his back as Alex placed his head on his shoulder.
I knew he had to be emotionally and mentally drained if he was seeking physical comfort.
He was one of the smallest kids in his class and hated drawing attention to his petite stature.
The only time he seemed to regress and seek physical comfort was when he was overtired or overstimulated.
Alex turned his head so he could look at Dr. Wong and Pops.
“It’s really weird in her head. I can hear Horatio and Alison telling her stuff like she’s not safe here.
That we only want to use her, and she’ll never be important or special here.
Tracey also tells her that if she stays with us, we’ll always be second or third best and will be stupid if she remains here.
There are also other voices telling her that she doesn’t need any of us and she’ll never reach her full po—” he paused as if the word was confusing to him.
“Por-ten-tial if she doesn’t stay with them. ”
Dr. Wong looked at Drake before saying. “Whatever they have implanted in her has had a major impact on her behavior. She’s struggling with her reality and what they have convinced her differently.
Think of it as a form of Stockholm Syndrome but worse.
The logical side of her brain is showing her the truth while the influence of the chip is making her doubt herself. ”
“Well let’s get this thing out of her then!” Neville’s voice startled us from behind.
I nearly jumped a foot and grasped my chest in shock. I scowled at him and barely refrained from punching him in ire. He skipped back as if he was afraid of me hitting him.
He made a tsking sound before reaching to the side and behind him pulling forward a petite slip of a girl of Asian descent.
She had an artsy look to her with purple cat-eye glasses and a matching streak of violet purple in her jet-black hair.
She had on a green, purple, and black flannel over a green crop top, cut off frayed black jean shorts, and black fishnet stockings paired with black combat boots.
There were very few adult females I could see eye to eye with, and she was one of them.
She blew a bubble with her bubble gum before popping it and saying. “I heard there’s a removal needed.”
“Aiko, this is Mr. Bell, Dr. Wong, Drake, Jace, Blake, Noah, Remy, and Alex. You’re patient, Jemmy, is over there in the corner. Everyone this is Aiko. The woman I was telling you about.” Neville introduced everyone.
Remy looked at her skeptically. “Have you ever done anything this intricate?”
I knew his uncertainty wasn’t based upon her looks or her sex, but more of concern over Jemmy. Afterall, this chip was so close to Jemmy’s brain stem that if she slipped slightly, it could cause irrevocable damages to her.
Aiko looked him up and down and smirked before she held up her tiny hands and said. “Don’t worry, big guy, I’ve done things like this a time or two.”
I knew I wasn’t the only one to raise a brow.
I didn’t know when or how she could have gained enough experience to call herself an expert.
Unfortunately, I didn’t think there were any other options.
It wasn’t like we could find an ungifted surgeon willing to do the surgery.
Believe me, we thought about it. We’ve even contemplating finding the best surgeon in the world and getting a consultation.
Then I would intervene and have him or her do the surgery before making them forget that they had done it.
Unfortunately, we felt it wasn’t ethical or right to do so.
“You guys are going to have to trust me,” Neville said. “I wouldn’t have found her if I didn’t trust her ability.”
We all nodded before Drake inquired. “How should we do this?”
“We’re going to have to make sure she’s numbed in the area I need to get through and sedated, so she doesn’t wake up in the middle of the procedure.” Aiko said in a no-nonsense tone.
“Why would we have to numb the area?” Noah asked.
Faster than we could blink Aiko reached her hand out and it disappeared into Noah’s side. He let out a sound of shock while I immediately felt defensive on his behalf. I went to intervene, but Noah held an arm up to stop me.
Aiko removed her hand and looked at him expectantly. He looked over at us and gave us a rueful look, rubbing his side. “It’s not painful but it’s—weird. It’s almost like I can still feel where she ‘touched’ me. I can see now why a numbing agent might be needed.”
Neville looked torn between humor and exasperation. “Next time warn a guy. You can’t just shove your hands in people without warning them.”
She shrugged. “Look. I’m here as a favor. I’m tired having to prove myself, when I never asked to be here.”
Noah appeared as if he was going to argue, but Pops was quick to speak up. “We appreciate your presence here. We didn’t mean any disrespect. It’s hard on us all. That’s my daughter and these are her brothers.”
Aiko seemed somewhat mollified. “Understand. I’m a mama bear when it comes to my little brother.
If it was my brother and I saw someone as young as me doing what I do, I might behave in the same way.
” She clapped her hands. “Speaking of my baby brother, let’s get the show on the road.
He has a field trip tomorrow and I’m one of the chaperones. ”
“I’ll get her prepped and we can perform your—surgery in a sterile environment.” Noah concluded.
I knew as we left the room, we were all going to be there to witness the procedure. Afterall, it wasn’t every day we witnessed a women put her hand in someone else to perform a surgery.
η
“Am I the only one that thinks this should have taken faster than it has?” Jaxson asked as he leaned his forehead against the observation window.
The observation room was located right above the OR or operating room.
It was at a vantage point to give us a clear view of what was occurring below.
Only a thin piece of glass separated us from Noah, Dr. Wyatt, Drake, and Aiko.
The viewing room was definitely built with comfort in mind.
There was a ledge you could sit on if you desired to but approximately four feet away from it were two couches that spanned the entire length of the room.
Behind those couches was another elevated platform where several comfortable armchairs were arranged.
So needless to say, to we could view it in comfort.