All Chapters of ECHOES OF THE PAST : Chapter 211 - Chapter 220

"By the blue car," Elara said, pointing. "He's been watching since we came outside. He's angry and scared and something else I don't know the word for." I followed her gesture to a blue sedan three rows over. A man stood beside it, middle aged with dark hair, wearing casual clothes that didn't quite fit right. He was looking in our direction with an intensity that made my skin crawl. Damian saw him too. "Get Elara to the car," he said quietly. "Lock the doors." "Damian," I started. "Now, Aria." I picked up Elara and moved quickly to our vehicle, unlocking it remotely and sliding her into her car seat. My hands shook slightly as I buckled her in. "It's okay, Mommy," Elara said. "Daddy's just checking." Through the window, I watched Damian approach the blue sedan. The man saw him coming and got into his car quickly. Damian broke into a run, but the sedan was already pulling out, tires squealing slightly as it accelerated toward the parking lot exit. Damian stood in the empty s

The email came on a Friday afternoon, carefully worded with the kind of professional courtesy that barely masked its real message. Miss Chen's name was on it, but I recognized the principal's voice in the phrasing."Dear Mr. and Mrs. Cole, We'd like to schedule a meeting to discuss Elara's educational needs and whether our current program is the best fit for her unique situation."I read it twice, then handed my phone to Damian. He scanned it quickly, his jaw tightening."They're kicking her out," he said flatly."They're suggesting alternatives," I corrected, though the distinction felt meaningless.The meeting was scheduled for Monday morning. We arranged for Elara to stay with Veena, not wanting her to overhear whatever was about to happen.Principal Morrison's office was decorated with cheerful posters about kindness and inclusion. The irony wasn't lost on me as we sat across from her and Miss Chen, both women wearing expressions of careful sympathy."Thank you for coming," Princ

One mother described sending her son to a "specialized boarding school for gifted youth" in Nevada. He'd been there two weeks when the school suddenly closed with no forwarding information. Her son was simply gone. Another parent wrote about a day program that offered ability training. Her daughter had attended for a month before the family received notice that the program was relocating to a "more appropriate facility." They never saw their daughter again. Police found no record of the program ever existing. The thread went on. Story after s of children disappearing after enrollment in programs that promised understanding and education for enhanced abilities. The final post in the thread was from a father whose username was marked as deleted. The text remained. "They promised to help. Professional staff, secure facility, curriculum designed specifically for empathic children. We were desperate. Our daughter was suffering, isolated, losing control of her abilities. They seem

I spent the rest of the morning trying to keep Elara distracted while my phone stayed silent. No calls from Damian. No updates from Guardian headquarters. Just the terrible awareness that somewhere in the city, a consciousness predator was hunting enhanced individuals. Elara was subdued, building towers with her blocks and knocking them down, over and over. The repetitive motion seemed to calm her, or at least keep her occupied enough that the emotions radiating from me didn't overwhelm her completely. When the doorbell rang at eleven, I nearly jumped out of my skin. "Don't answer it," Elara said immediately. "Sweetheart, it's probably just a delivery." "It's not a delivery. It's someone scared. Really, really scared." I checked the security camera feed on my phone. A man stood on our porch, mid thirties, wearing jeans and a worn jacket. He kept glancing over his shoulder, his body language screaming anxiety. Not a delivery driver. Not a threat I could immediately identify

After Marcus left, I spent an hour researching empathic healing while Elara napped on the couch, exhausted from her perception of Jamie's condition. The literature was sparse and mostly theoretical. Empathic healers were rare enough that most consciousness researchers had never encountered one directly. What little information existed was grim. Most empathic healers either learned control early or died young from accumulated transfers. There was no established methodology for teaching restraint to someone whose ability operated involuntarily. My phone rang. Marcus. "Dr. Cole, I'm sorry to bother you so soon, but Jamie's deteriorating. He's been absorbing injuries faster since I got home. I think talking about his condition triggered something. Made him more aware of the pain around him." "That's a common pattern with empathic abilities," I said. "Increased awareness can temporarily worsen symptoms before control improves." "He's asking to meet you. He says he can feel your