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Authors: Ceri Clark
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velvet wrapped parcels from the hole laying them beside her. The man beside her reached out for them but she shook her head violently. Ignoring everything but the vibrations, she went straight to the bottom of the safe. She knew from the feel of the jewelry that the boxes beside her held only worthless costume fakes. The real diamonds were beneath.
Using her nails she scraped along the bottom. At the corner she located a small hole. Fitting her fingers through it she pulled. The bottom of the safe gave way to show another space beneath. Now the vibrations increased in intensity. They must have been encased in lead she thought. Grabbing a cream silk pouch she threw it at the men standing by her as if it burned her fingers.
“There they are!”
The tall man just laughed catching it.
“You won’t be so dismissive when you get some of the profits from this baby!” But Kiera was ashamed, she had promised never to use her talent for anything illegal. She never told her aunt about the jewelry thefts - or any of her family. It was between her, her father and that horrible man.
On their way out, she saw a dying orchid beside the door. For some reason she felt compelled to touch the failing plant. For a second she felt dizzy as pure energy leapt from her finger. Confused, she stared at it. It seemed to be a little healthier than it had before. She shrugged her shoulders. She must have imagined it.
Since that time, she had met that man countless times. She had learned to dread his approach, his gravelly voice. That first job appeared in the papers the following week. Her aunt read it aloud to her while her father was out. Kiera remembered that day clearly, when the paper reported that the orchid had miraculously recovered. The owners of the house thought it was strange the burglars would leave a healthy plant instead of their dead one. Her aunt had laughed at that. Why worry about a plant when they lost thousands of pounds in jewels?
Afterwards, Kiera had tried it again on some dying plants at the end of the camp. It took several tries but she found that she got stronger each time. Soon she was able to heal trees by a thought without even needing to touch them. From that point on every house she went to she made any plants she saw in the buildings healthy. The paper thought she replaced them but she knew better. It was the least she could do.
She hadn’t done badly out of the arrangement. It wasn’t as though any of those families were poor, Kiera reasoned as she tried to justify the memories to herself. They, no, she needed the money more. After each job, the man had given them some money. She would always hide away a third for herself. Her father wasn’t around when the men brought the payment, so he never knew what it was. She was sure the man with the scar knew she kept some back but he never told her father if he did.
Dragging herself away from her memories, Kiera made her decision - it had to be now. It was time to go. She had just turned fifteen and she was heartily sick of the life. She had already put some of the money in an account and she knew where to go for a passport.
Her ability to read minds had come and gone often over the years, but it had given her some useful information. She knew how to pick locks, where to fence money and most important of all where to go for that all-important passport.
She knew the system but she also knew where to go next. Her aunt had told her of some family in the UK she could stay with. She needed to go to an English-speaking country she reasoned, and England would be the easiest to get to. If she stayed in Ireland her father would be able to find her eventually. The traveler community was not that large.
Stuffing the passport in with a spare set of clothes, she took one more look at the room. She wouldn’t miss it - any of it. Not even her father. Her only remaining tie, her aunt, had died last year. She was finally free. Slinging the backpack over her shoulders, she made
Using her nails she scraped along the bottom. At the corner she located a small hole. Fitting her fingers through it she pulled. The bottom of the safe gave way to show another space beneath. Now the vibrations increased in intensity. They must have been encased in lead she thought. Grabbing a cream silk pouch she threw it at the men standing by her as if it burned her fingers.
“There they are!”
The tall man just laughed catching it.
“You won’t be so dismissive when you get some of the profits from this baby!” But Kiera was ashamed, she had promised never to use her talent for anything illegal. She never told her aunt about the jewelry thefts - or any of her family. It was between her, her father and that horrible man.
On their way out, she saw a dying orchid beside the door. For some reason she felt compelled to touch the failing plant. For a second she felt dizzy as pure energy leapt from her finger. Confused, she stared at it. It seemed to be a little healthier than it had before. She shrugged her shoulders. She must have imagined it.
Since that time, she had met that man countless times. She had learned to dread his approach, his gravelly voice. That first job appeared in the papers the following week. Her aunt read it aloud to her while her father was out. Kiera remembered that day clearly, when the paper reported that the orchid had miraculously recovered. The owners of the house thought it was strange the burglars would leave a healthy plant instead of their dead one. Her aunt had laughed at that. Why worry about a plant when they lost thousands of pounds in jewels?
Afterwards, Kiera had tried it again on some dying plants at the end of the camp. It took several tries but she found that she got stronger each time. Soon she was able to heal trees by a thought without even needing to touch them. From that point on every house she went to she made any plants she saw in the buildings healthy. The paper thought she replaced them but she knew better. It was the least she could do.
She hadn’t done badly out of the arrangement. It wasn’t as though any of those families were poor, Kiera reasoned as she tried to justify the memories to herself. They, no, she needed the money more. After each job, the man had given them some money. She would always hide away a third for herself. Her father wasn’t around when the men brought the payment, so he never knew what it was. She was sure the man with the scar knew she kept some back but he never told her father if he did.
Dragging herself away from her memories, Kiera made her decision - it had to be now. It was time to go. She had just turned fifteen and she was heartily sick of the life. She had already put some of the money in an account and she knew where to go for a passport.
Her ability to read minds had come and gone often over the years, but it had given her some useful information. She knew how to pick locks, where to fence money and most important of all where to go for that all-important passport.
She knew the system but she also knew where to go next. Her aunt had told her of some family in the UK she could stay with. She needed to go to an English-speaking country she reasoned, and England would be the easiest to get to. If she stayed in Ireland her father would be able to find her eventually. The traveler community was not that large.
Stuffing the passport in with a spare set of clothes, she took one more look at the room. She wouldn’t miss it - any of it. Not even her father. Her only remaining tie, her aunt, had died last year. She was finally free. Slinging the backpack over her shoulders, she made
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