The Orb of Kandra. Морган Райс

at the revelation.

      Mom continued. “We don’t know anything about your real parents, okay? We weren’t given any information about that.”

      Oliver felt his heart sink. He’d been hoping they would provide a piece of the puzzle of his identity. But they knew nothing.

      “Nothing?” he asked sadly. “Not even their names?”

      Dad stepped forward. “Not their names, not their ages, not their jobs. Adopted parents don’t get to know that stuff. It’s luck of the draw, you know! You could be the offspring of a criminal, for all we know. A lunatic.”

      Oliver glared at him. He was certain his parents were neither of those things, but Mr. Blue’s attitude was still horrible. “Why did you even adopt me in the first place?”

      “It was your mother,” Dad scoffed. “She wanted a second. I’ve no idea why.”

      He sank onto the couch beside Mom. Oliver stared at them, feeling like he’d been punched in the gut. “You never actually wanted me, did you? That’s why you treated me so awful.”

      “You should be grateful,” Dad muttered, not meeting his eye. “Most kids get lost in the system.”

      “Grateful?” Oliver said. “Grateful that you barely fed me? Never gave me any new clothes or toys? Grateful for a mattress in an alcove?”

      “We’re not the bad guys here,” Mom argued. “Your real parents abandoned you! You should take it out on them, not us.”

      Oliver listened without reaction. Whether his real parents had indeed abandoned him or not, he had no evidence either way. That was another mystery for another day. For now he would take Mom’s words with a grain of salt.

      “At least the truth’s finally out,” Oliver said.

      Chris’s mouth finally shut. “You mean to say that pipsqueak isn’t my brother after all?”

      “Chris!” Mom scolded him.

      “Don’t speak like that,” Dad added.

      Oliver just smirked. “Oh yes, Christopher John Blue. Since we’re on a truth mission. Your darling son—your real, biological one—is a bully. He’s bullied me my whole life, not to mention other kids at school.”

      “That’s not true!” Chris bellowed. “Don’t believe him! He’s not even your son. He’s… he’s nothing! No one! A nobody!”

      Mom and Dad looked at Chris with appalled expressions.

      Oliver just smirked. “I think you’ve revealed the truth all by yourself.”

      Everyone fell silent, deflated by the revelations. But Oliver wasn’t finished. Not quite yet. He paced back and forth, commanding the room and the attention of everyone in it.

      “Here’s what happens next,” he said as he marched. “You don’t want me. And I don’t want you either. I was never meant to be here. So I’m leaving. You will not look for me. You will not speak of me. From this day forward, it will be as if I never existed. As for my end of the bargain, I won’t go to the police and tell them about the years of torment, about sleeping in an alcove and having my food rationed. Do we have a deal?”

      He looked from one pair of blue eyes to the next. How silly, he thought now, that with him having brown eyes he’d never guessed before.

      “Do we have a deal?” he said again, more firmly.

      With great satisfaction, he saw they were all trembling. His mom nodded. Chris did too.

      “We have a deal,” Dad stammered.

      “Good. Now let me pack my things, and I’ll be out of your hair for good.”

      He could feel everyone’s eyes on him as he walked over to the alcove. He grabbed his suitcase, still filled with bits of his inventions, and put the inventors book inside it.

      Then he took the compass out of his pocket and placed it on top.

      Just as he was about to close the suitcase, he noticed the dials on the compass had moved. One was now pointing at a symbol that looked like a Bunsen burner. A second was hovering on the symbol of a single female figure. A third pointed at a graduation cap.

      Oliver put all the pieces together in his mind. Could it be that the compass was guiding him toward Ms. Belfry? The Bunsen burner could represent science, which she taught. The single female figure was self-explanatory. And the graduation cap could represent a teacher.

      It must be a sign, Oliver thought with excitement. The universe was guiding him.

      He closed his suitcase and turned to look at the Blues. They were all watching him in complete shock and silence. It was very satisfying to see the looks on their faces.

      But then Oliver noticed that Chris was squeezing his hands into fists. He knew well enough what that meant—Chris was about to charge.

      Oliver had only a split second to react. He used his powers to quickly tie Chris’s shoelaces together.

      Chris launched himself forward. He tripped over his knotted laces immediately and fell in a heap on the floor. He groaned.

      Mom let out a squeal. “His laces! Did you see his laces?”

      Dad went pale. “They… they tied themselves together.”

      From a heap on the floor, Chris glared up at Oliver. “You did that. Didn’t you? You’re a freak.”

      Oliver shrugged innocently. “I have no idea what you’re talking about.”

      Then he turned on his heel, suitcase in hand, and stormed out of the house. He slammed the door shut behind him.

      As he walked down the path, a smile spread across his lips.

      He’d never have to see the Blues again.

      CHAPTER FIVE

      Oliver stood outside Campbell Junior High. The playground was as noisy as ever, filled with kids running, shouting, and throwing balls like grenades.

      Oliver felt a knot of anguish in his stomach. It wasn’t that he was scared of the kids—or of crossing the playground filled with flying basketballs—it was because he would soon be seeing Ms. Belfry again.

      As far as his favorite teacher was concerned, he’d been sitting in her class just yesterday. But for Oliver, it felt like a lifetime ago. He’d been on a whole, tumultuous adventure back in time. It had changed him, matured him. He wondered if she’d notice the changes in him when they came face to face.

      He crossed the playground, ducking beneath the flying balls, then headed straight up the corridor to Ms. Belfry’s science class. It was empty, with no one inside. He’d hoped Ms. Belfry would be there early so he could talk to her. But soon, his classmates started to file in. There was no sign of Ms. Belfry yet, so Oliver had no choice but to take a seat. He went for one at the front beside the window.

      Oliver looked out at the playing fields, at all the kids playing different sports. He marveled at how odd it felt to pretend to be a normal student again, to be around normal people rather than seers with extraordinary powers.

      More kids entered the classroom. Amongst them was Samantha, the girl who’d mocked Oliver every time he’d answered one of Ms. Belfry’s questions. She took a seat at the back of the class. Then Paul came in. He was the one who’d thrown screwed up paper at the back of Oliver’s head.

      Seeing the kids that teased him again made Oliver feel uncomfortable. But the memories of them bullying him were already fading, the sting of their words holding much less power over him. Thanks to the School for Seers and the friends he’d made there, Oliver felt like those old wounds had healed. He’d moved on. His bullies could no longer hurt him.

      The class filled up and everyone laughed and chatted loudly until the moment Ms. Belfry hurried through the door. She looked flustered.

      “Sorry, I was running late.” She dumped her teaching materials onto the table. Amongst them was a shiny red apple. “Today