Out of the Flames

Chapter 1. A New Identity

OUT OF THE FLAMES by Jina Mack

Chapter 1.

May 7, 2012.

"Tell me who you are now." Karen said gently. She was my handler. She was my protector. She was in charge of keeping me hidden and therefore alive.

"I am no longer the girl I used to be." I took one last look at the familiar reflection staring back at me before letting my eyes flutter closed. "I am Christine Marie Sterling not Julia Rae Kirk. I am 16 years old not 15, I was born on May 20, 1996. I am a ballet dancer not a rhythmic gymnast. I moved to Saskatoon from Sacramento not Kansas City. I hate having my dark brown hair shorter than my shoulders. I have blue eyes and a slightly pointed nose. I hate bananas, sugar-coated candies, science fiction novels and being called Christy or Christa. I love gingerale, diagonal stripes and anything purple. I am poised, graceful and independent. I love spontaneity. I have a mom, a dad, a brother named Jamie and a sister named Marisa. I have never been to Kansas, I never lived there and I definitely did not witness the execution of my parents preformed by the Russian Mob." I opened my eyes and looked at my reflection in the mirror. It was exactly as I had just described. My blonde hair was gone and replaced with long, dark brown hair that reached just about to my elbows. I now had bright blue eyes and to my surprise I had full red lips. The change was drastic and it fulfilled its purpose perfectly. The only thing that remained the same was the thin white line encircling my pupil. It was the mark of the Elite and no matter how hard I tried, I couldn't get rid of it.

But my point was that, if I could barely recognize myself, how would the Russian Mob?

"That is incredible, do you mind me asking how you do that?" Karen asked.

"My grandparents were apparently part of a big scandal in the US in 2017. Stuff happened." I shrugged my shoulders and walked away leaving Karen confused and rather unbelieving.

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August 28, 2012.

I smiled widely as I drove down the highway all by myself. I had gotten my drivers license two days ago and now I was free-ish. I let my thoughts drift to my parents. My real parents. My dead parents. I thought about the last words my dad ever said freely to me.

"Use your gift everyday, it's a muscle not a trick, but don't let anyone know what you can do." He had been telling me to practice using my telekinesis, an ability I inherited from him. A characteristic of all Elites. I absent-mindedly lifted all seven coins in my cup holder into the air. I practiced holding them still and spinning only one. I got bored of that and watched them float around in a little dance.

"Don't let anyone know what you can do." My father's words rang in my head.

So far I had only let them down once. I told Karen half of what I could do, I had told her that I was a shapeshifter, but it was her job to protect me and I knew that I had no other choice than to trust her. I had settled in with a new family, but it was still a bit weird. It was the safest place for me to be and it made them safer too. The mob was looking for me specifically and for a family of four, not for a family of five. Marisa and I had gotten quite close, but nothing would bring back my real parents, mainly my dad, who knew exactly what I was going through. He had been teaching me all the fine points of my gifts, how fast I could heal, how to change my image faster, and how to better control objects with my telekinesis. Now he was gone and I had to learn by myself.

As a tear rolled down my cheek I abruptly cut off my train of thoughts. Christine would not be crying. She had never lost anyone. She had no reason to cry. I have no reason to cry. I am happy because I have my driver's license.