Access Denied

18. 1800 hours

Clothes were strung across Genevieve's bed as Jackson rushed to stuff them into an overnight back, only he wasn't packing like it was just for a night. She hadn't seen much of Jackson that week—heck, she hadn't seen much of Jackson at all since she turned eighteen.

But then again, she guessed he wasn't the only one to blame. Genevieve had gotten involved with the wrong crowd just as much as he had. She didn't know who Jackson was working with, but she knew they were bad people.

"What are you doing, Jackson?" she asked, following him around the room as he rushed around gathering her things.

Jackson didn't answer her. Nobody in the Singh household seemed to answer her anymore. She followed him around the room, trying to get him to talk to her. It was the summer after she graduated high school. She was going to Weyers Cave for college in fall to study Information Science.

Genevieve never thought she would go to college—even after the Singhs adopted her. She always believed that she would be in jail by the time. But she had started therapy for Kleptomania and things were finally stable in her life.

Though she knew by Jackson's rushed packing, her life was about to be uprooted once again.

She yanked her brother's arm, "Jackson, what are you—"

"You need to leave, Genevieve." He didn't call me Cesco, she thought to herself. Something was wrong. "Something is going to happen—happen to me—and when it does; you need to be far gone."

Her eyes narrowed, "Don't tell me you blew out Mr. Farrow's power again," she teased, a poor attempt at a joke. "Ishaan's mom had a lot of trouble trying to calm him down the last time you did that."

Her tease must have struck a note in Jackson because then he turned around and gripped her shoulders, his fingers digging into her skin. "I am not kidding, Genevieve, this is serious. The people you've been talking to are not good people—trust me, I know," his hands were gripping her tighter and any trace of a smile Genevieve had, was gone. "If—no, when—when they find out you're my sister, they're going to hunt you. And that won't happen to you. Not while I'm still alive."

"Who's going to hunt me?" she asked him. "Who-who are they supposed to be and why would they come after me or you?"

"I did something Genevieve," he shut his eyes tightly, trying to forget something, but he couldn't. Genevieve didn't think he could ever forget what he did. "I did something and I can't tell you because if I do, they'll only want you more. And that's why you need to leave."

"Even if what you're saying is all true, I can't just get up and leave," she told him. Jackson started shaking his head to himself like all big brothers did when they thought their little sisters were being unreasonable. "I have college in September. My Kleptomania is getting under control and Mrs. Singh! I can't just leave her alone."

His hands left her shoulders and landed on her cheeks, forcing her to look at him. "You don't worry about Mrs. Singh, she'll be safe. I made sure of it. You only worry about yourself and where you're going to go and how you're going to live," when she started shaking her head at him, he started nodding almost like he was trying to get her to follow his lead.

"And you're going to have to learn how to be alone—I can't be with you, not anymore. If they so much so see me with you—or anyone for that matter—they're going to put a target on your back." He swiped a tear with his thumb. "I can't be the reason something happened to you."

Jackson cried easy. He never bothered to hide emotions, but he was right now. Genevieve didn't know why she hadn't noticed before, but her brother looked exhausted. Hollow under his eyes, messy hair, chipped nails—Jackson was restless.