Matt & Michelle 1: The Fugitive Heir Read Online Free Page A

stomach.
    “Goodbye, Mom. Goodbye, Dad.” My ragged whisper blew across Michelle’s skin.
    I rolled my head and looked up at Michelle. Tear tracks coursed down her cheeks and her eyes still shone with sympathy. She smiled and wiped her cheeks.
    “Do you feel better, Matt?”
    I took stock and realized I did. “Yes. Thanks for being here for me and thanks for understanding.”
    “It’s okay, Matt. It’s hard to give up a cherished belief after so long.”
    I shook my head. “It’s not a belief, Michelle, and I sure as hell am not giving up on it. I do not simply believe my parents are alive. I know it like I know your eyes are blue.”
    “I don’t understand how, Matt.” Her eyes widened. “Unless there was some kind of attempt to ransom them that no one knows about. Is that it? Has someone been holding them for over seven years, waiting for you to inherit your parents’ fortune so you could pay the ransom?”
    “No, there’s never been any attempt to collect a ransom. I’ve known my parents still lived from the first moment we learned they had disappeared. I will know it for as long as they live.”
    Michelle shook her head slowly. “That doesn’t make any sense, Matt. How could you possibly know something like that?”
    For nearly thirteen years—up until their disappearance—my parents drilled into me that I must never tell anyone this secret. Not even Aunt Tess or Uncle Gunther knew. But I wanted Michelle to understand my certainty. After seven years, I wanted to share my secret with someone. After seven years, I wanted to break my silence. But that meant breaking my word to my parents.
    My indecision must have been obvious. Michelle took my head between her hands and turned it so our eyes met.
    “You can trust me, Matt. Whatever your secret is, I will keep it.” She flashed a reassuring smile. “You never guessed I was one of your bodyguards, so you know I can keep secrets.”
    I shut my eyes, afraid to watch Michelle’s face as she absorbed my words.
    “Michelle, I… I’m psychic.” Her body stiffened. “I’m not a very strong psychic. I can only sense close family members when they’re nearby and I can do some other little stuff. But I can always sense my parents.”
    There. I’d shared my secret. It was time to discover if I was an idiot or not.
    Seconds as long as hours passed in silence before Michelle spoke. “Can you read my thoughts?”
    “No, I’m not a telepath. I can sense a person’s emotions, but only if the emotions are strong and I’m touching the person. The more intimate the contact, the better my read is.” A memory rose, unbidden. “You know, I never doubted my parents’ love because I felt waves of it every time we hugged.”
    “Can you read me, Matt?”
    I opened my eyes. “Do you want me to try?”
    Michelle nodded so I put her hand against my cheek and held it there. I calmed my mind, pushing distracting images out of the way and concentrating on Michelle. The gang members faded away. Jonas faded away. Finally, even my agreement to postpone the search for my parents faded away. The feel of Michelle’s hand on my cheek possessed my conscious mind. My psychic power rose and read her strongest emotion.
    Fear .
    I rolled off the couch onto the floor, where I curled up in a ball of absolute misery. I’d lost the chance to search for my parents and terrified the girl I’d loved ever since I first met her.
    “Matt?” Michelle sounded concerned. Was she worried I’d picked up some deep secret or something?
    With a thump, Michelle dropped to the floor next to me. Her hands tried to take mine but I yanked them away.
    “What’s wrong, Matt? Why are you acting this way?”
    “Isn’t it obvious? I don’t want to inflict myself on you, Michelle.”
    “What are you talking about?”
    “Oh, come on! I told you I only read strong emotions. Did you think I wouldn’t pick up that emotion?”
    “ Which emotion, Matt?”
    “I know you’re scared of me,