𝐄𝐂𝐇𝐎, the gifted [1]

chapter three

When Winona awoke the next morning, she immediately began getting ready. She figured that in this place, she should be up and ready for anything. After taking a quick shower and getting dressed, Winona walked back to the room that she was staying in.

She grabbed her backpack and shoved it under the bed. She didn't want to risk anyone stealing it or anything inside of it. When she was done, she timidly made her way out of the room. She slowly walked down the stairs of the bank and could see people bustling about again. It seemed as though everyone was always doing something.

Winona looked around the area for the only three people that she somewhat knew. She didn't spot any of them and she didn't want to go looking for them, out of fear of getting lost. "Hey!" A voice called. Winona walked forward and toward a room. A hand grabbed her shoulder and the girl spun around.

She came face to face with a woman with reddish hair. She wore a wide, yet kind, smile. Winona found it kind of creepy. "Hey," the woman repeated. "Oh, uh, hi," Winona said unsurely. "You're the new girl," the woman said. "I guess," Winona said. "I'm Sonya. But people here call me Dreamer," the woman, Sonya, introduced herself.

Winona refrained from laughing at the ridiculous nickname and forced a smile. "I'm Winona," the girl introduced. "Yeah, I know. We all do," Sonya replied with a light laugh. "Right. I'm sure I'm all over the news," Winona muttered. "Yeah," Sonya trailed off.

It was silent as neither woman knew what to say. "So, I can give you a tour of this place if you want. Just so you won't get lost or anything," Sonya said. "Yeah sure. That would be great," Winona replied. "Okay, follow me," Sonya said, her smile softening, which made Winona a little less uncomfortable. The two began walking about the bank, Sonya explaining the different areas as they went along.

"Do you know where John is?" Winona asked the woman next to her after a few minutes. "John?" Sonya asked. "Yeah, John. He's like the leader of this place right?" Winona said. "I guess you could say that. What do you want with him anyway?" Sonya responded. Winona didn't like the tone that Sonya's voice had taken. "He was supposed to give me a rundown on the rules of this place," she said.

"Right, of course. Well I could always do that," Sonya said. "Okay," Winona replied, shrugging her shoulders. "After the tour then?" Sonya questioned. "Sure," Winona agreed. Sonya nodded and continued showing Winona around. As they walked past a room, the sound of a news anchor could be heard. The mention of her name caused Winona to slow down and begin walking back toward the room.

"Oh that's kinda like a break room, I guess. We mainly only use the TV to watch the news and whenever kids come around here they watch cartoons. But this is more like a secondary news area. All of our monitoring equipment and things are elsewhere," Sonya explained, catching up to the girl after noticing her leave her side. Winona nodded slightly but wasn't fully listening to what Sonya was saying as she walked into the room. In it were Marcos, John, and Lorna who were all staring at the screen intensely.

"Police chased the suspect to an alleyway where they thought they had her. But then she seemingly disappeared into thin air. The search for Winona Martin is still underway. If you see her, please inform the police. And remember, she is considered armed and very dangerous," the male news anchor was saying.

A picture of Winona briefly flashed across the screen. Lorna grabbed the remote and turned the TV off. She turned to the door where Winona was stood and smirked. "I didn't know you could turn invisible too," Lorna said. Marcos and John both turned toward the door as well. "I can't," Winona said.

"So how did you make yourself 'disappear into thin air'?" She quoted, her voice almost teasing. "I just made the police see what I wanted them to see. Which was nothing," she answered. "Is that some kind of mind control thing or something?" Marcos asked. Winona shrugged, "Or something."