Read The Prisoner of Cell 25 for Free Online Page A

can only see it in the dark and if you look closely.”
    “I glow, too,” I said. Hearing that she had the same glow made me feel good—like I wasn’t so different. Or alone.
    “That summer I was playing wizard with some friends and I cast a spell, only they fell to the ground and started to cry. At first I thought they were just pretending. But they weren’t. They couldn’t remember what they were doing.”
    “That’s why Poulsen couldn’t remember what he was doing,” I said.
    She smiled. “Yeah. It comes in handy sometimes.”
    “Does it hurt the person you reboot?”
    She seemed embarrassed. “I don’t know. It’s not like I do it all the time. Want me to do it to you?”
    “No. Do you want me to shock you?”
    “No.” She looked at me seriously. “You know, Michael, my parents don’t even know about this. Do you have any idea how good it feels to finally tell someone?”
    I nodded. “Yes.”
    She smiled. “Yeah, I guess you would.” She lay back into the cushion. “So your parents know?”
    “My mother does. My father passed away when I was eight.”
    “I’m sorry.” Her expression grew more serious. “So what does your mother think of it?”
    “I think it scares her. If she knew I was talking to you she’d be really upset.”
    “She won’t hear it from me,” Taylor said. “I wish I could tell my parents. I’ve tried a few times, but whenever I ask to talk to them they get nervous, like I’m going to tell them I’ve done something wrong. I guess I’m just afraid of how they’ll react.”
    “You should tell them,” I said.
    “I know. Someday I will.”
    Taylor leaned forward and said in a softer but more excited tone, “There’s something else I can do. Want to see it?”
    “Sure.”
    She patted the sofa cushion next to her. “Come closer.”
    I scooted closer until our bodies nearly touched. I started gulping but stopped myself. “This isn’t going to hurt, right?”
    “No.” She leaned toward me until we were touching. “Now think of a number between one and a million.”
    “One and a million? Okay.” I thought of the last four digits of my phone number.
    “Just keep thinking of the number.” She reached over and took my hand. Suddenly a big smile came across her face. “Think of the number, silly, not me.”
    “What, you’re reading my mind?” I asked jokingly. It wouldn’t take a mind reader to know what I was thinking—the most beautiful girl at school was holding my hand. I focused on my number again.
    “Three thousand, nine hundred and eight-nine,” she said.
    I looked at her in astonishment. “How did you do that?”
    “I don’t know. But I’m pretty sure that it’s part of the same rebooting thing. I mean, it’s all about electricity, right? Our thoughts are just electricity firing, so when I touch you, your thoughts show up in my brain as well—same projector, different screen.”
    Her explanation made sense. “So you can really read minds?”
    “Yes, but not without touching. If I were to put my forehead against yours I could see even better.”
    I wouldn’t mind that , I thought, forgetting that we were still holding hands. A big smile came across her face. I blushed and let go of her hand. “So all you need to do is touch someone?”
    She nodded. “I’ve even been able to read people’s minds if they’re touching metal—like the way you shocked Cody.” She leaned back again. “So what do we do now?”
    “First, we need to promise never to reveal each other’s power.”
    “We already did that,” she said.
    “Right. Second, I think we need to stick together.”
    She looked at me with a funny expression. I’m glad she wasn’t touching me. After a moment she said. “That’s a good idea. We should start a club.”
    “A club? With just the two of us?”
    “Unless you know someone else like us.”
    “Ostin should be in our club. He could come in handy.”
    “Who’s Ostin?”
    “He’s my friend. You