AUGUST 26, 2007
NOT SO BLIND ANYMORE

She's back. Isabelle has returned to Promise City. I feel this incredible sense of relief. These last few weeks were pretty awful, not knowing where Isabelle was or if something horrible had happened to her. I have to confess I was really worried that she'd been arrested by NTAC and locked away in some remote government gulag with her father.

Even after Cassie assured me that Isabelle was okay and that her disappearance was all part of some larger plan, I still feared the worst. After all, I was responsible for delivering her right into my father's hands when she was on the run with Richard. And then not hearing a word from either my dad or Isabelle afterwards gave me a few sleepless nights. But now that she's back here, safe and sound, I realize just how much I really missed her. And how much I wasn't myself when she was gone. She's become an important part of my life, and I don't want to lose her again.

When Isabelle ran up to me in Promise City and we kissed, I felt happy and alive. I could tell she felt the same way, too. It wasn't just a kiss between two friends relieved to see each other. It was more than that. I guess I've been so preoccupied with the movement and Promise City that I hadn't realized how deeply I actually cared about her. Needless to say, I'm not so blind anymore.

The world is changing so fast. Faster than anyone could imagine. A year ago Isabelle was the sworn enemy of Jordan Collier. She was intent on destroying the 4400. She even put Shawn in a coma. But then she lost her abilities. This allowed her the chance to find herself. To change her life. To become a human being capable of love and compassion. To be the real Isabelle Tyler.

She hasn't said much about what happened to her while she was missing, but she was hiding out somewhere. Probably all alone. When she felt it was safe, she came back to us. It just shows how strong she's become. And I couldn't be more proud of her.

I wish I could say the same about my dad. When he came to Promise City the other day to question Jordan about the Ubient computer virus, I got this weird vibe from him. I was watching him interrogate Jordan. It was like there was something different behind his eyes. I mean I know my dad and I have had our differences – big differences, especially when it comes to promicin – but I could always feel his love. This time I felt an iciness coming from him. A coldness and hostility I've never felt before, even during our worst moments. Maybe the stress of his job is finally getting to him. Or maybe he's just realizing that promicin and Promise City are here to stay. That NTAC is fighting a losing battle.

Still, I thought the tide was turning. I thought he was starting to change. After he saved me from NTAC's clutches at that farmhouse where Richard was holding Isabelle, I was hoping things would be better between us. I guess I was wrong.

Just like I was wrong about Shawn. In the back of my mind, I always thought he'd come to his senses and rejoin the movement. But that doesn't seem possible now. Doesn't he realize that by telling the public not to take promicin he's not helping people but creating a more dangerous world? A segregated world of positives and negatives, which will result in disaster. This so-called "middle road" he's been trying to walk ever since Senator Lenhoff convinced him to run for Seattle City Council is a losing proposition. Who would've thought that my own cousin would turn out to be an enemy?

Cassie was right. I had to take action and stop Shawn from doing any more harm to the movement. And that meant preventing Kevin Burkhoff from perfecting his promicin compatibility test. Shawn knows that we're holding Burkhoff here. He calls us kidnappers. But we're only trying to protect the movement, nothing more.

In time, Dr. Burkhoff will come around. He'll see all the amazing things that Jordan is doing in Promise City and realize it's for the best. For humanity. For the future. After all, he's the father of promicin. He belongs here.