Neither the core characters nor the viewers nor Piper herself know who Piper is on Emergence, but it's not hard to see that she's special. Not only does she seem to possess supernatural powers, but she also seems to be wanted by a mysterious organization or group of people. Some of them tried to kidnap Piper in the Emergence premiere episode, but they were unsuccessful. Still, it's unlikely that they will stop trying.
Piper was found by police chief Jo Evans at the site of a mysterious plane crash. Jo took Piper to the hospital where members of the NTSB (National Transportation Safety Board) showed up demanding to see her. Only they weren't actually from the NTSB. They were impersonating NTSB officers at the initial crash site (probably looking for Piper) and, when they didn't find her there, they went to the hospital. Piper heard the commotion and ran away before the fake agents could get her. She hid out in Jo's police car and eventually went home with Jo.
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But that temporary setback didn't stop the people who were after Piper. Two people going by the names Freddie and Caitlin Martin then showed up at the police station claiming to be Piper's parents who had lost her during a camping trip. Jo became suspicious of them when they didn't have any photos of their supposed daughter on their phone. She ran their fingerprints, but the two people disappeared before she could get any other information from them. The prints eventually turned up nothing, because they weren't in the database.
Jo gathered up Piper and her family and took them to a remote location to stay safe, but it was hardly any time before Freddie and Caitlin tracked them down. They managed to kidnap Piper and drive away with her while Jo was hot on their tails. However, as Piper demonstrated a few times throughout the episode, she can seemingly move objects like metal and water — especially when she's scared. Being kidnapped must have been terrifying, so Piper either consciously or unconsciously caused the car to crash. She was completely unharmed, but her kidnappers were killed.
It's still unclear why Piper is being stalked by kidnappers, but the actress who plays her might have given viewers a clue when she compared the series to Stranger Things. "I think that Stranger Things is like the sci-fi version of [Emergence]. It’s really cool," she told Forbes. "I think that people that watch Stranger Things will also quite like Emergence."
Stranger Things chronicles the events that happen when a young girl escapes a government facility that is testing her supernatural skills and pushing her to move objects with her mind. Could Piper have come from a similar situation? She has similar powers to Eleven (Millie Bobby Brown), the main character in Stranger Things. Perhaps the government is also involved in this Piper situation.
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At the end of the episode, Piper cut open her neck and removed a marble sized circuit system. It may have been a tracking device, which could explain how Freddie and Caitlin found her so quickly. She tossed the tracker down the sink drain, which could make it harder in the future for whoever those mysterious people are to get Piper. At the same time, though, she's just living at Jo's house, which was already being stalked by a dark-windowed van earlier in the episode. If the organization knows Piper is there (and they likely do) they could strike again soon. But they may be biding their time after how the last kidnap attempt went. Clearly Piper's powers are strong, and this organization probably doesn't want to keep losing members to car crashes.
Freddie and Caitlin's bodies were searched after their death and a heavy piece of metal with strange hole punches was found. It was about the size of a hotel key, and it could potentially be the organization's calling card, key, or the device used to monitor Piper's tracker. Freddit and Caitlin were most certainly part of a larger operation, since there were also fake NTSB agents involved in all this and they had the man power to get down to the scene of the crash in convincing uniforms before the real NTSB even had a chance.
When Freddie and Caitlin disappeared from the police station after Jo started to become suspicious, the lights flickered on and off just like how they did when the plane crashed. It's possible that Freddie and Caitlin also had powers just like Piper does. Perhaps they were all part of some secret paranormal group.
Piper doesn't remember anything now, but she well may have been a willing participant in the organization and they just want her back to protect her from the outside world and keep their powers contained in one place. In any case, it seems the powers are why Piper is so special to these people who want her, and it's unlikely that they'll stop trying. They may wait until they can figure out a way to avoid another deadly car crash, but they'll be coming. So Jo had better step up her sneaking skills before Piper is taken again.
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