“But there’s no way of telling with them sometimes, so pack for a couple of extra days.” Mom finished for him. “And you will need formal attire for the reception.”
“What reception?” Jay looked horrified. I don’t think she owned a formal dress.
“Oh, there’s always a ball the night before the Council convenes. It’s tradition.”
“So, I should call off for my shift at the Keg tomorrow?”
“Yes,” Michael said, “and let Bailey take you out to dinner instead, since you are departing the next day.”
“Do I have to?”
“Yes,” all six of them replied.
“Fine, then I suppose I have to start spreading my story around town and make my date for tomorrow. Need a ride home, Jay?”
“Sure,” she took the last gulp of her beer, got up and put the can on the counter and her plate in the sink. Then she gave Mom a kiss on the cheek, “Thanks for the grub Marion, see you soon.”
“Yes, my dear, you will.”
And we were off.
***
In the car, Jayden let me see how nervous she really was. “Once we do this, there is no going back, is there?”
I started the car, and turned down the radio. “No, I suppose not.” It was all so confusing. “Oh, I don’t know, I mean, we don’t have to keep eating the fruit. If we want to grow old and die, I suppose we still can.”
She rolled down her window a crack, and lit a cigarette. “Do you think anyone else has? You know had enough, seen it all and just let go?”
I reached out for her to hand me a smoke, and lit it as I reflected. How much time is enough? The fact that we could potentially live for centuries had not sunk in yet, assuming that we didn’t get ourselves killed by one of our many enemies. Will I eventually hit a point where I am done? “I don’t know. I suppose someone has, at some point....” I just trailed off as I hit the button to roll down my window.
Clearly obsessed, she went on, “After being around for five hundred years, I would be afraid to die.”
I thought about my father. “Eventually, I think I’d want to see those who’ve gone before me.”
She was stumped on that for a moment. Her parents died in a car accident when she was four, leaving her oldest brother and sister to care for their two younger siblings. Jay, the youngest by eight years, had told me before that she worried about being left behind. She sighed, “I guess maybe you’re right. Then again, the world is always changing, there are always new discoveries, new things to learn.”
“And new ways for humans to cause each other grief and pain,” I sighed. The world is a cruel place; sometimes I get a physical ache in my chest just from watching the news. “I think eventually I will have had enough.” I stopped the car in front of her apartment complex. “I’ll talk to you tomorrow.”
She leaned over to give me a one armed hug. “Let’s not worry about how we’ll feel in a hundred years until we get there, deal?”
“Deal,” we sealed it with a hand shake.
She got out, but then turned back, so I rolled down the window. She leaned in, and said, “After a couple hundred years or so, if we decide we’ve had enough, we don’t have to wait to get old again to die. We could just end it together.”
“Such dark thoughts.” I grinned at her morbidity. “Jump off a bridge?”
She shook her head, and countered “Skydive with no parachute?”
We shook on it. I watched as she punched in the code for the gate, then counted to twenty, and saw the light on and off three times in her window, signaling she wasn’t ambushed upon entry. I put the car back in gear, and headed to Bailey’s.
My ears detected the faint but familiar intro to a Better than Ezra classic on the radio, and I turned up the volume. I started rocking out, singing along, “’... Watchin’ the sun trace shadows on the floor, searching for signs of life, but there’s nobody home...’”
The lyrics diverted my thoughts back to moving in with Bailey. I knew it could be Good, living with him, if he wasn’t connected to the BOAs. It would be a safe, content life. But I already knew safe and content wouldn’t be enough, even before Michael stepped out of the shadows. I needed something more.
As the song came to a close, I found an open parking spot right in front of Bailey’s building. Lucky me.
***
I stuffed my Hoppers in my purse before I used the key Bailey gave to me to let myself in. It was nine thirteen, and I was surprised he wasn’t already blowing up my phone, looking for me.
Once I was inside, his plan was revealed; there were candles lit throughout the room, rose petals scattered on the floor, a bottle of merlot breathing on the table with two glasses standing by. The Kenny G was way over the top, and so not my taste.
“Hello,” I called out, not wanting to sneak up on him.
“Ah, there you are,” he called from the bedroom. “I’ll be right there.”
I turned the music down, then sat down on the couch, but made up my mind right away not to get too comfortable.
Wearing only a pair of silk pajama pants, Bailey came into the room and gave me a million dollar smile. “I’ve been waiting for you.”
It was time to turn on the waterworks. “I know, Bailey,” I sniffled and looked down as I reached out for his hand. “I’m sorry, it’s just,” more sniffling, “I just got some bad news.”
He sat down, the smile vanishing immediately, replaced with a look of genuine concern. “What is it, Babe?”
“It’s Mom - she’s in Canada.” I managed to squeeze out a tear as I looked up at him. “She’s had an, I don’t know, episode is what she called it, on the cruise. She insisted she’s fine, but I have to go to be with her in the hospital, she needs surgery.”
“Oh no, Sam, I’m so sorry.” He pulled me close, and I let him hold me for a minute before pulling back. He smelled of a musky mixture of pine forest and cinnamon.
“I have to pack, and get some of her things....” I dropped my face to my hands and heaved my shoulders a couple of times to add to the effect.
He moved closer, putting his hands on my shoulders, and began massaging the aches away. I was melting at his touch when I felt his lips on my neck, and I jumped right up to my feet.
“Bailey, I’m ... I’m just so worried about Mom ... I can’t do this right now.”
Disappointment was evident on his face, but he relented. “I understand, Sam.” He rose and put one arm around my waist. “Forgive me; I wasn’t trying to push you.”
“I know.” I could not hold back the sigh of relief; it was easier than I thought it would be, to convince him to back off. “But, I should go home and get some rest. I’m sorry; I really shouldn’t have come over after I got that call.”
“Are you sure you don’t want to just sleep here? Let me hold you?”
“As much as I would like that,” and a part of me really would, “I need to let Artemis in, and feed her.”
“We couldn’t leave her to fend for herself for the night, now, could we?”
I noticed a menacing undertone in his voice. Was he jealous of my cat? Was he on to my lies? Was I just paranoid?
His tone was softer when he asked, “Will I at least see you again before you leave?”
“Yes, I’m not working tomorrow. I thought maybe we could have dinner?”
“I’ll pick you up at seven?”
“Okay,” I kissed his cheek before walking to the door. “I’ll see you then.”
***
On my way home, I knew Michael was watching from somewhere in the shadows. How he managed to be everywhere I was, even with the aid of the Hoppers, was amazing to me. I could not imagine devoting my entire life to following someone; it was more than a job, it was a calling.
CHAPTER 17
09/27/2006
Target Practice
In the morning, I stretched and grabbed my can of Pepsi from the fridge before going out on the balcony for my morning smoke. Mentally, I went through my closet
and dresser, trying to decide what to wear on a date with my destiny. I wondered if most people had the opportunity to pick out their outfit for the real most important moment of their lives; I’d always figured people came upon it by chance, apparently mine was semi-predetermined.
I’d figured out most of what I needed by the time I put the butt out in the ashtray, so I went back in and started packing. Jeans, boots, and my leather jacket were staples that always served me well, but Mom indicated there would be some sort of formal reception. That would require some kind of skirt and heels - preferably a dress. They said we really wouldn’t need to worry about the temperature since we wouldn’t be outside much, and I wondered what that meant.
I pulled out several selections, and tried them on, and then switched shoes and did it all again. Trying to decide in front of the mirror, I could see Artemis perched atop her cat tree to watch the whole show, turning her head this way and that, trying to make sense of my illogical behavior. Finally settling on one of my little black dresses, I looked over to find her looking back at me upside-down - lying on her back, with her head hanging over the ledge, and all four paws in the air.
Next I had to decide what to wear on my date with Bailey that night. More importantly, I had to figure out a way to get out of having to spend the night at his place. I decided I must dress conservatively, so as not to send him the wrong message, and that would help narrow down my wardrobe selection.
My thoughts were interrupted by my cell phone ringing. It was Jayden. I answered, “Good morning, Sunshine.”
“There is nothing good about this. They were in my computer.”
“What do you mean?”
“Whoever tossed my place after I was taken - they were in my computer. I think they copied everything from the hard drive.” She was on the verge of hyperventilating.
“Slow down, sister, take a breath.” I tried to get her to calm down. “What makes you think all of this?”
“Activity logs, when there shouldn’t have been any activity.” She spoke much more clearly this time.
“What was on it?”
“They would be able to track everything that I’ve ever researched. Any moron would see that there’s a connection to your father, that I was researching Bailey. Oh, this is a mess.”
“No. I’m sure it can’t be as bad as you think.” I knew she was as upset about the fact that her files had been compromised as she was about what they might have found. “That was before you knew about the Flamella Tree, and about the future. Besides, are you sure it wasn’t Alec that was in there? I mean, Michael had my hard drive mirrored to the computer in the Mansion.”
“Then call Michael and find out,” she insisted. “Tell him to send those two hotties over here, I need protection until tomorrow, and Michael’s too busy watching you.”
“Oh, stop it!”
“In fact, I bet you don’t even have to call him, I bet he’s listening to this whole conversation,” I was sure he was too. “And if you look out on your balcony, I bet he’s standing there right now.”
I turned around, and sure enough, there he was. “Are you psychic now or what?” I asked Jay.
“Call me back.” She ended the call.
I opened the door for Michael to come in. “Jayden’s freaking out about her computer.”
“Her computer?” He had a blank look on his face, “What about it?”
“So it wasn’t Alec.”
“What are you talking about?” He obviously wasn’t involved.
“She says someone was in her computer, that they’ve copied the hard drive.”
He pulled out a phone and pushed a button. “Alec, take Kristoff with you and go over to Jayden’s. She said someone’s tampered with her computer. We need to know who it was, what they did and what they saw.” There was a pause as Alec responded. “Right, we’ll see you in a few hours.” He hung up.
“We’ll see him this afternoon?”
“Yes, we’re all meeting again at Marion’s, before your date.”
“He’s supposed to pick me up at seven tonight.”
“You’ll be home in time. We’ve also modified our plans for tomorrow, and we’ll be leaving early in the morning. You can tell him that you found an earlier flight.”
“Sounds good.” Now I had the excuse of an early flight to make it an early night. “But why are we leaving earlier?”
He gave me one of his half-grins that exuded confidence. “We’re actually going to surprise the Council by showing up early.”
“Is that a good idea?” Something told me they don’t like surprises.
“Sam, I need you to try to shift your perspective a little.”
That was confusing. “What do you mean?”
“Yes, the Society is powerful. More powerful than even you can imagine, and yes, I know how big of an imagination you have. But right now, they are operating with a goal of becoming so powerful that they can take over and be the UCE in the future.”
“You mean...”
“Yes, ultimately those that are from the future want to make it back and several of them have very specific acts of revenge in mind.” Why I had never thought of that before, I don’t know. Their endgame was not to be in power now; it was to amass fortunes and weapons to rule the world that they came from.
“Is that why Dad took the Flamella Tree from them?”
“In part yes, the politics of it all could take years to explain, as they took centuries to evolve. But yes, there were definitely very differing ideals coming from the leadership of the Society. Your grandfather and your father wanted to use the Society for the betterment of mankind, and to prevent some of the atrocities that will be committed over the next 150 years, without preventing their own existence. Others, such as Tollack Pennington and Marcus D’Amancio see only an opportunity for personal gain and world domination.”
“And are they the ones running the Society now?”
“Tollack Pennington is known as the Elder. Marcus eventually got in his way.”
“So he killed him?”
“Well, tried to have him killed, but now he leads the faction of defectors who tried to grab you in the Yukon, and who abducted Jayden. Sam, don’t you understand? Your father held all of the cards. The fruit of the offspring trees can sustain their illusion for a little while, but the full rejuvenating effects of the Philosopher’s Stone are required for the Society to maintain itself perpetually.”
“But, I don’t know where it is.”
“Not yet, because it isn’t there right now.”
“What do you mean?”
“Your father was experimenting with forward time-travel.”
“Yeah, the Hoppers, I know.”
“No, Sam, he was working on longer terms than that. I’m talking years.”
Dad had been gone for more than sixteen years. If he sent the tree in the future, and it still wasn’t here, then Michael was talking about more than years, Dad was skipping decades - if it worked. “It’s been more than sixteen years, Michael....”
“It’s actually been seventeen years, two months and eighteen days since he sent the tree. If his calculations were correct, it will be back in two days.”
I was beginning to feel like I’d won a lifetime supply of surprises. “Be back where?”
“Someplace you’ve never been. It is also, as with the Mansion in the Mountain, somewhere only our friends in the animal kingdom can find.”
I waited a minute, but he said nothing more. “That’s all you’re going to tell me, isn’t it?”
“For now. Once you have the tree, you’ll be holding the only card that matters.”
What I thought was a legitimate question occurred to me. “What’s to stop you from taking Artemis and going after it yourself?” I realized my mistake when I saw the hurt in his eyes.
“It belongs to you, Sam - and I exist to serve you. I owe a century and a half, and every year of my life going forward to Samuel. I swore to Daniel I’d protect you. I am a ma
n of my word.” He stood, and turned his back to me.
“Michael, I’m sorry.” I put my hand on his shoulder. “I....”
He whipped around and clasped his right hand at the base of my skull, while gripping my waist with his left, and pressed his lips against mine urgently, conveying yet another hidden facet of this mystery without words. The wall surrounding my oblivion crumbled away, revealing what I should’ve already known; he had been in love with the idea of me since long before he left the future, more than a century after I’d died.
I was dizzy when our lips parted, and grateful his hands lingered to hold me a moment longer, otherwise I might’ve fallen on my ass. Even if I was right about how he felt, I had no idea how I was supposed to feel about it, or him. My cheeks were burning, and I couldn’t bring my face up to meet his.
He sighed before kissing me again, this time on my forehead, and then he released me. “Once you have the tree, you will only need to provide them with a supply of the Philosopher’s Stone, and you will have their full cooperation.”
“Until I get in Pennington’s way?”
“Or until he gets in yours.” His half-cocked grin told me that he wouldn’t mind if the Elder gave him a reason to take him out.
“Should I be carrying a gun?”
“You must’ve read my mind, Sweetheart. I thought I was the only one in the room who could do that.” He winked. “We’re picking up Jayden for target practice in twenty minutes.”
***
After we collected Jay, we drove to a secluded range in the foothills, where Kristoff was already setting targets up. Jayden and I waited while Michael unloaded the guns and ammo from the back of his Hummer; I was surprised at how many cases he brought. It was all a new experience for me.
Michael and Kristoff set up a folding table, and arranged the weapons. One by one, they took us through how to load and unload each one. After each demonstration, they made us each practice until we got it right. I was surprised to find that part was much easier than it looked.
More than once, I’ve heard it said that you’re never prepared for the recoil the first time you fire a gun. I found out this was definitely true. We both started with smaller pistols, and moved up to something Kristoff called ‘the Marquet Special,’ apparently one of Samuel’s inventions, which was super light to hold, but it kicked hard. Finally we moved on to some shotguns and rifles, which were not the sort you’d find in the local gun shop or in any military arsenal for that matter. These were all Society special issue.