There was no shoulder; the road came right up against the mountain. Michael walked to the rocky wall, and pushed in on a boulder. The wall came to life with rotating boulders, some protruding, others retracting, until the mouth of a cave opened before him. He stepped aside, and motioned for me to pull in.
I hesitated a moment, then took my foot from the brake, pressing ever so lightly on the gas, so that the Rover rolled forward, into the cave. Michael followed on foot, and somehow the wall resealed behind us. Unsure of what was next; I put the car in park, and turned off the engine. Carbon monoxide poisoning wasn’t something we needed to add to our list of troubles.
Michael opened my door. “You can leave the keys here, but get Artemis. Let’s go.”
He had a flashlight, and led me to a narrow passageway at the back of the chamber. We squeezed into the tight space, and stopped twice more for boulder moving magic, opening the passage from one corridor to the next, until there was daylight ahead.
We entered the forest, or what had re-grown after the 2002 fire, and I continued to follow his lead. After about five minutes of walking, he stopped, put the backpack on the ground and loosened the drawstring for Artemis to emerge.
“What are you doing now?” Artemis came and rubbed up against my right leg, and I reached down to pet her without taking my eyes off of Michael.
“Letting the cat out of the bag.” He grinned too broadly at his own joke.
“Ha, ha,” I laid on the sarcasm. “No, really.” I looked over at Artemis, who’d wandered away a few feet, sniffing at the ground with her tail high in the air. She was acting like a dog, sniffing for a trail, and the whole situation got even stranger, as if that were possible. “What? Now my cat knows the way?”
“She was originally your grandfather’s cat, and yes she alone can get us where we need to go.”
I shook my head, “She was my what?” This was not possible. “But she was practically still a kitten when I-”
“She was practically a kitten when your mother brought home the cat you had before her. The black one you called Ebony? But you became her human the minute you were born, when she had a full black mask and a large black patch on her back with a white spot.”
“Happy?” Happy was old when I was little, but always patient with me. They told me she went to kitty heaven one day when I came home from Kindergarten; it was not long after that Ebony came along.
“Yes, Artemis is the same cat. She has been dyed in various patterns to conceal her identity.” Artemis had circled around us, and came up rubbing my left leg from behind. “But these are her true markings, well, plus one.”
This time when she looked up at me, I really looked at her with the glasses on for the first time, and I saw she too had the strange tattoo, glittering faintly through her fur. I let out a little gasp.
“She was the first one to eat the fruit and rejuvenate,” he spoke reverently. “She is the miracle.”
Astounded, I stared at her in wonder, the little miracle that she was. It became clear how we had bonded so quickly, understood each other so well; she had known me my entire life.
“Miss Mis,” Michael called her by her nickname and kissed at her to get her attention. “We have work to do.” Artemis left my leg and headed into the trees, looking back once to make sure we were ready to follow this time. If any animal understands English, it would be her. With more than five hundred years of practice, she probably understands it better than me.
***
Our short, but steep, downhill hike was riddled with stumbles and slips on both my part and Michael’s. Artemis paused more than once, with enough time to groom herself as she waited. It seemed like an eternity, time ticking by with Jayden in the hands of my enemies, whoever they were.
After twenty minutes, Artemis came to rest on a boulder at the base of a very old pine tree. She stared up into the branches above her, her twitching tail whipping back and forth with increasing intensity, and I could almost see the geometrical calculations she was making in her tiny brain. Then, she became the portrait in motion depicting feline prowess, leaping up almost vertically to the lowest of the branches. She stepped ever so lightly toward the trunk and sat a moment, tail hanging down and twitching again.
I gasped when she jumped up to the branch on her left, barely touching it as she bounced off, and up higher and to the right. I covered my eyes as she caught the branch with her forelegs, but she managed to pull herself up. Another series of three smaller leaps landed her at her destination, and I saw the tip of her tail disappear from view near the trunk.
Then Michael spoke, “It should be no more than five minutes.”
I had no idea what “it” was, and I decided it was better to just wait and see. As with the hidden parking cave, I was certain there was no way for him to describe it adequately.
I turned slowly, taking in the three hundred and sixty degrees of view around me. The area looked entirely untouched by man, the scattered pines lending cover to the birds that were singing and whatever other wildlife might be roaming. Making the circle complete, I came back to find Michael staring at the boulder, so I did the same.
About three minutes after Artemis vanished into the tree, the boulder rose from the ground atop a cylinder. As it rose, an opening facing us emerged, and when it reached about six and a half feet, it stopped. Michael then turned toward me and bowed, “Ladies first.”
Hesitantly, I stepped forward into the cylindrical chamber. It was only three and a half feet in diameter, and when I turned to face Michael, he was only inches away. He pulled a metal lever on the slate gray wall, and our elevator began its descent.
***
When we came to a stop, Michael pointed behind me. I turned to find a new opening, into a large cavernous space, with polished marble floors. To our left, a fire was burning in a fireplace as tall as me, and Artemis was curled up on the hearth. The wall opposite us was comprised of twelve foot tall glass panes that opened onto a terrace, which overlooked the canyon below.
There was a strange mix of medieval and modern motifs going on in the chamber, what with the torches hanging from the walls and the plush leather sofas by the fireplace. I was stunned, and yet somehow it felt familiar. “What is this place?”
“The Mansion in the Mountain; it was your father’s home, one of them anyway,” he explained, following a step behind me. “They completed construction about a hundred years ago.”
This was not some hole carved into the side of the mountain; it was a hidden fortress, fit for a king. Artemis trotted over to rub my leg and I bent down to pet her. “How is this place possible?”
“With enough time and money, almost anything is possible.”
I turned around slowly, taking everything in. There was a bearskin rug in front of the fireplace, the deer and stag heads mounted on the wall along with four sets of bull’s horns and a pheasant. They all seemed familiar. I turned back to Michael, “Have I been here before?”
He looked at me for a long moment before giving his answer. “You were born here.”
“What?!” I always assumed I was born in a hospital. It never occurred to me to think I wasn’t.
“They didn’t move you to Novica until you were four, if I remember correctly. They still brought you here periodically until you were seven.”
“I remember being here, and being in the mountains, but I don’t remember the secret entrance.”
“They blindfolded you, or you fell asleep on the car ride.”
My mind was racing. I’d seen my birth certificate, and that it said I was born at Novica Community Hospital. I was even more certain that my mother had pointed to the hospital, driving by when I was still small, telling me “That is the place you were born.” Was she conditioning me? If I was born here, then the only conclusion I can make is she knows everything.
Michael brought me back to the present. “Sam, I know you have questions, but I need to go. The Hopper will take me another thirty minutes into the future a
s it is, I don’t want to keep Jayden waiting any longer.”
He had a good point. “Right, go and bring her back in one piece.”
He pushed up his left sleeve and began twisting the dial on one of the Hoppers. “Make yourself at home, it is yours.” He gestured to the archway at the end of the room opposite the fireplace, “The kitchen and the rest of the house is through there. Artemis can show you around.”
Suddenly, the thought of sitting and waiting became unbearable. “Take me with you, I can help.”
“No, Sam, you can’t. It’s too dangerous as it is.” He took off the Hopper he was fiddling with and handed it to me. “Put this on.” I did without question. “If somehow you need to escape, and you can’t get back to the car, pull up on the face of the dial, twist it clockwise until it stops and push it back down. Then click the buttons at the top and the bottom twice at the same time.”
“I thought I was safe here.”
“You are ... you should be. This is just in case.” Michael was apparently the man with a back-up plan for his back-up plan. He handed me my car keys, “You’ll land in your car, an hour in the future. I left the receiver in it a week ago.”
“That’s good to know, I guess.”
“When Jay and I come back, it will take another forty minutes. So, depending on how long it takes for me to get to her… I’ll be gone at least an hour and a half, hopefully no more than three hours.”
“Where are you landing?” I had this terrible feeling, like I might not see him again.
His reply was, “In the middle of the lion’s den.”
I was not reassured. “What if you don’t come back?”
“If more than twenty-four hours pass, go to the library and ask if there is an envelope for Ms. Harper. You’ll find instructions inside.”
I realized then how scared I was, not just for Jay, but for him. “Be careful.”
His mouth twisted into his characteristic smirk, exuding confidence. “Nothing’s stopped me from coming back to you before, and I’ve had to deal with worse than this.” He leaned in to kiss my cheek, but I turned my face and caught his lips ever so briefly with mine. “Be back soon.” He winked at me and tapped the buttons on one of his Hoppers. With a flash of light, he was gone.
CHAPTER 10
09/24/2006:
Shadows of the Past
For the next thirty minutes Michael would not exist. He was gone somewhere that was not here, or anywhere, until he reappeared at his future destination. That thought not only contorted my mind in ways I had never imagined, it also made me feel suddenly very alone.
The nerves in my lips were still firing off from the sensation of his kiss and I bit at the lower lip in an attempt to taste it again. Then I remembered Bailey and felt guilty.
Artemis came and rubbed up against my leg, reminding me I was not as alone as I felt. I scooped her up from the floor. “Well, Puss, what do you think of this fine mess we’re in?”
The obnoxious creature merely purred in contentment with herself and arched up to head butt my chin. She allowed me to hold her a few moments and bury my face in her fur. Then she twisted and turned to jump back out of my arms and padded away toward the hallway, so I followed.
The lights were motion-activated; they came on as the cat passed under the archway and beyond. I could see several darkened doorways down the hall; she turned into the first one, and it lit up as well.
I followed her, and found an ultra-modern kitchen, with stainless steel electric appliances, and sleek black granite counters. I was concerned about what condition any supplies might be in, as I had no idea how long this place had stood empty.
Upon exploring the pantry, I found a variety of canned and dried goods, all well within their shelf life. Michael, I assumed, checked and restocked provisions periodically. I grabbed a can of chicken soup, and some tuna for Artemis. After opening a few drawers and cabinets I found a can opener, saucepan and the dishes I needed. I put the soup on the stove to heat up, and dished the tuna out on a plate for Artemis.
I scratched her back while she settled down to eat, “I suppose there’s cat food in there too, but you’ve earned a treat.” Her tail twitched back and forth in contentment. “So do you have any other tricks you’d like to show me today?” She cocked her face up toward me, licking her chops, and very distinctively shook her head at me to say no, then went back to her plate.
“Good. I’ve had all I can take for one day.” I opened the fridge, and to my delight I found it freshly stocked with Pepsi, wine, and various perishables that had not yet perished.
I noticed a phone on the wall, and thought about Bailey again. I picked up the handset and heard the dial tone. Not knowing if the number would show up on caller ID, I punched in *67 before his number. “Please be voicemail, please be voicemail,” I chanted as the phone rang.
On the fifth ring his prerecorded voice greeted me, “I’m not available right now, leave your name and number and I’ll get back to you.” I hung up instead of leaving a message, realizing not enough time had gone by yet for me to have flown somewhere.
My soup was boiling, so I turned off the stove, and poured it into a mug. Artemis finished eating, and moved toward the hall, meowing insistently. I followed her, soup in one hand, Pepsi in the other.
***
Artemis led me past two more rooms and into one that I recognized at once, my bedroom. Memories of my earliest years, long pushed into the recesses of my mind, burst forth, bringing with them a rush of emotion. My father singing me lullabies in his lovely tenor, my mother brushing and braiding my hair, both of them reading to me, sometimes taking turns and supplying funny voices for the characters.
I continued down the hall, pausing to peer into my mother’s sewing and music rooms along the way.
The door to the room at the end of the hall, which must have been my father’s study, was locked. I noticed the small blue screen on the wall next to it, and instinctively placed my index finger in the center. The door clicked, and this time opened when I pushed on the handle.
The walls were lined with books and maps, and there was a large desk with an executive leather chair before a fireplace. Busts of Newton, Einstein and various other scientists were on pedestals throughout the room. Everything was exactly as I remembered it, exactly as my father had left it.
I crossed the room, remembering my father reading to me for hours on the couch in the corner. I sat in the chair at his desk, set down the mug and ran my fingers across the smooth wooden surface, wondering about the secrets my parents had kept from me. There was a reason for this place, a purpose to it remaining hidden. Michael had indicated that they had to disappear from the Society, but the whole thing seemed more than a little extreme.
My father used to write at the desk, in a leather-bound journal that I knew would be somewhere within. I began searching the drawers, and I found the expected things like pens, pencils, rulers, some photographs of me as a child, but no journal. I used to play around in the knee space under the desk, and on a hunch, I slid down under the desk. I found a compartment behind the center drawer which popped open when I pushed on the panel and the journal slid out into my hands.
I settled back in the chair, and took a few gulps of my soup before I opened the book. I was almost afraid to look inside. Really, I don’t know what I was expecting.
A play-by-play narrative of the events that led me to that point would have been too much to ask for. Page after page was filled with notes in my father’s chicken scratch, most of which I could decipher though it appeared to be in code. As I turned through the pages, I also found various sketches of my mother and me, lists of names and places they apparently used and lived in before I was born.
Flipping through the journal for the second time, I was beginning to worry about Michael and Jay. The three hour mark was soon approaching, and just as I was figuring out some of the notes were names and dates of enemies making their appearances, I noticed a change in the air pressur
e in the room.
I was on my feet running down the hallway in time to see the flash of light from the Great Hall. They appeared out of my line of view, and I heard Michael groan in pain before I saw them.
He was already headed toward me, carrying an unconscious Jayden over his shoulder, her limbs dangling free like a rag doll. There were cuts and bruises on his face and hands, the left lens of his sunglasses were shattered. I stepped aside so he could pass, and noted there was a lot of blood on his black clothing. I was afraid to ask, “Is she...?”
“I put her out so that I wouldn’t have to explain the whole Hopper thing. She should stay out for at least another hour.” He turned into a bedroom and I followed. “She appears to have been unharmed. When I found her, she looked at me and said ‘Please tell me Sam sent you.’” He laid Jay down on the bed. “I told her you did and that you were safe, waiting for us. Then I stuck her in the arm, and here we are.”
“Something else happened,” I stated the obvious, looking at him with concern. “You’re covered in blood.”
He grinned. “Most of it isn’t mine.”
I moved closer to look at the cuts on his face; I took his sunglasses and brushed the hair back from his forehead, “You should let me clean those.”
“I’ll be fine, don’t worry.” He limped back toward the hall, “Let her sleep, I’ll meet you by the fireplace in a few minutes.”
I caught his arm, “Thank you.”
“You don’t have to thank me.”
“You saved my best friend’s life.”
“I should have prevented her from being in danger.”
“Michael....”
He kissed my forehead, said, “I’ll see you in the other room,” and then he disappeared down the hall.
CHAPTER 11
09/24/2006
Confessions
I paced around in front of the fireplace, waiting for Michael. He and Jay we both fine, and I had one less worry on my mind. It was time for Michael to finally give me some real answers. There was more to all of this than a magical fruit that could heal injuries and reverse the aging process. There had to be.