by Doug Welch
Seeing a look of non-comprehension cloud Audrey’s face, Dorri intervened. “You don’t know much about the Shadow world, do you, Audrey.”
Audrey shook her head. “I’d never heard the word until I met Paris and Caesar. Are you saying these people who kidnapped me are called Shadows?”
Dorri smiled. “That’s not what they call themselves. They refer to themselves as The People and everyone else as Normals. The Shadows are the ones you glimpse in your peripheral vision, the ones who call your name and when you turn to look, they’re not there. I suspect that everyone in this room is either half Shadow or has Shadow heritage. I know Caesar’s mother, my sister, was half and his father was a Normal. I’m half, but you and Paris are a puzzle. Paris appears to have extraordinary Adept talents but he says his father was a Normal. I’ve lived with the knowledge of the Shadow world my entire life. My father was a Shadow and head of our House here in Tehran. But I’ve never heard of Shadow Adept who wasn’t a full Shadow.”
“I have evidence of your genetic heritage back in the States, Audrey,” Paris added. “But it’ll have to wait until we return. For now, if you’re up to it, I need to ask you some more questions.”
Audrey looked to Dorri as if seeking affirmation. Dorri nodded. “Only if you’re sufficiently recovered, child.”
Audrey sighed. “Ask your questions.”
Paris leaned forward with his hands on his thighs. “Did anything else happen while they held you captive? Did they do any medical procedures on you?”
“Hah! They drew more blood than a bunch of vampires,” she replied. “They took samples of me from almost every part of my body. Sometimes they sedated me so I didn’t know what they did, but my abdomen cramped something awful after and I had heavy periods...Oh yes, there’s something else. After I gave birth they took the placenta and drained the fetal blood from it. Then they put both of them in some kind of lab equipment. It looked like they planned on storing it.”
“What makes you say that?” Paris asked.
“The container was smoking and frosty like it was filled with liquid nitrogen or something,” Audrey replied.
Dorri observed Paris’ eyes narrow. She wondered what was going through his mind but then he spoke again in a milder tone. “How did you find us at the hotel, Audrey?”
“It was an accident,” she replied, “I wasn’t looking for you.”
Paris frowned. “Well how did you happen to be there?”
“I was on the run. You see, the people at the hospital weren’t any of those you call Shadows. I pulled the same trick on them to make myself invisible and escaped. I didn’t know where I was, everyone spoke gibberish, some foreign language I couldn’t understand and I was lost. I stole one of those black shrouds that all the women wore and enough food to keep me alive. I wandered around the city, looking for something, anything that would help me get out of the fix I was in. I was freezing and then I saw a building that seemed to have a lot of non-Middle Eastern types entering and leaving it. It was warm inside so I hung around, trying to find someone who could help me and then you two showed up.
“I saw you and thought about...never mind.
“You both were speaking English and I thought I’d eavesdrop. I didn’t suspect that you could see me, I thought I was invisible. By the way, how were you able to see me?”
“You can’t block the mind of anyone who’s half-Shadow, Audrey,” Paris said. “You see, you don’t actually become invisible. You just cause a normal person’s mind to deny that you’re there. It refuses to see you.”
“How’s that possible?” Audrey asked.
“I’ve got a friend, a physics professor back in the States who thinks he knows,” Paris replied, “but he’ll be the first to admit that he’s probably wrong—”
Startled by the sound of a knock at the door of the apartment, everyone froze.
Chapter 5
An Unexpected Visitor
Dorri gestured to the bedroom and in a frenzy of activity; they hurriedly departed the room and closed the door,
She looked around to see if they’d left anything that could provide a clue to their presence. She picked up the cushion that Paris had sat on and dropped it on the divan. Drawing a deep breath to calm herself, Dorri walked to the door and unlocked it, keeping the safety chain in place. She cracked the door open.
Seeing a seamed, bearded face she never expected, she exclaimed, “Ali!”
The man’s wrinkled face broke into a smile. Speaking Farsi he greeted her. “Madam Rowan. For a while I have tried to penetrate this building to see and speak to you. May I please enter?”
Dorri slipped the safety chain and opened the door. Throwing her arms around his barrel shaped chest, she hugged him. “Ali, how did you find me?”
“In a moment, Madam Rowan. Please, may I sit?”
Dorri recovered her manners and led him to the divan. “Dorri, Ali, you’re supposed to call me Dorri, or have you forgotten?”
Ali rubbed his face with his hand. “It has been so long, Dorri, I was not sure if I should take that liberty.”
“Nonsense,” she replied. “We’ve been friends for almost thirty years. I think that’s enough time to be on a first name basis, but you didn’t answer my question. How did you find me?”
“We have known where you were ever since you were moved,” Ali said. “I made repeated attempts to penetrate this place, but it took a year to place an operative in the building. That’s how I was able to enter to see you. He’s guarding the front entryway.” Ali paused as if uncertain of what to say.
“Dorri I–”
“Ali I–”
Dorri laughed. “You go first, my news can wait.”
Ali shook his head. “I’m afraid my news is bad, Dorri. It seems Edward is gravely ill. He may not survive.”
Smiling, Dorri responded. “I know.”
Ali’s eyes grew wide. “How do you know? Why are you smiling, Dorri? Edward may die.”
Dorri wiped the smile from her face and evaded the question. “Ali we’ve know each other for a very long time. You’ve never betrayed me and I’ve never betrayed you. Do you still trust me?”
“How could you ask that? Of course I trust you, just as you can trust me.”
“I need you to keep a secret, a big secret. I may also need you to do me a dangerous favor. You have to keep it from your communist friends and the Shadow intelligence network. Can you do that?”
Paris fretted and paced the room, his arms folded across his chest.
Caesar had his ear close to the door listening to the conversation in the next room. Paris had eavesdropped first, but when it became apparent that Dorri’s visitor spoke Farsi, he’d switched places with Caesar.
Impatient, Paris prodded him. “What are they saying?”
“Quiet,” Caesar whispered. “It’s hard enough to make out the words without you constantly interrupting.” He listened for a while and turned to face them. “It sounds as if Aunt Dorri knows him. I can’t understand all the words, they’re talking too fast, but she doesn’t seem worried. Bloody hell, someone’s coming to the bedroom.”
They all retreated to the far end of the room.
Dorri opened the door and smiled at them. “You can all come out, it’s safe. I have a friend I want you to meet.”
Emerging from the bedroom Paris observed a grey-bearded man with thick grey hair, about Edward’s age, reclining on the divan. He looked more Afghan than Iranian. The man’s eyes searched each of them, not betraying any sign of recognition or emotion. Paris studied the man’s lined face and the winkles crinkling around the eyes for a hint of his inner thoughts, but found nothing. It unnerved him.
Standing in a semicircle, they waited for Dorri to introduce them.
Dorri clasped Caesar’s arm. “Ali, this is Shalizeh’s son, Caesar, my nephew.”
Ali’s eyes scanned Caesar from his shoes to his face, finally settling on his eyes. “You’re bigger than when I first saw you,” he said in passable En
glish. “As a baby you were a frail little thing.”
Paris interrupted him. “Are you the Ali who smuggled Edward and Shalizeh out of Iran?”
Ali didn’t answer his question. “Who are you?”
Paris curbed his impatience. “I’m Elizabeth’s husband, Paris.”
Ali face finally cracked a glimmer of emotion. “Elizabeth? Dorri’s daughter?”
Paris nodded.
Ali studied him for a moment and then turned to Dorri. “How do we know that what these people say is the truth? They could be trying to get us to reveal ourselves only to betray us.”
Dorri bit her lip. A look of worry clouded her eyes. Paris stepped in before doubt could settle.
“We can prove it, but I’ll need my laptop. It’s in the bedroom.”
Ali nodded. “I will accompany you.”
Paris led Ali into the bedroom. Ali’s eyes never left him as he retrieved the laptop and carried it into the common room. Paris sat the computer on the divan in front of Dorri.
“These are our wedding pictures, Mother Rowan. I’ve been meaning to show them to you but...” He shrugged.
After powering up the laptop he started the wedding slide-show and waited silently as Dorri scanned the photographs. As the show moved to the pictures of Elizabeth he saw tears run down Dorri’s face.
“She looks so beautiful,” Dorri said, her voice choked and unsteady.
Paris agreed. “She’s breathtaking and she looks like her mother. There’s one more thing, Mother Rowan. Elizabeth’s pregnant. You’re going to be a grandmother.”
Ali, whose keen eyes had observed the show and Dorri’s reactions interrupted. “Who is the woman with Caesar? At first I thought it was her.” He pointed to Audrey. “But the hair is different.”
Caesar responded. “She’s my wife and Paris’ sister, Alexandra.”
Audrey, frowning, moved to the divan to study the pictures closer. “She looks like me. How is that possible?”
Paris had dreaded this conversation. He felt that Audrey had suffered enough and the truth might crush her spirit. But she was smart and sure to put the pieces together sooner or later. It was better to yank a tooth quickly than to pry it out.
“It’s possible if the people involved are related by blood.”
Her eyes grew wide. “You mean like half brother and sister?”
Paris nodded. “With the same mother.”
Her look became horrified. “But that would mean....Noooo!” She shook her head as if denying the truth. “No, it can’t be!” She ran to the bedroom and slammed the door.
Dorri looked up from her fixation on the slide-show and glanced at the bedroom. “What did you say to her?”
Paris spread his hands. ‘Only the truth as we understand it, Mother Rowan. She needed to know.”
Dorri rose from the divan, giving Paris a look that could freeze air and followed Audrey into the bedroom.
Ali looked up at him. “Do I have need to know what just happened?”
Paris shook his head. “No. It’s an internal matter. We’ll get it straightened out. Tell me, Ali, do you still smuggle people across the border?”
Ali’s face betrayed no emotion as he pondered his response. Then he shrugged. “Occasionally. My spying days ended with the demise of the old Soviet Union. I’m a fisherman now, at least my sons are. I run the business. We have a warehouse here in Tehran. Why do you ask?”
Paris doubted that all of Ali’s activities were completely devoted to fishing, but he didn’t pry. “We need you to smuggle Audrey into Azerbaijan. Expense isn’t an issue, whatever it takes, I’ll pay.”
Ali’s eyes narrowed. “And what about Dorri? I thought you were here to return her to America.”
“That’s all arranged,” Paris replied. “I just need to remove the block that’s keeping her in this apartment building.” He waited for the recognition to dawn in Ali’s eyes.
Surprise lit Ali’s face. “You’re a Shadow? Edward’s son-in-law is a Shadow?”
“Half-Shadow, like Dorri,” Paris replied. “But I can remove the block.” He mentally crossed his fingers, praying that he spoke the truth.
Ali’s surprised look remained. “Dorri said that the pattern could only be removed by a Shadow Adept. Are you one such?”
“Yes,” Paris replied, “but I can’t hide in plain sight. Look, I know you have a lot of questions, but it’s hard to explain all of this in a short time. You’ll just have to trust me. There’s one more thing. Audrey’s also half Shadow. She can make herself disappear. It could come in handy when you’re crossing the border.”
Ali’s eyes opened wide. “The woman is Shadow? How many are you? –No, don’t answer that. I never imagined I would turn from trying to destroy the Shadows to helping them.”
“Not all of us are evil, Ali. Many are innocent victims like Audrey. We have no choice as to who our parents are.” Paris paused, unsure how to say what he needed to say and how Ali would take it. He drew a breath. “There’s another thing. The Shadow spy network has been severely damaged. Your previous boss, Shadoe, is on the run and he’s hiding.”
“And how do you know this?” Ali asked.
“Because I was the one who caused it,” Paris replied.
Ali laughed. “I never much liked the man, too devious. –Not trust worthy.” He rubbed his full beard, apparently thinking. “You mentioned a price. Any price, but my price may be more than you are willing or able pay.”
“Name it. Name your price,” Paris said. “If it’s within my power, I’ll pay it.”
Ali’s eyes grew calculating. “I want my youngest son and his family to move to America. That’s my price.”
Relieved, Paris smiled. “Done. Not only will I bring them to America, I’ll provide a house and a job for your son. I’ll also put them under my protection. No one will bother them.”
Ali chuckled. “Perhaps I should have set the price higher.”
“Go ahead,” Paris replied. “Would you like to immigrate? Maybe with your wife?”
A look of sadness crossed Ali’s face. “My wife is dead and my other sons are too settled in their ways. Azerbaijan is my home. I have no intention of leaving it, but my youngest son is one in whom I hold great confidence. He, his wife, and my granddaughters should thrive in America. It will be sufficient.”
Paris winced when he contemplated all the favors he and his Family would owe to Grieg Person and the Shadow Council to bring Ali’s son and his family to Kentucky. Money wasn’t the problem; it was all the government officials they’d have to subvert to make it happen.
He once again regretted the Shadow custom of Houses incurring ‘favors’ when they did a service for one another. Some of the Council favors he could balance with the information he’d learned in Iran, but the deficit was huge and they’d certainly call their markers in at the first opportunity. Still, it had to be done. He couldn’t abandon Audrey. She was very likely his sister.
A flood of potential issues still remained, like was Ali’s son a Muslim? There were no mosques that he knew of in Kentucky. What was his occupation?
“Ali, what skills does your son possess?” Paris asked.
“He is a doctor,” Ali replied.
The news smothered Paris’ anxiety. “Excellent. He can work at the clinic we’ve established. Can you take care of the documents he needs to emigrate from Azerbaijan?”
Ali nodded. “I have friends in the government. It shouldn’t be a problem.”
Coming to a decision, Paris said, “Good. I’ll wire-transfer the funds to cover all the costs and the plane fare. He’ll need to fly to Canada at first, and then we’ll move him and his family to our area in the U.S.”
“Where is this place?” Ali asked.
“Kentucky,” Paris replied. “You needn’t worry. I’ll keep him and his family safe there. He’ll be able to contact you whenever he wants.”
Ali remained quiet for a while, stroking his beard. “Very well. If you can do this, we have a deal. I w
ill take the woman to Azerbaijan and keep her safe. Then she can leave the country along with my son and his family.”
Pairs understood the undercurrents contained in Ali’s response. If he failed to deliver, Audrey stood as a hostage. He chuckled “You’re a wise man, Ali. You have my word. Smuggle Audrey out of Iran and your son will go to America.”
Chapter 6
Healing
Sitting by the side of the bed and concentrating on Dorri’s sleeping form; Paris expanded his mind-glow.
He’d used his abilities before to help Edward, his father-in-law, recover from a heart transplant, but Dorri’s problem presented a challenge. It’d been created as an act of revenge by a master Adept of an Iranian Shadow House, designed to prevent her from leaving the country. Could he remove it? He’d know soon.
Mind-glow was the term he’d coined to describe the indescribable. It wasn’t actual light but a mixture of senses; sight, hearing, touch, and smell. Taken in all, it was a sensory assault combining the essence that made up a Normal or Shadow mind, and it constantly seethed with activity much like a close-up movie of the surface of the sun.
Paris not only sensed the brain patterns that mapped each person into a unique being, but could modify them and within reason alter a person’s behavior. He could block certain motor functions as he had done with Audrey, and in extreme need, kill by reducing a mind to rubbish. He’d only begun to learn the possibilities.
With his senses he explored Dorri’s mind-patterns looking for something out of place. From some of Elizabeth’s books on neurology he’d gained a rough picture of the different areas of the human brain that controlled the body’s functions, and from his efforts on Edward’s behalf he’d learned to map the orderly flow of the human mind. Therefore it didn’t take long at all to discover the nature of the foreign pathways that lay in Dorri’s mind. They stood out as a glaring exception to a normal brain pattern. The question was what to do about them?
Using the old doctor’s adage of ‘do no harm’ he cautiously explored the patterns and their connections. The origins and terminuses were apparent.