He shrugged before nodding. “If you’re certain.”
“You’re always welcome at my house, Magnus. How are things?” He was staying in a bunkhouse near Natalia’s, and though I thought it might be a bad idea, Nat had suggested it.
“I could be better. I’m excited to go to Terran Thirty. It’ll help keep my mind off things,” Magnus sat on the top step, and I joined him, facing the crops at the far edge of the yard.
“I’ve lined someone up for you to speak with. Dr. Henrick Swan is the best in his field, and…”
He cut me off. “Do you think I need that?”
“Mag, we all need a little help sometimes.”
“Have you used a therapist?” he asked bluntly.
“No, but there have been times I should have. I know talking to someone might seem strange at first, but you’ll grow used to it. I’m sure of it.”
Magnus didn’t respond for a minute, and we sat in silence. “I think you’re right. This is weird for me too, Dean.”
“I can’t imagine.”
“My wife was dead, at home. My daughter gone. I haven’t seen my son in a decade, and here he is, twenty years old and so grown up. But it’s not him, or at least not the son I knew. I lost you too… You and I were as thick as thieves, Parker. Then Lom came and took everything I loved from me.” Magnus’ voice grew deep, his eyes rheumy. “Are you sure I’m the man for this posting?”
I didn’t reveal my reservations about the idea. “I’m positive you are. It’s going to be good for you, the kids, and the Alliance. Jules can show you around New Spero, Haven, Shimmal, and all the other major points. You can assist their local departments with recruiting. Production on more vessels like Light and”—I hesitated before saying my Magnus’ old ship’s name—“Horizon. We plan on manufacturing twenty more within the next five years, as well as an entire fleet of highly mobile two-person fighters, and a vast array of support spacecraft. It’ll be great.”
Magnus nodded methodically. “Sounds like you’re expecting trouble.”
“We’ve already been through trouble. I want to be prepared for anything. And if all goes well, we won’t ever need to test the fleet’s capabilities, but we can feel safer knowing we’re not spread so thin. If someone like the Arnap decided to hit us at the Inlorian mines, or at New Spero, we wouldn’t currently have the defenses to stop them. This ensures all of our futures.” I used the handrail, and Magnus stood too, following me to the door.
“You sound so much like him,” he whispered.
“I know. Maybe you and I can start this relationship off right.” I stuck my hand out, and he grinned as he took it, shaking it a few times before letting go.
“I’d like that, Dean. Now, how about that dinner?”
“Maybe a cigar on the deck after?” I asked.
“I don’t smoke. Not anymore,” he admitted.
That was a surprise. Magnus not smoking a cigar was like Regnig not reading, but I didn’t say as much.
We walked inside, and I was once again overwhelmed by the sense of home. The kitchen smelled like lasagna, the frozen dish being heated in the oven. The kids were at the table, joking with each other, and Maggie sat beside Mary’s feet, begging for food. An open bottle of red wine was on the island, and I grabbed the glasses before pouring a drink.
Magnus hovered near the door, watching my family with curiosity. This had to be difficult for him. A window into someone else’s life. A family, together and happy.
“You say this Dr. Swan is good?” he asked me as I passed him a glass of wine.
“The best.”
Three
“Anything?” We’d settled into an office at the police headquarters in downtown Terran One, and Slate and I sat opposite one another at a compact desk.
“Carolyn Lauder had someone forge her paperwork, that much is clear,” a voice said from the entrance.
A skinny kid, maybe twenty, walked in, setting a tablet on the table. “See? The digital imprint is clearly dated after the others in her graduating year.”
“What does that mean?” Slate asked.
“It means Carolyn added this file later. Much later,” I said. “Is there any way to track—”
“Already done. It looks like this was altered five years following the first influx of migrants from Earth.”
“So she didn’t evacuate the first time. She must have come over when the Bhlat attacked.” It made sense, but we needed to figure out who she was and why she and Slate had the same genetic alteration.
“I also confirmed this was her real name,” the kid said.
“What’s your name?” Slate asked the computer whiz.
“Grayson.”
“Is that your first or last name?”
“You can call me Tech, if you want. That’s what the flatfoots around here address me by.” He grinned, a long strand of brown hair falling into his face. He seemed more like a surfer than a techie, but all that mattered was that he could help us.
“Okay, Tech, tell me what else you found.” I grabbed my coffee, noting it was empty, just a thick layer of grounds remaining at the bottom of the mug.
“She did a good job erasing her past, but there were some obvious errors. She didn’t remove the link to her old hometown. She wiped the school records and her address, but she was enrolled in band camp when she was fourteen. When I linked to Earth’s database, the old backup files no one looks at anymore, I found it.” Grayson spun the tablet around, displaying the file.
Carolyn Lauder
Age: 14
Sex: Female
First Violin
Underneath it was her address. I took a screenshot and sent it to myself.
“Boss, what are we going to do?” Slate asked.
“Great work, Tech. I’ll let you know if we need anything else.” I grabbed my own tablet and indicated that Slate join me. “We’re taking a trip to Earth tomorrow. That’s our best bet.”
We strode through the hallways, passing a dozen officers in the middle of their working morning. “Why can’t we go now?” Slate asked.
“Remember the tour of Terran Thirty? I want to be there with Magnus and Jules, not to mention introduce them to Dr. Henrick Swan.”
“The author?” Slate asked.
“He’s also a therapist. He’s agreed to open a session as a personal favor to me.” I had only met the man once, but he seemed nice enough. When I’d contacted him, he hadn’t required much convincing to take on the case.
“You said them. Who are you introducing him to?” Slate asked.
“Jules has been struggling a bit. I think it would make sense to have her speak to the doctor as well,” I said.
“Good idea.” Slate stopped at Detective Reed’s office, and she waved us in, ending a call.
“Gentlemen. What did you find?” she asked.
“Tech helped us locate an address. She lived in Arkansas. We’re going there tomorrow as a starting point,” I advised.
“I’m glad we could help. Let me know if you need anything else,” Reed told us, and we said our goodbyes.
The day was warmer than I’d expected, and the heat struck us as we emerged from the air-conditioned police station.
“Imagine how hot it’ll be at Terran Thirty,” Slate reminded me.
“We don’t have to imagine, because we’re leaving now.” I walked faster down the sidewalk, and Slate kept pace.
“I thought the academy was scheduled to be ready in six months,” he said.
“Magnus needs a focus, and Leonard had the crew set up a few rooms. Magnus will live there while they plan the layout of the facility. They expect that to take a month, minimum.”
We arrived at the shuttle, and I let Slate secure the pilot’s seat. “It’s all going so fast.”
“That’s life.” I saw the fear in his eyes, even when he was trying to act tough. “Slate, we’ll solve this, and you’ll be up in Light in no time.”
He stared me in the eyes and squinted. “I hope so, Bo
ss. I hope so.”
We lifted, flying for Terran Thirty.
____________
“Will you stop staring?” Jules poked Dean in the arm, but he only smiled more.
“What? You look so nice.”
Jules had been worried he’d hate her new style, but so far, it was obvious he felt the opposite. “Keep your focus. We’re doing the first tour today.”
They sat at the rear bench of the shuttle, with Magnus piloting it. He didn’t seem to hear their banter; or if he did, he hadn’t reacted to any of it. Jules really wanted Magnus to respect her, so she tried to push all the petty teenager stuff from her mind and concentrate on the task at hand.
“This is going to be fun,” Dean said.
Magnus finally spoke. “And a lot of work.”
“Sure. I don’t mind some hard work,” Dean retorted.
“You two will have to guide me, since I know next to nothing about this Alliance or the threats you face,” Magnus said.
“You know them, or at least what they’re capable of,” Jules reminded the man. “With any luck, we won’t ever need this fleet, but as Papa says, we have to be prepared for anything.”
“Papa? Why do you call him that?” Magnus asked.
She shrugged, even though he couldn’t see the reaction. “That’s just what I’ve always called him, ever since I was young. It’s our thing.”
“He’s a good man, isn’t he?” Magnus asked.
Jules grinned, unable to keep a straight face. “He’s the best.”
“Must be tough to fall in his shadow,” Magnus said with a gentle laugh.
“I don’t know; it’s wide but doesn’t…”
Magnus cut Jules off, laughing deeper. “I wasn’t talking to you, Jules.”
Dean nervously chuckled beside her, and she took his hand. “Dean doesn’t have to compare to Papa. We’re all our own people.”
“Sure, kid.” He lowered them toward their destination, and Jules saw Terran Thirty for the first time. Numerous heat waves were hovering above the open surface between the structures.
“Looks hot,” Dean said, stating the obvious.
“I wonder why they threw us all the way out to these hellish badlands?” Magnus set the ship to the ground and opened the doors, sending a swell of heat through the shuttle.
Jules’ uniform clung to her skin after a few moments. “This is going to be fun,” she reminded herself.
“I hope they have air conditioning,” Dean whispered.
Jules heard a ship’s engines and glanced toward the sky.
____________
By the time we landed, the others were already present. The entire area appeared much the same as it had a couple of days ago when Leonard had first shown me the location, but there were far more drones and construction bots working at full speed now. The open grounds were surrounded with the skeletal structures of the framed buildings, forming a semicircle around the rocky region.
“Quite the place,” Slate said.
The heat was intense as we stepped out. Magnus, Dean, and Jules were all staring at the apartment complex as we arrived. Jules and Dean wore matching Gatekeeper uniforms, and the sight made me proud. They took this quite seriously, and even though my daughter no longer had powers, she was still Academy-trained and vastly intelligent. She took after her mother in that department, although Mary would say she was a chip off her dad’s block.
“What do you guys think?” I asked.
“This will do just fine.” Magnus was sweating, beads dripping over his brow. “If only you could turn the heat down.”
“Leonard said it’s peak season right now. It’ll cool soon.” I hoped that was true.
Jules seemed unaffected by the temperature. “Papa, this is cutting-edge. I can already picture it, with a thousand trainees from around the Alliance. We’ll all stay in the residences, everyone taking first-year classes to determine their specialties, then breaking into focused courses. We’ll have the best fleet to ever hit space,” she said with an excitement I hadn’t seen in her in years.
“What about you, Dean? What do you think?” I asked Nat’s son.
“I’m just glad to be on my own,” he said with a laugh.
Then it hit me. Jules would be living here. So would Dean. With no parents around. Maybe I should suggest Natalia come for the time being, to keep an eye on things. I chose not to bring it up, since it would quickly sour their mood.
We walked to the apartments, touring the nearly-finished suites. Magnus’ home was almost done, with the paint only started. A queen-sized bed sat in the center of the space, covered in plastic, with folded linens on top. Overall, there was tons of room, and I was glad for Leonard’s foresight of making the residence esthetically pleasing as well as functional. Magnus deserved something nice after all he’d been through. He stared at the suite, running a finger over the kitchen countertops.
“Do you like it? Maybe I should move here too,” Slate said, breaking the silence.
“Like it? This goes far beyond what I expected.” Magnus’ voice cracked, and I patted him on the shoulder.
“Come on. Let’s see the rest of the joint.”
An hour later, we’d walked around the entire region, Magnus already getting the hang of the project. He’d marked out some locations he thought would be suitable for outdoor combat training, and Slate offered a few suggestions that Magnus noted in his tablet. The two of them were getting along well, and it was clear Magnus had liked Slate in his timeline.
“Papa, are we expecting company?” Jules asked as we neared the shuttles. Another was lowering, this one a private model, unmarked and painted black.
“This must be the doctor.”
“Someone sick?” Dean asked, and Jules caught him with an elbow nudge to the stomach. “What’d I say?”
The doors opened, and a middle-aged man stepped out, his beard trimmed and white-speckled, his expression warm and inviting. His hair was thin at the front and slightly curly, extending longer in the back. He was the perfect epitome of a psychologist, right down to the tweed suit jacket.
“Dean Parker.” The man strode with purpose, his hand extended. “So wonderful to see you again.” We shook, and his eyes surveyed the others. He reminded me of a hunter taking stock of the woods, wondering if an animal might burst free of the calm brush. Dr. Henrick Swan walked over to Magnus and duplicated the handshake. “You must be Magnus. Pleasure to make your acquaintance.”
“Kids, can you give us a minute?” I asked, and Jules took the hint, grabbing Dean by the hand to drag him away.
“Thanks, Doc. I guess you and I have some work to do,” Magnus said.
“I hope so. I’d like to have a meeting with you as soon as possible. It would be beneficial to get to know one another first. We can build a foundation for our relationship. When would you be able to accommodate such a meeting? I’d say an hour would be enough time. Bear in mind, I do not adhere to the normal methodologies of a practicing therapist. I will make myself available to you when you need me, and have already decided that I can stay on site here to ease you into the transition.”
“You’re going to live with us? Is that good for boundaries?” Magnus asked with a grin.
“It will be imperative to your well-being.”
“If that’s the case, then how about we talk now? I can show you around,” Magnus offered.
This seemed to shock Dr. Swan, but he quickly recovered. “I would like that very much.” He turned around. Judging by his expression, he thought he’d made a great first step in taming a wild beast.
“He took that well. I’m not sure our Magnus would have opened up to a shrink,” Slate said.
“Our Magnus had gone through a lot. I remember him urging Natalia to speak with someone about her trauma, but she refused. I think he would have been more apt to hire a therapist than we’d assumed.”
Jules and Dean returned, staring after Magnus and the doctor. “Papa, a few of us were thinking of going to the city toni
ght to see some live music. Is that okay?”
I almost told her she’d have to ask her mother, then remembered that Mary and Hugo had already left for Haven and that I was in charge of her. “Sure. You won’t be out too late, will you?”
Jules beamed at my response, as if she’d been positive I would say no. “No. You won’t even notice I’m gone.”
I doubted that but nodded. “Slate and I are leaving. Do you two want a ride home?”
Jules started forward, but Dean shook his head. “I’ll wait for Magnus and keep him company.”
Jules appeared ready to stay too, but she ran over, kissing him on the cheek before heading for our shuttle.
Before closing the shuttle door, I glanced at Dean, relieved that the boy wanted a relationship with the man who’d lost even more than he had. We would never be certain that Jules’ decision to bring Magnus across timelines was a great move, but at least things were positive so far.
“Let’s go home.”
Slate flew the shuttle in silence while Jules and I discussed some house rules for the next month. With Slate and I trying to determine Carolyn’s past, I needed her to be safe and responsible.
Tomorrow, we were off to Earth, and I hoped we’d find some answers.
____________
I hadn’t heard Jules come in last night, so the first thing I did was check on her. Her door wasn’t closed, and I pressed it, cringing as it whined on tight hinges. Jules lay in bed, wearing star pajamas on top of the blankets.
I left her, moving for the kitchen, where I let Maggie out. Slate was already on my heels. “Buddy, you really have to stop coming over so early.”
“Would you be able to sleep, knowing there was something wrong with you, and no one had any answers?” Slate asked as he climbed to his feet.
“Give me a few minutes and we can leave.” I went in, moving as quickly as I could. When I returned, Slate passed me a coffee in a to-go cup, and we flew to the portal outside of Terran Five.
Slate was nondescript in his jeans and plaid shirt. Apparently, he’d checked the weather for Arkansas, and it was late autumn, right on the cusp of needing layers in the evening. “Don’t worry, Boss. I brought an extra hooded sweatshirt just in case.”
The Survivors | Book 15 | New Beginning Page 3