by J. M. Pierce
“What?” asked Test.
Prim turned to him. “I was just thinking that not only is it genius to hide a facility like this in an unassuming place like Kansas, but to build it in a place where construction is non-stop is brilliant.”
“Kind of odd for this country isn’t it?” quipped Cliff.
“Wait a minute,” said Thad. “There’s a new place north of town, between the lake and town, that they’ve just started building. I remember reading about it. It’s supposed to be some big bio-medical center. Supposed to house all of the worst diseases known to man.”
Prim’s eyes lit up. “That’s got to be it.”
“It’s not built yet though,” answered Thad. “We drove by the mess on our way to the dam a little bit ago.”
Prim’s excitement quickly deflated and he felt Test smack him on the back.
“It was a good thought though,” said Test.
The room fell silent. Even Thad on the other end of the line hung quietly waiting for the next word to come. Suddenly, Test smacked the counter with an open palm, snapping everyone’s attention to him.
“Wait a minute,” he said. “What if the government is even smarter than we’ve already given them credit for?” Test looked to Prim who eyed him curiously. Leaning down towards the phone, Test asked, “Thad, could you tell if they’ve laid the foundation yet?”
“I think so. Well…yeah, I know they have. I remember seeing all of the white pipe sticking out of the concrete.”
Turning into the counter, Test placed both hands down and began to rock back and forth excitedly. He looked over his shoulder to Prim and Cliff and noticed that Iku had moved just behind them. He turned and leaned against the counter, folding his arms across his chest and grinning triumphantly.
“Well are you gonna tell us what’s on your mind or not?” asked Cliff.
Test looked down to his old friend and then scanned every face in the room. “Where’s an even better place to hide something as crazy and insane as this facility than in an unassuming state and in a town that is constantly building and changing?” He focused on Prim’s face, waiting for the light of recognition to come. When he saw a glimmer, he continued. “I’ll tell you where; how about hiding it in an unassuming state, in a town that is constantly building and changing, underneath of a building that isn’t even built yet?”
Thad’s voice came in a whisper through the receiver. “Holy shit.”
Prim stood tall and slapped Test on the shoulder. “Thad,” he said. “When are you going to be home?”
Followed by a short hesitation, Thad replied in a skeptical voice. “In a few hours. Why?”
Still focused on Test, Prim answered. “Because I think we’re going to need your apartment again.”
With a disgruntled huff, Thad replied. “How the hell did I know you were going to say that? Do I have a sign on my door that says headquarters or something?”
“No,” replied Prim. “But we can get one made for you if you’d like?”
The sound of Thad walking through a breeze told everyone that he was moving. “I’ve got to get back to my students. I guess I’ll see you when I get home.”
Without giving anyone the chance to answer, Thad hung up and the line went dead.
Prim looked down to the counter in thought. The moments prior had pushed the thought of his blossoming family aside, but they were now rushing back to the forefront. Before he could even turn to look at her, he could feel the dread in Lauren’s eyes.
Chapter 28
With her back to the shower head, Lauren leaned her head back and let the water trickle over her face. Running her hands through her hair, she tried not to think about what the boys were in the kitchen talking about at that very moment. She wanted to know, but she didn’t. Her mind felt so twisted up that she felt she was losing herself; she wasn’t sure who she was anymore. Her life had been spent being strong; making definitive choices and not letting others influence her decisions. All of that had suddenly changed.
Giving up on the expedition for mental peace, she turned off the shower and pulled the curtain back. The air was thick with humidity from the hot shower and, as she reached for her towel, the fog twisted and swirled around her arm. She wrapped the towel around her body and then wiped at the fogged over the mirror with her bare hand, revealing her image within the streaked area. She looked at herself and suddenly realized that the youthful looking girl before her didn’t resemble how she felt inside. She’d lived multiple lives over multiple lifetimes and, the deeper she ventured into the journey of life, her experiences left her feeling more confused than wiser for having experienced them.
A sudden knock on the door startled her and she instinctively checked that the towel around her was secure. “Occupied,” she responded. The knock came again. “Give me a minute, okay?” she asked as she reached down to her clothes that rested on the back of the toilet.
“Can I come in?”
Prim’s voice both electrified her and terrified her at the same time. Frozen as she reached for her clothes, she hesitated before turning back toward the door.
“Lauren?” asked Prim.
Without answering him, she stepped closer to the door and reached for the door knob. Placing her weight against the door, she opened it just a crack. She peered through and saw Prim standing alone in the hallway. “What do you need?” she asked.
“I need you,” he replied.
His eyes looked like those of a lost puppy and she couldn’t keep her heart from skipping when she looked into them. “Can it wait?” she asked. “I need to get dressed.” She watched as Prim bit his bottom lip before replying.
“Can’t I just come in? It’s more private in there. I really need to talk to you.”
His words took the skipping out of her heart and, instead, caused it to stop. “I don’t know if I want to hear what you’re going to say,” she replied. She watched as Prim dropped his head in rejection, turned away from the door, and then began to walk down the hallway. Though she felt guilty, she didn’t care. She’d just add it to the list of crappy feelings she had been feeling lately.
As she closed the door, a bright flash behind her forced her shadow to appear on the door. She instantly knew that she was no longer alone. “You don’t listen very well,” she said as she turned slowly.
Reaching out and taking her left arm, Prim pulled her into him. Though Lauren gave no resistance, he could still feel the distance in her spirit. He placed his hand on the back of her head and guided her cheek gently into his chest. He could feel the moisture of her wet hair penetrating his shirt and wished that he could transfer understanding of his feelings to her as easily as the water penetrated the fabric.
With one cheek pressed firmly against his chest and the other draped in wet hair, Lauren spoke in a quiet, subdued voice. “You’re going to leave soon, aren’t you?”
“Yes,” replied Prim.
“You’re going to tell me that I can’t go, aren’t you?” asked Lauren.
With a sigh, Prim replied. “Yes.”
Her mind told her to pull away, but her heart made her stay. “There’s not really much left to say then, is there?”
“That’s where you’re wrong,” replied Prim as he caressed her back. “I have so much that I need to say, but I don’t know how to make you understand or believe why it’s the right thing.” Releasing her, he guided her to take a seat on the toilet while he pushed the curtain farther back and sat on the edge of the tub. “The only thing,” he began, choking on emotion. “The only thing that means anything to me is you and the baby. You understand that, right?” He watched as her bottom lip began to protrude slightly while her chin began to quiver. He could see her eyes already welling with tears and didn’t know how he was going to keep from doing the same. “Lauren, I can’t pretend to understand the tragedy that was part of your youth. I can’t deny that I was lucky in finding Jenz and being guided by a kind soul. In comparison to the way you had to live your life, I might as well
have been in heaven while you were living in hell.” He watched through increasingly blurred vision as she struggled to control herself. “Even so, as happy and pleasant as my life with Jenz was, I still always felt empty; like something was missing.” He reached out and wiped an errant tear from her cheek. “Do you remember when we met?” he asked. As another tear streamed down her cheek, Lauren nodded. With a laugh, Prim continued. “God, you hammered me. I got up from the ground, ready to obliterate whomever it was that just blindsided me. And then I saw you.” He felt the corner of his lips turn up as he chuckled once again. “I don’t know if I can accurately describe the sensation that ran through me in that moment. Sure, I was angered and still aware that Jenz and I were in danger, but something about you pushed a button inside; a button that screamed loudly, but in a language I didn’t immediately understand.” He reached out and took her hands into his. “The first time I heard you speak, you were so bitchy and full of yourself that it took me by surprise. It didn’t matter though. The sensation didn’t go away.” He leaned forward. His voice finally breaking, he did his best to mutter the words. “It has never gone away.”
Leaning forward, he kissed her softly and then rested his forehead against hers. In a near whisper, he spoke. “I will come back for you. I promise.”
“I know,” replied Lauren, her voice cracking with pain.
With his lips pressed to her forehead, he whispered once more. “I love you.”
The sincerity of the moment was more than Lauren had ever felt before in her life. As she squeezed her eyes shut, inhaling the warmth of his breath as he exhaled, a river of tears fell from them. Through her eyelids, she didn’t even flinch as the flash of white light shone brightly through them, signaling Prim’s exit.
“I love you, too,” she whispered. “Please come back.”
****
Test and Alyssa walked through the woods with Aiden between them as he held their hands. Test tried to step outside of himself and picture the moment. It was almost like a dream. The problem was that it was preceding what was sure to be a nightmare.
Everyone had been relatively silent. With the exception of Aiden occasionally pointing something out, neither of the adults said anything.
With the morning sun beginning to climb higher in the sky, Test knew that time was running short and that they would have to leave for Kansas City soon. As they approached a small clearing in the trees, he stopped.
“We’d probably better…”
“I’m going,” blurted Alyssa.
Taken aback, Test’s face scrunched up as he replied. “What?”
Looking him dead in the eye, Alyssa spoke with steel in her voice. “I’m going with you.”
Test began to shake his head emphatically. “No. No, you can’t.”
Alyssa turned and began to lead Aiden back the way they came. She looked over her shoulder as she walked. “I’m going, and there’s nothing you can do to stop me,” she said.
“Alyssa, stop it,” replied Test, taking a couple of quick steps to catch up with her. She didn’t acknowledge him and continued to move forward at a faster pace. He reached out and grabbed her arm, but she instantly released her use of his energy, allowing his fingers to slip through her essence as fluidly as if it were air. He watched as Aiden stopped with a suddenly fearful look on his face. His hand had slipped through Alyssa’s as well and it frightened him. Only when she saw the look on Aiden’s face did she stop.
“I’m sorry, honey,” she said, bringing her form back to solid and squatting down in front of him.
Test walked up behind Aiden and placed a hand on the boy’s head. “You okay, buddy?”
Aiden looked up. His big brown eyes were like a window to his innocence. “Yeah, I’m okay. That just scared me for a second,” he replied.
Test looked to Alyssa whose determination seemed to be wavering. “You have to stay here,” he said softly. “You have to look after him.”
Alyssa stood. “I can help you,” she said with great desperation. “I can help you just like we did before.”
Test felt for her and wanted to comfort her, but that wouldn’t change her mind. “It’s not the same, Alyssa. This kid is different. I don’t think that trick will work with him.”
“You don’t know that,” she replied.
“No, I don’t,” answered Test. “But I do know that...”
“What? That you want to keep me safe?” barked Alyssa. “I’m already dead, Test. What more could possibly happen?”
Though he knew she didn’t mean it as he’d heard it, her words might as well have been a hand grenade exploding in his chest. He dropped his head, ready for the cycle of pity and resentment to begin, when he saw Aiden still looking up to him. The heaviness in his chest went away slightly as the boy turned and wrapped his arms around Test’s right leg. A surge of emotion, the likes of which he’d never felt before, raced through him. He reached down and lifted Aiden, melting as the boy threw his arms around his neck for a hug.
With Aiden firmly attached, Test looked to Alyssa who had tears welling in her eyes. “We have other responsibilities now,” he said, reaching out a hand to her. As she took it, he continued. “No matter what happens, we have Aiden to look after now.”
Taking a step forward, Alyssa replied as a single tear rolled down her cheek. “But what if…”
“I’ll come home,” replied Test, cutting her off. “There is no what if. I promise.”
She took one more small step forward and wrapped her arms around both Aiden and Test. “I don’t know if I can stay here by myself knowing that you are…”
Cutting her off once again, Test replied. “You won’t be alone. Lauren is going to be here too.”
Alyssa quickly recoiled. “What?”
“Prim’s not going to let her go with us, and I can’t say that I blame him,” he replied as he patted Aiden’s back. The boy had rested his chin on Test’s shoulder.
“But…that...” Alyssa stammered. Her mind was racing. “That means that it’s three on three, and from what I’ve heard of that boy, you can’t win.”
Test watched as the fear overtook her. Though he was frightened himself and had doubts of his own, he couldn’t let himself be as resolved to his own demise as she was. “I don’t know about that,” he said with a manufactured grin. “Nobody thought I’d beat Isaac either and look…”
“Don’t make fun of me,” interrupted Alyssa.
Dropping his shoulders, he shifted Aiden to the other shoulder as he replied. “I’m not, Alyssa, but it’s the truth. I’ll be fine.”
“You’re fighting yourself!” she shouted, all of the anger and fear raging from her lips. “You’re fighting yourself only more! If all this kid has to do is steal your power, then the twins will destroy you!”
Aiden lifted his head, stared at Alyssa, and then quickly buried his face in Test’s shoulder while squeezing tightly.
“Stop yelling,” said Test, motioning to Aiden. “You’re making him upset. Besides, we’ll think of something.”
“You’ll think of something? You’ll think of something?” she screamed.
Suddenly, Aiden disappeared from Test’s grasp. Spinning in a circle, Test called out his name. “Aiden!” But he was gone. He turned back to Alyssa, but before he could say anything, she disappeared as well.
Standing in the small clearing, the mid-day sun beat down on the back of his neck. The weight of the world was once again on his shoulders, and he found himself wishing that he could forget his worries as easily as Alyssa and Aiden had just disappeared. He rolled his head back and closed his eyes, allowing the sunlight to pass through his eyelids. This had become one of his favorite methods for calming himself. Ever since sitting in the big tree in Nebraska, the one by the grain elevator, he imagined it as if the light was burning the worries of the moment.
“Everythin’ alright?”
Test’s head snapped forward and he saw Cliff literally walking through a tree. Hanging his thumbs on his pockets,
he looked to the ground and shook his head. “I don’t think so.”
“Did you tell Alyssa she can’t go?” asked Cliff as he stopped several feet away.
“I tried to,” replied Test. “She got upset, and then Aiden got upset. They both ran off that way somewhere.” Test pointed off into the trees.
“So what are your plans with that boy?”
Test looked to Cliff with a puzzled expression. “What do you mean?”
Cliff scratched his chin as he began to walk around Test. “Seems to me you mean to start a family; take him in as your own.”
Test turned and followed Cliff as he paced. “Not necessarily,” answered Test reluctantly. “We’re just going to watch over him.”
“Is that how you think Alyssa sees it?”
Test stopped in his tracks as Cliff continued to stroll in a circle. His brain did a quick spin as he suddenly found himself looking at the situation from Alyssa’s point of view. The revelation that Cliff’s question brought to the forefront made him dizzy. Though he knew he wanted to be with Alyssa, he’d never given children a thought. He’d certainly never considered having an ethereal child. It then dawned on him that Aiden would be a child forever, and he wondered if she had considered that at all. He didn’t know if he was ready to accept the level of responsibility that Cliff was proposing. “I hadn’t thought about it like that,” he mumbled to himself.
“Obviously,” chided Cliff as he stopped in front of Test.
Test glared up to the sky and then lowered his gaze upon Cliff. “I guess I could see how she would think that.”
“Is there something wrong with starting a family?” asked Cliff.
Test huffed. “Well, yeah—with my track record it seems like an asinine thing to do.”
Cliff shook his head and turned his back to Test. “Test, one of these days you’re going to wise up, but I guess it’s not gonna be today.”
Test stared at him. It wasn’t like Cliff to come straight at him like he was and, though the voice was his, the words suddenly didn’t sound like how the old man typically spoke. Shaking his head, he called out to Cliff as he was walking away. “What?” asked Test. “Why is me wanting to protect those that mean something to me crazy?”