by Linnea Hall
The young knight fully recovered. He continued his purpose as a Knight but as the original knights aged, the young knight did not. For nearly two hundred years, he carried on his duties as one of the Templar Knights. Many believed that his longevity was proof that the Holy Grail existed, and that it was in the possession of the Templar Knights
When the Templars were accused of heresy in 1305, another sect, the Obsidian Knights, stepped forward to testify against the Templars. They proclaimed their purpose was to correct the wrong, kill the unjust, and reclaim what once was lost. To seek out those that had stolen eternal life from the Holy Grail, and mete out justice without mercy or trial. Since then, a religious war has raged between these two sects.
When the Templars were gathered Hugh Payne, the Grand Master of the group, looked each in the eye, testing their commitment to their duty. “Gentlemen, an Infinitas has been identified.”
The group gave a collective gasp. The Infinitas were rare, and seldom discovered. To protect their lives, the Infinitas took great pains to remain unidentified.
Nicholas Babineaux went on to describe the situation occurring with Collin Sykes. “Apparently, Collin has been living with his Infinitas uncle, Percy Knighton, but does not yet know that he is Infinitas. It is also likely that Collin does not know what the Infinitas are.
“Dr. Knighton has been reluctant to give his nephew too much information, concerned for his nephew’s safety. Dr. Knighton had seen signs that his nephew carried the trait, but after Collin’s accident, it is certain.
“Understandably, Dr. Knighton did not want to reveal where he’s staying, but he did specify that more Infinitas may be joining him in the coming weeks. At this time, they don’t want to leave the area but they’re ready to move at a moment’s notice.” Dr. Babineaux paused to pass around several pictures.
“These are photos of Dr. Knighton and his nephew. Dr. Knighton provided us with the picture of his nephew prior to the accident. He said that the picture is about two years old, though my observations in treating Collin show that his appearance has not changed in those two years.”
He paused while the pictures were passed from person to person. Each man carefully studied the photographs to ensure that they would be able to recognize both people. While it was unlikely that the Infinitas would have reason to come in contact with the group, should they see either person or believe that they were in apparent trouble, the Templars were to act immediately. The loss of a single Infinitas was considered a failure to the Templars.
After the pictures had been returned to Nicholas Babineaux, he sat down to give Hugh Payne an opportunity to speak. “Among us, we have three firefighters, two sheriffs, a doctor, and three police officers in different precincts. We should be able to provide the protection required. Should any of you hear or see anything suspicious, it is your sacred duty to use whatever resources are necessary to protect the Infinitas from harm until they are able to leave the area.” He paused to look around the room. “Does everyone understand?”
“Yes, Grand Master,” came the unified response from the group.
There was a solemn silence as the group replaced displaced furniture and slowly left for their cars. They all were aware of the import of the task that lay before them.
Chapter 17
Jewell had been to Ashley’s apartment before. It was a nice, two bedroom apartment in a gated apartment community in Mandeville. Although the walls were standard Apartment White, she decorated her apartment the way that she picked out her clothes; with style and class. Her taste was impeccable.
Ashley used the second bedroom as a guestroom/office. She had a double bed in the room, along with a bookshelf, a desk, and a computer. Jewell walked straight to the room and turned on the computer. As she waited for the computer to boot up, she dug the small piece of paper out of her pocket.
Jaffa Continuing Care Center
1135 Bor du Lac Drive, Lake Charles
337-555-8410
When Windows had finished booting she opened the internet and quickly navigated to Google. First she typed in the name of the private care center, trying to get more information. She scanned through the results and found nothing. Next she tried Google Maps. The exact address couldn’t be found, but Bor du Lac drive was a short road on the banks of Lake Charles. She quickly typed in Ashley’s address to get driving directions and printed them. She laid the papers on the desk as carefully and gently as if they were an original copy of the Declaration of Independence.
Ashley called from the kitchen where she was heating up some leftovers. “Did you find anything?”
“Nothing about the care center specifically, but I did find the street on Google Maps. It’s a short street so finding the care center shouldn’t be difficult. I printed the directions.”
“Great. Hungry?”
Jewell thought for a minute. She hadn’t eaten anything since this morning when she came home from work. She had heated the gumbo to take to Collin, but hadn’t eaten any herself. She wasn’t sure what she had done with that. She probably left it at the nurses’ station at the hospital. “Yeah, I guess. Now that I know where he is, I feel like I could eat something.”
Ashley set two paper plates on the table and went back to the kitchen for forks. Jewell took a tentative bite and realized she was famished. With everything that had been going on today, she hadn’t had time to think about her building hunger.
When they had finished eating, Ashley gave Jewell a pair of sweatpants and a t-shirt. She also gave her an unopened pack of underwear. “I bought it yesterday, guess it’ll come in handy. Go ahead and try to get some sleep. I’ll wake you up at about eight. If we leave by nine, we can be there at noon.”
Jewell turned towards the guest room with her borrowed clothes, “thanks Ash.” Ashley just smiled and went into her own room to get some sleep.
Jewell sat on the edge of her bed. She was certain she wouldn’t be able to sleep. She thought about going to the computer, but she couldn’t think of anything she wanted to look up. Instead, she turned off the lights, and laid her head on the pillow. Before she knew it, she was asleep, dreaming of a sandy blonde man with stormy gray eyes.
It felt like only moments before she became aware of Ashley gently shaking her shoulder. “Come on sleepy head. If you want to take this road trip, we need to get started so we won’t be too late getting home. I’ve already had my shower. I left a towel in there for you. Get your hair dry and we’ll fix your face and figure out what you are going to wear today.”
Jewell dragged herself out of bed and wandered sleepily into the shower. The warm water felt good and seemed to wash away all of the stress and worry she had felt over the last twenty four hours. She quickly washed her hair and got out of the shower; wrapping the huge bath sheet around herself and drying her hair. She hadn’t taken out her contact lenses the night before so she searched Ashley’s cabinets for some solution to clean her lenses. After drying her hair and cleaning and replacing her contact lenses, she walked out of the bathroom with the towel wrapped around her.
Ashley was in her room, her closet door open and three drawers pulled open in her dresser. She had laid out several shirts, pants and skirts on the bed and was swapping tops with bottoms looking for the right combination. Jewell sighed and walked up next to Ashley. Ashley glanced over at her, and went back to her study. Jewell looked around her room, peering into Ashley’s closet. She was overwhelmed by the selection of clothes owned by her friend.
When Jewell saw Ashley at the hospital, she was always in scrubs. The hospital had a dress code which didn’t allow Ashley to fully express herself. When they went out on their days off, Ashley usually wore jeans and a t-shirt. Granted her t-shirts were much more stylish than what Jewell wore, Jewell couldn’t begin to fathom the extent of Ashley’s fetish with style. Well, Jewell thought, at least she’d look good today.
“Got it! This is the one!” Ashley suddenly shouted. She turned, holding a violet wrap shirt which she held up to Jew
ell’s shoulders. “Oh yes, definitely. This is it!”
Jewell shrugged out of her towel and started getting dressed. She had some difficulty trying to figure out how to make the shirt work, but with a little help from Ashley, she had it on and expertly tied. She had to admit, Ashley knew what she was talking about. Ashley also gave her a pair of pleated front black capris, and a pair of black strappy sandals with heels. Ashley dragged Jewell into the bathroom, added a few loose curls to the bottom of Jewell’s long blonde hair and sprayed it with hairspray. Finally, Ashley fixed Jewell’s makeup to give her a bright summer glow.
When Ashley was finished, she took Jewell to the full length mirror in Ashley’s room and asked Jewell what she thought. Just as before, Jewell was shocked. She had no idea she could look this good. Ashley was a miracle worker.
Ashley told Jewell to go grab the directions while she grabbed two Cokes out of the fridge and they started out on their trip. As they started out, Jewell’s dad called, obviously worried about his daughter. Jewell assured him that she and Ashley were just going to hang out, and Ashley promised that they wouldn’t be late. When Jewell finished talking to her father, she turned off her phone and stuck it in the center console. She didn’t want to answer any more questions from her dad; he knew her too well to hide things from him. The less she spoke to him, the better it would be.
By twelve thirty, they had found Bor du Lac drive, but they had no luck finding the care facility. The road wasn’t long, so they drove the length of it three times before finally giving up. They drove to a gas station and Ashley got out asking the attendant if she had ever heard of the Jaffa Critical Care Center. The attendant shook her head as she apologized. “No, not in town. I know for sure that it wouldn’t be on Bor du Lac drive. There’s only one building on that street and it’s definitely not health care. You might want to check with the hospital. They may know something. St. Patrick Hospital is just down the road,” she quickly jotted down some directions. “I’m sure they would know if there was a private patient care facility somewhere in town.”
“Thanks.” Ashley smiled at the clerk and took the paper out to the car. “The clerk inside said we should ask at this hospital. They might be able to give us some more information.”
Jewell nodded her head. She knew that the hospital wouldn’t have any more information. Jaffa Critical Care Center didn’t exist. What she wanted to know was why Collin’s uncle would take him out of the hospital and lie about where he was taking him. She also wondered why Dr. Babineaux would release a patient to move to a facility that didn’t exist.
“Let’s go home. There’s something weird going on here. Dr. Babineaux wouldn’t release a patient to a facility that didn’t exist unless he knew something. I’m going to ask him if he knows anything. Plus, I might be able to get Collin’s home address from his file.”
“Jewell, you know Doc Babineaux isn’t going to tell you anything, and if you get caught looking in a patient’s file, you could get fired. Maybe you should let it go.”
“I know Ashley. I can’t. I don’t know why, I just need to see him again.”
They stopped for lunch at a Burger King on the way out of town. As they ate, they didn’t say anything. Jewell didn’t trust herself to speak, and Ashley didn’t know what to say, to either talk her friend out of her crazy quest, or to make her feel better about her futile search. Really, there wasn’t anything she could say.
When they had finished eating, they threw their trash in the bin and started walking out the door. In the parking lot, Jewell saw a man that she thought she recognized. As she got into her car, she watched as the man pulled a leg with a cast out of the car. Instantly, Jewell knew where she had seen him before. He was the guy they brought in that had the car accident, the one who had spilled coffee on his lap; the one with the really creepy eyes. She shuddered.
Ashley noticed Jewell staring and looked over her shoulder to see what she was looking at. She saw a man getting out of his car, and then she noticed Jewell shudder. “What’s up?”
“I know him. He came into the hospital a couple of days ago. When they brought him into the hospital, he stared at me and it really gave me the creeps.”
“Do you think he’s following you?”
“No, I don’t even think he saw me. It’s probably just a coincidence.”
“Probably. You ready to go home?”
“Yeah. Let’s go.”
*
When Edgar was released from the hospital, he borrowed a car to drive to Lake Charles to find the care facility where the infidel had been taken. When he took the Ryan Street exit in Lake Charles heading towards downtown, he realized that he hadn’t had breakfast. As he drove down Ryan Street, he saw a Burger King. He pulled in and was just about to get out of his car when he saw the blonde nurse from the hospital leaving with another woman.
He sat in his car, watching the women as they left the restaurant. He wondered if they were in town for the same reason he was. He couldn’t be one hundred percent positive, but considering the conversation he overheard the day before, he was relatively certain that they were here looking for the infidel as well. From the look on the blonde’s face, it didn’t look like their search had been successful. As the women got into their car, he opened the door to get out. Out of the corner of his eye, he noticed the blonde looking at him. He wondered if she recognized him. He limped into the restaurant without looking back.
Chapter 18
They drove to Ashley’s apartment. As Ashley got out of the car, she leaned in the passenger side door assessing Jewell’s face. She had the same deadpan expression that she when she first found out Collin was gone. Her eyes were devoid of hope, and her face was drawn and pale. “Are you going to be okay?”
“What?” Jewell looked at Ashley as if she didn’t realize she wasn’t alone.
“I said are you going to be okay?”
“Yeah, fine.” Jewell’s voice caught in her throat.
“Maybe we can drive to work together tonight.”
“I don’t know Ash. I just…I don’t know if I’m going to work tonight.”
Ashley’s face creased with worry. Something had to change. What could she say to give her friend a little hope? She couldn’t stay home alone tonight; it wouldn’t help her at all.
“What about his file? Didn’t you say you might see if you can find his address?” Ashley tried to sound hopeful. “I could help. I go into the records room all the time. I doubt anyone would notice if I took a quick peek in the wrong file…accidentally, of course.” She winked at Jewell and gave her a half smile.
“Yeah, I guess.”
Ashley stood up and closed the door. She watched until Jewell drove through the gates of the apartment complex then picked up her phone and dialed Jewell’s home number. She didn’t know if Jewell’s dad was home today, but she had to try.
Tommy picked up on the second ring. “Hello?”
“Hey Tommy, this is Ashley. I’m glad you’re home. We’ve got a problem.”
“I knew last night wasn’t about a girl’s night out. What happened?” Tommy sat at the kitchen table and rubbed his temple. He sensed that something was very wrong.
“It’s Collin. What do you know about him?”
“Is Collin that guy at the hospital that Jewell took a liking to?”
“Yeah. Apparently, she really took a liking to him. She was visiting him every day before and after work. There was something, I don’t know how to explain it. It’s like, after she met him, she was whole. Like there had been a piece of her missing, but we had just never noticed it before.”
“I know.” Tommy sighed heavily. He was quiet for a minute. Every person has one true soul mate. That was what he used to tell Jewell all the time. Tommy saw it in her eyes the first time she spoke of Collin. This was her soul mate. He could only hope that she hadn’t lost hers the way he had lost his. “What happened?” Tommy knew that if he was her true soul mate, the feeling would be mutual. He wouldn’t have turned
her away. But if he wasn’t, if this was just the infatuation of a first crush, then she would just need to get beyond the first couple of days of heartbreak.
“They discharged him. His uncle is a doctor and he supposedly took him to some private care facility. Jewell managed to get the address in Lake Charles. We went there today but there was no private care facility. The information was deliberately falsified.”
So he hadn’t necessarily left her by his own choice. If he was her soul mate, he would find his way back to her, but would it be too late? “I’m assuming she didn’t take it well.”
“No, she’s worse than she was before. She said she wasn’t going to go in to work today. I think I convinced her to go, but…Tommy, I’m worried about her. Really worried. I think she needs someone to be there, just in case…” She let the thought trail off.
“That’s not a problem. I’ve got some vacation time saved up at work. I’ll call in a few favors and take a couple of days off. Is she on her way home?”
“Yeah, she left maybe five minutes ago. Just before I called you.”
Tommy checked his watch. She should be home in the next ten minutes. “Don’t worry Ashley. I’ll take care of her. Thanks for looking after her and being a good friend.”
“You’re welcome Tommy; I just hope it’s enough.”
After what seemed like an eternity, he saw Jewell’s blue Focus driving down the street. He sat down in his favorite recliner and grabbed the book he was reading. When Jewell came in the door, he set down the book. “Hey honey. Did you have a good time with Ashley?” She shrugged in response and walked into her room and shut the door.
At five o’clock, Tommy knocked on Jewell’s door. “Do you want something to eat before work?” He waited for a response. When she didn’t answer, he cracked the door to look in on her. The shades were drawn; the room was completely dark. Jewell sat in the middle of her bed, hugging her knees to her chest. Tommy eased his way into the room and over to the bed. He sat on the edge, placing his hand on Jewell’s back. “It’s time to get going if you want to get to work on time.”