by Jason Parker
Jalen smiled. “I’m probably not the best person to be giving relationship advice, but in a few days we will be graduating and going in separate directions. Now’s the time to take a chance. The worst thing that could happen is you’re no longer friends with someone you’re rarely going to see anyway. On the other hand, it may be the start of something you would regret missing out on. Knowing Ron, I seriously doubt it’s going to be the worst case scenario. You don’t want to spend years thinking about what could have been. Take a chance.”
“You’re right, of course,” she said as tears ran from her eyes, “but that doesn’t make it any easier.”
Jalen kissed her on the cheek and whispered, “Good luck.”
Laurela smiled as he slid his arm from her shoulders and gave her hand a brief squeeze. Wiping her eyes she waved and walked toward the tri-level stone building that housed the student apartments.
Jalen put a hand over his eyes to block the afternoon sun as he looked after her. He wondered if he was the one missing out on something. He had a bit of a crush on Laurela when they first met but brushed it aside as he became increasingly focused on academics. After the midpoint of their first year, he spent almost all of his free time in the lab.
He went out from time to time at the insistence of Laurela and Ron and, with Ron’s assistance, had stumbled into a few one night stands. He had never dated nor had a regular girlfriend. He picked up his pace as he approached the lab and decided he was content with that—at least for now. Science was his girlfriend and he had a date with her to construct a force beam.
CHAPTER 4
The imperceptible Flinn Jerral walked unnoticed out of the laboratory building on the grounds of the Delon Science Institute. He waved and smiled at an attractive brunette student who didn’t as much as glance in his direction when she walked by. He wasn’t invisible, but his presence was undetectable unless he wished it to be. In the spy and assassin circles he was known as Shroud and his special talents were highly regarded. He could stand or sit next to someone or weave throughout a group and no one would recall seeing him unless he made direct physical contact or made a noticeable sound.
“What’s he up to?”
The unspoken words echoed in his head as he exited the laboratory building. The question was from his twin sister, Filana, known professionally as Shadow, with whom he shared a unique rapport.
They could communicate telepathically, but not to the extent of being able to read each other’s minds. The communication required the active projection of the message one wanted to share with the other. They had been able to ‘speak’ in this manner since the cradle. The rapport also enabled them to locate each other no matter how far apart. It was like each produced a mental beacon the other could sense.
Shroud projected to his sister, “Same as every morning since we’ve been here. Jalen gets up at the crack of dawn and goes straight to the lab. I’d love to know what he’s doing in there, but our employer said to make sure he didn’t see us. I suppose I could get to the lab before him and stay quiet and still, but he spends twelve to sixteen hours a day holed up in there without leaving. All it would take is a cough or a sneeze and he’d know I was there. I won’t risk it.”
“It doesn’t matter. We’ve looked around in there after he’s left for the night and couldn’t tell what the hell he’s working on. What makes you think seeing him in action would clear anything up?” she returned.
“You’re probably right, just trying to be thorough” he sent. “This is turning out to be a real boring assignment. What did you learn from Jalen’s friend?”
“I just left his apartment and I’m headed your way. I gotta say, while Jalen may be boring as hell, his buddy Ron is anything but. He was absolutely masterful! I’m going to have to climb in an icerator to cool down from that,” she projected.
Shroud felt his face redden upon hearing his sister’s thoughts. He shuffled his feet and leaned against the side of the lab building. This was hardly her first tryst and these comments were mild compared to some of her tales. He was embarrassed because he had known about it before she mentioned it. It was another aspect of their rapport, an aspect he believed was exclusive to him.
Shadow was uncommonly athletic and emotionally driven. She was a thrill seeker who experienced life with such intensity it bled through the rapport. Shroud felt it all. The pain, the pleasure and everything in between. He was ashamed every time he shared in the unbridled passion of his sister’s physical intimacy, but he couldn’t resist. He relished the intensity. He needed it. She didn’t know. It was perhaps the only secret held between them.
“Anyway,” Shadow’s thoughts continued, “in regard to Jalen, Ron raved about him, greatest guy in the world, and so on. Nothing negative, except that he worked too much. No interesting bits of information that we didn’t already know.”
“His words pretty much echo what everyone else has been telling you,” Shroud conveyed, careful not to reveal any hint of his vicarious participation in her encounter. “Is there anyone around here who doesn’t like the guy? You’ve spoken with all his acquaintances and now, his best friend. Since Mr. Garris specifically said to avoid the faculty members, the only one left to talk to is his other good friend, Laurela. Go speak with her so we can get out of this place.”
“You may have to take that one,” she said through the rapport. “I met her briefly before going out with Ron. I get a real negative vibe from her. I think she has a thing for Ron, so I really doubt she’s going to open up to me, especially if she catches any wind about last night.”
Shroud’s stomach churned. He didn’t want to engage in a casual conversation with someone he didn’t know, especially a woman. He sensed his sister approaching, so he waited for her before beginning his protests. He caught sight of her wavy dark hair rippling in the breeze as she rounded a corner and jaunted down the path toward him. Her tan leggings and slender cut tab collared navy blouse complemented her athletic figure. He shared his sister’s wavy brunette hair, light blue eyes, and straight, slender nose, but she presented the features more attractively than he did. He waved and motioned her toward a secluded area off to one side of the lab building.
“I really think you should be the one to speak with Laurela,” Shroud said.
Shadow rolled her eyes and put her hands on her hips. “I already told you, she won’t like me. She’s not going to talk to me.”
Shroud looked away from his sister and glanced at a group of the students walking nearby. None paid attention to them which was good since it would appear Shadow was talking to herself.
“Do we even need to talk to her?” he asked hopefully. “I doubt she’s going to tell us anything about Jalen we haven’t already heard.”
“How can you even ask that?” she countered. “Didn’t you just say something about being thorough? Dagan Garris is paying us more than this job is worth. We can at least attempt to give him his money’s worth, plus we have a reputation to uphold. I know talking to girls makes you all jittery, but it’s not like you’re trying to date her.”
“I know, I know,” he pleaded, “but she’s just going to think I’m creepy and won’t talk to me any more than she would you.”
Shadow rolled her eyes again. “Maybe it would help if you smiled once in a while.”
Shroud shook his head and shrugged. He looked off into the distance at the Institute administration building.
Shadow pulled at her small hoop earring. “Ron told me Laurela is going to a reception for the top students tonight. Ron didn’t make the cut and Jalen has to stay for an additional ceremony afterward. Laurela will likely be alone when the reception concludes so you might want to catch her then,” she suggested.
“She’s going to ask questions. She’ll want to know why I’m there,” he pointed out.
“Well make something up,” she said tilting her head and holding out her hands. “You have all afternoon to come up with a cover story. You’re resourceful when you want to be, so I’m sur
e you’ll be fine. I’m going to work.”
Shadow paused to pull her unruly hair into a ponytail and clip her identification tag to the waist of her leggings. “Maybe I’ll overhear something interesting. We’re out of here at first light in the morning before the whole graduation mess begins.”
She rose up on her toes and kissed him on the cheek. “Love you, brother,” she said as she scurried away.
“Love you, too,” he called.
Upon their arrival at the Institute Shadow wheedled her way into a job with the crew making preparations for the graduation ceremony and the celebration afterward. Her employment enabled her to move about the Institute grounds without raising suspicion. Now, since his sister was forcing him to interact with Laurela, he would have to invent his own justification for being at the Institute.
After musing over and discarding several plans, he reentered the lab building and returned to where Jalen was working. Through the small window in the lab door, he observed Jalen still actively engaged in his indecipherable experiment. Shroud suspected he would work up until the last moment before rushing off to the reception.
Shroud rubbed his eyes and then shuffled through the deserted halls of the lab building. The academic session had officially concluded the previous day and students were scarce. He paused briefly at the faculty lab with the name Ambernifer on the door. The pretty instructor and the fat Master Scientist, Fodjan, were puzzling over a pile of cloth.
Gaining no inspiration for his dreaded conversation with Laurela, he made his way out of the building. The message board near the exit caught his attention. A posting of the week’s events indicated the honor student reception was at 6:00 p.m. in the administration building banquet room. Heavy hors d’oeuvres would be served. His eyebrows rose as he noticed an advertisement for a periodical called Science Monthly. He ripped the advertisement from the board and smiled. He’d found a cover story.
***
A few minutes past 6:00 p.m., Shroud reluctantly wandered to the administration building. He entered the banquet room to a gathering of thirty or so students and faculty members. A series of portraits depicting a variety of stoic faces lined the far wall. The great men and women of science, he mused with a smirk. In the center of the room was a large table draped with a dark burgundy tablecloth. The table was filled with an array of cut meats, cheeses, fruits, vegetables, and breads along with a pair of punch bowls at either end. A colorful spray of fresh cut spring flowers served as the center piece.
Looking around the room he was immediately drawn to the stunning Ambernifer dressed in a low cut burnished red gown with full ruffled skirt and form fitting bodice. He also saw Master Scientist Fodjan in an ill-fitted suit with one shirt tail hanging out. The Head Master, Rainstel, looked stern and stately in his black tail coat, matching waistcoat and royal blue puff tie. Shroud noted Jalen furtively slipping in ten minutes late, sweating and out of breath.
Shroud located Laurela amongst a small group of students in one corner of the room. She exuded a subtle elegance dressed in a dark green gown that nicely complemented her auburn hair. Cosmetics were skillfully applied to lessen the shock of her abundant freckles. Quite a contrast to the plainness he noted during prior observations.
Shroud wove through the faculty and honorees unnoticed. He reached Laurela the same time as Jalen.
“You look incredible,” Jalen said, wide eyed.
She smiled, straightened his bow tie, and mopped his brow with the napkin she was holding under her drink. “And you look like you ran all the way here.”
“That obvious, huh?” he winked. “I’ve got to scoot. There are some people Rainstel wants me to meet. Enjoy the party.”
Shroud hovered around Laurela as she mingled about the room, but her conversations consisted of little more than polite chatter.
After an hour, the reception began to break up. Laurela exchanged a few parting pleasantries, gave Jalen a hug, and exited the banquet room. As his sister correctly predicted, she left unaccompanied. He followed her out of the administration building, remaining several paces behind until they were on the path toward the student apartments. No one else was in the immediate vicinity.
“Excuse me, Ms. Frankev. May I have a moment?” he asked tentatively.
A quiet shriek escaped her as she turned around. “Oh, I didn’t realize anyone was behind me.”
“Sorry if I st-startled you,” he said nervously. “I’m with Science Monthly and I’m wr-writing a feature on Jalen Logan. I understand you are a friend of his and I-I was hoping to ask you a few questions.”
“I don’t think I caught your name,” she said wrinkling her freckled nose and squinting.
Shroud inwardly groaned. Suspicion and distrust were written all over her face. He did not like his odds for success with this meeting, but he pressed forward. “I’m Fl-Flinn Jerral and this really shouldn’t take mu-much of your time.”
“I’m a regular reader of Science Monthly and I’ve never seen your name associated with it,” she said.
He paused and licked his lips as she stared at him.
“I’m new and this is my f-first assignment,” he said, wishing his words had sounded more like a statement than a question.
“Jalen earning the Scientist designation is one of the biggest scientific community events in years. Science Monthly wouldn’t assign the story to a rookie and I’m pretty sure he already did an interview with one of your supposed colleagues,” she accused.
“Uh, uh, you’re right,” he hesitated. “I was sent to follow up on a few things.”
“Look, I’m not buying this,” she said shaking her head and then suddenly looking frightened. “Hold on, I saw you lurking around at the reception. I thought you looked familiar, but I was distracted and couldn’t place you. Now it’s clicked. I realize where I’ve seen you before.”
“I-I don’t think that’s possible,” he tried to assure her, but she had already started backing away from him toward a small group of people thirty yards or so down the path.
“It was about eight or nine years ago in Arcanta at the harvest festival,” she said, ignoring his denial. “I was just a kid, but I saw you snap the neck of an old man named Zubov. It almost scared me to death and the strange thing was, even though you killed him right out in the open, no one else saw you.”
“That cou-couldn’t have been me,” he said taking a step toward her and offering a weak smile.
“Stop right there or I’ll start screaming,” she warned. “It was you. Your face is unmistakable. It’s hard to describe, you look remarkable and unremarkable at the same time. It’s creepy.”
“I-I-I,” he stuttered and shrugged.
She pointed at him. “Look, my daddy said Zubov did terrible things to a lot of good people and we were better off without him. So, I’m going to give you one chance. Leave now and don’t ever come back.”
He held up his hands and backed away. “Okay. Okay. I d-don’t want any trouble. I’ll be on my way.”
He turned and hurried away from Laurela, praying she would hold true to what she had said. Any type of publicity would be bad for business, especially if Mr. Garris heard anything about it.
He ducked behind the first building he came to and sprinted until he was off the Institute grounds. His mind raced. Latimer Zubov. He and Shadow were associated with the Blackwater Company in those days. Zubov had been their first assignment. How could Laurela have possibly seen him? Then or at the reception? No one saw him unless he wanted to be seen.
The Blackwater Company was a cabal of assassins and mercenaries operating throughout the lands of the Triumvirate. Killers with a conscience, they branded themselves. They would only accept contracts on the worst of humanity and declined business relating to trivial grudges and other petty crap. Shroud and Shadow appreciated this philosophy and joined the Company nine years ago this autumn.
The Company said Zubov would be an easy assignment. Something to get their feet wet. Zubov was a ruthless opportunist who
swindled several small farmers out of their land. A group of Arcanta farmers finally decided enough was enough. They refused to allow Zubov to destroy their families. They scraped together enough money to hire the Company to eliminate their problem. As the Company promised, it was an easy assignment. Shroud believed he had completed the job without being observed. He was wrong.
“Shadow,” he projected, “we need to get out of here now.”
“Why? What happened?” she returned.
Shroud clenched his fists and paced. “It has to do with something back when we worked for the Blackwater Company.”
“What are you talking about?” she questioned, conveying exasperation.
He took a deep breath. “As unlikely as this sounds, Laurela knows who I am.”
CHAPTER 5
Jalen squirmed in an uncomfortable folding chair on the makeshift stage at the front of the auditorium. He tugged at the collar of his sky blue graduation gown and ran his sleeve along the beads of perspiration on his forehead. The Delon Science Institute graduation ceremony was held in the same auditorium where Wexworth had performed his demonstration a few days prior. The scorched wall was repainted and there were no visible signs of damage. The usually austere room was adorned with congratulatory banners, streamers and floral arrangements. The decorations walked a fine line between tasteful and garish, but Jalen supposed the atmosphere they created was appropriate.
Jalen scanned the assembly of classmates and visitors. He noticed Ron’s parents and brother in the middle of the sloped theatre seating. Rowlan and Chessie Cassen operated a successful business in Agron brokering all manner of goods from food to building materials to the nearby North Outpost in Tuvir. Jalen met them on a few occasions when they visited Ron. A touch of jealousy panged through Jalen. He wished his grandmother, Aldanna Faiden, could be here, but she had died during the break between his second and third years at the Institute.