Initiates (The Book of Adam 3)

by Scott Gelowitz

  This message may never be found, after all, but if you do find it, please understand that I’ve done everything I could, to protect you as much as possible, with the last of the time I have because I love you both with all my heart, now and forever.

  Ed.

  Adam read the note again and again, in a state of disbelief. When he finally disconnected from the Impression Stone, he looked at his mom with a blank expression on his face. She looked nervous and apprehensive.

  They stared at each other for a few moments before Adam could finally speak.

  “I don’t know what to say,” said Adam.

  Mary nodded.

  “That’s so typical of your father. Sacrifice himself for the good of others,” she said and then sighed.

  “I understand why, because logically it makes sense, but his plan didn’t work. It probably put us in worse danger. Karl couldn’t check on the Heartstone and lied to the League that it was safe and then Larix ended up nearly killing off the whole town anyway. If the Heartstone were here, Larix could have taken it and probably would have never come back here ever again,” said Adam.

  “But first he would have killed everyone in Grayson, and then he would have gone somewhere else and started killing off people like he always has in the past. That’s what your dad was trying to prevent. It’s been pretty successful so far,” said Mary.

  Adam thought about that but things just didn’t feel right.

  “I was expecting a clue,” said Adam, “but the only thing that message did was confirm that Dad took it, which we were sure of before.”

  “It gave a little clue, but I’m not sure he intended to,” said Mary.

  Adam looked at her, confused.

  “It said that it has been moved far away with the unknowing help of a lot of people,” she continued.

  Adam pondered that for a moment.

  “I still think that he hid it at Area 51,” said Adam.

  Mary shrugged. “Could be. Or he used Area 51 as a diversion.”

  “You know, you’re really good at thinking these things through,” said Adam.

  Mary laughed. “That’s your Dad’s influence all the way. Some days he sounded as crazy as George used to, back when George was crazy. I guess I started trying to think of every option no matter how insane it sounded.”

  “So what do we do now?” asked Adam.

  Mary shrugged. “You go back to Area 51 and keep training.”

  “That’s not what I meant,” said Adam.

  “I know,” said Mary. “I just don’t want you risking your life to find that Heartstone. It’s gone, so leave it be.”

  “The only flaw with that is that if Larix finds out that Dad moved the Heartstone, you and I will be in big danger. Maybe you haven’t noticed all of the guys with guns around town?”

  Mary rolled her eyes at his sarcasm.

  “If we can find the Heartstone, Elianora is going to move it far away from here. Once it’s found and moved, we’ll be safe. Things can go back to normal again and all of these security guards can go away,” said Adam.

  Mary considered that for a while.

  “I’ll let you search for clues at Area 51 while you’re there, but after that, we have to discuss what the next steps will be, alright?”

  Adam nodded. “Deal,” he said.

  “You’ve been hanging around Jimmy too much,” Mary said with a grin.

  Adam chuckled.

  “Do we show this to Elianora or anyone else at the League?” asked Adam.

  “I’ll do that once you head back,” said Mary. “There’s nothing in it that they can’t see.”

  Adam nodded.

  Mary rose from her seat. “We’ll talk more about all of this later. How about some pancakes and bacon for breakfast?”

  Adam’s stomach rumbled at the thought.

  “Absolutely,” he said with a smile.

  CHAPTER TWENTY-THREE

  Christmas day passed by quickly, and Adam found that Mary had loosened up considerably in the time he had been away. She told small jokes, cooked all the meals that day, and even helped with the dishes. Her mood had improved by leaps and bounds, and Adam wondered if it was the time alone or the message she had just read from her husband.

  Early in the evening, Mary turned on the TV and they watched a bunch of classic Christmas shows and cartoons until Adam could no longer keep his eyes open, so he wandered off to bed.

  When he woke early the next morning, he found Mary up already and preparing breakfast.

  “You have to get ready to go as soon as you’re done eating,” she said. “They’ll be here for you in about an hour.”

  “Already?” said Adam.

  “They are sending you back in a few groups. I think you, Kevin and Kassie are going first,” she said as she flipped something in the frying pan. It smelled fantastic.

  “But why so early?” asked Adam.

  “Just to be safe,” said Mary. “Area 51 is much safer than here at the moment, so we’ve all decided to get you back as early as possible. The program has never let initiates stay home for more than four or five days anyway, and this year everyone will be back early.”

  Adam decided not to complain. If he left soon, Mary wouldn’t have time to revert back to the way he knew her for the rest of his life, and he hoped that the new Mary might stick around for a while if he left sooner.

  Mary performed one final flip of whatever was in the frying pan and then slid it onto a plate. She set the plate in front of Adam and he saw that it was a bacon and cheese omelet.

  “Thanks!” he exclaimed and took the first bite. “Betty was right, you are an amazing cook!”

  Mary looked modest at the compliment.

  “Just hurry up and get ready to go,” said Mary.

  Adam had no trouble eating the omelet quickly once it had cooled a little, and in no time he was waiting at the door. Moments later he heard a vehicle pull up and a door close, then Kevin’s voice saying, “We’re just here to pick up Adam.”

  Adam opened the door to see that Kevin had his hands in the air while facing the security guard who was positioned at the back of the house.

  “I’ll be out in a second,” Adam said to Kevin, who nodded and turned slowly back toward the vehicle.

  Mary grabbed Adam in a hug, and Adam hugged her back.

  “You be careful,” she said, and he knew exactly what she meant.

  “You too,” he replied with a chuckle.

  They parted with a wave and he stepped outside. As soon as he had settled himself in the Baranov’s SUV, they began driving back to the Radome.

  After some small talk about how their Christmases were, Mike Baranov changed the subject.

  “I’ve been asked to tell you all something before you go back,” he said. “Derek Gunderson went to see his father over the Christmas break and I guess it turned into a yelling match between the two of them. Derek was pretty upset afterward. I guess John was trying to convince Derek that he was innocent, but Derek wouldn’t listen. We just wanted you to know ahead of time.”

  “Thanks,” said Adam, and they were silent the short remainder of the ride to the Radome.

  Once they had arrived and prepared themselves for the transport, everyone said goodbye and the three were sent back to the RTS Hub. At the Hub, Bernice was back at the controls.

  “Hello Grayson people,” she said in a happy voice. “I see you don’t have Mark and Gurpreet with you this time.”

  “They’re coming on the next transport,” said Kevin.

  “Alrighty then,” said Bernice. “Are you ready to continue?”

  They all agreed, and at the flip of a switch they were gone again.

  Back at the Arrival chamber, a new security guard greeted them. They had seen him before, but were used to seeing Linus there.

  “Even Linus gets time off once in a while,” the guard told them with a smile. “We nearly have to force him to take it, though. Not that he doesn’t want to see his family, he just likes his
work here. Anyway, welcome back,” the guard replied to their question about Linus before ushering them away from the Radome. “There will be a general assembly in the meeting area later tomorrow afternoon once everyone is here,” he said as they walked away.

  The three of them parted at the entrance to the Women’s dorm and the boys continued on. As soon as they had dropped off their things, Adam and Kevin sat down in the common area. Adam told Kevin all about the note from his father in the Impression Stone, along with all of the changes in Mary.

  “Wow,” Kevin replied. “I just don’t know what else to say, other than I hope Gurpreet and Horton let you take a look outside.”

  “Me too,” said Adam.

  “I wonder when everyone else is going to show up,” said Kevin.

  “Yeah. Should we go back to the Arrival chamber and watch for them?” asked Adam.

  Kevin agreed and they sauntered back the way they came. As they walked, everything seemed eerie because of the lack of people and sounds of life that usually echoed everywhere.

  When they made it to the Arrival chamber, the security guard was sitting in a chair reading a book. He looked up as soon as they entered.

  “Back so soon?” he asked with a smile.

  “When is the next group arriving?” Kevin asked.

  “Students or staff?” asked the guard.

  “Students,” said Kevin.

  The guard looked at his watch. “Probably another twenty-two hours.”

  Adam and Kevin looked at each other, surprised.

  “Really?” asked Kevin. “Not even the rest of the group from Grayson.”

  The guard shook his head. “Just you guys today. Later on this evening more of the staff will show up, but most of them are coming tomorrow. Right now it’s just half of the security team, a few of the maintenance people and some food services staff to feed us. We all get to go on a break as soon as everyone gets back.”

  “So we’re stuck here alone until tomorrow?” asked Kevin.

  “Not totally alone, but you’re the only students. Why don’t you take advantage of being the only ones here and play in the gymnasium or something. That’s what I would do if I were you,” said the Guard. “I’m Augustus, by the way,” he continued. “I know who you are,” he finished before they could introduce themselves. “Tough not to.” He laughed.

  “Nice to meet you,” said Kevin.

  “Oh yeah, if you’re hungry and you want something hot, you’ll have to ring the bell in the cafeteria and wait until they prepare something for you. The good thing is that they’ll make whatever you want. The bad thing is that it will take some time,” said Augustus.

  “Thanks,” said Kevin. “Talk to you later.”

  Kevin and Adam turned back the way they came. When they were out of earshot they began to speak.

  “Pretty strange that they sent us back already,” said Kevin.

  “Yeah. Why send us back and not Mark, Jimmy, and Trevor if they’re so worried about our safety in Grayson,” said Adam.

  “Kassie’s going to be upset that she’ll have to spend time away from Trevor,” said Kevin as they turned the corner toward the dorms.

  “What did you say,” said Kassie as they almost ran into her.

  “Uh…nothing,” said Kevin.

  “It didn’t sound like nothing,” said Kassie.

  “Sorry, you just startled me. It looks like we’re here alone until tomorrow. No one else is coming today,” said Kevin.

  Kassie stared at Kevin. “And you don’t think I can survive one day without seeing Trevor?”

  Kevin considered his answer for a moment before saying, “No.” Then he laughed and Kassie punched him in the shoulder before grinning and laughing too.

  “It’ll be nice to have a break,” said Kassie. “He’s been pretty clingy for the last week.”

  Adam and Kevin shot each other a look. Both had sarcastic comments they would have loved to say, but Kassie saw and punched them both softly on the arms.

  “What should we do then?” asked Kevin.

  “Let’s go check out the Gym,” said Kevin. “I always wanted to try the bowling alley.”

  The three wasted the rest of the day playing games and ordering whatever they wanted to eat. Even though they were alone, they had a lot of fun. Soon enough they were heading to bed, exhausted from all of the fun.

  A knock on the door woke Adam the next morning. He had assumed that the phone would wake him like usual, but it hadn’t rung at all. He rolled out of bed and opened the door to see Kevin standing there, dressed and ready to go.

  “Rise and shine,” said Kevin, grinning.

  “Just give me five minutes to get ready,” said Adam, and he closed the door. Almost ten minutes later he found Kevin sitting in the common area.

  “How come you were up so early?” asked Adam.

  Kevin shrugged. “Couldn’t sleep.”

  “What should we do this morning?” asked Adam.

  “I thought we could sit out outside of the Astronomy classroom and watch people arrive,” suggested Kevin, and Adam thought that was a great idea.

  After a quick breakfast, they said hello to Augustus who informed them that the first groups would be arriving momentarily. They climbed the stairs toward the Astronomy classroom and waited.

  As they leaned on the railing overlooking the Radome, they watched while groups of thirty people at a time arrived, which made them wonder why they themselves always arrived in such a small group. Even though they didn’t know everyone by name, all of the faces were familiar by then. Eventually, Jimmy, Mark and Gurpreet arrived with one of the crowds.

  Kevin called their names and they all looked up, even Gurpreet although his name hadn’t been called. Gurpreet waved at them but his face remained impassive. Mark waved for them to come down, but Adam and Kevin waved for the others to come up. Mark looked from the bottom of the stairs to the top, then back down again, then looked at Adam and Kevin and shook his head. He wasn’t climbing all those stairs.

  Kevin palmed his face and shook his head as he said, “Laziest guy ever.”

  Adam laughed in reply, but led the way down the stairs.

  Jimmy and Mark waited but Gurpreet continued walking toward the main office.

  “Hey,” said Adam as he neared.

  “Did you enjoy your Christmas ‘break’,” said Mark, putting his fingers up to sarcastically indicate quotation marks.

  Kevin imitated the gesture and replied, “Yes.”

  Jimmy and Adam laughed.

  “You guys hear about Derek and his dad?” asked Jimmy.

  “Yeah,” replied Adam. “Poor guy. That would be tough.”

  They all agreed.

  “We’re going to take our stuff to our rooms. Want to grab something to eat after?” said Mark.

  “We ate already, but we’ll meet you there,” said Kevin.

  A short time later they were all seated at the table watching Mark and Jimmy eat. They discussed each of their Christmas day events except for Adam who told them that they would talk in private later as the noise level grew in the cafeteria.

  Suddenly Kevin’s attention shifted and he nervously gave a wave. The others followed his gaze and saw Derek walking toward them. He sat down beside Adam and looked at the others.

  “I see you’ve heard what happened,” said Derek.

  Everyone else slowly nodded.

  “Sorry to hear that,” said Adam.

  “Yeah, well, if he’s going to be like that he can go sit in a jail cell for a while. Next thing you know he’ll be trying to say my mom did it just to get himself out.”

  The rest of the group shifted uncomfortably.

  “Enough about me, how was your holiday?” he asked as he looked around the group.

  “About a week and a half too short,” said Mark, which gave everyone a chuckle.

  “Nothing exciting,” said Jimmy, and Kevin agreed.

  “I thought I’d come back and hear you guys went on some more adventures
without me,” said Derek.

  “No such luck,” said Kevin. “Maybe soon.”

  Derek, Jimmy and Mark looked at Kevin and waited for him to continue.

  “We’ll talk about it later,” said Kevin.

  They let the subject drop.

  “Well, I’m going to take my stuff to my room and wait for the assembly this afternoon. The security guard said it was going to happen soon,” said Derek as he stood up from the table.

  “See ya later,” he waved as he walked away.

  “He seems to be handling it pretty well,” said Jimmy.

  “It would suck to have a dad like that,” said Mark.

  There was general agreement in the group.

  The boys sat around and talked about nothing in particular for a while until an announcement sounded through the cafeteria.

  “Assembly in the main hall in fifteen minutes,” Tilda’s voice echoed.

  “Let’s go get a good seat,” said Mark, and the others followed his lead up the stairs.

  They had their choice of locations because they were nearly the first ones there, but in a short amount of time a lot of people had joined them.

  Another announcement giving five more minutes sounded, and a few stragglers made their way in alongside all of the instructors. Derek slipped in and sat with the boys since they had held a seat for him.

  “Welcome back to Area 51,” said Horton at the top of his voice, and the crowd settled down. “We’ve worked you really hard up to this point and I can tell you it only gets more fun and easier from here. Before we get started, we have the pleasure of having the head of the Sentinel League back for a few announcements today. We rarely have the pleasure of his presence at this time of year, but I think the fact that his son is attending this year may have helped convince him to come back.”

  Mark shrunk in his chair.

  “Without further adieu, I give you Gurpreet Gupta,” said Horton to loud applause.

  As the crowd quieted, Gurpreet said, “Thank you, but I’m afraid that I have some bad news for you.”

  The crowd went quiet, and suddenly Kassie appeared in the doorway leading from the dorms. The sight of her seemed to rattle Gurpreet and he waited to continue as she made her way over to the table with the boys.