Ill-Fated (Ill-Fated Series Book 1)

by S. C. McMurray

  “Why are you telling me this?”

  He shrugged. “I don’t know. Maybe I want you to see that I’m not just the Party’s pet monkey.”

  Evelyn felt a stab of regret for calling him that. She shifted her weight on the tree branch. “I know you’re not a pet monkey…” She smiled. “More like a golden retriever.” He scowled at her and she held up her palms defensively. “I’m just kidding. To be honest, I know how you feel.”

  “You do?”

  “I know what it’s like to be lonely, to feel like there is an invisible wall between you and everyone else.” She dropped her head. “Lana, the girl my age that you—”

  “—I know who you are talking about.”

  “Lana was my best friend, my only friend, and when she moved away six months ago, I felt like I was on an island by myself.”

  “How’d you get by?”

  “She came back.” Evelyn felt at ache deep within her. She sighed, “And now she’s gone again.”

  Adam reached over and placed a hand on Evelyn’s shoulder. “We’ll get her back.”

  Evelyn didn’t respond, she just stared into the ember as it hid itself further behind the soldier’s. Adam kept his hand on her shoulder and Evelyn’s mind was urging her to shake it off. After a few moments she finally did.

  “Why are you so willing to help me?”

  “You’ve asked me this before.”

  “I want to hear it again.”

  He raised his voice a bit. “You want to know the truth? Here it is. Everything is clouded. Since I was a kid, I’ve always had a vision for what my life is supposed to be and that vision has guided all of my decisions. For the first time in my life, I feel something else guiding me.”

  “What do you feel?”

  He shrugged his shoulders and shook his head. “I don’t know, guilt? Maybe something else.” He paused. “Helping you just feels like the right thing to do.”

  “The right thing to do…that doesn’t sound like something you would learn about in the Party’s Leadership Academy.”

  “I didn’t learn it there.” He retorted. “I learned it here.” He surveyed the rolling landscape before them. Evelyn followed his eyes, those same blue eyes she’d dreamt about as he admired the sunset like it was a piece of art. Her gaze lingered on him. Through his overzealous patriotic visage, she saw warmth and strength, like sunbeams cleaving a cloudy sky. Maybe he had a soul after all, maybe he was the same man she’d dreamt about.

  He reached up and gestured to a broken branch about five feet above their heads. “See that broken branch right there?”

  Evelyn nodded. “Yes, what about it?”

  “My first summer here, I decided to climb to the top of this tree. I was standing on that branch when it broke.”

  “How bad was it?”

  “Let’s just say it was morning when I fell and evening when I woke up.”

  Evelyn grimaced as she pictured his fall. “Ouch.”

  “I know. Reg said that I would’ve died if it weren’t for Traveler.” Adam half-smiled as he glanced down at his horse. “He said Traveler came stampeding down the ridge and made a huge fuss. I guess you could say that’s why he’s my best friend.”

  “Did you ever try again?”

  He lifted his head to the sky. “Look about five feet further.”

  Evelyn did as directed and saw one simple statement carved into the bark of the tree: Adam was here.

  “I do what I say I’m going to do, even if I fall.”

  “So when you say you are going to help me free my friends, you are going to do it?”

  “That’s what friends do.”

  “So we are friends.”

  “I don’t know, are we?”

  Evelyn thought about his question for a moment. “Let’s just say we’re not enemies.”

  Chapter Twenty-Nine

  He pressed the barrel to her head. Tears saturated her bruised face. She was trembling, she was terrified.

  Rillian strained against his bonds, there was pain, his wrists were bleeding. “You can’t do this. Please!”

  His eyes were remorseless, cold. “Tell me what I want to know.”

  “I-I don’t know anything. I swear.”

  Evelyn screamed something but her words were muffled by the gag. Her eyes were pleading for rescue.

  “Tell me, or she will die.”

  “I can’t!” Rillian yelled. “I don’t know anything!”

  “Don’t lie to me!”

  “I’m not! I swear I’m not!”

  Evelyn squirmed, more muffled words.

  “You’ve got ten seconds.”

  “I don’t know!”

  “10… 9... 8….”

  Rillian shook his head violently. “I don’t know! I don’t know! I don’t know!”

  “7… 6…. 5….”

  Rillian was shaking, moving all his muscles at once. “Please don’t do this!” He begged. “Please!”

  “4…3…”

  Evelyn jerked her head from side to side but her words were choked.

  “2…”

  She managed to lose her gag out of her mouth, she pleaded for her life. “Please Rillian, you love me don’t you? Tell him.”

  “I-I-I can’t, I don’t know.”

  “1.” The young Captain pulled the trigger. There was a splash of red and Evelyn’s body went limp.

  Rillian came to and opened his eyes slowly. The cold, sterile room. The yellow light. His entire body was trembling. His face was wet. His heart was pounding with tired thuds. He moved his mouth but no words came out. He tried again and again until whispers escaped his lips like wind between the cracks in a stone wall. “I’m…sorry Evelyn.” Tears again. “I’m sorry.”

  He didn’t know how much timed had passed. He didn’t know if the sun was shining or if it was night. He’d had nothing to eat or drink.. His blood was like vapor, his mouth like sawdust, his nerves like frayed wire. He was utterly wasted. He’d seen her die numerous times and in numerous ways. The young Captain always pulled the trigger. He hated him. He hadn’t seen another person except the woman in the lab coat and she might as well have been the Angel of Death. He would have preferred that.

  He closed his eyelids, saw her limp body, her pale face, her empty eyes. The door opened. Black leather boots, standard issue, marched across the room toward him.

  Farez stroked his goatee as he stared at Rillian. “My beloved, John Doe. How are you sleeping? Well?” He laughed. “Of course you are. And you are having the most pleasant dreams, so vivid, so real. Maybe they are real. Maybe this is the dream.”

  Rillian released a slow, rattling breath.

  Maybe it is…

  Farez squatted down and put a hand on Rillian’s thigh. “Are you ready to tell me about her?”

  Rillian didn’t say a word. He didn’t even lift his head. Farez stood up and walked over to the corner of the room.

  “You are a resilient one, I will tell you that.” He grabbed a metal folding chair and placed it in front of Rillian. “John, I would like to tell you about my great grandfather, his story is quite remarkable. Would you like to hear it?”

  Rillian was motionless.

  Farez folded his left leg over his right. “I’ll take that as a yes. His name was Mustafa Ali Farez. He was from a small town in Iraq named Karak. He was the oldest of six children, two boys and four girls. When he was eleven, he and his brothers and sisters were orphaned by bombs. They fell to the earth and struck the hospital where their parents both worked. Each side blamed the other. Truly devastating. He wept for days, they tell me. His grief turned to hate and a few weeks later he returned to the sight of his parents demise, searching for someone to blame. In the rubble he found what he was looking for, a name on an unexploded shell. He vowed his revenge but only to himself. He grew into a quiet, peaceful man but he never forgot. When he was old enough, he left for the bright shores of America. He started at the bottom of a small munitions factory and worked his way to the top. That
small factory was just the beginning. He proved to be a shrewd businessman and eventually he controlled nearly half of the munitions industry. He was wealthy, his family would never have to worry about starving again, but he wasn’t finished. The other half of his industry was ruled by his chief competitor, the name on the unexploded shell. It took some time but when The War broke out with China, it was his name on the bombs.” He paused. “Now John, you may be wondering why I’m telling you this. It isn’t about the revenge. That comes later. It’s about my Great Grandfather and how I am just like him. He was kind when he needed to be. He was ruthless when he needed to be. But most of all he was patient. Do you understand what I am trying tell you?”

  Rillian didn’t respond in any way but he understood his meaning.

  “You are a man of few words, John. But I trust that you understand what I am telling you. Now, for the real reason why I am here instead of my assistant with her wonderful serum.” He folded his hands on his lap and spoke very matter-of-factly. “My grandfather was the first in a line of businessmen and every good businessman knows what he must do to get what he wants. What strings he must pull, what quarrels he must avoid, what people he must bribe but more importantly, what deals he must make. I’m here to make you an offer…Rillian.”

  Rillian’s senses torqued into focus.

  He knows my name.

  “All birds sing, Rillian, and you are not the only bird in this cage.” He uncrossed his legs. “Let’s talk business. I now know what you want more than anything else and I can give it to you.” He paused. “If you tell me about the girl, I will tell you where you can find your parents.”

  Rillian lifted his head. “What do you want to know?”

  Farez leaned forward and folded his hands. “Everything.”

  Chapter Thirty

  The morning sun shining through the opened curtains beckoned her to wake up. Evelyn rolled over and opened her eyes. Her first sight of the morning was Adam stretched out on a white leather couch across the room. He was reading a book.

  Evelyn sat up on the bed and stretched her arms to the ceiling. She yawned. “How long have you been awake?”

  “An hour or so.”

  “Why didn’t you wake me?”

  “You looked peaceful. Besides,” He nodded to a towering book shelf behind her. “I have some of the best authors in the history of mankind to keep me company.”

  “What are you reading?” He flipped the book over so Evelyn could see the cover. She read it aloud: “The Outsiders by S. E. Hinton. Who’s that guy?”

  “That guy was a woman and she wrote it when she was in high school.”

  Evelyn was impressed. “What is it about?”

  “Outsiders…”

  “Funny. What is it really about?”

  “A group of guys just trying to survive.” He answered. “You would probably like it.”

  There was a knock at the door. “Breakfast is ready, young Adam. Master Arthur is waiting. Oh. I left something by the door for the young woman.”

  “Thanks Reg.” Adam replied as he closed the book and sat up. “We’ll be down in a minute.”

  Adam stood to his feet and headed to the door. He opened it, there was a package resting next to the door frame. Adam bent down and picked it up. “Here catch.” He tossed it to Evelyn who trapped it between her arms.

  “What is it?” She asked.

  He shrugged. Evelyn tore off the packaging tape and opened it up. She crinkled her forehead. “It’s clothes.” She unfolded a pair of jeans, a shirt and some other necessities. “I’m going to change.” She piled up the clothes and headed to the bathroom.

  Adam settled back into the couch. “I guess I’ll wait out here.”

  Evelyn shut and locked the door behind her. The bathroom was shiny and pristine, with a large bathtub, marble countertops and brass lights. She undressed and stepped in front of the full length body mirror. She gasped when she saw herself and it wasn’t because of her short dark hair. She looked different, more defined. Her skin felt tighter, she felt stronger. But she was just as pale as ever and for some odd reason, she found that comforting. She stepped out of the view of the mirror and quickly dressed in the clothes that Reg had left for her, blue jeans, t-shirt.

  Surprisingly, they were a perfect fit. She closed her eyes when she walked by the mirror and turned the knob to open the door.

  To her surprise, Adam was standing on one foot a few feet away in only his boxers as he slipped on a pair of pants. She froze in embarrassment. He turned around, she freaked and he attempted to pull his pants up quickly but lost his balance and tumbled to the floor. She quickly shut the door behind her.

  After a moment, Adam knocked on the door. “Umm…you can come out now.”

  She opened the door and peeked out. Adam was smiling but his face was red with embarrassment.

  “I’m sorry about that…I thought you would be longer.”

  Evelyn didn’t know what to say. She nodded. “Come on, I’m starving.”

  They were greeted by the smell of bacon and eggs as they descended the stairs to the dining room. She thought of her father, on Sunday mornings (when he wasn’t working) he would get up early and make breakfast. He made a mean omelet. That mental picture, combined with the smell, caused Evelyn’s stomach to ache in anticipation.

  When they reached the dining room, Arthur and their breakfast were waiting at the opposite end of the long mahogany table. Arthur was watching the UPN News report projected in front of him. He closed the projection with a wave of his hand then gestured for them to sit down. “I hope this morning finds you well.”

  They began their meal and Evelyn’s stomach wasn’t the least disappointed. It was terrific.

  After a moment of silence, Arthur turned his attention to Evelyn.

  “And I trust the clothes fit as anticipated.”

  Evelyn glanced down at herself. “They do, thanks.”

  “They were delivered this morning.”

  Adam abruptly stopped eating. “You had a drone bring them here?”

  Arthur waved him off. “Don’t fret, Adam. I know what I’m doing.”

  “I have a right to be worried. All drones are controlled by OPTIC, even the commercial ones.”

  At any given moment there were hundreds of thousands of drones in the sky, surveillance drones, military drones and commercial drones. If one had the money they could have about anything delivered. OPTIC was the master of the skies, there were no human air traffic controllers.

  “I’m aware of the implications my boy.” Arthur responded. “But as clever and as well engineered as OPTIC may be, he would have a hard time deciphering all that Reg ordered.”

  Adam shrugged with measured frustration. “I guess we’ll have to trust you.”

  Adam was quiet the rest of the meal. Evelyn finished her small banquet as Arthur regaled her with a lively retelling of how he came to walk with a limp. It was a wound from the Great War but more than that, it was a reminder. Like a veteran of the wars of old, he wore it like a badge of courage. Adam got up and exited the room before Arthur finished his story. When Arthur concluded his soldier’s tale, Evelyn dismissed herself so she could find Adam.

  The metallic bracelet assured that he couldn’t be far away and she found him in the next room, sitting in a wooden rocking chair, examining said bracelet. He appeared to be in weary contemplation.

  She approached him slowly. “Is everything alright?”

  Adam didn’t even look up. “Are you going to take this off?”

  Evelyn paused. “I’m sorry, Adam, not yet.”

  He nodded slowly in a reluctant acceptance as though he knew he still had a lot to prove to her. He took a deep breath. “Are you ready for this?”

  Evelyn took a seat on a small sofa near to him. Placing her elbows on her knees, she rested her chin in her hands. “I’m ready to do what I have to.” She didn’t sound too confident.

  “You’re ready to do what you have to, huh? Tell me something, are
you ready to hurt someone if you have to? Are you ready to kill someone if you have to?”

  Evelyn didn’t like the word kill, it was ugly and the way he said it sent a shiver down her back. The problem lay in the fact that it was a possibility. She hadn’t thought about it, but it was there, hiding in the shadows of her mind. In order to save those she loved, she might have to kill. Could she do it if she had to?

  She honestly didn’t know.

  Adam stood up out of the rocking chair. “Coming from someone who knows about doing what you have to, if you’d said yes, I would have called you a liar.”

  He gestured for her to follow him. “Come on. We’re going to do the best we can to avoid anyone getting hurt, but you need to be ready just in case the time comes.”

  Evelyn stood and nodded slowly, apprehensively. She followed him to a large, metal cabinet. He placed his palm on a scanner and the cabinet unlocked. He opened the doors, inside was a cache of guns.

  “Isn’t this illegal?” Evelyn asked with wide eyes.

  “For regular citizens, yes, but being a Senator’s son has its privileges.”

  “Is it safe?”

  “Weapons by their nature are not meant to be safe, but I will teach you how to use one safely.” He touched his chin as he examined the array of weaponry. After a moment of contemplation, he grabbed a handgun that was tucked away in a black leather holster. He attached the holster to his belt, grabbed some extra ammunition and shut the doors. The cabinet locked automatically.

  A few minutes later they were standing at the edge of a long open field, next to a pole barn. There were targets placed at even distances, starting at 10 meters and ending at fifty meters.

  Adam pulled the gun from the holster. “Alright this is a standard issue 9mm. Light, accurate, minimal kickback, a good starter weapon…” He showed her the different parts, the trigger, the safety, the ammunition. He showed her how to load the ammunition. He explained the mechanics of the gun and then asked her to repeat it to him. To his surprise, she did it flawlessly.