Reeves returned the gesture somewhat stiffly, and then stepped back. He cast a stern glance across the group. “Thirteen,” he said after a minute, “and four adults. Jodi, I want a head count when we’re in the plane. Lead the way. Everyone else on guard.”
“Can’t we give them a minute?” Julia said. “There must be some food around here somewhere.”
“No,” Reeves said flatly. “Plane. Now.”
The four adults Reeves mentioned were the only surviving D.A.S. members that they had found. They were in varying states of disrepair, all suffering from starvation, and one of them looked like he may be headed for a mental institution. Some things the Shadowlords did could not be undone.
The group shuffled out of the building and across the grounds, making their way in the predawn light towards the lake. As they walked, Gabriel noted the intensity on Reeves’ face. The man kept glancing around as if he expected a lion to come running out of the woods. Maybe he did. Gabriel couldn’t guess what had Reeves so nervous, but he had to respect the man’s instincts and experience. If Reeves thought there was something to be worried about, there probably was. The thought raised the hairs on the back of his neck, and suddenly Gabriel felt very alert himself.
Fortunately, they made it to the plane unmolested, and were airborne in less than a minute. Reeves took the pilot’s seat and wound the engines up as tight as they would go. He pushed the Albatross up to three hundred knots. The Albatross wasn’t even supposed to be able to go that fast.
The plane shook violently as it climbed. Between that and the sharp vertical attitude, it was nearly impossible to get into the seats. After buckling the younger children in, everyone else gathered at the back of the cabin and grabbed whatever they could find to stay on their feet.
Then, ten thousand feet below them, the Celestial Palace exploded. The shockwave shook the Albatross and knocked the air out from under its wings. For a moment, they went into free fall.
Everyone and everything in the cabin drifted in zero gravity. Then the plane went into a spin. Gabriel suddenly realized that they were all about to die. He glanced around the cabin and saw the terrified looks on the children’s faces, and his heart sank. He could hardly believe they’d managed to come this far, and now it was going to end this way.
Then the wings caught the wind and everyone that wasn’t seat belted in –meaning most of them-slammed to the floor. The plane leveled out and went into a slow, steady climb. Somehow, Reeves had managed to regain control.
The wailing sounds of hurt and terrified children filled the cabin. Gabriel and Jodi scurried around, doing their best to calm and comfort the children while Mr. Oglesby and Julia carefully inspected each for serious injuries.
Fortunately, nothing was serious. Just a lot of bumps and bruises. The old Albatross had come through again. Later, Reeves would admit that regardless of how skilled he was as a pilot, it was pure luck that they were alive. “Someone must have been looking out for us,” he said. “There’s no way that plane could have come out of a stall like that.”
A few minutes later, Mr. Oglesby staggered across the cabin and pulled a small box-shaped contraption from the back closet. “Reeves, Is Pete on the line?”
“I’m here,” Pete said through the COM. Mr. Oglesby typed a code into the number pad on top of the box and it opened itself up. A small antenna-like device rose out of the center and began whirring and beeping. “I’m sending a scan now,” he said. “Check the subchannel.”
“Got it. Hang on… Analysis says we’re clean. The septic tear has been closed.”
“Thanks,” said Mr. Oglesby. He closed up the device and stowed it. When he saw Gabriel’s confused looked, he explained. “Pete and I did a scan while you were skydiving. The shadowfriends opened a septic tear near the castle. There is an ancient pyramid there. The force of the natural shadowgate wasn’t powerful enough for them, so they enhanced it by opening a tear. It was enormous. That’s the reason there have been so many shadow creatures about lately. They’ve been passing back and forth by the hundreds.
“Is it still there?” Gabriel said.
“No, the explosion destroyed it. I’m worried that a few of the shadowkind escaped, though. We’re going to have to monitor this area for activity. And, unfortunately, now that we know they can open a tear that large, we’re going to have to improve our technology… and our intelligence.”
Reeves appeared in the cockpit doorway. “Sorry about the rough take-off, is everyone okay?” They met him with weak smiles.
“Just some bruises,” Julia said with a nod.
“Good. It looks like it’ll be a smooth flight the rest of the way. We’re gonna have to stop for gas, but other than that we’ll be home by bedtime. Julia, maybe you could throw together some sandwiches? Kids, the old man with the cane will tell you some stories.”
Mr. Oglesby shot him a dirty look. “I’m not that old.”
“Yes, you are,” Reeves said with a wink.
Chapter 45
Gabriel could have slept for a week, but Julia only let him have one day. Then it was back to chores. D.A.S. needed a lot of rebuilding, and with the estate suffering from a recent lack of grounds keeping, Gabriel had plenty to do. Much of his time was spent on the lawn tractor, which he didn’t mind too much. There was an umbrella to shade him from the sun and he listened to .mp3s on his phone while he drove, so it was actually an enjoyable job. Especially when compared with shoveling horse droppings out of the coral or digging post holes for new fences. Gabriel hated those jobs. But when Julia asked, he did them anyway. He owed her a lot.
Pete had his work cut out for him as well. During the rescue in China, Reeves had stumbled upon the computer room in the Celestial Palace. He came back with a duffel bag full of hard drives. Most of them were the ones that shadowfriends had stolen from different D.A.S. agencies, but there were others, and they had to be decrypted and analyzed for useful information. There were also a number of security upgrades that needed to be implemented, and that was Pete’s job.
Reeves wanted EGG launchers on the roof and Geiger counters all over the estate. He wanted improved security for the armory, and better satellite networking for overseas intelligence. Then there was the matter of re-establishing D.A.S. as an international presence. That wasn’t going to be easy…
Jodi found herself run ragged as well. Not only were there horses to keep, feed, and train, she now had thirteen young children to give riding lessons. She also helped with the cooking and cleaning. Julia paid her for all this, of course, though Jodi would have done it free just to be able to hang out with the kids. They all became her little brothers and sisters rather quickly. Jodi spent most of her waking hours with them.
Jodi’s parents were another story. After the narrow escape in Canada, and the attack on the mansion, Julia had come to the decision that the children could no longer function as part of D.A.S. without their parent’s consent. In Jodi’s case, it wasn’t too difficult. Her parents were skeptical until they saw Mr. Ogleby’s window in the laboratory, and heard the story of what had happened to Jodi. At that point, Jodi’s father admitted that he may have inadvertently tipped off a shadowfriend that he had worked with.
“He asked a lot of questions about you Julia, and about Jodi too. I thought he might have been working for the press so I didn’t tell him much, but I did let slip that Jodi worked for you. I guess that was how they came up with the plan.”
After that, they visited the cancer facility where Jodi’s mother had been diagnosed and treated. The place was empty. If there had been any doubt remaining in their minds, it was gone.
After a long discussion, they agreed that Jodi was not to be allowed on field missions until she turned eighteen. Until then, she would continue to function as an operative, gathering intelligence and doing research, but never anything dangerous. Jodi wasn’t altogether happy with that arrangement, but it was better than nothing.
Pete’s parents could not be reached at the ski resort in Europ
e, if they were still there. They didn’t call home and they didn’t return any calls. Even Julia’s vast network of connections could not locate the couple. It was only a matter of time until Julia insisted that Pete move into the mansion. He wasn’t thrilled by the loss of his complete and unrestricted freedom, but there was something to be said about always having a warm meal for dinner and being surrounded by family. It was a new feeling for him, and it took some getting used to.
The appearance of thirteen orphans at the estate caused a bit of a sensation in the Shadow Falls community, and when Julia announced she was converting the mansion into an orphanage, the press went wild. Until their families were located, the children were to be Julia’s wards.
The children were thrilled. Instead of being shipped out to dozens of homes and losing all contact with one another, they were going to get to stay together and be part of a family. They were all brothers and sisters now; Julia was more or less their mother, and Reeves served as a sort of father. (The sort of father who enjoys skydiving and shooting automatic weapons, but nonetheless a wise and caring man who raised them as if they were his own.) Reeves was never absent when the children needed him, and he always had a few words of wisdom to bestow.
Julia continued to see after the finances of the estate, D.A.S., and now the orphanage as well. She saw to it that the children were raised with a firm hand, but never wanted for anything. In fact, her first matter of business was buying them all new clothes… and perhaps one or two dolls. Real dolls. And most importantly, she loved them, and they loved her.
One afternoon that August, Gabriel was trying to help all of the children get their new school supplies organized when the doorbell rang. He arrived there at the same time as Mr. Oglesby, and opened it up. He almost choked. There, on the front steps, was the Death Squad.
“Hey Gabriel,” said Robby.
“Hey, whats up?”
“Well…” Robby gave Mr. Oglesby a hard look and then apparently decided the old man was harmless. “Well, we want to know what you’re up to. We know something weird was going on that day at school when you sicced those crazy bird things on us. Then you disappear for a week and when you come back, this place is an orphanage full of weirdoes just like you. We want our cut of whatever action you’ve got going on here, or we’re going to the cops.”
“Let me handle this, Gabriel,” said Mr. Oglesby. “Come on in, boys, I’ll tell you everything. You won’t believe the half of it, but what the heck. Come along, the library’s just down the hall. Would you like a soda? Gabriel, get us some sodas, if you don’t mind.
“You boys know I have a very special watch… a pocket watch. Would you like to see it? Here, let me show it to you.”
Gabriel never asked exactly what Mr. Oglesby had done, but he knew it was for the best when the Death Squad showed up for their first day of high school with fresh haircuts and brand new slacks. Within a few days, the Death Squad became known as the Prep Squad. The teachers were quite surprised when they turned out to be straight-A students; no doubt their parents were pleasantly surprised as well. No one ever missed the Death Squad, and soon they were all but forgotten.
Something else important happened, right about the same time. It was a hot afternoon, and Gabriel had been out mowing the many acres of lawns. He came inside around two o’clock, drenched in sweat and looking for a glass of iced tea. He found Pete, Jodi, Reeves and Julia all standing around the kitchen. Their faces were dour, and they watched him silently as he came inside.
“What’s going on?” Gabriel said. “What’s wrong?”
They all exchanged a meaningful glance. Julia took a deep breath and said, “Gabriel, we’ve found your parents.”
Chapter 46
It was a perfect day, with the sun shining and a cool breeze that carried the promise of autumn, but to Gabriel the sunshine felt like rain. The dry grass crackled under his feet as he exited the limo and passed through the wrought iron gates of the cemetery.
He walked alone, following a narrow path that wound its way up the slope and into a shady oak grove; past countless rows of stone monuments and marble angel statues, all of whom seemed to be weeping. There, beneath the shade of the oaks and looking out over the ocean, Gabriel finally found his parents. The gravestone read:
Howard and Melinda Frost
Taken from us by an auto accident on Sep. 19, 2000
May they rest in Peace
“You used to live up north, near Klamath,” Julia said. “That’s where your family was from.”
Gabriel had heard her coming, of course. No one ever snuck up on him anymore. He was starting to get like Reeves.
“The accident happened on Highway One,” she continued. “Just north of Jenner.”
“Did the shadowfriends do it?” he said. “Did they kill my parents?”
“I don’t think so. We’ve looked into the accident and there doesn’t seem to be any sort of foul play.”
Gabriel sank to his knees in front of the marble gravestone, and tears burned at his eyes. “Why?” he said. “What happened to them?”
“They lost control of the car,” Julia said. “It was late, and it was storming. They went off the road. You weren’t with them, so they were probably on some sort of business trip. Your parents worked for a military contractor. They were scientists.”
Gabriel tried to imagine them as scientists, dressed in long white jackets and carrying clipboards. He couldn’t even remember what their faces looked like. How could he forget what his parents looked like? Suddenly he wished he’d died with them.
He bent forward and started punching the ground furiously. The dry earth resisted, tearing the skin on his knuckles, but Gabriel didn’t notice. He just kept punching, even as his skin broke open and he started to bleed. The pain was nothing compared to what he felt inside. Suddenly all he wanted to do was die. Why couldn’t they have just taken him with them, so he could have died too? Why couldn’t he have been in the car?
Julia bent down and took him in her arms. “Shh, stop that,” she said. “It won’t do any good to hurt yourself like that.”
Gabriel struggled for a second, but she wouldn’t let him go. He gave in to her embrace, and started bawling. He didn’t want to, but he couldn’t help himself. He felt like a stupid little kid, but it just started pouring out, and he couldn’t stop it.
Julia held him close, rocking him like a small child in her arms, and Gabriel felt his pain slipping away. His hopes and fears all crashed down, and dissipated in the bitter tears that fell to his parents’ grave.
After a while, Gabriel started to feel like himself again. For some reason, the pain seemed to have lessened. He rose to his feet and wiped the tears from his cheeks with the sleeve of his shirt. “Do I have grandparents? Other family?”
“Not that I can find,” said Julia. “Your parents were rather old when you were born. Your grandparents had already died by then, and your parents didn’t have any brothers or sisters. It looks like Reeves and I are your family now.”
As Gabriel looked down at the cold marble stone, he couldn’t help but feel angry. He wanted to blame the shadowfriends, because he wanted someone to take out his vengeance on. It just didn’t work that way. There was no one to blame, just a stupid accident. Just a stupid car crash. He couldn’t punch someone and feel better. That wasn’t going to work. He was just going to have to deal with it.
Maybe he would get used to that empty feeling inside. Maybe some day, it would go away. Then again, he wasn’t sure he wanted it to. The pain he had inside was all he had left of his family.
Julia left him there for a while, to say his goodbyes.
When they got home, Gabriel threw himself into his chores. It seemed to be the only way to get his mind off things. So much had happened in the time that he’d lived with Julia, it seemed almost impossible to digest it all. This latest revelation about his parents had been especially upsetting. His dreams of being reunited with his family were crushed, and he felt himself sinking i
nto depression.
He started by pruning all the hedges around the mansion. When that was done, he cleaned out the stalls in the barn. It was eight o’clock when Reeves found Gabriel polishing the saddles with an oiled rag. Gabriel heard him coming, but he didn’t glance up.
“You missed dinner,” Reeves said.
“I know. I’m not really hungry.”
“I understand. I know what it feels like to lose people close to you.”
Gabriel nodded. “The strange thing is, I didn’t really even know them. I hardly remember anything about them. I just had all these ideas about what they were like. I thought someday… I just thought I’d get to know them again.” Gabriel felt tears rising, and he forced them back. He didn’t want to cry in front of Reeves.
“I understand,” said Reeves. “I’ll leave if you want to be alone. I did come out here to tell you something though.”
There was something in Reeves’ voice that made Gabriel glance up. “What’s that?”
“We’ve found Pete’s parents. More or less. They’re being held hostage by shadowfriends. We’ve received a ransom notice. Guess the Shadow is trying to recoup some of its losses.”
Gabriel stopped working, and his mind began to race. Pete’s parents… They’d missed most of his childhood, and it seemed like they really didn’t even care about him. All those months, they hadn’t even called him. Yet, through all of that, Gabriel knew Pete couldn’t help but love them. Now they were in danger. How was that going to affect his friend?
“Does he know?”
“Yes. He’s pretty upset. I know its not very good timing, and if you say “no” I’ll understand, but I still have to ask… Are you ready to be a hero?”
Shadow Born Page 21