The Traveler's Quest (The Traveler Series 2)

by L. Eira

  Future Ellie resumed. “I’ve come to join you in 2013, and I’m hoping you’ll get this message. In case this message is being monitored, I’ll be cryptic. I’ll meet you where we had our first official date. The place we had our first dinner alone. Let’s meet there at that same time and on that same day. Together, we have a better chance to stop this world war from ever starting. Hopefully we can save Earth from self-destruction. We don’t have much time!”

  And just like that, the woman and the virtual screen were gone.

  The teens exchanged puzzled looks.

  “This loop keeps repeating,” said Zack. “It’s configured for Uncle Brent’s handheld. But since it was destroyed—”

  “We have to locate Ellie from the future,” said Mackenzie. “She’s here. This time period.” Mackenzie looked at Ellie and Brent. “Sometime in the near future, you two go out to dinner together. When and where would you go on your first date?”

  Brent and Ellie shrugged their shoulders and looked at one another, and then their gazes returned to Mackenzie.

  “Where’s your favorite restaurant?” asked Zack.

  “No idea,” said Brent.

  “We’ve just been the best of friends,” said Ellie. “I’ll speak for myself, but Brent and William have been more like brothers than boyfriends to me.”

  “OK,” said Zack. “Both of you think about it. We need to know…if you went on a date, where would it be?”

  “Aunt Ellie may be the key to this whole ordeal,” said Mackenzie. “The key to saving the world.”

  “Let’s hide the capsule,” said Zack. He reactivated the gravify and pushed the boulder back into its original place. “Let’s go.”

  Guided by the brilliant output from the small gadget Zack clasped, the group walked toward the cave’s entrance.

  As they approached the cavern’s mouth, William tripped and fell face first on the ground. Zack directed the light source at him. To the right of William’s head, there was a flat rock almost completely covered with dirt.

  “What’s this?” said William. “Shine the light on this rock.”

  “Hey, there’s some writing on it,” said Zack. “Numbers and circles.”

  Ellie approached. “Shine the light here.”

  Zack pointed to a large boulder slab low to the ground.

  “It looks like your handwriting, Ellie,” said Brent.

  “It is!” said Ellie. “I’m sure of it, but I don’t remember ever writing this at all.”

  There was a circle labeled “Earth” and another “Moon,” with an arrow from one circle to the other. Numbers were written below the arrow.

  “What do these numbers mean?” said Brent. “It says, ‘One hundred and thirty-five years.’”

  “Beats me,” said Ellie. She shrugged one shoulder. “I have no idea.”

  Suddenly, a loud piercing noise from the entrance echoed into the cave.

  “We have company again,” Brent said.

  Zack immediately produced the small square gadget from his pocket and analyzed its display.

  “Why didn’t the alarm go off earlier?” asked Mackenzie.

  “Don’t know,” said Zack. “The intruder must have been inside the perimeter the whole time. He’s not crossed the limit lines.” Zack vigorously punched some buttons on the screen. “About fifty-eight kilos. One man.” He looked at Brent, William, and Ellie.

  “Can you tell if he has any weapons on him?” said Brent.

  “Not the weapons of today,” said Zack. “We must leave this cave at once, or we’ll be trapped in here if they barricade the entry.”

  “How long?” said Mackenzie.

  “Not long,” said Zack, studying the handheld device. “He’s almost right outside the entrance. Run!”

  CHAPTER FIFTEEN

  Harvey trekked further into the forest, following the path surrounded by trees and bushes. He saw the cops enter the cave and search it for hours as he hid behind some bushes, the AK-47 machine gun on his lap. He sympathized with the police officers. He too felt the grief of personal loss and lamented the needless taking of life by these hoodlums. The officers had turned the scene upside down, collecting clues from the cave and surrounding area. He had remained unseen, veiled by the foliage. Then the cops left, and the kids reentered the cavern.

  Harvey pondered what to do for a long moment, his focus on the cave’s mouth. I would call nine one one if I could. No signal. I can walk away to get a signal, and then call nine one one. His musings continued. But if I do, the kids could escape. He caressed the AK-47. But I do have you. He grasped the machine gun and peeked through its sights, as he’d seen brave soldiers and men of valor do on TV and in the movies. If I bring these criminals to the police, everybody will know that I’m worth something.

  He made up his mind. He would do something. And be somebody.

  He waited an eternity, but now the time for action arrived as he heard voices echoing faintly from out of the grotto. Armed with the machine gun, Harvey felt invincible as he sauntered through the large clearing right outside the cavern. He stopped suddenly, readied his weapon, and planted his feet firmly on the ground as he noticed the teenagers rushing out of the cave.

  Patient McCloud was lying prone on the cardiac-catheterization laboratory table, ready for his procedure.

  In the background, Dr. Rovine barely heard the distant voice of a familiar nurse.

  “How’s the chest pain now?” Emily asked the patient.

  “Pretty bad,” the patient replied in a somewhat distorted voice. “Nine out of ten.”

  “I’m going to put a nitroglycerin tablet under your tongue…” Emily said, the sound of her voice dissolving into nothingness.

  My Valerie is dead, ruminated Dr. Rovine, his thoughts in a dreamlike state. And so is Officer Tomlinson. His eyes became slightly moist with the emergence of unshed tears. After I administered Enoxadin. Did I kill him? Was it my Enoxadin or his heart attack that did him in? Dr. Rovine was perspiring heavily. His own heart thumped inside his chest, and his stomach revolted. Is this my gut telling me I shouldn’t be doing this? He swallowed hard. What if Enoxadin…He shook his head. I’m a scientist, dammit. And right now, the science proves nothing. Enoxadin research must—

  “Dr. Rovine,” said Emily, her voice distant. “Are you OK?” Her words seemed closer. “Dr. Rovine, are you OK?” Her questions catapulted him back into the moment.

  “Yes, I’m fine, Emily,” said Dr. Rovine. “Give me the cardiac needle.” He took a deep breath, and, just like that, his head was back in the game. “Let’s begin.”

  “Hold it right there, or I’ll shoot,” a young man with red hair said while holding a menacing-looking machine gun.

  “Don’t do that,” said Ellie. “We’re just high-school kids on a camping trip. My name is Ellie. This is Brent and William. What’s your name?”

  “Harvey,” said the stranger. He straightened his stance. “Why did you kill my friend Doug? And the cops?”

  “No, we didn’t kill him,” said William. “They’re just in a coma. They’ll be fine when they wake up. They should be awake by now. If not yet, they’ll wake up soon. These two can explain it better than…” He looked back, his eyes searching for Zack and Mackenzie. He looked all around. Then his gaze met Ellie’s and Brent’s. Both returned shrugs.

  “I know there’s five of you kids,” said Harvey, the business end of the machine gun waving in the teenagers’ direction. “Where are the other two?”

  “We don’t know,” said Brent. “They were right behind us in the cave.”

  Harvey swallowed hard, his jaw clenching. “Why did you have to kill my friend?”

  “We told you, he’s not—” began Ellie.

  “I don’t believe you!” interrupted Harvey, his voice an octave higher.

  “Look,” said William. “Your friend was chasing us with a gun like that one.” He pointed at Harvey’s weapon.

  “It was this one,” said Harvey. “Why was he trying to kill you?
Did you have something to do with Valerie’s death?”

  “He thought so,” said William. “But no. I never saw her before.”

  “Bullshit,” said Harvey. “I saw the two of you with Valerie at Memorial Hospital this weekend.”

  “We never saw you before,” said Brent. “And no, we weren’t at the hospital this weekend. We went camping and—”

  “I was with the football players that needed their physical forms filled out,” Harvey said with an air of importance. “I’m the team’s director. Some of the guys ran after you two.” He pointed to William and Brent. “But they didn’t catch up to you, or they would have beat you up bad.” Harvey took a half step forward, his gaze on William. “You were making googly eyes at Valerie, and she was Doug’s girl.” He gripped the AK-47 more tightly. “And you killed him. If Doug was after you, I’m sure you killed her too.”

  “You have this all wrong,” said Ellie. “We’re high schoolers, just like you. We’re not killers. We—”

  “Shut up,” Harvey yelled. “I need to think.” He took a deep breath. “I’m taking you to the police.” Harvey took two steps back, and, out of the corner of his eye, he noticed two figures approaching fast from behind. Reflexively, he swung his body around, bringing with him the barrel of the AK-47. Without even thinking about it, his trigger finger squeezed, and a barrage of bullets squirted out. It seemed to occur in slow motion, but the whole thing was over in less than three seconds. Ellie screamed. Brent and William gasped. Zack’s body twisted vigorously to the right as two bullets entered his abdomen. Mackenzie fell backward, blood gushing in spurts from the side of her belly.

  Brent, William, Ellie, and Harvey dropped to the ground, paralyzed and unconscious. When Mackenzie hit the dirt, her hand still gripped the gadget that had blasted them.

  The forest was quiet. A muffled sound reverberated from deep inside the woods. Softly. Faintly. It was a high-pitched shriek. Scratchy. Koo eeky…koo eeky…koo eeky.

  Standing on a large rock, about six feet off the ground, a little albino girl dressed in a red dress with white socks to midcalf and black shoes watched unemotionally. She stood still. She slowly scanned the clearing outside the entrance of the cave, her gaze scrutinizing each of the fallen bodies for a long moment, one by one.

  CHAPTER SIXTEEN

  The tension in the cardiac-catheterization lab was at its highest as the crew battled the second cardiac arrest of the day. Never before had consecutive patients crashed on the table. McCloud was becoming another statistic. Nothing they did benefited his heart.

  “No response,” yelled a nurse.

  “Still in flatline,” said another. “No cardiac activity.”

  “He had a massive heart attack,” said Dr. Rovine. “All his arteries shut down completely. But why?” He gawked at the heart monitor, willing it to demonstrate a heartbeat. “I’ve never seen this before. This rapid acceleration of atherosclerosis.”

  Resuscitative efforts continued for several more moments. By then, it became crystal clear that nothing else could be done to save Jacob McCloud.

  “Do you think Enoxadin caused the deterioration we saw in the two heart-attack patients today?” said Emily.

  “I don’t know,” said Dr. Rovine. “Both patients had single-vessel coronary artery disease as the cause for their heart attacks. But…” His words trailed off with a deep sigh, the cardiologist fading into deep deliberation and depression.

  The emergency room doors opened automatically to allow entrance to the paramedics pushing three stretchers from the ambulance bay.

  “Found these three unconscious,” said one of the medics. “Two cops and a teenager.”

  “Drugs?” asked the receiving nurse.

  “Don’t think so,” said the medic. “Lieutenant Sparks vouches for these two—Police Officers Rogers and Kaiser. He says no way they’re involved with drugs. The kid, maybe.”

  “Put them in the trauma room. I’ll get Dr. Rizzo stat.”

  The EMS crew wheeled the patients into the large area and transferred the comatose, lifeless bodies onto the hospital beds.

  Dr. Rizzo and two ER nurses came in as the medics departed.

  “Get routine labs plus drug screen. Check urine and blood,” he ordered. “Make those orders stat!”

  “On it,” said one of the nurses.

  “Doc,” said Sparks, walking toward the ER physician. “Were you here this weekend when several people we thought were dead turned out just to be in deep comas?”

  “Yeah, what about it?”

  “I think these people are also in deep comas, like the others,” said Sparks.

  “Very well might be,” said Dr. Rizzo. “Let me check them over. I’ll let you know what I find.”

  Sparks nodded.

  “I can tell you right now that if not in deep comas, they’re all in deep trouble and probably won’t leave here alive. It looks pretty bad!” With these words, Dr. Rizzo disappeared into the trauma room.

  State Patrol Officers Brenna Brock and Cooper Standish exited their vehicle and walked across the parking lot into the emergency room.

  “It’s only a cold, Coop,” said Brock. “The sneezes, the sniffles, and a little fever. Big deal.”

  “You’re right. It’s not a big deal. I’ll get my sister to give us some magic pills, and we’ll get right back on patrol.”

  “Why can’t we just go to the pharmacy and get something over-the-counter?”

  “We may need an antibiotic or something stronger than we can get at the pharmacy without a prescription,” said Standish. “Besides, what she gives us is free. Why pay when you can get it for free?”

  “Cheapskate.”

  The two sauntered into the large area adjacent to the emergency room. Brook expelled a gigantic sneeze, drawing the attention of everyone sitting in the waiting room. Standish averted a sneeze as he looked through a large glass window and scanned the area beyond the triage area. His gaze connected with the main nurse’s, and she waved. She pointed to a door in the far left of the area. He walked toward it, followed by his partner.

  “Hey, Peggy,” Standish said. You met my partner, Brenna.”

  The two women shook hands.

  “So, you were on that cave raid this weekend too, huh?” Peggy asked.

  “Yes, and for our troubles, your brother and I got a cold.”

  “Just about everybody who was on that raid did,” said Peggy. “Very contagious. What are your symptoms? I’ll get you all fixed up.”

  Brock sneezed, and then smirked. “Sneezing like crazy.” She sneezed again, and then Standish did.

  “You two look pitiful,” said Peggy. “But I can help. Go wait in the waiting room, and I’ll be right there with a strong decongestant. You won’t need antibiotics. This is only a virus.”

  “Thanks, sis,” said Standish. “I owe you one.”

  “One million,” she said. “You can pay me by getting rid of my parking tickets. I have another one for you.”

  “Peggy…”

  She was gone. Out of sight. The two officers retreated back to the triage room and sat down.

  In no time, they returned to their patrol car as an ambulance pulled into the bay outside the ER. The doors opened rapidly and a medic came out.

  “Hey, Wayne,” said Brock. “What’s going on?”

  “Heart attack,” said the medic. “Call me later.”

  The patient was stretchered out of the ambulance. He was in his fifties, his right hand flat on his chest. His face was red and his forehead covered with heavy perspiration. His shirt was soaking wet.

  “Hang in there, Mr. Yellog,” said Wayne. “You’re in luck. Dr. Rovine is the best, and he’s on call for cardiology today. He’ll fix you up in no time.”

  Hastily, the group disappeared into the ER entrance.

  CHAPTER SEVENTEEN

  It was morning. Ellie, William, and Brent remained unconscious on the ground, their lifeless bodies surrounded by trees and bushes. All around them birds vied for
song and flight, their chirps adding peace and harmony to the teenagers’ dreams.

  William was awakened by the strangest of sounds arising from deep in the woods. It was unfamiliar. A screech of sorts. Koo eeky…koo eeky. The high-pitched hum ceased, and William’s attention was drawn back to the happy chirping of birds. Then again: Koo eeky. He questioned whether he had really heard anything at all. It was distant. Barely there, if at all.

  Intrigued, William sat up slowly and looked around the clearing. His breathing quickened. Ellie and Brent were still down. He crawled to their side, his muscles still numb and unyielding. They were both warm and breathing. Good signs. No signs of injury. Great sign.

  And then, she was there. He tensed involuntarily, startled by her presence. The little albino girl just stood there. Quiet. Undemonstrative.

  “I’ve seen you before,” said William. “What’s your name?”

  “I am called Alexandra,” said the child, her words more mature and composed than expected of a youngster of around four. Her light-gray hair and red dress swayed with the passing wind, but she remained still.

  “Why are you here?” said William. “Are you lost? Where are your parents?”

  She pointed to the sky, her little index finger remaining heavenward. William squinted.

  “Are they dead?” he said. “In heaven?”

  No answer. The digit still pointed up.

  “My friends are hurt.” William pointed to Brent and Ellie. “When they get better, we’ll take you to town and get you some help, OK?”

  Alexandra’s right hand returned to her side, but her face and her body language, added nothing.

  William kneeled down next to his friends. Alexandra remained standing, her gaze on William’s every move.

  “Global war,” said Alexandra. “Planetary destruction. Universe unbalanced.”

  “What?” said William, his attention piqued. “What did you say?”

  “Global war. Planetary destruction. Universe unbalanced.”

  William stood up and stared at her. “What does that mean?”